by Carsen Taite
“Well, you are.” Dale felt the slow creep of a blush as she paid the compliment, but her discomfort came from embarrassment, not attraction. “It’s just you’re always available whenever we need you, night or day, and…” She stopped when she realized she sounded stupid for assuming that just because Bianca had a child, she wouldn’t be able to handle anything the job threw her way.
“I know. And before you ask, I’m a single parent. I’m just lucky to have a mother who lives down the street and has nothing better to do than indulge her granddaughter’s hectic schedule. And Emma loves her abuela, so it’s good they get to spend so much time together, but if you try to schedule something during a track meet, watch out.”
Dale held both hands in the air. “I’m sufficiently scared. Sorry. I was just surprised, is all.”
“I better not catch you treating me differently. I spend a lot of time with my daughter, but I want Emma to grow up understanding how important a good career is, especially this one. If I have to be somewhere during family time, she’ll know I’m working to make a better life for all of us.”
“You won’t get any flack from me. Hell, I’m impressed. I’m not sure I could handle a kid on my own.”
“You could. It’s amazing what you can do for family. Did you and Maria ever talk about having children?”
The question brought Dale up short. Not because of the subject, but because hardly anyone ever talked to her about her relationship with Maria anymore—like the subject was encased in glass, too fragile for close inspection. Yet, Peyton had brought her up the other day, and here Bianca was bringing her up again.
Maria had talked about making a family once they were more settled in their careers, but settling in for both of them was more like diving in, and at the time of Maria’s death, they had been completely immersed. Someday, they’d have a family. But someday had never come, and Dale didn’t plan to dream those dreams again.
“Sorry. That was none of my business.”
“It’s okay. We did talk about it, but never did anything about it. I like kids.”
“I love Emma, but I’m not sure I would’ve chosen to have a child. It was more a bad prom night decision than a life plan. I’ve grown up a lot since then, and I have Emma to thank for my ability to be self-sufficient.”
“So, no stepdad material in the dating pool?”
“Like I have time to date. Besides, if I was looking, which I’m not, it would be for a stepmom.”
Dale smiled. She’d pegged Bianca for family from the get-go, and it was nice to know her instincts were spot on. “Well, let me know when you’re looking again and I’ll keep an eye out.”
“Right, because you meet all kinds of criminals in your daily life that I’m just dying to date. Speaking of criminals, want to hear my plan?”
Dale listened while Bianca outlined her ideas for what she’d nicknamed the Sergio Trap.
“I checked the transcripts of Arturo’s jail calls,” Bianca said. “He’s not stupid, but he’s not a rocket scientist either. They’re using some of the same code they were using with Gantry. Talking about oil field equipment and drilling rights.”
“Which really means drug distribution and money laundering.”
“Exactly. I don’t know about you, but I think they’re worried about how they’re going to launder funds now that Gantry’s under a microscope.”
Bianca handed her a few sheets of paper, and Dale skimmed the transcribed lines. If her off-the-cuff translation of Arturo’s double-speak was spot-on, then she was right. Arturo was reaching out to various contacts to find a source to launder the money they were still making on the outside. While he was smart enough not to call Sergio directly, Dale was certain Arturo was using his lieutenants to communicate with his brother.
“So, what do we do with this?”
“We give him what he wants. Or rather Sophia does.”
“You lost me. Say again?”
“Here’s the cover. Sophia visits Arturo in jail. Tells him that she’s having trouble making the ranch payments, plays the weak woman card. She can say Gantry has been supporting her through the years—which is partly true—and now that he’s in trouble, the money has dried up. Who else is she to turn to except her family?”
Dale mentally replayed what she knew about Lily’s mother and her tenuous relationship with her brothers, but she couldn’t quite connect the dots. “How does Sophia’s need for help get Sergio out of his jam about laundering money?”
“Sophia’s ranch is the perfect place for them to funnel money. She specializes in breeding quarter horses so her business gets a bump and no one’s the wiser, because that champion stud of hers just won the Futurity.”
“Okay, but wait. Isn’t that race like a million dollar purse? Arturo’s going to wonder why she needs money after a win that big.”
“Even big money goes fast, and with no more regular income from Gantry, she’s in a bind making the mortgage. She just added a new barn and a bunch of new horses, which she wouldn’t have done if she’d known her primary lending source was going to dry up.” Bianca dusted her hands in the air like it was a done deal. “That’s the story she’ll give Arturo, anyway.”
“You sure you just thought this up last night?”
“I don’t sleep much.”
“I guess not.”
“So, what do you think?”
Dale drummed her fingers on the table while she sorted through Bianca’s plan. “So you think Sergio is going to show up on Sophia’s doorstep and do this handshake deal with her? And then what? Sophia starts laundering piles of cash? What if someone working the investigation into Arturo gets wind that Sergio is working with Sophia? If our plan is off the books, how’s she going to stay out of trouble?”
“I’ve got that covered.”
Bianca looked confident, but Dale was anything but. “I might need to know a little more than that.”
“Tanner Cohen, the FBI agent who’s working the case, can help us. She’s good people. I think we need to bring her on board. She can be trusted and this would help her too. She wants to shut down the Vargases’ operation as much as anyone, and she’s just been working it from a different angle. Trust me, she’s not at all happy with the way Gellar is barreling toward indictments without making sure every angle is covered. He seems way more concerned about taking down Cyrus Gantry than prosecuting either of the Vargas brothers.”
Bianca was right. Whenever Gellar had been present at a task force meeting, he’d practically frothed at the mouth when Gantry’s name was mentioned. She hadn’t given it a second thought before, having written it off to zealous prosecution, but if others had noticed and questioned his approach, she wondered if there was more to it. “And Tanner disagrees with his strategy?”
“I’ve heard rumblings to that effect.”
“Okay, bring Tanner to the meeting at the ranch tonight and I’ll take it from there.”
“You think that’s a better idea than letting Peyton know first?”
“Sometimes it’s better to ask forgiveness than permission,” Dale said. “Pretty sure this is one of those times.” As she spoke she noticed Bianca staring at something over her shoulder, and she was certain Bianca hadn’t heard a word she’d said. She waved a hand in front of her face. “Hey, your coffee wear off or did you fall into a sugar coma after eating that monster bear claw?”
Bianca shook her head and smiled, her eyes still trained on whatever was behind her. “Don’t look now, but Lindsey Ryan is on her way over here, and she is way more gorgeous in person than on TV.”
Like anyone who was told not to look, the desire to look filled Dale’s every conscious cell. If she turned around right now, would she see casual Lindsey with the shorts and hoodie, maybe on her way back from the gym? Or on-camera Lindsey, dressed in a suit, sleek and dangerous? Either would be a welcome sight, and she had mixed feelings about that revelation. What she should be thinking about was not how Lindsey looked this morning, but about how she wa
s going to explain Bianca’s presence. Good thing she had already cooked up a story. She whispered to Bianca, “Hey, your mouth’s hanging open. Don’t worry. I’ll introduce you, but if she asks about why you’re here, let me handle it. Just go along with me, okay?”
Bianca nodded, her mouth now closed, but firmly fixed in a smile. Satisfied that Bianca would soon resolve her starstruck trance, Dale turned in her chair. No shorts, no hoodie, just another killer suit and a dazzling smile. For a second, Dale worried her own mouth might be hanging open. Lindsey Ryan, network ready, was stunning, and even she wasn’t immune to the pull of her attraction.
*
Lindsey watched Dale huddle with the woman across from her for a few minutes, trying to get a read on the situation. She checked her watch. She was a few minutes early, but curiosity got the better of her so she strolled over to find out who had captured Dale’s attention. As she approached, the beautiful Latina looked up and met her eyes and then burst into a deep red blush. Odd. What in the hell were she and Dale talking about that caused such embarrassment at the prospect of being caught?
She was still a few feet away when Dale finally turned and met her eyes. Shaded mystery there, as always, but did she detect a hint of interest, welcoming her to come closer? She kept her smile in place and strode the final few steps to their table. “Good morning.”
Dale stood and motioned for her to take her seat, and then walked over to one of the empty tables and snagged another chair. In the few seconds she was gone, Lindsey introduced herself to the other woman while she sized her up. “Lindsey Ryan. And you are?”
The woman opened and closed her mouth twice without saying anything before Dale returned and came to her rescue. “This is Bianca Cruz. She’s an AUSA for the Northern District. I was enlisting her help with some of the programming for the Take-Back event.” Dale laughed. “She might be a little starstruck.”
“More than a little,” Bianca said as she stuck out her hand. “Your coverage of the war was riveting, and your interview with General Tyson was brave and relevant and fierce.”
Lindsey felt the heat of a blush flood through her. “Thanks. Not everyone agrees with that last thing.”
“Well, I do. My daughter does too. She wrote a report about the troop drawdown for her social studies class, and she mentioned the interview as an example of how exposing the truth is the only way to effect change.”
“Wow, and here I thought I was just pumping up the ratings.” She glanced at Dale who had the good sense to appear slightly embarrassed. When she looked back at Bianca, she caught her looking between them like she was trying to figure out the inside joke. “Some folks think ratings are all I, or anyone else in my industry, care about.”
“I can’t speak for everyone, but I don’t know many people who would risk their lives just to get a good story,” Bianca said. “Tell me about Afghanistan. Was it really as dangerous as it seems?”
Lindsey could feel Dale’s eyes on her, and she hesitated. Dale hadn’t been in combat, not officially anyway, but she had been in the thick of things. She’d earned a Navy Cross, the highest commendation a Marine could earn, and she was one of only a few women ever to do so. The only thing Lindsey knew for sure was that whatever danger she’d encountered in the Middle East, it had visited Dale tenfold. “I felt safe the whole time I was there, but then again I was in good company. The folks in the units I was assigned to were a pretty tough lot, as I’m sure were most of the troops who’d been there for any length of time.”
She kept her eyes focused on Dale as she spoke, wanting desperately to know what she thought about this whole conversation, but Dale gazed into the distance, looking as if her mind was anywhere but here. Lindsey had seen similar disconnects when she’d spoken with other soldiers. Most of them didn’t like talking about the dangers of the war, if they spoke about it at all, and she imagined Dale was no exception. She’d been able to do her best reporting only while she was among them, capturing everything in real time. Being in the thick of the action was her best platform, and the realization gave her an idea. “Hey, what do you say we ditch the schedule today and you show me the seedier side of this area—you know, where the really bad stuff happens?”
“You have a death wish or something?” Dale asked.
“Legitimate question considering the circumstances, but no. I think it would give me some good context for the story to see the rough edges of the city, and then show people who don’t think they can relate, how to contribute to the cause just by making sure the drugs in their medicine cabinets don’t fall into the wrong hands.”
She delivered the hastily concocted explanation and hoped it wasn’t so transparent as to send Dale packing. What she really wanted was to see Dale in her element, hunting for bad guys, letting her actions speak for her.
“What’s your producer going to say about that?” Dale made a show of looking around like Elaina would pop up out of thin air.
“Got a note from her this morning. She’s off working on something else until this afternoon. It’s just me and the rest of the team.” When she’d received Elaina’s message, Lindsey had been annoyed that Elaina had ditched her for the day, but now she was glad for the chance to interact with Dale without some prewritten agenda driving their every move. “So, are you up for it?”
Dale exchanged an unreadable look with Bianca. Please say yes, please say yes.
“Sure,” Dale said. “Why not?” She stood up. “Go get your pals and let’s head out. I’ll meet you out front. I’ll be doing the driving today.”
Lindsey watched Dale and Bianca walk away before she glanced at her notes about the Take-Back program agenda. Bianca Cruz wasn’t listed anywhere on the program. Maybe she was a late addition. Or maybe she was here for some other reason and maybe that reason had nothing to do with work and everything to do with the handsome woman who had just promised to show her a little danger.
*
“Can you pull over there? I’m jonesing for a Coke in the worst way.”
Dale looked in the rearview mirror at Alice aka Coke-a-holic. “Not a great place for a roadstop.”
“I’m not asking to bed down for the day. I just need to run in and buy a drink. Seriously, I’ll be back in under five.”
Tito’s Stop and Shop on Sylvan Road was well known for providing a little bit of everything for everyone from the eight-liner machines and adult movies in the back of the store to more hardcore options, like hookers and crack dealers roaming the aisles. Letting Alice or anyone else from the crew wander around inside was a bad idea. Dale started to say so when she felt a hand on her shoulder and looked over to see Lindsey’s pleading eyes.
“How about we all go? Strength in numbers, right?”
She should shake her head and speed off to find another place where they could satisfy their caffeine fix, but she couldn’t say no to those eyes. “Fine, but no wandering off. And no cameras.”
“Deal.” Lindsey barely had the one word out of her mouth before she was out of the truck, stretching her arms over her head. Dale watched, transfixed, for a moment, but when Lindsey started toward the doors to Tito’s, she shut off the engine and hopped out of the truck to join her with Alice and Jed following close behind.
Once they were inside, Alice and Jed took off toward the cold drink case that lined the back wall, and Lindsey made a beeline for the candy aisle. Dale cast a quick glance toward the back of the store and followed Lindsey. By the time she reached her, Lindsey had a Snickers in one hand and a Payday in the other. “Can’t make up your mind?”
Lindsey flashed her TV perfect smile. “Don’t plan to. Isn’t that the beauty of being an adult? Not having to choose?”
“Hmmm. Sounds like the exact opposite of being an adult.”
Lindsey grabbed a third candy bar from the shelf, a Hershey’s Almond this time, and stepped close. “You’re telling me you think it’s better to pick just one of these than to have a taste of all three?”
Dale looked at the shel
ves, the floor, anywhere but Lindsey’s eyes, convinced they were no longer talking about candy, but unsure how to navigate this minefield of a conversation.
Lindsey, however, was clearly not done, and she waggled the candy bars under her nose. “Which one would you pick, Agent?”
Dale put her hand up and grasped all three of the choices Lindsey held. As her hand gripped the candy, she met Lindsey’s eyes. They were full of questions, and Dale knew they had nothing to do with candy and everything to do with the smoldering arousal she felt simmering between them. She couldn’t engage. Or could she? The list of reasons why she shouldn’t ticked through her mind—allegiance to the job, the fact she hadn’t flirted with any woman besides Maria in over a decade, and her dedication to Maria’s memory—but none of the reasons had the power to quell her body’s reaction to the flirtatious banter from the smart, beautiful woman standing in front of her.
You may not be able to control your body’s response, but you can control what you do about it. She looked down at her hand still wrapped around Lindsey’s, both of them clutching the candy bars and each other, and without meeting Lindsey’s eyes, let go. “Payday.”
“What?” Lindsey’s voice was a husky whisper, and when she looked up, her eyes had a faraway sheen.
“I pick the Payday. You’re buying, right?”
Lindsey nodded. “Sure, sure. You want something to drink?”
Before she had a chance to respond, Dale heard a shout. She whipped around, looking for the source of the outburst. The rotund cashier was sitting on a stool behind the counter, mauling his way through a glazed donut the size of his head. Satisfied no one was trying to rob the till, Dale kept looking for the source of the commotion while she listened to a string of disembodied outbursts.
“Not going!”
“I wasn’t asking. I was telling. Let’s not ruin everyone else’s day over this.”
“Get away from me!”
A loud yelp and then “Holy hell, that hurt!”
