The American Soldier Collection 8: She Loves Me, She Loves Me Not (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting)

by Dixie Lynn Dwyer

  “I remember her. She was a regular.”

  “A regular?” Vin asked.

  “Detective Elloy, is it? She was a woman who frequented many upscale parties in search of landing a wealthy man. All I can tell you from conversations we’ve had in the past was that she was working her way through school and trying to establish a modeling career to boot,” Luke told them.

  “Are you saying that she was prostituting herself?” Justice asked but then kept his eye on Renaldo who seemed pompous and disrespectful.

  Luke chuckled and raised his hands palms forward. “A lot of women become obsessed with money, and like I said, landing a wealthy man. She’s one of many. I’m sorry that I can’t be of more assistance.”

  “Sure you are,” Justice added, giving Luke the dirtiest look Vin had ever seen him give someone.

  “What is that supposed to mean?” Luke asked.

  “Nothing. Here’s my card. If you think of anything else, please don’t hesitate to call me. It could help us find her killer,” Vin stated as Luke took the car and stared at Justice.

  “Prostitute or not, murder is a crime, and the killer will be caught and brought to justice. I’m certain that the two of you upstanding citizens would like to be part of solving that crime,” Justice said. He smiled and winked and then walked away. Vin followed.

  “Holy shit, partner, I don’t think I have ever seen you give the looks you were giving that Sentinel guy.”

  Justice remained silent as they headed out of the place.

  “Was it how much of a pompous asshole he was being along with Phillips, or the fact that he had his hands on your woman?” Vin asked.

  Justice gave him a look, but as they headed toward the valet, they both saw Ellie getting into her car.

  Justice hurried over as Vin walked to get their car.

  * * * *

  Ellie didn’t know why she felt guilty and nervous or why she told the valet four times to get someone else’s car so she could wait for Justice. A series of thoughts went through her head. Were Luke and Renaldo involved in some sort of illegal activity? Was Justice angry with her for being there with them? But none of it seemed to affect her more than thoughts of whether or not Justice found her attractive or was jealous seeing her with two other men. Not that anything was going on, but by his and Vin’s expression, it sure did seem to look that way.

  She couldn’t wait any longer without seeming like a woman with a crush on the sexy detective. Even his gun and badge on his waist aroused her. How silly. The fact that Justice was even involved in law enforcement should make her weary and stay clear. Paul was a correctional officer. He carried a gun. Hell, he used it to assault her that night. She felt the tears sting her eyes, and she swallowed hard as she got into her car.

  “Ellie.”

  She heard Justice’s voice as she closed the door. She pressed the automatic button to roll down the window. He leaned on the doorframe and looked into her eyes and then over the cleavage of her dress.

  “Yes?”

  “Can you follow us out of here? It’s important.

  She nodded and he stared at her a moment as if he wanted to say something and then didn’t. He walked away and she pulled out onto the main road and drove slowly until Vin passed her. She followed them about a mile or so toward another shopping center and into the back parking lot.

  It was warm out. About eighty degrees as she exited the car.

  Vin and Luke walked over. Vin smiled and then looked at Justice who seemed pissed off.

  “How do you know Luke Phillips and Renaldo Sentinel?”

  “Business.”

  “What kind of business?” he asked, looking her over. His expression seemed guarded, yet his eyes showed his upset.

  “You seem agitated at me. I don’t understand why. Did I do something wrong?”

  “You tell me. We’re investigating the murder of a young woman. Phillips was one of the last people to be seen with her. He said she was a high-priced prostitute trying to land a wealthy man.”

  Once again she shot from the hip, and was immediately offended.

  “And what? You think I’m a high-class hooker who just finished servicing Phillips and Renaldo?” She raised her voice on the last syllable and Vin jumped in.

  “No. Of course not. That’s not what my partner is insinuating, honey.” Vin placed his hand on Ellie’s shoulder and she stared up into Vin’s eyes.

  “Well, what is your partner insinuating then?” She looked toward Justice, who ran his hand through his wavy blond hair. His blue eyes looked fierce.

  “What kind of business are you doing with them?” Vin asked.

  She explained about her company, about the designing, and about the new project as she reached into her car and pulled out her iPad. She showed Vin the pictures.

  “You have to work with those men for how long?” Justice asked, sounding pissed off.

  “I don’t know. However long it takes. Why? Do you think they’re involved with this murder? You think they killed this woman?” she asked, suddenly feeling very scared and nervous. She crossed her arms in front of her chest and looked from Vin to Justice.

  Justice stepped forward and placed his hand on her left hip. He stared down into her eyes. “I’m sorry that I got angry with you. I’m just concerned. We don’t know how involved these two men are in this. It’s not your concern. As of right now, they’re not suspects, we were just questioning them as a lead in the case.”

  He reached toward her face and cupped her cheek as Vin walked back toward his car. She looked toward him but Justice used his thumb to caress her chin, and she looked back up toward him, uncrossing her arms.

  “When I saw you in there with them, it pissed me off. My brothers and I were kind of hoping to get to know you better.”

  “Justice, I told you that I don’t date.”

  “Why is that?”

  She looked down and he used his thumb to draw her attention back toward him. She stared at his handsome face, his firm lips and couldn’t help but feel the attraction.

  “I can’t explain it, but I just don’t jump into dating men.”

  He stared at her and then smiled, moving his hand further behind her and against her lower back. He drew her against his chest and she placed her palms against his chest.

  “You look gorgeous in red. The color suits you.”

  “Thank you.”

  He stared at her and he was so intimidating, so charismatic that she faltered under his perusal.

  “Perhaps we can take things slowly, and maybe become friends first? Then, if the attraction is shared, we can take the next step. What do you say?”

  “Justice, I don’t know.” She started to continue to deny his idea but then he raised one eyebrow up at her in such a sexy way, she found herself smiling.

  “Okay. But no promises. I’m really not ready to date again.”

  “Ah, sounds like a bad experience may have had something to do with this crazy idea of never dating again.”

  “Maybe, but it has nothing to do with being crazy and everything to do with being cautious.”

  He squinted his eyes at her and she hoped he didn’t push for more details.

  “Okay. Now, I want you to be careful around Phillips and Sentinel. If they ask if you know Vin and I, say yes, that we’re friends. It’s a small world. But don’t ask them anything about the woman. This is a police investigation, understand?” His tone, so firm and authoritative, was sexy just like the rest of him.

  “Yes, Detective Lawson.”

  He released her, but not before letting his hand slide over the top of her ass. She couldn’t help but wonder if that were his way of compensating for the fact that Renaldo did the same thing and that had pissed Justice off.

  She waved to Vin who waved back, and then she got into her car and headed toward home, hoping that her two bosses weren’t murderers, and that Justice wasn’t anything like Paul.

  Chapter 4

  It was Wednesday afternoon and Ell
ie stopped by one of the local delis to grab a salad with grilled chicken. She was starving, after her meeting at the art gallery went on two hours past schedule. Some of these art fanatics could be so temperamental. However, money could influence even the stingiest of sellers, and Renaldo had money. He wanted one particular painting that went for five hundred thousand dollars. She had to admit that the people at the gallery were difficult to work with. When her boss asked her to step in and negotiate the deal after another employee failed, she hesitated, feeling that it wasn’t part of her job. But if she realized anything working with her boss, he was a man of action and expected results.

  As she opened the door and stepped in line, she glanced around the deli, debating about sitting or taking her order to go. That was when she locked gazes with Mace Lawson.

  He waved at her and she waved back just as the cashier asked to help her. She ordered her salad and a homemade sweet tea to go. After getting her meal and paying for it, she started to head out when the door opened and Seno walked in.

  His eyes widened in surprise and he looked authentically happy to see her.

  “Hey, Ellie, how are you?” he asked.

  “Over here!” they heard someone call out. Seno took her arm, and they headed toward the table where Mace was. Mace stood up and greeted her with a kiss to her cheek, and damn she was feeling some seriously crazy things. She was instantly attracted to both men, and had that same feeling of desire she had for Justice.

  “Late lunch?” Seno asked as he held out a chair for her.

  “Yes. I really should head back to the office. My meeting went too long.”

  “Oh, stay and have lunch with us. We were both stuck working past lunchtime, too,” Mace stated.

  He gave her a smile and she shrugged her shoulders as she started opening up her to-go container. As she reached for her plasticware, one of the cashiers brought over Seno’s and Mace’s hero sandwiches.

  “Hello, Mace. It’s nice to see you again.” She licked her lower lip and gave him a sexy smile.

  Ellie widened her eyes and focused on her salad.

  “How’s your boyfriend Duke?” Mace replied, taking his seat and staring at the woman. She shrugged her shoulders and then looked at Ellie.

  “That outfit is gorgeous.”

  “Thank you,” Ellie replied.

  “I agree, you look beautiful,” Mace stated, staring at her, and the cashier walked away.

  She stuck her fork into a piece of chicken without letting her eyes leave Mace’s ocean blue ones.

  “Glad to have helped you out of that situation,” she whispered.

  “What situation would that be?” he asked, as he unwrapped his hero.

  “The young cashier with a crush on the older, attractive male and his similarly strikingly handsome brother.”

  “You find me attractive?” Mace asked, holding her gaze.

  “And me strikingly handsome?” Seno asked.

  She shook her head and laughed then began to eat. Her phone started ringing, and glancing at the caller ID, she saw that it was Renaldo.

  She looked around to see if she could get up to take a call but the place was crowded.

  “I’m sorry, I need to answer this.” She placed the phone to her ear. “Hello?”

  “Hey, gorgeous, how did the gallery situation pan out?” Renaldo asked. He was speaking loudly and she was certain that both Seno and Mace could hear him.

  “Everything is set.”

  “Fantastic. I owe you for taking care of this so professionally and smoothly. Dinner tonight, at Redalphos’s?”

  She pulled her bottom lip between her teeth.

  “Dinner isn’t necessary, Renaldo.”

  “Oh please, I insist. It’s been a successful first week, only Wednesday and you’ve accomplished so much. I can have a car pick you up at your place or at work.”

  “I’m running kind of late. As a matter of fact, I’m just having lunch, and then I have a lot to accomplish for the builders by Friday. So dinner really can’t happen tonight. I probably won’t even be able to leave the office until late.”

  “I’m disappointed but impressed with your commitment. We’ll make plans for Friday or the weekend. I need to go. Thank you again.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  She pulled the phone away and placed it onto the table. Both Mace and Seno were staring at her.

  “Who’s Renaldo?” Mace asked. She thought for sure that Justice would mention him but then why would he? She’d made it clear to Justice that she wouldn’t date him or his brothers right now. Besides that, it was a police investigation and she was certain they had confidentiality clauses.

  “That’s someone I work with.”

  “Declining dinner at Redalpho’s? I hear that place serves a mean chicken Parmesan,” Seno stated.

  “It is a nice place, but I really have a lot to do at work. I’ll probably be there late.”

  “You should be careful. Is there security that can walk you out to your car?”

  “No, but there is security inside the building and they have cameras on the outside. I’ll try to park closer to the building as precaution.”

  “Good. So how about those self-defense classes? Are you, Moira, and your other roommates going to sign up for some?” Mace asked.

  “To be honest, I don’t think I’ll have much downtime to do any. Even on nights that I’m not late coming home, it may be closer to eight o’clock and the sessions take place earlier.”

  “We can help you. Seno and I, and Hunter, too. We have access to the gym by the track and indoor dome,” Mace told her.

  “That’s okay. You don’t need to do that.”

  “Hey, if it means spending more time with you, and letting you get to know us, I’m in,” Seno added.

  “Hey, seriously. Think about it. We can start next week if this week is so crazy,” Mace told her.

  “Okay. I’ll think about it. Thank you.”

  Her phone started buzzing and she glanced at it. “Work. I guess I should just take this back to the office. It was nice seeing you both again. Tell Hunter and Justice that I said hello.” She wasn’t sure why she said it, and as she did, her cheeks felt warm and her heart light. She smiled at Mace and Seno as they stood, each gave her a kiss on the cheek good-bye, and then she left.

  It was crazy, but she felt very comfortable with them, too. If she could just slightly peel down the wall enough to entertain this attraction, maybe it would be okay. Maybe she would be okay, instead of feeling so timid and unsure. She walked to her car, as her cell phone went off again. Work, work, work. She wouldn’t have time for a personal life right now even if she had one.

  * * * *

  “So you saw her at the deli, and had lunch with her? What did she have to say?” Justice asked Seno and Mace as Hunter and he sat in the living room.

  “Who did you say called her?” Justice asked. When they told him about the guy Renaldo, he cursed. He couldn’t help it. He didn’t care for him or that Phillips guy one bit. They were rich assholes, who could care less about the dead girl.

  “What? Do you know the guy?” Mace asked. Justice explained how they had met and about the case.

  “And you’re letting her work for this guy and his partner? What if they try something with her or hurt her?” Hunter asked.

  “I don’t think this guy had anything to do with the murder. He has an alibi for the time of death and her disappearance. It doesn’t conflict with the coroner’s report of the time of death and circumstances.”

  “Great, and she’s working late tonight and there’s no security outside in the parking lot,” Mace told them.

  He explained about their conversation.

  “One of us should go over there and be sure she’s okay,” Seno suggested.

  “We can’t do that. We’re not her boyfriends, yet. It could scare her. She had a bad experience, I think, and that’s why she’s resistant to dating. I think she wants to be friends first and ease into a relationship.”
Justice told them about the short conversation.

  “So someone hurt her and she’s distrustful?” Hunter asked.

  “Seems that way. She’s really sweet though. I think she’s a good person but fears a repeat bad relationship. The only way to be sure is to get to know her and talk.”

  “I agree.”

  “Well, so does Sam. He has a plan,” Justice said and then explained it to his brothers.

  “Party at Sam’s and his brothers’ sounds like an awesome idea. There’s plenty to do there, including that swimming pool,” Seno stated.

  She’s really going to the race Saturday?” Hunter asked.

  “That’s what Moira told Sam,” Justice replied.

  Justice looked at Hunter, and he could see the concerned expression on his face.

  “What’s going on in that head of yours, bro?”

  “Nothing,” Hunter replied and then stood up, stretching his leg. He wasn’t wearing a prosthetic device as he reached for the crutches he kept around and started to move toward the kitchen. Hunter was in great physical condition. He was always working out, competing in races, and even Spartan events. He was one of a few amputees that could finish one of those intense races. His brother didn’t let his loss of half his leg from the knee down stand in the way of anything he wanted. However, since meeting Ellie, Hunter seemed discouraged.

  “You know she likes you, don’t you, Hunter?” Seno asked before Justice could.

  Hunter looked back toward them and stared at all three of them.

  “I don’t need sympathy,” he replied.

  “Sympathy? You seriously think Ellie feels sympathetic toward you and nothing more? She hardly batted an eye at your leg,” Mace stated.

  “She did more than bat her eye. She stood up for me as if I were disabled and unable to fight my own fight. She also turned us down as a whole because I’m not whole. It’s the same ole, same ole. I’m sick and tired of it. You guys move on and be happy. It’s all I really want in this world anymore.”

  “Absolutely not. I can’t believe this shit is coming out of your mouth, Hunter. You, the man who doesn’t back down from anything, is telling me that you’re giving up on our dream? You’re no longer interested in sharing one woman and completing this family? Ellie is the first woman to come along who we all are attracted to and are willing to take our time getting to know,” Justice said to Hunter.