to suppress the nagging urge to secure it behind his ear. “I have a job for you,” he said simply. Then standing up, eyed me from head to toe with a definite smirk. “What?” I asked, nonplussed. “Go change. I want to take you somewhere nice.”
Figuring I didn’t have a choice, I headed for my bedroom with a long and dramatic sigh. If Knight noticed, he didn’t comment. Closing the door behind me, I sorted through my less than impressive closet and settled on a short, flouncy black skirt and a long-sleeved red blouse. Not wanting to take the time to do my makeup, I just magicked myself some red lipstick, eye liner and mascara and throwing on my black leather jacket and high heels, headed for the living room.
A huge smile lit Knight’s lips upon seeing me, and I could feel my cheeks burning with a visible blush. So much for trying to act nonchalant. “You look great.” He paused, as if not able to check me out and talk at the same time. “Thanks,” I shrugged. “So, about this job?” “Let’s talk about it in the car.”
I grinned and opened the door, immediately spotting the brand new, silver BMW parked in front of my apartment. It was the nicest car on the street. “Yours?” I asked, motioning to the car with a tilt of my chin as I locked the front door behind us. A boyish grin spread over his lips as he stood gazing at the vehicle. Men and their cars. “Just got it last week. What do you think?” “Pretty posh.” At the expression of pride on his face, I begrudgingly forced myself to show more interest. “What model?” “BMW M3 Coupe.” He said it like a proud father.
He unlocked the BMW with his remote and hurried down the steps before me, showing me to the passenger seat with a great sweep of his arm. I was just waiting for him to break into song and dance.
“Yeah, I always wanted a BMW, and I figured I might be here for a while,” he finished as I pulled my legs into the passenger seat and buckled myself in.
His eyes lingered on my legs, and I self consciously smoothed my skirt down. Then he seemed to remember himself and started for his side of the car. He got in and settled himself comfortably into the driver’s seat.
“I thought you were just here until they find someone to replace you?” I asked as he put the car in drive and blasted loud techno music from the speakers. He turned it down with an apologetic smile. I’m not sure why, but I hadn’t expected Knight to be the techno sort.
He peeled into the street so fast, I felt as if I were in the midst of a tornado. He changed gears, double- clutching and revving the engine as he did so, a small grin on his lips. Hot Hades, he was such a kid.
“Well, according to the Chief, he wasn’t sure how long it would take to find a replacement, and in Chief talk, that could mean years.”
I nodded, silently pleased to hear it. Then I chided myself; I shouldn’t care where the hell he went or what the hell he did. “So, are you looking for a place to live, too? Or sticking it out at the Marriott?”
“No, looking for a place now, as a matter of fact. Looking in the heart of the city.”
I held onto my seat as Knight took the turn at the base of my hill a little too fast and the car’s tires screamed in protest. I should’ve figured him a speed demon. A speed Loki.
“So, where are you taking me?” I asked, trying to keep my voice steady.
“Only the nicest restaurant in this area. The Chateaus.”
Again? Just my luck. I wasn’t sure if I was up for the Chateaus again but better to be polite, I guessed. “I was just there the other night. They have great food.” Knight braked a little too abruptly at the stop sign. “You were already there?” I shrugged. “Yeah, it was good-you’ll like it.” He frowned. “With who?” “That would be with whom,” I corrected him, then smiled and feigned interest in my fingernails for a few seconds. “Bram took me.” Knight did an abrupt U-Turn. He was a ticket waiting to happen. “What are you doing?” His lips were tight, his jaw even tighter. “Going back to your place. We can order in.” I laughed. So, I enjoyed his discomfiture-call me a sadist. “I liked the Chateaus.” “Well, I’m not taking you there if the vampire did,” he snapped, driving up my hill faster than he’d driven down.
I frowned, still clutching the gray leather seat as if my life depended on it. I glanced at the dash to make sure there were air bags. There were. Phew. “So, I got all dressed up for no reason.”
Knight kept his attention trained on the road, a slight twitching in his jaw. “I’m not no reason.”
Ha, so he was jealous, the bastard! I’m not sure why, but provoking Knight was one of the few things in life that brought me great pleasure. “Why are you so bothered by Bram taking me out?”
“I’m not bothered,” he growled and came to an abrupt stop as the light turned red. He tapped his fingers against his lips impatiently and refused to look at me. His other hand massaged the gearshift, as if itching to resume his illegal speeds.
I cleared my throat. “Um, then what would you call it? Jealousy?” I shrugged. “That works too.”
“I’m not jealous.” He cast me a scowl, and put the car into gear as the light turned green, launching us forward. “I just don’t think you should be dating him.” I laughed. “Who said I was dating him?” “Well, you agreed to go out with him, so I just figured,” he snapped. “I agreed to go out with you; am I dating you?” The anger simmered out of his expression, and he turned to give me a big smirk. “Not yet.”
He pulled up to the curb and put the car in park, turning off the engine as he unbuckled his seatbelt and glanced over at me. “Why’d you agree to go out with Bram? I didn’t think he was your type?” I sighed. “I finished my book, and he took me out in honor of it. That, and I owed him a favor so he chose that as his favor.” Knight chuckled. “He couldn’t get you to go out with him any other way so he basically bribed you? That’s tasteful.” “Well, it’s not like you gave me much of a choice in going out with you tonight either.”
He frowned but didn’t respond. Instead, he opened the door and stepped out of the car. I opened my door as he locked it behind me, offering his arm as we took the flight of stairs. When I refused it, he appeared embarrassed-clearing his throat and glancing in my opposite direction. “Congratulations on finishing your book,” he said.
“Thanks.” I fished inside my purse for my keys and unlocked the front door. “So, what’s this job you were talking about?”
Knight strode in behind me and eyeing the yellow pages sitting beneath the coffee table, started for it. He dropped himself onto the couch and opened the book, sorting through it for delivery options.
“Let’s decide what we want to eat first. How’s Italian sound?”
I locked the door behind me. “Fine. I like eggplant parmesan.”
I threw my jacket on the sofa arm and stepped out of my heels, leaving them beside the couch. I tossed my purse onto the kitchen table as Knight dialed and placed our order. When he finished, he returned the phone book and stretched his long legs out before him, crossing them at the ankles as he stretched his arms behind his head.
“There’s been a murder in Sanctity. We know it’s a werewolf, but we haven’t been able to track him down.”
I studied him and took a seat at the table. “Sounds pretty standard. Anyone at Headquarters should be able to solve that with their eyes closed.”
He leaned forward and shook his head. “Yeah, it’s not standard.” He paused. “Will you help me?”
The offer didn’t look so bad, and I needed the money. I’d already dipped into my savings to pay the rent for this month, and it wasn’t something I wanted to repeat. “It depends. What are the particulars?”
He leaned back against the couch smiling. “I’ll pay you whatever you think the job’s worth, and I’ll pay you weekly.” He paused. “If you can solve the case within a month, I’ll pay you an extra thirty percent commission on top.” Hmm, that didn’t sound half bad. “I name my own price?” “Yeah, whatever you want, it’s yours.” “I was supposed to get my review sometime soon which would’ve been at least a ten percent increase.”
He shook his head. “I don’t care what your raise should’ve been. I could get the information on what you made, but I don’t care about it. Just decide what you think is fair and we’ll go from there.” That same cheeky smile returned to his lips. “And don’t short yourself. Now that you’re a consultant, the work won’t be reliable, so make it worth your while.”
“Sounds like you’re teaching me how to be a good businesswoman?” I laughed, appreciating the fact he wasn’t trying to screw me over.
“Well, if I had it my way, you’d be coming back to the force.”
I started to shake my head, still not at all okay with the fact that I’d let Quillan go. I didn’t imagine I ever would be. “I haven’t changed my mind about that.”
He nodded. “I didn’t think you would have.”
“Besides, Sam told me about all the women in the office chasing you. You wouldn’t want me in the way of that.” I threw him a smile.
