Perfect Fling

by Carly Phillips

  Erin didn’t miss the deliberate way Cole straightened his shoulders, as if he were bracing himself so the insults would bounce off him. But if the set of his jaw was any indication, his father’s words clearly hit home. Worse, the ruddy flush in his cheeks told Erin it was as embarrassing for him as it was for her.

  Which meant she’d make her escape before things became any more awkward between the Sanders men. She said another good-bye, and left the two wary men alone.

  • • •

  “Way to go,” Jed said to Cole after Erin left the house. “You drove the lady off.”

  “You did that all by yourself, Dad.” And though Cole was used to his father’s attitude and was even proud of the way he’d ignored the obnoxious comments, it was clear he’d made Erin uncomfortable.

  “You heard her. She wasn’t itching to leave until you showed up.”

  Cole clenched his hands into fists. “Do we really need to do this? Do you have that list of things I can fix around here?”

  “What? Did your cousin get smart and decide he didn’t want to keep a no-good SOB like you around his respectable customers?”

  Even with Erin gone, Cole didn’t plan on engaging his father. Instead he pushed off the counter and headed for the front door. His tools were in the truck and at least he could get started on fixing the front step. Once outside, he realized Erin’s car was still in the driveway.

  Engine running, she sat in the driver’s seat, arms on the steering wheel, head resting on her arms. Getting up close and personal with her was the last thing he wanted to do, but he couldn’t leave her alone until he found out what was wrong.

  He knocked on the window.

  She jumped, startled, before lowering the window so he could lean closer.

  “You okay?” he asked, though as he studied her, he realized she wasn’t. Her skin was pale, and dark circles he hadn’t noticed before shadowed her eyes.

  “I just . . . got a little dizzy, but I’m fine now.” She brushed her hair out of her eyes with shaking hands.

  A flush of pink stained her cheeks and a hint of what looked like panic flared in her expression. Cole frowned.

  “I’m going now.” She started to buckle up.

  “Uh-uh.” Before she could put the car in gear, he opened the door.

  “What are you doing?” she asked, her voice rising.

  “When did you eat last?”

  She shifted her gaze away from his.

  “I’ll rephrase. Did you have breakfast this morning?”

  She might not want to look at him, but his body prevented her from closing the car door. If she wanted a battle of wills, he felt certain he’d win.

  “No,” she said at last.

  “Mind if I ask why?”

  “Mind if I ask why you care?” she shot back.

  He couldn’t help but grin. Even sick she had spunk. “Because I’m not about to let you drive off while you’re feeling dizzy. Come back inside and I’ll get you something to eat.”

  “That’s nice of you, but no thanks. I have a breakfast bar in my bag.” She riffled through her purse and held one up in triumph. “See?”

  He nodded. “Good. Why didn’t you eat it before you came over?”

  “I wasn’t feeling great when I woke up. Look, I’m going to be late for work. I have to go.”

  “Not until you eat and I know you won’t pass out or swerve off the road.”

  She rolled her eyes, then peeled down the wrapper and took a bite. He watched her jaw work as she chewed, knowing he was making her uncomfortable and unable to stop staring anyway.

  “You look tired. Are you sure you’re getting enough sleep?”

  She choked on a piece of her food. “What is with the third degree this morning?”

  He didn’t have a clue. He just knew something was off about her and he was concerned. Unlike him? Yeah. He didn’t need another woman to worry about letting down, like he had Victoria, Vincent Maroni’s wife.

  Shaking his last case away, he focused on Erin as she finished the breakfast bar, then pulled out a bottle of water and drank a healthy amount. “There. I feel all better.”

  He didn’t feel better, nor did he believe her, but whatever. “Good. Do you feel well enough to drive?”

  She nodded. “Yes. Thank you,” she said, eyeing him as if trying to see beneath his skin.

  She wouldn’t find much there; that he knew.

  “Okay then. Take care.” He patted the top of the car with his hand.

  “You too.” She paused. “Umm, Cole? Don’t pay any attention to your father. He’s just grumpy because of his arm.”

  “No he’s not. He’s Jed, expressing his low opinion of me, same as always.” The minute the honest words escaped he could have bitten his tongue, mostly because he didn’t want her pity.

  But a glance at her narrowed eyes and tight expression showed anger, not sympathy. “He’s wrong, then.”

  She wasn’t defending Jed; she was sticking up for him. Warmth flooded his chest, but he ruthlessly squashed the good, clean feeling he wasn’t used to experiencing. He didn’t need her on his side any more than he wanted her to like him. He couldn’t do anything but hurt her sweet-girl reputation. He couldn’t do anything but hurt her.

  “Go to work,” he said gruffly, ignoring the flash of disappointment in her eyes at his response.

  And though he wanted to keep her at arm’s length, actually accomplishing his goal didn’t make him feel like he’d done her the favor he’d intended.

  After finishing up the porch and fixing a drawer in the kitchen he had noticed was falling off the hinge, Cole decided enough was enough. If he was going to live in this town, he needed more than his own company and the occasional conversation with someone on Nick’s crew. Though he didn’t know what kind of welcome he’d receive, Cole headed out to the police station for a visit with Mike Marsden.

  He’d avoided this particular reunion because, like Jed, Mike, the current Serendipity chief of police, knew about Cole’s past, old and more recent. And though Mike had done his share of undercover work, he hadn’t ever been as deep as Cole. But he’d understand enough to empathize—and Cole hadn’t wanted to discuss the last year in his life. But after his run-in with Jed, Cole needed a reality check and, if he was honest with himself, a friend. Even if that friend was Erin’s brother.

  • • •

  Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. If Erin’s head wasn’t already pounding, she’d smack it against the car window for good measure.

  Breathe, she ordered herself, trying to pretend the breakfast bar wasn’t trying to force its way back up. What had she been thinking, sitting in Cole’s dad’s driveway, her head on the steering wheel, sick as a proverbial dog? Cole seemed to have bought the whole I didn’t eat bit, so she exhaled hard. She needed to tell him and she didn’t want to. Didn’t know how.

  With no meetings scheduled for this morning, instead of going to work, Erin decided to stop at The Family Restaurant to see her friend Macy Donovan. She decided it was time to confide in someone she’d known a long while and get advice on how to handle this from someone other than Trina, who Erin trusted, but who didn’t go way back with her.

  She pulled into the parking lot and paused, taking in the old building on the edge of town. Macy and her siblings had been trying to talk their father into remodeling and changing up the menu, but so far no luck. Still, the place was a town staple, and everybody seemed to show up here at one time or another, either for the food, the company, or a combination of both.

  Today, Erin needed Macy’s good old-fashioned common sense. She walked inside and settled at the counter, waving at her friend to let her know she was there. After seating an older couple, Macy made her way to the stool beside Erin and settled in.

  “Hey, hon. Long time no see. How are you?” Macy asked, tapping her long hot pink nails against the counter.

  “Truth?” Erin wasn’t in the mood to segue into it or beat around the bush.

  “Of course.
What’s wrong?” She narrowed her gaze. “I should have known when I didn’t see or hear from you lately that something was up.”

  Erin nodded, leaning in close. The last thing she wanted was the Serendipity grapevine kicking in. “I need you to keep this quiet, okay?”

  Eyes serious, Macy nodded. “Cross my heart,” she said, doing as much with her fingers.

  Erin swallowed hard. “I’m pregnant,” she whispered, then immediately slapped her hand over Macy’s mouth before her exuberant friend could scream her reaction.

  Macy’s eyes opened wide.

  “Got a grip?” Erin asked her.

  She nodded and Erin released her hand. “How the fuck did that happen?” Macy asked in her usual outspoken way. “I thought you said you used protection?”

  “Shh!”

  Macy nodded. “Okay, we need to talk,” she said, this time in hushed tones.

  “Nobody knows except Trina, who bought the test because I was too stupid to face reality, and Alexa. And now you.”

  “Oh, honey, what are you going to do?” Macy asked, her hand on Erin’s arm.

  “I’m having the baby, of course!”

  Macy smiled. “I figured that. I just meant with the rest of it.”

  “I’m taking it one day at a time. I have to tell him, but I thought maybe I’d wait until I’m past the first trimester.” Which wasn’t much longer. “You know, relatively safe and all that.”

  “You’re young and healthy. I’d say you’re going to be fine, and the longer you wait, the harder it will be. Yes?” Macy asked.

  Erin nodded, tears forming. “Sorry. I’m just so damned emotional, on top of everything else.”

  “You know it takes two to make a baby, so don’t be afraid to tell him. That man’s bark is worse than his bite, and if you slept with him, I’m sure you’d agree.”

  “Yeah. Except we’re not even friends. Ever since that night he’s gone out of his way to avoid me.” And Erin refused to admit out loud how much it hurt.

  “He’s got demons. He has to. Between how his father always treated him and the fact that nobody knows where he’s been . . . You’ve seen the shadows in his eyes.”

  Except that night, Erin thought. All she’d seen in those dark orbs had been heat and passion. She shivered in her seat.

  “Tell him,” Macy said, patting Erin’s hand.

  Erin nodded. “I’ll figure out when. And how.”

  She sat at the counter and drank a cup of tea, which helped settle her stomach. Then she paid, hugged Macy, and headed for work.

  The district attorney’s office building was located adjacent to the police station and across the street from the courthouse. In the center sat a beautifully manicured lawn and gazebo, the pride and joy of downtown Serendipity. Though her office itself was small, Erin had always loved the view her window provided of her hometown. It made the hours she spent holed up in there easier.

  Being late meant she had to park far from the entrance. Though it was August, today was an unseasonably cool day, and the breeze blew gently over her skin. She grabbed her briefcase in one hand and draped her suit jacket over her other arm, then shut the car door behind her. She was halfway to the office entrance when she heard a distinctive popping sound and whipped around to see what caused the noise. She didn’t see anyone nearby. She took another two steps, then she felt a searing burning pain, unlike anything she’d experienced before, rip through her arm.

  She glanced down to see that her silk blouse was now coated with blood. Her blood. Confused and suddenly dizzy, she stumbled.

  Someone called her name and she saw the security guard from the front entrance running toward her. She opened her mouth to tell him she’d been shot, but the pain took over and she fell to the hard, asphalt-covered ground.

  Three

  Cole walked into the Serendipity Police Station, ignoring the wary looks people threw his way. If they didn’t know him from the past, they’d definitely heard of him by now. He squared his shoulders and continued through the precinct to the chief’s office, raising his hand to knock, when he heard voices from inside.

  A female laugh and a male chuckle.

  Cole was backing away, not wanting to interrupt, when the door opened wide and Cara Marsden strode out. He had to hand it to her, she tried to pull off nonchalant, but her pulled-back hair was mussed from her husband’s fingers, her lips were red from being kissed, and her cheeks were heavily flushed.

  He shook his head, finding it hard to reconcile the serious Mike Marsden he knew with a man who’d fool around in his office. Cole tipped his head at the other man’s pretty wife, not saying a word as he nodded to her before knocking on his old friend’s door.

  “Come on in,” Mike called.

  Cole decided to take the offensive for this initial hello. “So you’re married and settled in Serendipity. As chief,” Cole said as he stepped into the room.

  Mike had just finished straightening his tie.

  “And apparently getting laid is a perk of the job. Good for you, man.” Cole couldn’t stifle a chuckle.

  “That’s my wife you’re talking about,” Mike said, coming around his desk.

  He shoved his hand forward and Cole knew the other man wasn’t angry, merely possessive. Go figure.

  “Glad you could finally make time for an old friend.” Mike shook with a firm grip.

  “I had trial and prep in New York City, so I went back and forth for a while. Lately, I’ve been trying to decompress.”

  This, more than any job, had been particularly unpleasant. Maroni, the mob boss, had a clingy, needy wife who he ignored. In Cole’s effort to protect her while taking down the drug-dealing, murdering bastard, he’d gotten close to Victoria. And she to him. Too close. And when her husband had been arrested and Cole’s role was revealed, she’d revealed her true feelings. Her neediness bordered on delusional, and she’d convinced herself that Cole had feelings for her that extended beyond the job.

  Mike’s penetrating gaze settled hard. “Take it from someone who’s been there, and not as deep as you. It takes time to remember who you are.”

  Cole remembered. And when he didn’t, Jed reminded him.

  “How are you getting along with your father?” Mike asked, reading Cole’s mind.

  “Same. The man blames me for mom leaving him. He can’t see past the punk I once was.” And maybe the old man was right, Cole thought.

  The truth hurt, but Cole didn’t like the kid he’d been. The man he’d become after his mother remarried and Brody welcomed Cole in? That was a Cole he was coming to understand and maybe even respect. But even more than a decade later, it was hard to wipe away the vestiges of his father’s negative influence.

  “Hell, he blames me for breathing,” Cole muttered.

  “Jed always was a hard-ass. It’s what let him do his job for so long,” Mike said. “But that doesn’t make him right.”

  Cole waved him away. “Forget it.” Because if Mike ever found out about the one-night stand Cole had had with his sister, he’d be lining up against him with Jed.

  Just because Mike knew what Cole’s real job had been didn’t mean he’d think Cole was good enough for his sister. There was the danger, a reality that Mike knew only too well.

  Then there was Cole himself. Erin deserved a man who’d commit to being around. She’d grown up surrounded by love and with parents who cared, and no doubt she wanted the same. Cole’s job meant he was gone for extended periods of time. This last job had taken a year of his life, excluding the trial that came after. He’d never had much in the way of family or friends outside of work and wouldn’t know how to live that way, let alone blend the two.

  Nor did he want to. Jesus, what was with him, constantly rehashing this shit in his head, over a woman he knew was all wrong for him and vice versa.

  Before Mike could reply, a loud commotion sounded from the squad room. “Excuse me,” Mike said, heading for the door. “What’s going on out there?” he yelled out.


  “There was a shooting in the parking lot,” Cara said as she ran up to him and grabbed his hand. “You need to get out there now.”

  Apparently things weren’t as quiet in his small town as Cole remembered. He followed the direction of the chaos and stepped outside in time to see cops swarming the scene and an ambulance pulling up to the middle of the lot, and for Mike’s bellow to reverberate in Cole’s head.

  “What the hell do you mean, my sister was shot?”

  Adrenaline spiked in Cole’s veins and he started forward, but an armed cop restrained him. “No spectators, buddy. Clear the scene so everyone can do their jobs.”

  “But I’m—” He was what to Erin? Cole couldn’t say family. And he wasn’t a cop with permission to get past the barrier they were erecting.

  Shit.

  Waiting around helplessly wasn’t his style, but bursting in and getting himself arrested wouldn’t help matters. Neither would having to explain his actions to Mike. He forced himself to think clearly. Erin had been shot, which meant she’d be taken to the hospital, so that’s where Cole headed, hoping for information from the family once they arrived.

  University Hospital was a hustle of busy people running in all directions, even more so when the ambulance carrying Erin arrived. Cole stood back as they rushed the stretcher inside, but was relieved to see her eyes open. Being conscious was a damned good thing. He absently rubbed the left side of his abdomen, where he’d been shot in the final stage of his last undercover op. He wouldn’t wish that pain on anyone, let alone someone as innocent as Erin.

  Mike, who’d accompanied his sister in the ambulance, followed close behind the paramedics through the swinging doors. He didn’t glance around, and Cole was grateful Mike hadn’t noticed him. The other man would have questions Cole wasn’t sure he could answer. Questions Cole had been asking himself since finding out the identity of the gunshot victim. Why was he so affected by the fact that it was Erin being wheeled in here? He had no concrete answers. He only knew that his gut was churning, and it wouldn’t settle down until he knew she was okay.