Kansas Nights [Kansas Heat 2] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting)

by Jenny Penn

  “Then answer his questions and rest assured I won’t let the answers land you in jail.” Collin offered her a small smile with that assurance.

  Before Kathy could tell him she would try, the door to the interrogation room banged open and a small, very pissed-off-looking man filled the entrance. Dressed in khakis and a wrinkled shirt, the man’s badge bent over his belt no doubt matched the “DEA” embroidered on his jacket. He had the appearance to match the outfit, with his Ken-doll haircut and his all-American good looks.

  The only thing out of place was his asshole attitude. Clearly irritated beyond even thinking of being polite, his brown eyes narrowed instantly on Collin.

  “Leave. Now.”

  “I don’t—”

  “It’s all right, Collin.” This man, Kathy could handle. She’d been groomed for this moment in a lot of ways. That confidence finally returned to her as she offered Collin a small smile. “After all, I’m sure you can watch everything on the other side of that mirror.”

  Kathy nodded in the direction of her own reflection, feeling certain there was already a gaggle of men crowded in to catch the show. Collin, however, was reluctant to join them. Giving Kathy’s hand a squeeze, he trudged toward the door with reluctant steps that stalled out when he reached the agent.

  “I will be watching.”

  There was a threat buried in Collin’s words. One the agent ignored as he did Collin. He simply waited until Collin had made it far enough over the threshold that he could slam the door behind him.

  “Miss Coben.” The agent didn’t even wait for the wall to finish shuddering before addressing her with a forced smile that showed way too many teeth.

  “Agent…”

  “Who I am is not really relevant at this moment,” the man assured her as he strutted forward to drop a rather thick file on the table. “After all, you are the more interesting person in this room.”

  “Such flattery,” Kathy retorted, keeping her tone as emotionless as she could. “I think we’ll call you Agent Crankyass.”

  “Call me whatever you want, Miss Coben, just as long as you understand that you are a person of interest in an ongoing federal investigation. I have a few questions I’d like to ask you. You are not, however, required to answer them and do have the right to leave whenever you want or to retain counsel if you so choose. Would you care to exercise either one of those options?”

  Kathy knew a smart person would say “yes” and a cautious one would want a lawyer. She, however, didn’t tend to be either of those two things. Instead, she returned the agent’s tight smile and nodded to the chair across from her.

  “We’re all on the same team here, aren’t we? Why wouldn’t I want to help you and your investigation any way I could?” Kathy asked so sweetly as to be completely insincere.

  “How very patriotic,” Agent Crankyass retorted. His tone remained harsh, the words sneered with enough disgust that they sounded as honest as hers had. “Of course, I would expect nothing less of a Marine’s daughter. How do you think your father would feel about your current situation?”

  “Call and ask him.” Knowing he wanted her to feel guilt or concern about her daddy’s response, Kathy could only be amused instead. “That should be an interesting conversation.”

  “Yes, well—”

  “Look.” Kathy cut the agent off, already tired of the diplomatic bullshit that came with these kinds of games. “I’ve had a long day, so why don’t I just tell you what I know along with what happened, and then you can stop pretending like you know or care anything about my family. Okay?”

  The man sat there simply staring at her for so long Kathy began to think he did it as a way of punishing her for interrupting him. Eventually, though, he nodded. “Fine. We’ll start there.”

  As agreeable as he appeared, the agent pestered her with so many questions that it took her nearly two hours to tell a story that should have only taken thirty minutes. The whole time, Kathy half expected Jack to show up and interfere. He didn’t, though, making her wonder just where he’d disappeared to. Her concern that the answer meant bad news grew as the agent before her started asking questions about Jack.

  “I think now is when I ask for that lawyer.” Kathy settled back in her seat. “I’ve told you all you need to know. Go find whatever Eddie buried and that will give you the rest of your answers.”

  “Don’t worry, we intend to,” Agent Crankyass assured her as the door shoved open and a scrawny-looking man who was way over tanned stepped in. “But don’t think this is the end of our conversation.”

  “I believe it is,” the newcomer contradicted the agent. With an authority he must have been born with, the little man stepped up to take on that argument without any hesitation. “My client said she was done talking to you and I’ll ensure that wish is granted, Agent Tagger. Now if you will excuse us, I would like to have a private conversation with my client.”

  “Certainly.” Retreating, he paused at the door to cast Kathy a smirk that only made her hate him more. “Just one thing. If the whole point of this was to help your friend Amanda…you didn’t change anything in that regard. Only proved that nobody else near Will could have been involved, except…maybe…you.”

  “Agent—”

  Before her lawyer could finish snapping out his name, Tagger slammed the door, leaving that threat to linger. Not that it appeared to faze the attorney. He didn’t even take a second to brush off the agent’s snide comment before he turned and offered her a hand along with a smile.

  “I’m Thomas Townsend of Townsend and Lee, Attorneys at Law. Amos Calhan has retained our services to assist you with your current legal trouble.”

  “Really?” Kathy took the card he handed her, not certain she trusted or believed him. “Why would he do that?”

  “Are you not his employee?” Thomas answered her question with his own.

  It took her a moment to consider that as the question forced her to face the inevitable reality that she was about to lose her job. Once the county council heard her name associated with a federal investigation involving murder, drugs, and missing millions, Kathy would be out a job.

  Add in whatever the mayor’s wife told them, and Kathy’s employability rating in the greater Humble area was right around zero. Whatever happened with Collin, Jack, Amanda, the case, and anything else, Kathy still needed to make a living. Nodding over her decision, she cast a hopeful smile in Thomas’s direction.

  “I guess so. Just tell me where to sign up.”

  Chapter 30

  Friday, October 3rd

  Five weeks later Kathy stood amid a sea of boxes and wondered how it had it come to that. Everything had unraveled. Her entire life had shifted in a matter of days. She’d been fired, her rental contract revoked, and all but her best friends had turned their back on her.

  It just didn’t seem fair, especially given she hadn’t actually shot Marion Myers, or Benny. In fact, despite Agent Crankyass’s prediction, Kathy had cracked his case and saved Amanda. It might have taken the Feds a few more days to sort it out, but thanks to her exposing Marion the Feds had finally manage to trace their way back to the asshole who had stolen the money.

  Did anybody bother to hank her? No. Just the opposite. Kathy might have actually been a little bitter about it all except that, technically, she had ended up in a better place. Thanks to Amos and his contacts, she now made more money, had a nicer rental, and lived in a town full of beefcakes. Of course, she already had one of those, too. Greedy bitch that she was, Kathy had kind of hoped for two.

  Wherever Jack had disappeared to, he’d kept his silence and distance, leaving Kathy to assume it was simply over. Apparently he wasn’t even returning to claim his seventy-two hours. Collin, on the other hand, had clearly decided to claim the next seventy-two years if she was reading the signs right.

  The man had barely left her side. While in Humble it had made sense that he stayed with her, that didn’t explain why all his stuff had shown up in her house. Things
had gotten a little clearer when Collin had explained that he’d recorded a message on their answering machine. Apparently, they were now a “them,” except that Collin had forgotten to ask her if she wanted him to move in. Clearly he didn’t intend to either.

  Not that Kathy would have said no, but it would have been nice of him to ask. They could have had a moment. Instead all she had were more boxes and less space. Even more irritating, Collin didn’t appear the least bit inclined to help her with the unpacking. Kathy cast a dirty look to where he was settled into his oversized recliner, watching TV and relaxing, clearly unconcerned about the mess around him.

  Why shouldn’t he be? Collin had a bed, a seat, and a very large TV. He was set. Kathy, on the other hand, had nothing. It might be her house, but she slept in his bed, sat on his lap, and fought him for control over his remote. Beyond that they lived out of boxes, and it was driving Kathy nuts.

  Every time, though, she began to think about doing anything, she became overwhelmed by the sheer volume of stuff to be done. Before she could buy furniture, she needed to pick out paint. Amos had said she could decorate as she wished and he paid her enough to finally afford some sense of style. Apparently, though, style required more creative vision and organizational skills than Kathy had.

  “Oh, the hell with it,” she muttered, abandoning the boxes and giving up her attempt to accomplish anything with the rest of the night.

  “You say something, sweetness?” Collin asked absentmindedly.

  “I said unpacking sucks,” Kathy retorted as she came to a pause by his side. Pushing his arm out of the way, she crawled up into his lap, smiling when his arm lowered back down to wrap around her. Snuggling her cheek into his chest, she sighed as her eyes drifted closed. “I’m too tired to bother with it tonight.”

  “You said that last night,” Collin pointed out, not that he urged her to get back to work. Instead the hand rubbing down her back worked her slowly deeper into his embrace. “I get a feeling we’re going to be living out of boxes for a while.”

  “So?” Kathy couldn’t stop the yawn that drew out that word. “You know you could help.”

  “I offered to,” Collin defended himself, daring to bring up the argument that they’d been engaged in for days. “But as I pointed out, you can’t unpack until you have someplace to put your stuff. We need furniture.”

  “And I’ll get some eventually.” Kathy offered him the very same assurance she gave him every time he made that same point. “When I get the money—”

  “I could just buy—”

  “Then it’ll all be store-bought, overpriced crap. Trust me, I’ll get better deals at flea markets, not to mention they’ll be unique pieces.” Kathy loved to go antiquing, or at least she thought she would. She’d always wanted to, just never had the money to afford anything nice before. Now, though, with what Amos paid her, she had all kinds of fantasies she could try out.

  “It’s going to take years for you to furnish this house, isn’t it?” Collin sounded almost amused by that idea.

  “I let you keep your chair here, don’t I?” Kathy glanced up to offer him a sickly sweet smile with that reminder. It had Collin smirking as he shook his head over the threat implied in her tone.

  “You wouldn’t have any place to sit if you didn’t.”

  “Hmm.” Kathy wiggled, rubbing her hip along the thick erection poking her in the side. “You sure about that?”

  Collin growled, his hand clamping down around her waist to hold her still. “If you’re going to tease like that, sweet meat, you better be willing to pay the price.”

  “Any time, stud. Anywhere.” The yawn that struck out of nowhere ruined Kathy’s sultry come-on, turning it into an insincere-sounding offer that had Collin snorting.

  “Just not now,” Collin retorted, clearly amused. “Right?”

  Kathy chose to ignore that. Giving up her attempts to tease him, she let Collin’s warmth infuse her with the calm, soothing sense she got whenever he held her close. The consistent thump of his heart echoed like a lyrical toll beneath her ear. The gentle, rhythmic beat of his heart lulled Kathy toward sleep as her body began to give under the stress of the past few weeks. Not that she could truly escape the one worry that lived with her always.

  “You heard anything?”

  It was the same question Kathy asked Collin every night, the one she’d asked right after he’d assured her Jack was safe and alive that first night five weeks ago. Just like then, Collin intentionally misunderstood her.

  “Let’s see.” Collin drew the words out, pausing as if to consider the matter. “Did I tell you what my friend at the Bureau said?”

  “He said that they had made several arrests. You told me…” Kathy’s words faded into a murmur as Collin’s hand slid up her back. For a moment she could only groan as his fingertips circled with heavenly delight over her scalp.

  “Amanda isn’t in any danger anymore,” Collin reminded her, his touch trailing back down her neck. Little ticklish sparks raced down her spine, perking Kathy back up enough to find her voice and her ability for words returned.

  “What happens to the recovered money?”

  “It goes into Uncle Sam’s account.”

  “So, I guess the government made out in the end.”

  Another yawn caught her by surprise. This one drew out more than her words, but had her stretching as her whole body arched and then collapsed from the sudden release of tension.

  “Tired?”

  “Maybe just a little,” Kathy allowed even as she nuzzled herself tighter against his chest. “I think I’ll just close my eyes. Will you hold me?”

  “For as long as you want,” Collin assured her with such sweetness that Kathy couldn’t help but smile. She drifted off to sleep just like that, happy and content.

  * * * *

  Collin had just finished stripping Kathy and tucking her into bed when his cell phone went off. He didn’t even need to look to know who it was and considered letting it go straight through to voice mail but knew that would just entice Jack to keep calling. It didn’t honestly bother Collin that Jack was keeping in touch. He just wished his old partner would call sometime other than midnight.

  He also wished the idiot would let him tell Kathy that Jack intended to return, but Jack had a plan. A plan he hadn’t shared with Collin, but insisted Collin take part in. He was to do what he was told, when he was told. Every night, though, when Kathy pathetically asked about Jack, Collin came a little closer to telling her the truth.

  That strain sounded in his tone as he snapped his cell phone open. “What?”

  “Are you with Kathy?”

  “She’s asleep.”

  “Good.” Jack cut in, sounding less than interested in hearing the rest. “You going to let me in?”

  “What?” Collin asked, caught off guard. With his attention turned to giving his normal, quick rundown of how Kathy’s day had gone, Collin didn’t catch Jack’s question because what he heard didn’t make sense.

  “The door,” Jack explained slowly as if Collin needed the special speed, which he did right then. “Open it.”

  “You’re here?” Collin asked even as he wrenched open the front door and stared in dumbfounded amazement at the man standing on their porch. Surprise did not lead to happy in that moment as Collin’s gaze narrowed on his friend. “What are you doing here? And why didn’t you tell me you were headed this way? I could have done with some warning.”

  “Stop whining and get out of my way. I’m moving in,” Jack retorted as if Collin should have figured that out minutes ago. Reaching down to hoist up the two duffel bags slouched at his feet, he brushed past Collin to step into the living room and drop them in the corner. “There. Now I’m done.”

  Collin had to laugh at that as he shook his head at his old partner. “You and Kathy are remarkably alike in the oddest ways.”

  “Huh?” Jack blinked, taking in that comment and still ending with a confused look softening his features.

&
nbsp; “Look around,” Collin suggested with a nod to the room. Jack glanced around, checking everything out with a curious gaze before shrugging.

  “Whatever, man. You got anything to eat?”

  “Pizza in the kitchen. Come on, I’ll show you.” Collin led the way through the arched opening that separated the formal dining room from the living room. As he wove his way through the boxes cluttering the otherwise empty room, Collin prodded Jack to make sure the situation was as he assumed it to be. “So, you’ve truly quit now? No going back?”

  “Ha,” Jack snorted at that suggestion. “It took me three weeks to get out and two weeks to recover. I’m not going back, but I am wondering where the hell all the furniture is. You’ve been here, what? Two weeks?”

  “A little longer and you can take that grievance up with Kathy,” Collin retorted in an exasperated enough tone to ensure that Jack wouldn’t pick too hard at that sore subject. Of course, once he started, he found it hard to stop. Despite his intention to let it go, Collin found himself growling over the limited hospitality he could extend.

  “And don’t be expecting to eat off of plates,” Collin warned Jack. He paused to flip on the kitchen light so Jack could see the dirty look he shot him. “She’s not sure which box they’re in, but I can offer you a paper towel.”

  “She’s driving you a little nuts, huh?” Jack asked, sounding concerned but not the least bit guilty as he flipped open the lid of the pizza box.

  “Actually I think she’s been handling the move pretty well.” Collin snapped the lid back down, catching Jack’s hands in the box’s cardboard mouth. Instantly Jack’s gaze lifted to meet his and face the accusation Collin had waiting for him. “I think it’s the losing the man she loves part that’s had her feeling miserable.”