In His Sights

by Jo Davis

  “In fact, I’m pretty sure I know he wants to see you.”

  “How?”

  “Because the man himself just came through the doors and is headed straight for you.” Shea smirked and glanced behind her.

  She turned and, sure enough, Chris was bearing down on them, his eyes only for Robyn. His walk was graceful, shoulders back, golden brown hair slightly mussed. He was wearing sunglasses, which he removed without breaking stride, tucking them into his front shirt pocket. His gun sat on his lean hips as if he was born with it there.

  Robyn had to concentrate not to lick her lips. Nurses parted before him like the Red Sea, and most took a good look at his ass when he walked by. He didn’t so much as glance at any of them. She smiled. Broadly.

  “Hey, beautiful,” he said, loud enough for anyone in the vicinity to hear. That was fine by her.

  Reaching Robyn, he wrapped her into his arms and held her for a moment. She wished they could stay like this or, better yet, were at home, where she could get him out of those clothes and have her way with him. He stepped back and returned her smile.

  “I’ve missed you.”

  “Me, too,” she admitted quietly, mindful of their audience.

  “Can we go somewhere and talk?”

  “The garden?”

  “That’s perfect.”

  She ignored the grin on Shea’s face as they walked off. Outside, the day was gearing up to be a hot one. But at the moment it was merely warm and pleasant. Fall was coming, and not soon enough for Robyn.

  Taking his hand, she led them over to a bench. She liked it that he didn’t let go of her hand after they sat down. “What would you like to talk about?”

  “I have something to give you.” He retrieved a white envelope from his front shirt pocket, behind his sunglasses. “This is important information from the case we’re working on.”

  “That’s all you wanted to talk to me about?” She couldn’t keep the disappointment from her voice.

  “No! Of course not, baby,” he said softly. “I’ve missed you so damned much, I’m not sleeping well. I’ve meant to call, but Tonio and I caught a break on our case and we’ve been burning the midnight oil ever since.”

  She studied him more closely and noted the signs she’d missed at first: dark smudges under his eyes, lines bracketing his mouth. He appeared a bit pale, too. He really hadn’t been sleeping.

  “You need to take better care of yourself,” she admonished.

  “I need my personal doc to make sure I do.”

  “I think I can handle that.”

  “Did you honestly think I didn’t want to see you again? Whatever I said or did to make you believe that, I’m sorry.

  “It’s not your fault. I should have just called to see what was up instead of assuming you didn’t want to see me. That was stupid and I won’t make the same mistake again.”

  “Hey, it’s okay. The phone works both ways. How about we agree not to go so long without communicating in the future?”

  “That works for me.” She gestured to the envelope. “So, what’s the break?”

  “In short? We have a serial killer.”

  “Holy shit,” she blurted, eyes widening. “How did you find this out? Catch me up.”

  “To make it simple, the rash of burglaries the city has had, most of them were step one in the killer’s plan to set up his victims. He wasn’t stealing anything, which was what had us confounded, because we didn’t know we had a killer on our hands. What he was actually doing was planting cyanide in their homes . . . just like he did mine. A vial of the poison was found outside one of the houses. The killer probably dropped it in his haste to get away.”

  Her mouth fell open and she stared at him, letting that sink in. “You were supposed to be the latest victim.”

  “Exactly. But I survived. Which is why I suppose he was creeping around my house the night you cooked steaks. I chased him, but he got away.”

  “My God. I can’t believe this. So— Wait.” She paused, brain scrambling to catch up. “Poison. These cases the medical examiner has been looking into, they’re poisonings that look like heart attacks? And they’re related to the burglaries?”

  “Exactly—they’re one and the same case. Break and enter becomes murder.”

  She shook her head. “Wow. I can’t imagine what a sick mind it takes to come up with something so evil. He made those people suffer horribly before they died.”

  “I know.” He made a face. “I was on the receiving end, and I’ve never been in so much physical pain, ever.”

  She didn’t want to think about the day she almost lost him. Instead, she asked, “So what have you brought me?”

  He handed over the envelope. “That’s a list of each burglarized household in which at least one family member subsequently died. We’ve been working on it nonstop, and it’s as complete as we can make it right now. Here’s the thing. All the poisoning deaths we’ve confirmed so far, except one, occurred here and not at any other hospital in the county.”

  “So, they’re connected because . . . ?”

  “The victims so far have all lived within a few miles of each other and this hospital. We haven’t come up with anything connecting them except for that. We’re still digging, but I thought, what if the hospital itself is the common denominator? What I’d like to do is run the victims’ names through the hospital’s computer. See if anything turns up that might shed light on why the victims are all from around here. This is just a copy for you, as a consultant who’s helping us with the case.”

  “I’m not sure I can personally authorize you to do that without a warrant or something,” she said hesitantly. “You’ll need permission to officially look at patient records.”

  His excitement waned as frustration visibly ate at him. “And in the meantime, someone’s getting away with murder.”

  She regarded him thoughtfully. “Tell you what. I’ll do some poking around when I get a chance, off the record. You can still look when you get the green light from the hospital administration, but if I happen to run across anything interesting—totally by accident, of course—I’ll let you know.”

  At her mischievous grin, his expression relaxed. “Any help you can provide is welcome. Just please don’t get in trouble on my account.”

  “I won’t. Now, what am I looking for exactly?” She turned the envelope over in her hands and decided to open it later.

  “That’s just it. I don’t know. A common thread between them, or anything that doesn’t seem right. Any reason why Sterling is one of the connections between the victims. Our saying is: we’ll know what we’re looking for when we find it. At the moment, I’m going with the burglary angle being the starting point. But I feel like I’m missing a tie.”

  “Okay. I’ll help however I can, you know that.”

  “Thanks, baby.” He paused, running a finger down her face. “Tonight, I need a break from this case. I need to see you so bad I ache. And I don’t mean just to get into your panties.”

  Laughing softly, she looked around to be sure none of her colleagues were around. It was safe. “I wouldn’t necessarily complain, though.”

  “Goody.” He grinned. “Seriously, I miss you. Can we have some alone time? I thought I’d take you down to the river again. I can take you to dinner first, or we can have an adult picnic this time. Take a stroll and watch the stars come out.”

  “That sounds lovely. I’ll call Rachel and see if she can stay with Maddy.”

  “If she can’t, Shane and Daisy might be able to.” Worry creased his brow. “You know I adore Maddy—”

  “Say no more,” she assured him. “You’re great with her, but we need grown-up time, too. I’m looking forward to it.”

  Relief smoothed out his face. “Me, too.”

  Reluctantly, she stood and tucked the envelope into her coat.
“I have to get back to work. Pick me up at six thirty?”

  “It’s a date.”

  She found herself wrapped in his strong embrace again, and for a few seconds she allowed herself the luxury of being held against his hard body. She loved resting her head on his chest, feeling close to a sexy, confident, self-assured man. As much as she’d loved Greg, he hadn’t been strong, or confident, or dependable. She now knew what she’d been missing all along.

  Greg was her past, this man her future.

  It was time to tell Chris what he wanted to know. Tonight.

  * * *

  Robyn knew why she was nervous as she waited for Chris to pick her up.

  Tonight meant something different. Something more than simply a date with the man she was falling for. This evening would be a turning point for them as a couple, if her hunch was correct.

  His car rumbled up the driveway and her heart lurched with excitement. Opening the curtains a bit, she spied shamelessly as he got out of the car and started up the walk. He looked cute in a pair of camouflage cargo shorts and black tank top, and sandals on his feet. His hair was artfully messy, and she wanted to run the strands through her fingers.

  The man looked good enough to lick. All over.

  The doorbell rang and she let him in, stepping back as he wrapped her in that wonderful embrace. “Where’s Maddy?” he whispered in her ear.

  “Out with Rachel, being treated to a movie.” She shivered in delight at being pressed against him. “Wanna fool around, Detective?”

  “Oh, I do. But later.” He chuckled at her pout. “I have plans for you first.”

  That didn’t stop him from moving in to take her mouth, though. He was the best freaking kisser she’d ever known. His mouth was heaven, his tongue was sin itself, and they balanced each other perfectly.

  “Ready to go?”

  “Do we have to?” She gave a little pout.

  “You’ll like what I have in mind. Trust me.”

  “I do trust you.” Smiling, she started for her purse on the coffee table.

  “Nah, you don’t need a purse. Just yourself, and maybe sunglasses.”

  “Oh. Okay.”

  Regarding him curiously, she retrieved her sunglasses and keys from her purse and followed him out, locking the door behind them. At his car, he opened the door for her and helped her in, then shut it, walking around to his side.

  As he did, she turned and caught a glimpse of the backseat, filled with bags. Getting in, he saw her looking and grinned.

  “Yes, all of that stuff is for us.”

  “What’s in those?”

  “Our food for the picnic,” he said proudly. “I made it myself.”

  “Oh, wow! That’s so sweet,” she said, melting. “How did you manage all of this when you had to work?”

  “I took off at noon. Been working around the clock pretty much, so I got Rainey’s permission to leave and went to the store. Then I took a nap, got up and cooked, packed it all up, and here we are.”

  “You still worked more than you rested, doing all of that. But I can’t wait to see what you made.”

  “Well, I’m not much of a cook, but I got a recipe from Daisy that’s super easy. I think you’ll like it.”

  “I know I will.”

  A few minutes later he was driving down Cheatham Dam Road, which led to the river, dam, and the public state park. The view was scenic as always, and she loved coming down here. With Chris for company, it was even more special. She had to admit, as much as she adored her daughter, doing this with him alone was a whole different experience.

  At the river, he turned left in the park and drove away from the dam, to the picnic area at the far end. The land was flat and smooth in that direction, the river closer to park-goers. He chose a spot by the last table and parked, then started hauling bags from the car, insisting on getting the heavy ones with the dishes, plus the small cooler.

  He was always going to be a bit macho like that, she supposed, and it suited her just fine. Secretly, she liked having him fuss over her, a little. Okay, a lot.

  Suddenly he froze and looked toward the trees and stared. For several seconds he didn’t move, and she got worried.

  “Something wrong?”

  “I just remembered that man Maddy saw in the woods. You don’t think . . . maybe that was him, stalking me. In fact, it seems pretty likely.”

  “My God. I’d forgotten all about that,” she murmured, fear winding a tendril through her veins. “You don’t think he’s out there now, watching?”

  Slowly, he shook his head. “I doubt it. I chased him off, came close to catching him. I can’t see him risking it again.”

  “I hope you’re right.”

  Smiling, he said, “Why don’t we enjoy ourselves and forget about that for tonight? We’re safe here, in the open, and my gun is stashed in the new lockbox in my trunk if we need it. Not ideal, I know, but safer than lugging it around in my cargo shorts.” He winked. “Can’t have it go off accidentally and damage the tackle, can we?”

  She laughed, unable to resist his boyish side. “No, we definitely can’t.”

  Once the table was covered with a cloth, he pulled three Pyrex dishes out of their heated transport carriers. He’d clearly thought this out carefully, and she realized that he must’ve bought this stuff new, or borrowed it from Daisy. He had said himself he wasn’t much of a cook. That he’d gone to this much trouble caused a bubble of happiness to swell and fill every single square inch of her soul.

  No man had ever done anything like this for her before.

  His final touch was a real picnic basket containing actual dishes and flatware, two long-stemmed wineglasses, and a bottle of Chardonnay with an opener.

  “Wow, this is incredible! You went to so much trouble.”

  “Are you ready for the unveiling of the meal?” he said in a faux British accent.

  She giggled. “Please.” Prying the lid off the main dish, he revealed bacon-wrapped chicken breasts. “That smells wonderful!”

  “It’s cooked in a sour cream sauce, and the bacon gives it a smoky flavor.”

  The other two dishes were wild rice and green beans. He opened and poured the wine first, and she took a sip. It was an excellent white. By the time he dished the food, she was salivating.

  The first bite of the chicken was an explosion of flavor on her tongue. “Ooh, this is wonderful. I’m going to make this at home, too.”

  His chest swelled. “I’m glad you like it.”

  They ate and made small talk, enjoying the evening and each other. She pigged out on chicken and rice until she was stuffed, and was getting a tiny bit buzzed as she finished her second glass of wine.

  “We’re probably not supposed to have this out here,” she said, wiggling her wineglass.

  “No, but I like to live dangerously sometimes.” He winked.

  “That’s what I love about you.”

  Electricity sparked between them as her words hit them both. The moment stretched taut and he said quietly, “Do you mean you love me literally, or figuratively?”

  She swallowed hard, pulse pounding against her sternum. “Why don’t we take a walk, and I’ll tell you everything you want to know.”

  “Everything?”

  “Yes.”

  His brown eyes softened, and he nodded. “Sounds like a good plan.”

  They cleaned up together, stashed all the picnic stuff and leftovers in his car, and then the time was at hand.

  A whole new life awaited—if she had the guts to seize it and the man she loved.

  11

  This was it. The moment he’d been waiting for since they’d met.

  That’s what I love about you.

  Had she meant it the way he hoped? Or was she about to let him down easy?

  Please, don’t let
it be the let-down. Anything but that. I’ll give her more time, all she needs.

  I love her.

  “Let’s go for that walk,” he said, with more confidence than he felt. Inside he was still a quivering little boy wanting someone to love him, pathetic as that sounded. Even to himself.

  But he hadn’t fallen for the first woman who came along, no matter how badly he’d wanted forever. Robyn was special, the one for him. He hoped she felt the same.

  With her smaller hand clasped in his, they strolled along the riverbank. The sun was setting, sending pretty sparkles along the rippling water. A few white waterbirds strutted on their spindly legs along the opposite shoreline. He never knew whether they were cranes or something else, but they were cool to watch.

  Not as interesting as his girlfriend, though. His lips curved upward as he thought about how much he liked thinking of her in that way.

  They walked until coming to a nice grassy spot, not too far from the car. The sun was about gone and he didn’t want to fumble in the dark. But they’d be able to see the lights over the parking lot from here.

  “Want to sit?” he asked.

  “Sure.”

  They parked their rumps next to each other and he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. Having her there at his side was right. She was soft and smelled so good, he wanted to make love to her. Right here in front of whoever wanted to see. He forced his libido to calm down and he focused on Robyn.

  “You have some important things to tell me,” he prompted. His nerves jangled as he waited, trying to brace himself in case this didn’t turn out the way he wanted.

  “You asked about Greg, and I’d like to share it with you now.”

  “Only if you’re ready, baby.” He hugged her tight.

  “I am.” Though her voice was strong, she paused for a while, as though gathering her thoughts. When she finally spoke, her voice was distant with memory. “I first began to realize Greg was clinically depressed about six months after we’d married. It turned out that he’d been battling depression all his life, but when we met, he and his family believed he had it under control at last. So nobody told me. I loved him with all my heart, though, so that didn’t matter to me.”