Kiss Lonely Goodbye (11 page)

“Too regimented. I moved on. Wish we had some donuts or something.” Nicole got up for more coffee.

“Greasy, sticky fried donuts?” Marcus kept typing.

“Hmm, hmm good,” Nicole answered with a sigh.

“I'll remember next time. So, you were a corporate lady.”

“For a minute. Daddy got me into his college buddy's law firm as a paralegal. Sleazy white-collar criminals and getting rich kids out of trouble.” Nicole rolled her eyes. “Give me a plain old thief any day.”

“You decided to attend law school and defend the poor?” Marcus stopped typing finally.

Nicole laughed. “You kidding? Being a public defender wouldn't keep me in shoes.”

“So much for defending the downtrodden,” Marcus said with a lift of one eyebrow.

“There is nothing inherently noble about being poor,” she replied with a lift of her chin. “Rich or poor, people have choices.”

“I agree. Here we go.” Marcus hit a key, then stood. He went to a laser jet printer near his desk.

“What's this?” Nicole followed him.

“A preliminary corrective action plan for David Phoung.” Marcus handed her the first sheet as more printed out.

Nicole put the coffee mug down and leaned against his desk. She read each page as he handed her new ones. “Good. I hope it will satisfy Mr. Phoung.”

“The only thing that will make him happy is someone going to jail.” Marcus rubbed his forehead. “At least his insurance will pay for the loss.”

“He didn't want to file a claim, though—his rates will go
up. And he's already in a high-risk area.” Nicole continued reading. “I'm going to keep a close eye on these incidents, for lack of a better description.”

“Me, too.” Marcus took the rough draft from her. “I'll be here a little while longer. Don't let me spoil your Saturday. I'm sure you've got some shopping to do.” He went around his desk and sat down.

Nicole stared at him. The olive green cotton knit shirt made his brown skin look warm and inviting. Shopping wasn't on her mind at the moment. “How long are you going to be?”

“Not sure,” he said without looking up. “Don't worry. I'm on salary, so this isn't overtime pay.” A faint smile played across his full mouth.

“If you were, it would be money well spent.” Nicole sat on the edge of his desk.

Marcus looked at her. “Thanks. Why don't we get some breakfast later?”

Nicole felt giddy with pleasure. “I'll go to my office and get a few things done. Monday morning shouldn't seem so hectic that way.”

An hour later they sat across from each other over coffee and bagels. Nicole listened as he talked shop. Watching him, Nicole began to realize that her feelings for him went beyond a desire to conquer.
I'm getting in over my head, and I like it.

M
arcus rocked back and forth in his chair. His mind wandered again despite the fact that he had at least twenty-five unread e-mail messages. One of them was from Detective Dayna Tyler. They'd met at a crime prevention conference, dated briefly, and decided to be friends—at least Marcus had decided. She'd taken it well, though.

Dayna wanted to bring him up to speed on the investigation. A detective in the Houston police fraud unit, she'd taken over from the uniforms trying to find out who had stolen Mr. Phoung's merchandise. Much as Marcus tried to focus, Nicole kept messing with his concentration.

The night she'd shown up at his apartment and their Saturday morning breakfast kept repeating in his head. All he had to do was breathe deeply with his eyes closed, and he could smell her delicate floral perfume. If the room was quiet enough, he could hear her melodic laughter.

Marcus shook his head and opened his eyes to the cold, hard truth. He was being played. He knew it, she knew.
Snap
out of it, fool.
With rock-hard determination he continued to scroll through his morning e-mail.

Just as Nicole had predicted, Monday didn't seem as frantic as usual. Jesse had succeeded in reassuring their customers. All except Mr. Phoung. That would take more doing. Marcus heaved a sigh just as his secretary came in without knocking. Her already large black eyes were even bigger.

“'Scuse me, Marcus, but a Detective Dayna Tyler is here,” Shelly whispered.

“If you whisper she'll think you're guilty of something,” Marcus whispered back.

“Oh, no!” Shelly put a hand to her chest.

“I'm kidding,” Marcus said quickly and smiled at her. He stood and walked to the door. “Dayna, you've got my secretary nervous.”

The statuesque detective grinned as she strolled forward. She wore a crisp, sky blue linen jacket and a matching shirt that was neatly tucked into navy blue slacks. “Didn't mean to scare anybody. Morning, Marcus.”

Shelly let out a sigh of relief. “I'll get fresh coffee.”

“Not for me, thanks.” Dayna smiled at her. “I don't eat donuts either.” She slapped her hands on both hips. “Can't afford that old cop stereotype. I could go for some fruit juice, though.”

“Yes, ma'am.” Shelly lifted her hand as though she were about to salute, froze, then left with an embarrassed smile.

Marcus laughed. “She's in the Army Reserve. Guess it's force of habit.”

“I served two years in the army myself. God, I loved being a military police officer.” Dayna took a seat.

“So, why did you leave?” Marcus sat down behind his desk again.

“About the time I was going to sign up again, my mom got sick. After she died, Dad needed me.”

“Serving the public.”

Dayna nodded once and took a PDA from her jacket pocket. “Mr. Phoung started out calm, but when he talked about how much money he'd lost smoke came out of his ears,” she joked.

“I can't blame him. Smart businesspeople keep track of every penny,” Marcus replied.

“At first the uniforms thought they'd wait for some thug entrepreneur to set up shop. Maybe on a street corner or an abandoned storefront. Hasn't happened.”

“They moved the stuff to another city maybe?” Marcus said.

“I don't think it's even in the country. I'd say Mr. Phoung's merchandise is winging its way to Latin America or Jamaica.”

“Unlikely some kid from the 'hood made that happen, or a paid security guard working on her own,” Marcus said.

Dayna pressed a small button on the PDA. “Mr. Phoung owns a total of six stores. He's got very nice inventory software. Somebody's been cracking into it big time. High-speed Internet access has its dangers.”

“They got through his firewall?” Marcus said, referring to the security application to block hackers.

“He didn't keep his firewall updated. Didn't you guys advise him to?”

“I'll double-check. But you know, I'm not sure we even knew about or considered his Internet service.” Marcus picked up the phone. “Nicole should hear this, too.”

“Nice-looking sister, I hear,” Dayna said. She glanced up at him with a question in her green eyes. “Y'all getting any work done around here?”

“Gossip isn't worthy of you, Detective.” Marcus ignored her smirk and called Nicole to tell her about his conversation with Dayna. “She's on her way,” he said to Dayna when he hung up with Nicole. “Let me call Andre, our computer whiz kid.”

Five minutes later Nicole and Andre were seated around the table in his office. Marcus didn't miss the way the two women sized each other up. Nicole gave Dayna what appeared to be a fashion police once-over. For her part, Dayna studied Nicole from head to toe as though memorizing her features for a lineup. Marcus was equal parts amused and intrigued by the workings of these two sharp female minds. He gave Nicole and Andre a brief summary of what he and Dayna had discussed before they arrived.

“Detective Tyler doesn't think Mr. Phoung is the victim of a simple theft.” Marcus glanced at Dayna to proceed.

“Mr. Phoung's inventory cache files have been cracked. I think stock has been disappearing for some time.” Dayna consulted her notes. “Not sure how far back it goes.”

Andre, a fresh-faced twenty-four-year-old with ebony skin, sat forward with an eager expression. “We didn't do any kind of computer security consulting for him. I checked.”

“Mr. Phoung has been a client for over twenty years. Back then Mr. Summers had three security guards and Mr. Phoung had one store,” Marcus explained.

“We only recently began offering computer and Internet security consults, right?” Nicole looked from Andre to Marcus.

“Less than two years,” Andre spoke up. “I started not long after that.”

“When I realized we didn't know enough about computers,” Marcus added with a slight smile. “Andre is working on his master's degree in engineering.”

“Actually it's mechanical engineering, with a concentration on computer systems. I started writing my own programs in middle school.” Andre wore a boyish grin.

Dayna turned a penetrating gaze on him. “Interesting. Lots of kids enjoy hacking. You one of them?”

“No, no. I just did science projects, I swear.” Andre looked nervously at Marcus.

“I don't think turning my employees into suspects is justified,” Nicole said, a razor edge to her voice.

“Until we find out what's going on, I'm going to pursue all avenues,” Dayna replied in a measured tone.

“Which is her job,” Marcus put in. He leaned forward as a kind of buffer between the two women. “And exactly what we need. That said, I checked Andre out thoroughly.”

“I didn't accuse him of anything. But Andre might be able to help us track down the cracker if he's so good,” Dayna said.

“Sure I'll help.” Andre's eyes gleamed. “Man, working to crack an international theft ring and—”

“Whoa,” Marcus cut in to head off his youthful zeal. “Don't go off on that tangent yet, Shaft.” He gave Andre a pat on the shoulder like a big brother.

“Definitely. It's only a
theory
.” Nicole flipped a page of her leather-encased notepad. “I'd bet on a simple explanation—someone seized a chance to sell the goods for drug money.”

“You think?” Andre looked let down.

“That kind of volume wouldn't go unnoticed for long. Somebody on the street would talk.” Dayna leaned back in her chair. “No addict would bide his time before selling the merchandise for drugs.”

“Yeah,” Andre said, his expression bright again. “That kind of hack might be simple or something really wicked. When do we start?” He rubbed his hands in anticipation.

“Officer Lela Denton knows all the truly geeky stuff about computers. I'll have her give you a call.” Dayna looked at Marcus with a serious expression. “Since we're not sure who is responsible, Lela has to be with him.”

“We'll cooperate fully,” Marcus said quickly before Nicole spoke.

“Uh-huh.” Dayna looked at Nicole briefly. She stood up and smiled at Marcus. “Why don't you give me a call?”

“Sure. I'll keep in touch to coordinate Andre's schedule and give you any files you might need.” Marcus stuck out his hand in a brisk, professional manner.

Dayna closed her fingers around it slowly and smiled at him. “We want to get this thing cleared fast.”

“Definitely. I called David Phoung, by the way.” Marcus walked Dayna out and came back a few minutes later.

Marcus gave Andre instructions. “Meet with me after lunch. I want a status report on your other projects, since you'll have to put them on hold for awhile.”

“Done.” Andre popped up and scurried off.

Nicole tapped the end of her ink pen on the table. “She's pretty full of herself.”

“Detective Tyler is our friend, remember? She's going to help us reassure the client we're not incompetent or thieves.” Marcus glanced at her.

“Yeah, right after she's through fingerprinting us all and making us take polygraph exams.” Nicole's full lips pursed, making them even more inviting.

He looked away to block the images forming in his head. “Arguing with the police is never a good idea, Nicole. Especially when we're not sure who is responsible yet.”

“Are you saying you suspect one of our employees?” She gazed at him with a deep frown.

“I'm saying Dayna has a point. We can't rule out any possibility. But no, I don't think Andre is the hacker,” Marcus replied evenly.

“I noticed you didn't mention Tameka.” Nicole's eyes narrowed. “Maybe that attitude is because she's covering something up.”

“Jesse's instincts have a creepy way of nailing problems, almost like he's psychic. Her behavior bothers me more than a little.”

“But you didn't mention it to Detective Tyler.” Nicole mimicked Shannon's officious mannerisms when she said her name.

Marcus laughed. “I'll let Dayna do her job without any preconceived notions. So, what was up with
your
attitude?”

“I don't know what you're talking about.” Nicole stood and tugged at her soft pink silk shirt. She smoothed down the front of her dove gray skirt. “I've got a ton of work to do. Talk to you later.”

“Right, later.”

He watched the sexy sway of her hips as she walked away. Marcus felt a stab of desire at the sight. Nicole had been jealous. The idea sent his pulse rate up a notch. He seriously considered calling Shaun to cancel lunch at their favorite restaurant. As though conjured up by the thought, he heard Shaun's deep voice introducing himself to Nicole.

“It's a pleasure to meet you, Nicole. Congratulations on becoming one of the youngest and, if you don't mind my saying, most attractive new mover in this cow town.”

Shaun sauntered into Marcus's office a few seconds later, a wide grin on his face. Marcus stood with both arms crossed.

“Give it up,” Marcus said.

Shaun spread out his arms and affected an ingenuous smile. “What?”

“Nicole isn't easily fooled. Don't even try it.”

“I was totally sincere. The lady is fine!” Shaun closed the door. He shook his head and gave an exaggerated sigh.

“Not every woman is a candidate for your hit list. You're here early. I've still got things to do.” Marcus went behind his desk and sat down.

“Eleven forty-five isn't all that early.” Shaun took a seat. “And don't get mad with me because she didn't fall for
your
flattery.” His grin widened when Marcus shot a heated look his way.

“You're buying lunch for that one,” Marcus tossed back.

“Fair enough.” Shaun laughed. “Back to your boss. Nicole is hot. If you're not planning to go for it—”

“Stay away from Nicole,” Marcus cut him off short.

Shaun studied Marcus with his head to one side for several seconds. “Wow, never thought I'd see the day when a lady could come between us.”

Marcus let out a slow breath and willed the tension in his neck to go away. He smiled at Shaun. “I've got my own plans. The last thing I need is you messing with her head. At least not until
after
I'm gone.”

“Gotcha, brother.” Shaun's expression relaxed into a smile again. “You had me scared for about a minute. Thought you had fallen in love or something.”

“I'm hungry.” Marcus stood and went to a small closet to get his jacket.

“There's a ten-ounce steak out there with my name on it.” Shaun slapped his large hands together. “Let's go.”

“I don't know how you can eat that stuff and get through the day.”

“I spent the first fourteen years of my life poor as hell. I deserve the good life,” Shaun said fervently. “Money means nothing if you don't spend it well.”

“On you of course.” Marcus shook his head.

“Who else?” Shaun gave a short, cynical laugh. “Women? Nothing beyond a few expenses up front for the chase.”

“That sums up the Shaun Jackson mating strategy perfectly,” Marcus replied.

“Yeah, you're right.” Shaun clapped a hand on Marcus's shoulder, and they walked out together.

Marcus was surprised at the kernel of disgust in his belly. He'd never been bothered by Shaun's ways before. Still, the idea of Shaun playing his game on Nicole set Marcus's teeth on edge. When Nicole came down the hall, Marcus had an irrational urge to block the path to Shaun. While he was trying to diagnose what malady had affected his brain, Shaun affected a winning smile that oozed sincerity.

“Lunchtime at last. I'm sure even beautiful tycoons have to take a break sometime.” Shaun put one hand in the pocket of his custom-tailored suit pants.

“Hmm.” Nicole's expression remained neutral. She turned to Marcus. “I've gone over the final report on our Lake Charles office. Can we meet this afternoon?”