“That settles it,” Daisy said, wedging herself next to Steve. “He’s really a sweetie-pie.”
Steve put his arm around her, and everywhere their bodies met he felt warmth. It crept through his shirt and the fabric of his gray slacks and heated his blood. He realized it had been a long time since he’d been this easily aroused. Probably not since ninth grade when he’d felt a girl’s breast for the first time. Mary Lou Resnick, he thought fondly. He could still remember the look in her eyes. At the time he’d thought it was unbridled passion; now he recognized it as pure terror.
Daisy was experiencing a lot of both. The touch of his hand at her shoulder sent a shock of desire. The intensity of the desire prompted a wave of apprehension. If she had any sense, she’d be sitting in the club chair on the other side of the room, she thought. He was going to kiss her, and she was going to respond by tearing his clothes off and embarrassing herself. She turned toward him and heard him suck in his breath when her breast flattened against the wall of his chest. “Oops,” she said, “maybe we’re sitting too close.”
His answer was a kiss that made her toes curl.
As far as he was concerned they weren’t nearly close enough. He kissed her again and wondered what it was about this woman that had him constantly wanting. Just the thought of her drove all logic from his mind. He’d adopted a dog because of her! He’d bought a new car. Since she’d walked into his office yesterday, he’d instantly turned into a scheming juvenile. Must be a midlife crisis, he decided, although thirty-two seemed a little young. He felt her move against him, and thought was pushed aside.
They would never have heard Kevin if it hadn’t been for his size-fourteen feet. He thundered down the stairs with the speed he usually reserved for locating a refrigerator. “Hey, you guys, do you have the TV on? Daisy made the news!”
Daisy sat up and blinked, embarrassed. She’d forgotten about Kevin being in the house. She made a fast check of her clothes and was relieved to find them all in order. “What do you mean, I made the news?”
“Look,” Kevin said, sitting in front of the television, “it’s you!”
The camera focused on Daisy being interviewed by the woman reporter, then panned to the gunman, swearing and threatening to get even.
Steve was stunned. “He threatened you!”
“He got excited. He didn’t mean it,” Daisy said.
“How do you know? How can you be sure?”
“For goodness sake, he doesn’t even know me.”
“He does now,” Steve said. “You’ve just been on national television.”
“He’s been arrested,” Daisy insisted. “He’s locked up. He couldn’t hurt me even if he wanted to.”
“That guy is one of the biggest dope dealers in Washington. He was out on bail before you even arrived home tonight. And he has friends. Lots of ugly friends.”
“I’ll be careful. I’ll be especially careful if I see any ugly people who look like dope dealers.”
“Damn right you’ll be careful. You’ll stay here in this house until that guy comes to trial. I’ll hire a bodyguard, I’ll buy an attack dog, I’ll install an alarm system.”
Daisy put her hand to his forehead. The kiss had gotten pretty hot, but she didn’t think it was enough to make him delirious. “Maybe you need some fresh air.”
“I don’t need fresh air. I need peace of mind. I’m not going to have you cruising the city in the newscar when some maniacal dope dealer is out to get you.”
Daisy narrowed her eyes at him. “Exactly what are you saying?”
“I’m saying you’re fired. You’re grounded. You’re confined to quarters.”
“You can’t do that to me! I need the money, and I like the job. I was beginning to get good at it.”
“I’ll
“It’s not the same.”
“Don’t be an idiot,” Kevin said. “Take the money.”
Chapter 4
Daisy pulled into the ShulsterBuilding underground garage and was relieved to find the newscar still in its parking space. Steve had left in a huff last night. Actually, she’d sort of kicked him out. He’d insisted she didn’t have a job, and she’d threatened a lawsuit. She was sure she’d been discriminated against, but she wasn’t sure exactly how. This morning she’d woken filled with resolve to do the traffic report. She figured she was on the winning side. If Steve knew anyone else who could do the traffic report, he would never have given the job to her in the first place.
Her optimism vanished when she saw him lounging against his Explorer four cars down. He had his arms loosely crossed over his chest, his mouth was firm and unsmiling, his eyes were dark and brooding. If she’d run across him looking like this three days ago, she’d have panicked. Today she stiffened her spine, tipped her nose up a fraction of an inch, and told herself he was a man like any other man. She knew it wasn’t completely true. But for her purposes this morning she preferred to delude herself into thinking he was average and manageable.
She parked her car and left it unlocked. The locks were rusted out, and besides, as far as she was concerned, if anyone was dumb enough to steal her wreck, then he deserved to have to drive it. She walked over to Steve and stood toe to toe with him.
“Well?” she said.
“If I wasn’t so damned frustrated, I’d probably admire your nerve.”
“I’ll be fine.”
“I hate to hear you say that! What am I supposed to do with all my macho protective instincts? Why are you making my life so difficult?”
“Gosh, I never thought of it in those terms.”
“Well, think about it.” He pulled her to him and kissed her. The kiss deepened, his hands slid the length of her spine and crushed her to him.
The kiss was disturbed by the pager on his belt. He pushed her away and swore softly. “I have a meeting.”
“I promise to be careful.”
“Good. As an added precaution I’m hiring a guard to ride with you.”
“What?”
“The agency is sending three people. You can interview them and take your pick. They’re to meet you at the park in two hours so arrange your route accordingly.” Before she could answer he turned and strode away.
“I don’t want a guard!” she shouted, but he was gone.
At one o’clock he called on the car phone.
“How’s everything going?”
“Couldn’t be better.”
“Do you have a guard with you?”
“Yup.”
“Good. I’ll meet both of you at the garage tonight. I want to make the terms of the job clear to him.”
Daisy gave her last report at three-fifty-five, and the newscar reached the garage ten minutes later. Steve was waiting for her. Daisy got out and waved to him, and an old lady followed her. The old lady had steel gray hair curled neat and tight against her skull. She was shorter than Daisy and as slim, but not so curvy. She wore clean white tennis shoes and carried a big patent-leather purse with a gold snap top. There wasn’t anyone else in the newscar.
“What happened to the guard?” Steve asked.
“I didn’t feel comfortable with any of them,” Daisy told him. “So I got my own guard. I hope that’s okay.”
The old lady held out her hand. “Elsie Hawkins. Rough and Ready Security Guard Service.”
Steve felt his mouth drop open. He shifted his weight and looked at both women, trying to determine if this was a joke. “I’ve never heard of Rough and Ready Security Guard Service.”
“It was one of them mail-order courses,” Elsie said. “But it’s legit. I got a certificate and everything. I did it while I was on the mend in the nursing home.”
