"You don't go out with doctors?" Quinn raised one eyebrow. "Kind of limits your dating possibilities at a hospital, doesn't it?"
"I don't date doctors I work with. I have no problem with them as a species." She'd dated a few after Brian's death. They were as far from police officers as she could get. The worst thing that could happen to them on the job was accidentally stabbing themselves with a scalpel.
He scowled. "Okay. Are there any doctors here you have dated?"
"A few. But it wasn't serious with any of them, and the break-ups were amicable."
"Really? Because I see very few amicable break-ups."
"Well, in your line of work, I guess you wouldn't."
"Someone is always more invested in the relationship. They might seem okay about it, but deep down, they're angry or resentful or crushed."
"Trust me, that doesn't apply to any of those guys."
"So they broke it off with you?"
She narrowed her eyes at him. He sounded more like 'jealous boyfriend' than 'detective investigating'. "No, I broke up with them."
"So you don't know how they really felt."
"Is this about my previous dating partners, Quinn?" She crossed her arms. "I thought it was about whoever broke into my apartment."
"I have to look at every possibility."
"Isn't that Detective Schultz's job? I thought you were here to talk to Kyle because of what happened last night."
"I can't talk to just him. If he thinks I'm focusing only on him, it might spook him. He might run. Or escalate."
"Are you sure you aren't just trying to find out who I've gone out with?"
He slapped the notebook closed and shoved it in his pocket. "No, Tessa. I'm not." But his cheeks turned a dull red. "I'm doing my job and asking the questions any other detective would ask." He stared at her for a moment, then looked away. "If I wanted to know about your past dating life, I'd ask. When neither of us was working."
His eyes flickered over her shoulder. So he did want to know. It was both flattering and alarming. She took a deep, shuddering breath. "Let's pretend this isn't personal, okay? This is uncomfortable."
"I can leave and have Schultz talk to Nolan. He should have asked you these questions in the first place. They'd be less awkward with someone you weren't involved with."
Involved made her swallow. Involved was veering toward relationship, and she was uncomfortably aware that the word didn't make her want to run. Had she already crossed a line with Quinn? One she swore she'd never cross with a cop again? The thought was terrifying.
"Tessa?" He interrupted her thoughts. "You sure you want me to do this?"
"Yes," she managed to say. "I don't want anyone else."
"Okay." The tension in his shoulders eased. "I want to do it, too. Asking this guy what's going on and why he's been harassing you is personal. I don't want another cop questioning him."
"No." She reached for his hand. "Something good came out of that break in – I met you. But I'm still freaked out about it. And I'd rather not discuss it in detail with another detective."
He touched her face and cupped her cheek for a moment. "We'll find this guy, Tessa."
She took a deep breath. "What do you want me to do?"
"Just do whatever you'd normally do this time of night. Okay?"
"All right." Why was she nervous? Quinn had interviewed countless suspects before tonight. Kyle wasn't really dangerous. Quinn would be perfectly safe. But she couldn't help but remember the scene in the ER with Brian. All the blood. His gray skin. The flat line on the heart monitor.
"Hey." He took her hand and tugged her close. "You look upset."
"I don't want you to get hurt." The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them, and she sounded lame. Weak. Needy. Words she didn't want to identify her.
"I'm not going to get hurt," he assured her. "This isn't a guy with a gun in an alley. He's got an x-ray machine. He sure as hell isn't going to throw it at me."
"No, I guess not." She closed her eyes to block out the vision he'd just conjured. "But be careful. He has a temper."
"I'm always careful, Tessa. I don't take stupid chances." He grabbed her hand. "I've got too much to live for."
His words were both thrilling and terrifying. From the way he was watching her, his blue eyes dark, she knew he was talking about her.
"Okay, Quinn," she whispered.
He tugged her into his arms and kissed her, then set her away from him. "Let's go. We don't want to give anyone ideas about what we're doing in here."
"Especially since we didn't do anything. If I'm going to do the time, I want to do the crime, too."
He laughed. "We'll see what kinds of crimes we can commit later, okay?"
"That's a date."
But as she moved out of the lounge, uneasiness settled in her chest. Quinn wasn't taking their 'fling' as lightly as she'd hoped he would.
Even worse, neither was she.
***
Quinn followed her out of the visitor's lounge, holding the door open for her. His gaze dropped to her ass, outlined by the thin material of her scrub pants. He wanted to pull her back against him, feel those curves pressed close to his body. He wanted to feel her melt into him like she always did when he touched her.
He didn't think she realized how her body curled into his, how her curves fit against him perfectly. How her eyes softened when she looked at him.
She had been adamant that she didn't want to get involved with a cop. She was trying hard to keep her distance. But it only took one look, one touch, and there was no distance between them.
Sooner or later, he hoped her head would catch up with her heart.
Until then, he was going to spend as much time as possible showing her what she meant to him. It was insane to feel this way about a woman he'd met less than three weeks earlier. But he'd never been eager to bring a woman to his mother's house for Sunday dinner. Never wanted his brothers and Mia to meet a girlfriend. They'd all been casual.
Tessa was anything but.
Lost in his thoughts, he followed her to the nurse's station. When she slipped behind the counter, hiding her beautiful ass from him, he closed his eyes and gave himself a tiny shake.
"Thank you, Ms. Porter," he said. "I'll let you know what I find out."
"Thanks, Detective." Her eyes twinkled a little, as if she was enjoying their little secret.
"Oh, Ms. Porter, one more thing. Can you tell me where I'd find Kyle Nolan?"
"He was outside room 1104 a few minutes ago. He might still be in the room, taking x-rays. Want me to check?"
"Thank you." He could have checked himself, but he didn't want to barge in on a patient. And this way, he could watch the sway of Tessa's hips as she walked down the hall.
She peered in the room, then turned around and nodded to him. Nolan was still taking x-rays. When she returned to the desk area, he murmured, "Thanks."
She nodded, and he saw a little anxiety in her eyes. What was she worried about? She'd said she didn't want him to get hurt, but surely she didn't think Nolan would go after him. He watched her sit down in front of a computer, pull up a page and begin typing. He'd ask her later.
He sauntered across the floor and listened to the muted sound of voices from room 1104. The female voice sounded nervous. Maybe a little scared. And the male voice was surprisingly soothing. Apparently Kyle Nolan was empathetic with his patients. Too bad he didn't have the same sensitivity toward his co-workers.
A few minutes later, the door opened and the guy pushed the large machine out the door. As Nolan closed the door behind him, Quinn stepped closer and showed the young man his badge.
"Kyle Nolan?" When the guy nodded, Quinn said, "I have some questions for you. Would you mind stepping into the lounge at the end of the hall?"
"What's this about? I've got a schedule," Nolan said, pulling a piece of paper out of a drawer on the machine. "I have other patients who need x-rays."
"I'd rather discuss it private
ly. It won't take long," Quinn answered. If you cooperate. "I'll try not to hold you up."
Nolan swallowed, his gaze flicking to where Tessa sat in front of the computer. "Okay. I guess I can take a few minutes."
He left the machine in the hall and walked toward the lounge, with Quinn following behind. Once they were in the room, Quinn gestured toward a chair and sat down across from him.
"Mr. Nolan, I understand you were involved in a confrontation on this floor last night."
"What?" Nolan frowned, looking genuinely puzzled.
"With one of the nurses." He pulled out his notebook and pretended to search for a name. "Tessa Porter."
"I asked her out. That's all." He leaned forward, his face turning red. "Did she call the fucking police because I asked her on a date?"
Tessa told him Kyle had lost his temper quickly last night. But it was good to confirm that quick trigger for himself. That wasn't the profile of someone who'd do what had been done to Tessa's place. But Quinn wasn't about to jump to conclusions. "Not at all. She called because there was an incident at her home a couple of weeks ago, and she was concerned about your behavior last night."
"What kind of incident?"
"Someone broke into her apartment."
"And you think it was me?" Nolan scowled and threw himself backward against the couch. "I don't even know where she lives."
"You've never followed her home?"
Nolan's eyes shifted to the left. "Why would I do that?"
"You wanted to go out with her. Maybe you were interested in where she lived."
"Just because she's hot and I want to fuck her, doesn't mean I'm some kind of stalker."
Quinn tamped down his temper at Nolan's crude words. "So you have no idea where she lives."
There was a tense silence. Then Nolan shrugged. "Yeah, I saw her go into a building a few blocks from here once. I assumed that was her place."
The creep had followed Tessa home. Quinn struggled to control his anger. He was here as a police officer, doing his job. Right now, he wasn't Tessa's boyfriend. He couldn't go all protective in front of this jerk.
"Have you ever been in her apartment?"
He snorted. "I wish. Tessa blows me off every time I ask her out."
"Is that why you lost your temper with her last night?"
"So the bitch did call the police."
"Only because of what happened a couple of weeks ago. We advised her to call us immediately if anyone behaved oddly."
"I ask her out all the time. Nothing odd about that."
"Has she asked you to leave her alone?"
"Nah. She likes the attention."
"That's not what she told my colleague."
Nolan's face reddened. "Then she's lying. She flirts with me all the time."
"Is that what happened last night?"
Nolan jumped to his feet. "I asked her out. She turned me down. Didn't know that was a crime."
"It's not," Quinn said mildly, sliding his notebook into his pocket. "But based on Ms. Porter's description of what happened, it sounds like more than a request and a 'no'." He stood up. "Thank you for your time, Mr. Nolan. I'll let you get back to work. If we have any further questions, we'll be in touch."
Nolan's eyes flashed and his face reddened. Quinn stepped out of the room in front of the technician, watching for his reaction when he saw Tessa.
The tech's jaw twitched and anger flushed his face and hardened his expression. Then he shoved past Quinn, grabbed his x-ray machine and sent it careening down the hall.
Chapter 16
Quinn hung back as Nolan slammed his hand over the elevator call button, then stared at Tessa as he waited for the doors to open. Uh oh.
Tessa would have to be careful with that one. He'd remind her not to be alone with Nolan, to interact with him as little as possible.
Once Nolan was in the elevator, he walked up to the desk where Tessa was still typing on a keyboard. "Ms. Porter?"
She swung her chair around and smiled at him. "What can I do for you, Detective?"
"Could you tell me where I could find..." He consulted his list for the men she saw most often. "Jonathon Hunter and James Dietrich."
"I don't think Dr. Dietrich is here tonight. Dr. Hunter is his attending, and James wasn't with him earlier."
"Hunter, then."
"You could have him paged."
"Could you do that for me?"
"Sure." She reached for a telephone and pressed a series of buttons. "That will get him up here."
"Thank you." He consulted the list again. "How about Phillip Glover and Tom Jessup?" The men were nurses on the floor, so it made sense that they'd have more contact with Tessa than maintenance workers."
Tessa frowned. "I haven't seen either of them, so they're probably not working tonight." She scooted her chair over to a binder and opened it. "Nope. Phil will be here tomorrow and Tom the night after that."
"Okay, thanks." He glanced at the clock, wondering how long until Tessa got off work. How long until he could pick her up and take her home and make her forget about this awkward situation. Damn it. He should have made Schultz take care of the interviews. But he'd made the right call – if Nolan knew Quinn had talked to other people, their conversation might not seem as threatening to the guy.
Maybe he wouldn't take it out on Tessa.
"I'll have someone come over to talk to them. As long as I'm here, I'll talk to Jonathon Hunter."
The two other nurses at the station were openly listening. Exactly what he wanted. They would spread the word, and that would help protect Tessa. Because that was the most important thing. Taking care of Tessa. Watching out for her.
The elevator pinged and a dark-haired man strode into the hall, scowling. "What is it?" he barked when he reached the nurse's station.
Only one person this could be. Quinn turned to him. "Dr. Jonathon Hunter?"
Hunter studied him. "Who are you?"
Quinn took out his badge and ID card. "Detective Quinn Donovan, CPD. I have a few questions for you, Doctor."
"About what?"
Quinn nodded toward the patient lounge. "Let's go down there, where we'll have some privacy."
"I don't have time for this."
He turned away, but Quinn moved in front of him. "Dr. Hunter, we can either do this now, or I can take you into my precinct. Your call."
The doctor frowned, staring at Quinn. As if he was assessing his intent. Testing to see if he had the balls to stand up to him.
Quinn waited him out. He'd dealt with guys a lot more difficult than this arrogant asshole. Finally Hunter shrugged. "Fine. But make it fast."
He hurried down the hall to the lounge and shoved the door open. By the time Quinn got there, it had closed again. Pushing it open, Quinn stepped inside to find Hunter staring at him, arms crossed over his chest.
"What is this about?" he demanded.
"I'm investigating a break-in at the home of a woman who works on this floor. I need to ask you where you were on the night of July 27."
"I was here."
"All night?"
"Yes."
"That was two weeks ago. How can you be so sure so quickly?"
"I'm always here at night."
"Do you have anyone who can vouch for that?"
"James Dietrich. My intern."
"Was he here that night?"
"As far as I know."
Quinn pretended to write something in his notebook. "I'll need you to check on that for me. Do you and your intern spend the whole night together when he's here?"
"Not when we're sleeping."
Quinn frowned. "You sleep while you're here?"
"Of course," Hunter said impatiently. "If we have a lull, there are cots in the doctor's lounge. We sleep when we can."
Which meant neither Hunter nor his intern had a solid alibi. "Thank you, Dr. Hunter. One more question. Do you know where any of the nurses live?"
"Why the hell would I know that?"
"Maybe
you gave someone a ride home once or twice. Maybe you dated one of them."
Hunter looked at Quinn as if he'd lost his mind. "No. I have no idea where any of them live."
"You have access to personnel files, I assume. Wouldn't be too hard to find out."
"Well, I don't." He reached behind him for the door handle. "Is that all?"
"For now," Quinn said mildly. "I'll get back to you if I have any more questions."
"You do that, Detective." Hunter opened the door and walked out, leaving Quinn to watch the door close behind him.
Okay, then. Tessa was right. Hunter was not a nice guy. But did he take his God complex as far as thinking he had the right to anyone he chose?
He had the opportunity to break into Tessa's place. And he could have found out where Tessa lived.
Couldn't cross Hunter off the list.
***
Tessa stepped out of a patient room just as Dr. Hunter stormed down the hall, his jaw working and his fists clenched. The lounge door banged closed behind him, and Hunter stabbed at the elevator call button several times. When the door opened, he stepped inside and stared at the nurses clustered around the station, as if trying to figure out who had sicced Quinn on him.
Since Hunter didn't zero in on her, Tessa assumed Quinn hadn't told him who had the break-in.
Thank goodness. Hunter was already unpleasant. If he found out who had pointed Quinn toward him, it would get a lot worse.
As the elevator doors slid closed, Quinn stepped out of the lounge. Tessa found herself glancing toward him, just to reassure herself that he was okay. That Hunter hadn't torn Quinn a new one.
Quinn stepped up next to her. "Ms. Porter. Thank you for your help tonight. I'll let you know when we get any new information."
"Thank you, Detective. I appreciate that," she murmured.
"Wait for me inside the door tonight," he said, lowering his voice so it wouldn't carry to their audience. "Don't step outside until you see my car."
She drew back and stared at him. "Are you serious?"
"Completely. I take your safety very seriously, Tessa."
Watch Me (The Donovan Family Book 2) Page 14
