Mad, Bad and Blonde (11 page)

Faith not only knew how to log in, she finished working on the pile of files within an hour. “What’s next?” she asked Abs.

“You’re done with all those cases?”

Faith nodded. “I guess you didn’t hear that in addition to my father being one of the owners of this business, I’m also one of the best researchers in background checks.”

“And Faith’s entry was also one of the finalists in the Pimp My Bookcart contest,” Gloria said proudly as she passed by with a fresh cup of coffee from the staff room nearby. “What?” This as Faith gave her a look. “I’m just saying—”

“That was in my past life,” Faith said.

“What is a Pimp My Bookcart contest?” Abs appeared intrigued then suspicious. “Did you make that up?”

“It’s a contest where book carts are decorated, sort of the way people decorate parade floats. Check it out for yourself,” Faith said. “Go ahead. Google it.”

“I will.” Abs quickly typed on her keyboard. “Wow. I’m impressed.” She seemed to be telling the truth.

“Yes, well I was just part of a team that created that. Just like I want to be part of the team here. I could clearly learn a lot from you if you’d be willing to teach me.”

“Show me how to pimp up a cart for the staff break room and you’ve got a deal.”

Faith returned home to find her new bed and mattress set up just as she’d requested. She loved it when things went according to plan. Heading straight for her linen closet, she dug out the floral sheet set that Alan had said was “too girly” and refused to let her use.

Dancing across the bare cherry-stained hardwood floor, she put her sheets on her bed. Hers. All hers. Only hers.

When she shifted the nightstand a bit, something fell onto the floor. She glared at Alan’s compact discs before scooping them up and taking them into the kitchen where she dumped them into a Restoration Hardware shopping bag. Then she spent the next hour scouring the condo looking for other hard-to-find things he might have left behind—like the beer making kit she found in the back of her kitchen cabinet or the mustache trimming kit hiding in the bottom of the linen closet. Not that Alan actually ever had a mustache, but he wanted it in case he decided to grow one.

She gathered it all up and was tempted to just dump it in the garbage. Kick it to the curb. Instead, she took what she considered to be the more responsible adult choice and carried the bag down to Yuri’s station in the lobby. Then she took out her BlackBerry and texted Alan for the first time since the botched wedding.

“Have left final bag of your stuff with my doorman. Have someone pick up in 24 hours or it all goes.”

She was responsible but not a saint. She wasn’t going any further out of her way than this. The ball was in Alan’s court now. She was done.

“If someone doesn’t come in twenty-four hours to pick this bag up, just get rid of it.” She handed the shopping bag to Yuri and felt ten tons lighter.

“Okay.”

“So you and Caine really do know each other?” Faith said.

Yuri nodded.

“I can still count on you keeping him out of this building, right?”

Yuri appeared insulted by her question. “Of course.”

“I’m sorry, but I had to ask. I mean, you two go way back, apparently. And you probably have some secret handshake Marine thing going on.”

“Yeah, we share Secret Decoder Rings,” Yuri said dryly.

“I’m sorry. I sounded condescending, and I didn’t mean to.”

“That’s okay.”

Faith casually inquired, “So, was Caine always as impossible as he is now?”

“I don’t know what he’s like now, but he was a rock when I knew him.”

“Unemotional, you mean.”

“The words
Marines
and
emotions
aren’t usually used in the same sentence.”

“Right.”

“By rock I meant you could count on him, put your life in his hands, and he’d have your back.”

Caine had had more than her back; he’d had her entire body. And she couldn’t seem to forget what that felt like.

She looked down at her BlackBerry and was startled to find a text message from Alan. “Give me more time.”

She instantly texted back, “NO.”

To which he instantly texted “Be reasonable.”

Reasonable? She stared at the screen. How could she have thought this was the man she wanted to marry? What did that say about her judgment? That she was an idiot.

“24 hours,” she texted back. “Or your Wagner operas CD collection is smoke.”

Then she programmed her BlackBerry to ignore any more messages from Alan.

“Bad news?” Yuri asked.

“If someone doesn’t pick up that bag in twenty-four hours, can you see that it’s donated to Goodwill? Or thrown away. Whatever.”

“Sure. No problem.”

Faith sighed. “Could you tell Alan was an ass?”

“Let’s just say he wasn’t at the top of my Facebook friends list.”

She blinked. “Yuri, you’re on Facebook?”

“Sure. Isn’t everyone these days? Great networking for my acting friends and me.”

“I’m impressed.”

“But you’re not impressed with Caine?” Yuri asked.

“Absolutely not. That’s why I’m asking you to keep him out of the building. Remember, if someone doesn’t pick up the bag, do whatever you want with it. I never want to see it again.”

She never wanted to see Alan or Caine again either. Since Alan was still in Bali, that was a done deal. Getting rid of Caine was proving to be more difficult.

Chapter Six

Faith
began her second day at her new job by returning to her old job. Just temporarily. To pick up something important that she’d left behind—the pair of wings her favorite story time group had made for her out of cardboard, tissue paper, lots of pink paint and silver glitter with a bunch of feathers stuck on. The wings didn’t really fit and were totally lopsided, but they had great sentimental value for Faith. She asked the cabbie to wait and was in and out of the library in record time. Ten minutes, tops.

Unfortunately, the cabbie and his vehicle were nowhere to be seen.

Instead, Caine stood there looking entirely too sexy in well-worn jeans and a plain black T-shirt. “So you decided to turn in your stilettos for a pair of fancy wings, huh?”

“No. I turned in my wings for a pair of stilettos.”

“Yet here you are in sandals and wings.”

“It’s only temporary. I’m merely transporting them home.”

“Right. Because who doesn’t need a pair of wings at home? You probably have several pairs of wings. One pair for work, another pair for play. One set more casual, another more formal. Is that a smile? Yes, it is. No, it’s too late to try to hide it now. I saw your lips go up.”

“You’re imagining things.”

He sure was. Imagining her wearing those wings and little else. Maybe the wings, a thong and those stilettos she’d worn yesterday. Oh yeah, she’d give some of those Victoria’s Secret models a run for their money. Not that the wings were actually that sexy, now that he got a closer look. But Faith sure was hot.

Caine was extremely frustrated that he couldn’t get over Faith. He was frustrated period.

Faith’s smile turned into a frown as she very belatedly asked him, “What are you doing here? Are you following me again? You can’t use the excuse that you’re heading for work.”

“It wasn’t an excuse. I work across the street from your office.”

“I don’t have an office.”

“A penthouse suite?”

“I have a cubicle just like any other employee.”

“Right.”

“It’s the truth. And you don’t work across the street from the library. So I’ll ask you again. What are you doing here?”

“Helping you.”

“I don’t need your help.”

“How do you plan on getting those wings of yours home? Are you gonna fly?”

“I’m going to hail a cab.”

“Right. Good luck with that. It’s still morning rush. My car is right here.” He pointed to a black Mustang.

“You’re illegally parked.”

“I’d be happy to give you a lift.”

“No way am I getting into a car with you.”

“Afraid?”

“Damn right.”

“There’s no need to be.”

“Yeah right. You seduced me in Italy because you think my father had something to do with your father’s suicide.”

“Is there a problem?” Maria Sanchez asked as she joined them on the sidewalk.

Great. Now Faith’s former boss saw her standing there making a fool of herself. She should have just abandoned the wings and left them at the library.

No, that’s what the old Faith would have done to avoid a confrontation. The new Faith could handle anything.

“No problem,” she assured Maria even as the wings started shedding some of their excess glitter. “I’ve got everything under control here.”

“I’m giving her a lift,” Caine said.

“If that’s your black Mustang, you’re parked illegally,” Maria told him.

“We’re leaving right now,” Faith said.

“Right. Here, let me take those for you.” He reached for the wings.

She stepped back. “Don’t touch my wings.”

“Has she always been this touchy about her wings?” Caine asked Maria, shooting her a killer smile that clearly left the otherwise unflappable librarian a bit dazed.

Faith couldn’t believe it. Maria actually blushed. And was that a giggle? Surely not.

Caine held his car door open for Faith. “The faster you and your wings get in, the faster we can get going.”

Faith got in. She was determined to prove to him that he didn’t intimidate her.

She was equally determined not to let him bend her fairy wings out of whack . . . or any further out of whack.

Caine hopped in and smiled at her. “Where to, Sunshine?”

“My condo.”

“Not taking your wings to your new job?”

“They aren’t necessary there.”

“Only one day on the job, and you already know that?”

“Yes.”

“I don’t know. Props can come in handy in investigative work. Like that sun hat in Italy. Smart move on your part.”

She glanced over at him, checking his profile for any sign of mockery.

“What?” he said. “You can’t accept a compliment?”

“From you? I find it a little hard to believe. As in nearly impossible.”

“A flaw you’ll have to work on.”

“It’s not a flaw. It’s based on past experience. You just missed our turn.”

“I know a shortcut.”

“I’ll bet you do.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“That I was an idiot to ever get in this car with you. Stop right now.”

“Why? We’re only two blocks from your condo.”

“I’ll walk.”

“With those?”

“If I have to.”

“You don’t have to. Just stay calm. Don’t panic.”

“I don’t panic.”

“Right. See, here we are. At your front door.”

Yuri stepped up and opened the car door. “Good morning, Ms. West.” If he was surprised at finding her with Caine, he hid it well. Having a pair of glitter-encrusted wings thrust at him didn’t faze him either. “Having a good day?”

“Just peachy.” She stepped out of the Mustang.

“I’m glad to hear that.” Yuri’s face was blank, but there was a hint of laughter in his voice.

By the time she regained possession of her wings from Yuri and turned to grudgingly thank Caine for the lift, he’d already driven away without saying a word.

“Your friend Caine isn’t big on formalities.” And he never had told her why he was standing outside the library just when she needed a ride. The man had an uncanny knack of turning up when she needed him.

Wrong. She didn’t need him. And it wasn’t a knack. He was stalking her because he thought she was a link to getting revenge against her father.

Yet Caine had shown flashes of kindness and humor, not to mention that damn sexiness.

Caine was still stuck in her mind when Faith got to work. Seeing him made her want to know more about his father’s case. So as soon as she got to her cubicle, she started searching through the system.

It took some digging, but she found it. On the surface it looked like an open-and-shut case. Dr. Karl Hunter was a chemist working for the American Research Corporation on a project to develop an affordable biofuel. He was in charge of the project. There were only three other people directly involved in it. Details were sold to a rival company. A large amount of money showed up in an offshore account in Karl Hunter’s name.

But something niggled at her. She couldn’t put a finger on what it was exactly. So she copied the file onto a small thumb drive she kept in her purse—a break in company policy and protocol. She discreetly slid the drive into her pocket.

“Looking at old cases?” Abs said, leaning over Faith’s shoulder to view the computer screen.

“I thought I could learn something from studying some previously solved cases.”

“I remember that one. It was a big deal. I didn’t work on it personally, but I heard the buzz about it. I mean, the guy ended up offing himself. Committed suicide.”

“Yes, I know.”

“Kinda sad, I guess.”

“Yes.”

“Faith, your father would like to speak to you,” Gloria joined them to say.

Faith cleared the computer screen and headed for her dad’s office. “You wanted to see me?”