by Jo Leigh
He opened his mouth to tell her how much he liked her style, when his foot caught on some damn thing and he nearly fell flat on his face. The wild gyrations of his arms kept him upright. The sound of Kate’s laughter got him moving again.
“Smooth move, Grace,” she said, as he caught up to her.
“You think that’s funny, huh?”
“What do you do for an encore?”
“Catch me and find out.” With that, he was off. No more of that sissy jogging. He ran, hard, fast, and with a purpose. She didn’t have to know that he needed some privacy. That if she were to look down at the front of his gym shorts, she would see that his little stumble had done nothing to quell his reaction to her.
He’d reached the street corner and turned, heading toward the beach. It was only a few blocks away and he felt the need to hear the ocean and feel the spray. She could take her entourage on whatever route they usually followed. He’d meet her back at the center when he’d cooled down.
The light was green at the next corner so he pushed himself to move faster, to feel the strain in his legs. He regulated his strides and took slow, deep breaths. When he reached the next corner, he felt in control enough to ease back. Only one more block to the beach.
He hit his rhythm. Not full-out running, but close. He used to run regularly at home, at a nearby high school. It was a ritual he’d come to enjoy, but after Nick left town, he didn’t get down to the track much. The gym either, for that matter. Damn, where had the months gone? He let the guilt go and turned his thoughts to Kate.
What had he been trying to prove back there, in her office? He had been coming on to her, she’d been right about that. It had started off as a kind of test, a lark, to see what she’d do. Everything had gone according to plan, until the moment she’d touched his chest.
There was no explanation for it, but he could swear he still felt her fingers trailing light as a feather down the front of his shirt. The whole way to the motel, he’d thought about it. He’d even rubbed the spot, just to get rid of the phantom sensation, but it hadn’t worked. The entire time he’d talked to the desk clerk, he’d kept picturing Kate’s eyes. The fear, followed by the flash of desire that had flared then vanished without a trace.
He reached the edge of the pier and took his speed down another notch. He was breathing harder now and once he got on the sand he would need the energy.
He went down the long flight of concrete steps, taking in the familiar view. The old place looked just the same, down to the graffiti on the pilings. How many times had he taken girls here, under the wooden walkway, and kissed them till the world tilted sideways?
His meanderings were interrupted by the sound of running feet behind him. When he hit the sand, he turned his head to see who was coming so quickly and he nearly fell down when he saw it was Kate! What the hell?
She hit the sand at a run and shot past him like a bullet. He’d left her in his tracks two miles ago. Had she caught a cab? He looked back once again. No kids. Had she ditched them, like he’d ditched her? Picking up his pace, he followed Kate right down to the breakwater.
Man, she was moving. He could feel his heart thumping in his chest, his throat burn with each intake of oxygen. She was still several yards ahead of him and she didn’t appear to be straining any important muscles. At least not from this angle.
She’d have to slow down soon, he thought. No way she was going to keep up this pace. He was starting to hurt now and he pressed his side with his palm to ease the beginnings of a stitch. If he had any brains at all, he’d ease up. But he’d rather have a stroke than let up before she did. Only she never did.
Going back to the sidewalk through the soft sand was pure torture. His calf muscles burned, his thighs, well they just plain screamed for mercy. Still, she didn’t slow down.
Thankfully they reached the sidewalk and he was positive she was going to stop. But no, she crossed the street and kept on going. Damn it all to hell, she didn’t even look back. Which was a good thing, because he didn’t want her to witness his actual death.
He stopped. There was no choice. He gasped for air like a fish out of water, each oxygen molecule burning his throat all the way down to his lungs. His side pulsed with pain and his legs trembled. If he could have spoken, he would have cussed a blue streak.
Bent double, massaging his thighs with his thumbs, he didn’t hear the kids until they were on top of him. The whole pack, every one, passed him by. Their laughter was louder than his gasps and he raised a fist at their backs, but he had to drop it. He was in shape, damn it! No way he was going to let this happen.
He started in again. So what if he had a heart attack? It would be better than straggling back into the center. It wasn’t too hard to catch up and pass the kids, but he didn’t even see Kate.
Turning the final corner, trying to remember if he’d ever made out a will, he spotted her. She was a block and a half ahead. But not for long.
There was no energy left to have a single thought, let alone plan his race. He just ran. Pumping his arms, keeping his head low and streamlined, blocking everything from his view but one nicely shaped rear end, he jammed.
The rear end got closer. Closer. He kept his eyes on it, aware in some primitive part of his brain that although he was surely about to die, it would be all right if he could just keep looking at that derriere.
Then he looked up and saw they were almost at the center. Loath as he was to give up the view, he switched his gaze to the door. He ran full bore and God help anyone who got in his way.
She beat him.
He’d run with his whole heart and soul and the woman had passed him by. She crossed the threshold three full paces ahead of him. Oh, she was breathing hard, but who cared. She’d beat him.
He bent over, not sure if he was going to throw up or not. Kate stood next to him, doubled over herself, hands on her knees. He heard her gasps for breath over his own. Good, he hoped she’d pulled two hamstrings.
“I—” He took another breath. “I—” He swallowed and wiped his brow. A few more breaths, until the ability to speak returned. “I—really hate you.”
“Then—” She stopped, shook her head, shook her arms, leaned down again and turned to face him. “Then my work here is done.”
Damn if she didn’t get a smile out of him. Damn.
When her breathing became steady and normal, which took considerably longer than she’d liked, Kate retrieved her clipboard from the nail on the wall. She stared at the schedule, but her eyes didn’t focus. She was still too busy thinking about her sweet, sweet victory.
Sure it was childish. But that didn’t take away one iota of pleasure. The look on his face when she’d passed him at the pier was something she would treasure forever.
She was used to beating the boys. Hell, her five brothers had given her all the practice she needed. The basketball scholarship that had sent her through school was no token. She’d worked incredibly hard, taken her body and mind to the limit, until they’d won the national championships and she’d gotten her degree. But winning today’s race was nearly as satisfactory.
Detective Russo had just been taken down a mighty big peg. Maybe now he wouldn’t be so all-fired cocky. Nah. She shook her head. It would take a lot more than a footrace to knock the wind out of his sails. But she wasn’t going to let that spoil anything. At least he knew who he was messing with.
Next on the agenda was basketball. Although T.J. was slightly taller than she was, she knew he didn’t have her years of experience on the court. She could wipe the floor with him, if she chose.
He was still walking the perimeter of the room, working off his leg cramps. He’d been a real good sport about her win—for a guy, anyway. What the heck. She’d take it easy on him for the rest of the day. Let him get a little bit of his pride back.
“Kate?”
Peter was standing near her, looking at the front door.
“What’s up?”
“I heard a rumor that Danny Ar
cola was coming here, looking for trouble.”
“Great. When?”
“Don’t know. Look, I gotta get back to the muppets. I just wanted to warn you.”
“Thanks.” She searched the room until she found T.J. He was near the drinking fountain talking to Alice Dee. That meant trouble, right there.
Threading through the crowd, she realized she should have briefed T.J. on some of the more challenging kids, including Miss Hot Pants. It didn’t seem to matter how hard Kate tried, the girl was determined to get her self-worth from men. Any men.
As she neared, T.J. caught sight of her and raised his eyebrows. Then Alice said something else and he faced her again.
“... so boring. I mean, come on. High school boys? As if! I wouldn’t be caught dead with any of them. Not even Cody Stevens. He’s the football captain and everyone says he’s so cute, but I don’t think so. He’s totally immature. Not like you.”
“You’d be surprised how immature I am,” T.J. said with a perfectly straight face.
The girl giggled and flipped her hair back in an ancient and honored mating dance.
“Alice.”
At Kate’s word, Alice spun around. Her cheeks infused with pink and her gaze immediately shifted to her shoes. “Hi, Kate,” she said, her voice filled with guilt.
“Joanne is starting her knitting class in about five minutes. You’d better hurry if you want a seat.”
“Knitting? I don’t—” Alice looked up and saw Kate’s expression. “Oh, yeah,” she said, backing away. “I did want to go to that.” She turned and walked so quickly she bumped right into the famous Cody Stevens. “Oh, God,” she cried, putting her hands to her face.
“You okay?” the boy asked.
Alice shook her head and ran straight toward the rest room.
It served her right, Kate thought.
“Now, was that nice?” T.J. wasn’t smiling, although she heard the humor in his tone. “She was just trying to make me feel welcome.”
“She’s seventeen, Russo. In these parts, that means jail.”
“You shock me, Ms. Dugan.”
“I’ll bet.”
He grinned then and it was so good-natured that she had to grin back. Then she remembered why she’d come to get him. “Rumor has it that Danny Arcola is on his way here.”
“How nice for him.”
“This isn’t a joke. He can be hell on wheels.”
“I think I can handle it.”
“You have to do more than that. For six or seven hours a day, I know where Danny and his friends are going to be. Here. Which means they’re not out there. Get it?”
He nodded. “In other words, don’t chase him off?”
“Right. He’s safe here and the rest of the city is safe too. I’d like to keep it that way.”
“Whatever you say, Red.”
“Quit calling me that. The name is Kate. It only has one syllable, so it shouldn’t be too hard for you.”
“You flatter me.”
“I now.”
“Are we doing basketball now?”
She nodded. “Remember—”
“No glands.”
“Right.
He held his arm in front of him and bowed slightly from the waist. “After you.”
She shook her head and turned toward the door. He came up next to her and touched her lightly on the small of the back. Her whole body shivered and the flesh on her arms and legs rose in a mass of goose bumps. She walked a little faster, but he kept up, his hand still hovering right above her waist:
She wanted to jerk away, to make him stop. It shouldn’t have bothered her.
Certainly she’d been touched there before, by men she’d liked a lot better than him and nothing like this had happened. But then her body had been acting strangely for a few days now. Maybe she was coming down with something.
“Anything you want to tell me before we reach the court?” he asked, his voice as calm as could be.
At least he hadn’t realized how jumpy she was. “Yeah. Don’t pick Alice.”
He laughed and her stomach fluttered, just like this morning. She must be getting the flu. She’d double up on her vitamin C starting tonight.
They reached the front door and Kate stopped briefly to put up her clipboard and take a second whistle from the hook. “Here,” she said to T.J. as she held out the long cord. “You’ll need this.”
He took it from her and lifted his arms to put it around his neck. His T-shirt pulled up, exposing an inch of his belly. She saw he was an “innie,” and that the hair she’d touched from outside his shirt tapered to a thin line just above the waistband of his shorts.
“What’s wrong?” T.J. lifted his shirt a little higher and bent to stare at his stomach. “My fly can’t be open, ’cause I don’t have one.”
She felt her cheeks grow warm as she started outside. “Nothing’s wrong,” she said. “I was thinking, that’s all.”
He hurried to her side, leaned close to her and whispered, “I’d like to hear those thoughts.”
She stopped, put the whistle in her mouth and blew for all she was worth.
T.J. put his hands to his ears and cringed. “Jeez. Now that’s effective birth control.”
“Line up, everyone, ” she yelled, turning away from T.J. so he wouldn’t see her grin. “Karl,” she called to a young man by the door. “Go tell Jeanne to announce that basketball teams are forming out here.”
Karl took off and a river of young people flowed through the doors. The chatter was loud and friendly and spirits were high and clearly excited. They all loved the basketball games, none more than she. Some of the kids were great and some couldn’t shoot a basket if their lives depended on it, but everyone had a good time. That was her goal. To make every one of these kids feel important and part of a team.
“Hey, who’s the old guy?”
Kate grinned and shouted, “The old guy is Detective T.J. Russo. He’s going to be the other team captain.”
“What?” T.J. cupped a hand over his ear. “I can’t hear ya,” he said, his voice high and quavering. “Anyone seen my cane?”
The laughter from the kids, sounded wonderful. This might just work out, she thought. For Bobby and for T.J.
She looked up and he winked at her. It tickled her in a way that was completely uncalled-for. It wasn’t as if she were Alice Dee, trying to get the good-looking cop to notice her. For heaven’s sakes, she was beyond that nonsense.
“How many teams are there going to be?”
“Can I be on the team with Tony?”
“I want to be a guard.”
“You couldn’t guard me on your best day, you little squirt.”
Kate blew her whistle for silence. After a few seconds, it worked and all eyes were focused her way.
“Okay, we’re going to pick players for four teams. Remember, everyone gets to play. No exceptions.”
Several of the taller boys groaned.
“If you don’t like the rules, you don’t have to participate. There’s a knitting class starting inside. I’m sure Joanne would love to have you there, Darnel and Frank.”
The miscreants shoved each other good-naturedly, then settled down.
“Darnel, why don’t you come be on my team,” she said.
The young man slapped his friend on the back of the head and jogged to her side.
It was maybe seventy-two degrees, the breeze was coming in from the ocean and her kids were all happy. It was good to be alive. “T.J., you need some help?”
He shook his head, then pointed into the crowd. Sly “Stallone” Richardson started toward him, but T.J. said, “Nope, sorry, I meant the pretty girl right next to you.”
Sly and everyone else in the crowd turned to face the girl. Kate had to move to see who he was referring to. It was Pam Greer, a shy, slightly overweight fourteen-year-old. Blushing furiously, Pam inched her way toward T.J. When she got close enough, he leaned down and said, “You can be my assistant, okay? Help me pick t
he winning team?”
“I don’t know how,” she said softly, her cheeks still rosy.
“Have you watched these guys play before?”
Pam nodded, unable to look him in the face.
“Well, I haven’t. So you’ve got that one up on me.”
“I—” She took a little step back, then tried again. “I’m not a very good player.”
“That’s okay. I’m not, either. But I can tell, just by looking at you, that you have a good head on your shoulders. Trust me, you’ll be great.”
Kate smiled, T.J. couldn’t have done anything better for the girl. What Pam needed was a good dose of self-esteem and it looked to Kate as if she were going to get it. She glanced at T.J., wondering if he realized just what he’d done.
He was laughing at something and for the first time, she noticed how much laughter changed him. She couldn’t put her finger on it, it wasn’t anything physical. Looking at his smile, seeing the kids smile at him in return, she wondered what had happened to the angry man she’d met just a few days ago. Had that been an anomaly? Was this the real T.J. Russo?
“Hey, how about picking me, police man.”
Kate froze. She followed T.J.’s gaze to the back of the crowd. To Danny Arcola and his gang. They must have just turned the corner.
“No, Danny,” she called out. “I need you on my team.”
Danny didn’t look at her. He kept staring at T.J. The crowd sensed trouble and moved apart until there was no one between the gang leader and the detective.
“How ’bout you and me doing a little one-on-one, police man.”
“This is team basketball, Danny,” Kate said.
“Wasn’t talkin’ ’bout no basketball, lady.” He nodded toward T.J. “You here to teach Bobby how to steal cars, man? I heard you was good at that. I heard you was good at armed robbery, too. Or was that your old man?” Kate watched as T.J. transformed once again. His back stiffened, his hands curled into tight fists and the red-hot anger in his eyes could have melted steel.
Chapter 5
T.J. stared at Danny Arcola’s insolent face. He wanted to wipe off that smug expression. He might have, if it wasn’t for Kate and the kids.
