Eve pulled her damp hair back into a ponytail as she stared at her closet. It was weird to have Mac waiting in her living room while she was getting dressed, especially after that kiss last night. She’d been ready to jump in bed with him right then and there. But that would have been insane. Taking things further would completely ruin their friendship. A man like him didn’t settle down and it would be foolish to think otherwise.
She didn’t understand why the stubborn man had insisted on following her home. And then he’d decided to wait while she showered and got dressed. After getting a solid night’s sleep she felt better about the fact that no one had seen her. She’d kept her face hidden and she’d worn gloves. By now the police probably had someone in custody and since she’d already copied Allen Martin’s SIM card, she was going to drop it off to the sheriff anonymously. She felt a little bad about that but chances were, if she’d left it, it would be destroyed by now. Someone had wanted it for a reason so that had to be important.
She finally settled on a pair of dark jeans, a plain black shirt and a black fitted jacket to go over it. She had a few stops planned today and if she dressed up too much, people always seemed to be uncomfortable. Maybe it was a Texas thing, she wasn’t sure. After grabbing a pair of flat boots and her purse, she found Mac in her living room.
He was staring at a twelve-year-old picture of her and her brother. It had been taken on Mac’s ranch, back when his father had run the place. She’d been sixteen at the time and just growing into her body. And she’d developed a massive crush on Mac that summer. He’d noticed her body and her crush.
As she sat on the couch and slid on one of her boots, he turned those ice blue eyes on her and her heart stuttered. “Sure you don’t want to fix breakfast or anything before we leave?” he asked.
She shook her head and zipped up the first one. And she didn’t want to talk about mundane stuff either. “You remember that summer?” She nodded toward the picture.
He shrugged stiffly but at least he didn’t avert his gaze. Yeah, he remembered all right. She could see it on his face.
“You almost kissed me that summer. Would have been my first kiss too.” Instead she’d gotten her first one from Billy Johnson later that year. He’d been all tongue and slobber. Not the best experience. Even thinking about it now grossed her out.
“I almost lost my head that summer,” he muttered as he shoved his hands into his jeans pockets.
She remembered that day well. Barely eighteen, Mac had been horrified he’d almost made a move on his best friend’s little sister. He’d told her he was sorry for what he’d done. She hadn’t wanted his apology, she’d wanted him. But after that they’d never talked about it and that summer he and Daniel had enlisted in the Marine Corps together. She hadn’t seen Mac much after that but when she had, nothing had ever happened between them—or
almost
happened again.
Not that she wouldn’t have liked it. He’d filled out in all the right places after joining the military. He’d been good looking before but he’d come back ripped and toned and not in that gross gym rat way. Even today he wore his dark hair cropped close. And those blue eyes of his still had the ability to make her melt. Sometimes it felt like he could see right through her, all the way to her fantasies. She wasn’t sure why she’d even brought up the almost-kiss when she should be doing everything in her power to avoid talking about anything that involved their lips meshing.
When he didn’t say anything else, she plucked her purse off the coffee table and stood. “I appreciate everything you’ve done for me but you don’t need to follow me into town today.”
“I’m not following you. You’re riding with me. I know you’re busy so you can take my truck and do whatever it is you need to do.” He spoke as if she had no choice in the matter.
“That’s stupid. Besides, what are you going to do for a vehicle?”
“After we go to the sheriff’s station you can drop me off at the feed store where I’ll catch a ride with Grant. I’ve already talked to him.” He’d lost a lot of his drawl after being gone for almost a decade, but it came back in full force when he was being extra bossy.
“Mac, that makes no sense—”
“For all we know, Martin’s killer is still on the loose. I’m not taking the chance someone recognized you…or saw your car leaving the scene. They could have gotten your license plate number. It’s not that hard to track someone that way. I don’t want you driving around in your car today. Not until we have more information.” By the firm set of his jaw she knew it would be pointless to argue, but sometimes the man riled her up.
“Look, I know I came to you for help last night, but—”
“It’s not up for discussion,
darlin’
.”
At the word darlin’, the argument died on her lips. Didn’t he know how to take all the wind out of her sails? “Fine.” She might not like his domineering attitude but a part of her she didn’t want to admit existed, kind of liked the way he was insisting on taking care of her.
Over the years they’d butted heads a few times but the way he was acting now was somehow different. Grunting something incomprehensible, he palmed his keys and strode for the front door.
As he trailed in front of her she couldn’t help but watch that tight, firm butt. She’d fantasized way too many times what it would be like to grab onto him. Just once. Okay, maybe more than once. Spending more time with him was going to make those cravings worse. Especially now that she’d had a taste of him.
Eve lived in a ranch style house in a small subdivision right on the outskirts of town so it took less than ten minutes to reach downtown.
Mac hated everything about what they were doing, but he didn’t see another option. At least she hadn’t balked too much at driving his truck around today. He might not be able to keep an eye on her all the time but until they figured out who was responsible for Martin’s death, it would have to do.
As Eve sat inside Sheriff Marcel’s office not-so-subtly drilling the man with questions, Mac took his time pouring a cup of coffee at the table directly outside the office. From what he could tell, the sheriff had an open door policy and kept the coffee stand next to his office for a reason. He wanted to keep a pulse on his officers, something Mac appreciated.
“You can tell whoever your source is that they’re mistaken. We followed up on a bogus lead last night to the Underwood’s and found nothing there,” the sheriff said.
Mac frowned as he stirred sugar he didn’t want into the coffee. Anything to drag out his excuse for loitering.
“My source is impeccable,” Eve snapped back.
“Not this time, they’re not. The pool house was clean. No blood and certainly no body. I wasted good manpower checking out that bogus call.”
“No blood?” Eve sounded incredulous. She’d told him that it had been all over the tile floor.
But Mac knew a fast clean up job would have been easy if the cops hadn’t been looking too hard. If they’d already gotten it in their minds that it was a prank call then they wouldn’t have brought in anyone to check forensics. By now any blood evidence would be wiped clean. Unless of course they decided to go back and check for traces with luminol.
“That’s right. The only thing we discovered is that Richard Underwood’s car has been stolen. Maybe you can write a story about that.” His voice held an edge of sarcasm.
“Stolen?” Eve asked, disbelievingly. “And what about Allen Martin? Anyone see fit to check up on him?”
The sheriff sighed loudly and Mac knew he was reaching the end of his rope. “I did receive a call last night about a prowler roaming around the exclusive Ranch Rock subdivision. A couple houses down from the Underwood’s place. Maybe I should be asking where you were last night.”
And that was Mac’s cue. Grabbing the second Styrofoam cup he’d poured, he casually strode into the office. “Hey, Rob.”
Tearing his gaze away from Eve, the sheriff slightly faltered. “Uh, hey Mac. Haven’t seen you around in a while. Everything all right?”
Mac nodded as he handed a second cup to Eve. For effect he winked at her and held back a grin as she blushed. “Everything’s fine,” he said to the sheriff. “I’m waiting on Eve to take me down to the feed store.”
“Ah…oh.” His frown deepened.
“She had some car trouble this morning so we decided to ride into town together.” The way he said ‘we’ made it obvious that something was going on with them. He wasn’t sure she’d out and out lie to the sheriff about last night, but Mac didn’t want her saying something that could come back to bite her in the ass later. He would rather divert the subject regarding her whereabouts last night than have her lie.
Next to him Eve choked on her coffee but didn’t argue. She grabbed her purse from the floor and stood. “Sorry to have bothered you.”
The sheriff stood, eyeing them suspiciously. “Eve, is there something you need to tell me?”
She snorted softly as if that was the last thing she’d ever do then took another sip of her coffee. “Thanks for your time, Sheriff.”
Putting his arm around her shoulders, Mac steered her out of the station.
Once they stepped out into the bright sun, she elbowed him. “What was that? Now he thinks you stayed over at my place.”
“So?”
She gritted her teeth and tossed the cup of crappy coffee into the trashcan outside the building. “Now everyone is going to think we’re together.”
And would that be such a bad thing?
He followed suit with his cup. The stuff was swill. “It’s better than him questioning you about your whereabouts last night.”
Immediately she switched gears as they strode across the parking lot toward his truck. “What was that bull about the DA’s car being stolen? I
know
what I saw last night. I certainly didn’t conjure up a dead body. Or someone chasing me. Or
shooting
at me. I guarantee the patrol cop only glanced at the pool house—if he even did that at all.”
Mac didn’t respond as he slid into his seat. Eve might be a lot of things but she wasn’t crazy and she wasn’t a liar. If she said she’d seen Martin’s body, she’d seen it. With the less than stellar record of the Hudson Creek P.D., he didn’t blame her for not having faith in them.
“I left one tiny detail out about last night,” Eve said as he steered out of the lot.
His stomach dropped at her words. “What?”
“I took Martin’s SIM card out of his phone before I escaped.”
He swore under his breath. It was actually a pretty smart thing to do. “What are you going to do with it?”
“I already copied the numbers this morning. I was going to anonymously mail the card to the police station but now I wonder…”
“It’s evidence. You
need
to turn it over.” It wasn’t necessarily hard to make a body disappear in west Texas so if someone had taken Martin out to the desert to bury him, Mac doubted they’d ever discover his corpse. But if Eve could get the cops riled up enough to dig into things, maybe it wouldn’t be a bad thing. He glanced at her as they pulled up to a stoplight.
“I’ll do it today.” She chewed on her bottom lip as she stared out the windshield.
“What
else
are you thinking of doing?”
“Nothing. I’m simply wondering if there’s a way for us to get his phone records.”
Mac shook his head and made a right turn when the light switched to green. “Not without a warrant, you know that.”
She was silent as he steered into the feed store parking lot. Something that worried him. When she shifted in her seat to face him, he couldn’t help himself.
Reaching out, he cupped her cheek. Apparently he really was a masochist. No good could come of this, but feeling her soft skin against his callous roughened palm was like holding silk. Her mouth parted slightly, invitingly. If he kissed those pink lips now he’d never want to stop. Instead he kissed her forehead lightly and drew back. “Please don’t do anything stupid today, Eve.”
“I won’t.” Her voice was raspy and sexy.
“I’ll have one of the guys drop me off at your place later tonight. Call me and let me know when you’ll be heading home. I’ll try to get there at the same time.”
For a moment she looked like she might argue but she nodded. “Okay.”
Getting out of his truck and leaving her was the last thing he wanted to do but he ordered his body to obey.
Eve stupidly lifted her fingers to her forehead after she pulled out of the parking lot. She didn’t understand Mac. Since he’d moved back to town he’d kept his distance from her. Not physically, but she could almost feel him withdrawing from her sometimes when they saw each other. And now he wanted to be all sweet and concerned. Not to mention he’d freaking kissed her last night.
She so didn’t need that right now. Allen Martin was dead and no one knew about it. Since she obviously couldn’t count on the police to do their job, she needed to find out what was going on and find the killer. The DA’s car had ‘suddenly’ been stolen. More likely it had been used to transport a body then disposed of.
She had to get Martin’s phone records. If she could find out who he’d been in contact with lately, she might get a lead. A small part of her wanted to tell the sheriff, but she wasn’t sure he’d believe her. And if she opened up that can of worms and he didn’t, the whole town would know about it by sunset and the killer would have no doubt she’d been the one at the Underwood mansion last night. She’d become a walking target, she
still
wouldn’t have a clue who had killed Martin and the police wouldn’t be concerned if they didn’t think Martin was dead.
Her money was on the DA, but what if it was his wife? Or someone who worked for them? And who was the guy with the accent who’d chased her?
Shaking her head, she put her hands-free earpiece in and called her boss. After letting him know she planned to run down a few interviews, she was almost to her destination. When she steered into Iris Bunwell Martin’s driveway she braced herself. Iris, or Bunny, as she liked to call herself, was nice enough. Sometimes she was a lot to take though. Big blonde hair, big voice, big…other assets.
Bunny opened the door a few seconds after Eve rang the doorbell. Her blue eyes widened a fraction, then surprising concern filled her expression. “Hi, Eve. Is everything all right?”
Eve cleared her throat, hating that she had to question Bunny. They weren’t friends but they were acquaintances. Bunny and her mother had been on a few charitable boards together. That was the one bad thing about living in a smaller town. She didn’t literally know everyone but some days it felt like it. “I wondered if you had a few minutes to talk about Allen.”
Instantly Bunny’s features hardened. “Why would I want to talk about that snake?”
And that’s when Eve noticed Bunny wasn’t wearing her wedding ring. Interesting. “I was curious if you’d talked to him lately.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Tell me you’re not sleeping with him too.”
“Ew…Uh, sorry, I mean
no
. I’m following up on a lead for a story and wondered when was the last time you’d seen him.” Her stomach ached knowing Allen was dead and she had to question Bunny but she wasn’t sure what else to do.
Bunny relaxed and stepped back. “If you’re not sleeping with him would you like a cup of tea?”
Nodding, she followed her inside past a sweeping staircase, through a tiled foyer, and into a formal-looking room with all white furniture. When she motioned for her to sit, Eve took a seat on one of the high-backed, uncomfortable-looking chairs and crossed her legs. Discretely she wiped her palms on her pants. She wanted to run for the front door and never look back. Talking to Bunny like this was not only awkward but her insides were all twisted up. Before she could think of something to say, a woman in black pants and a starched white shirt appeared with a tray of tea and an assortment of pastries.
Eve didn’t want to make small talk but she’d have to if she wanted her answers. She also knew she’d get more cooperation if she was semi-honest. “Bunny, I’m here about a story dealing with Allen. This isn’t a social call so I want to make sure that’s clear so you don’t get the wrong impression.”
The other woman smiled wryly. “Sweetheart, I’m not stupid. I haven’t seen you since your parent’s…ah, well, whatever you’re here for, feel free to ask. I might not answer but you can ask anything you want.”
That was her go ahead, even if she did feel like crap asking Bunny these questions. As Eve took one of the cups she decided to start with a bolder question. “So you and Allen aren’t getting along?”
Bunny snorted in an out of character manner. “That’s an understatement. I got tired of him screwing his female staff and God knows who else behind my back.”
Well that was certainly motive for murder. Though why she’d commit it at the DA’s house was a little weird. “So you haven’t seen him lately?”
She shook her head. “I saw him about a week ago before I had the locks changed. He packed a few bags but I have no idea where he is. Probably with one of his tramps. I can’t believe I stayed with the bastard so long. Thank God my daddy insisted he sign a pre-nup,” she muttered.
Allen might have made a lot of money in the past decade but Bunny came from old money. Even if that left a financial reason out as a motive—and Eve couldn’t completely rule it out—revenge was always a classic.
“What kind of story are you working on exactly?” Bunny asked as Eve took a sip of her tea.
“I can’t say yet. It’s sensitive, but…I wondered if you knew who he’d been in contact with lately?”
Her blonde eyebrows rose. “You mean who has he been sleeping around with?”
Eve shook her head even though she was
very
interested in that. If there was more than one woman, talk about motive. “No. I’m referring to business associates.” She cleared her throat and decided to plunge ahead. She couldn’t lose by asking. “If you have any of his old phone records or anything that would be great. I’m trying to put together some puzzle pieces for a story.”
Bunny eyed her curiously for a second. “Are you going to screw him over?”
Eve sat back at the question. “I don’t intend to.” She wanted to find out who his killer was. Even if he was a snake, he didn’t deserve to be murdered and forgotten about.
The blonde half-smiled and stood. “Well if you can, I’d appreciate it. I can give you a copy of the last few months of his phone records but that’s all I’ve got.”
Surprise must have shown on Eve’s face because Bunny’s toothpaste commercial smile widened. “I don’t know why you want the records but if you can stick it to the lying bastard, you have my blessing.”
Before she could respond, Bunny disappeared from the room. A few minutes later she returned with a stack of papers. “These are all copies and they date back about three months. Whatever you plan to do with them, good luck.”