“A criminal investigation is usually a good excuse,” he said.
“The ice show is next week,” she said. “Saturday.”
He nodded. “Let’s hope we can get it done by then. Did you pick out your model for that one?”
She nodded. “You were there with me. I also want to see Frankie’s girlfriend.”
“Girlfriend? Or friend?”
“Girlfriend,” she said. “He told me that they were lovers.”
“Interesting. I picked him as gay.”
“I think he’s whatever. The young people have a new term for it. He does both.”
Richard just nodded and pulled his shirt from his pants.
She stepped back, her eyes going wide.
He grinned. “Not to worry, sweetie. I won’t jump you.”
She flushed. “That’s hardly what I was thinking.”
“Well, I might strip,” he said, “at least as long as you’re here. But I will have that hot shower. Nothing quite like death to leave a smell in your nose and on your clothes.”
At that, she immediately backed up several more steps. “I’ll leave you to it then,” she said in a rush.
“I’ll take a shower, then come and speak to you. Go get back into bed.”
“Hell no,” she said with spirit. “That’s just way too dangerous.”
“In what way?” His gaze was steady.
She crossed her arms over her chest and frowned. “We are not lovers.”
“We’re not lovers yet,” he said cheerfully. “That’s okay. Go run away. There will be another day.”
“I’m hardly running away,” she huffed.
He leaned over, kissed her on the cheek, and said, “You better though. Otherwise you’ll get more than you’re looking for.” His hands went to his pants, where he quickly undid the zipper.
She gasped, turned, and raced from the room. Back in her own room, with the door shut firmly between them, she put her hands to her hot cheeks, wondering why the hell she was shocked, when he’d been making moves the whole time. She was just out of practice, not sure she wanted to do this, and then she called herself a liar flat-out.
“Hell, yes, you do,” she said. The trouble was, she didn’t want any of this other stuff around them. She didn’t want their personal relationship to be confused with the case, and she wanted to find out who had killed her friends.
She clambered into her large bed, determined to put him out of her mind, where he truly belonged. She pulled the pillow up, punched it once or twice, and closed her eyes. She’d be damned if she’d let him know that she wasn’t sleeping.
*
Richard had taken a couple steps in the right direction today. He didn’t want to lose the advantage that he had slowly gained. He wasn’t so sure about the slow part, but she was as touchy as a doe. After his shower he stepped out in just his boxers, wandered through the downstairs, checking security, making sure that everything was okay, then went upstairs, doing the same. When he got to her door, he hesitated.
“What are you doing?” she demanded.
“Checking your security,” he said. He reached for the doorknob and pushed it open and said, “Do you have alarms on your windows?”
“I’m on what, the eighth floor?” she said in exasperation. “Nobody will get at me from here.”
He hesitated, then shook his head. “I need to check,” he said in a firm voice. “Otherwise I won’t sleep tonight either.”
“Fine,” she said, “but leave the lights off.”
“As you wish,” he said. He walked through the room, checked the bathroom first, relieved to see it had a good locking mechanism, and then headed out to the bedroom.
As he walked to each of the windows, checking that they were locked, she said, “You’re really serious about that, aren’t you?”
“About what?”
“About somebody getting in.”
He turned, looked at her, and he leaned forward as he answered her. “I’ve never been more serious about anything in my life.”
“It doesn’t make any sense,” she said gently. “He’s after my models, not me.”
“He’s after possessing a piece of you,” he said with brutal clarity. “So, what’s to stop him from wanting the whole cake?”
She stared at him.
He could see the whites of her eyes in the dark. She was sitting up, her covers to her chest, but it was the look on her face that broke his heart. He went to her side, wrapped her up in his arms, and whispered, “Sweetheart, I’ll make sure he doesn’t get in here to you.”
She shook her head. “You can’t promise that,” she said. “He’s already gotten three people.”
“Which is also why we’re rather desperate to find whoever else may have worked for you in all these years.”
“Didn’t Anita give you that list?”
“Just now,” he said, “and we’re working on it, honest. But it’ll take some time. In the meantime, I want you safe.”
She stared up at him. “When will this be over?” she asked in a low voice.
“Soon,” he whispered. “I promise. It’ll be soon.”
Her eyes were so big and revealed her exhaustion. He walked around to the other side of the bed, threw the covers back, and, hearing the silent gasp of her breath, he climbed in. He slid over to the middle of the bed and said, “Go to sleep, sweetheart.”
She glared at him.
He shook his head firmly. “No,” he said. “Just go to sleep.”
When she didn’t do anything, he tucked her in gently, her body unresponsive, yet fighting him underneath the covers. He wrapped an arm around her, tucked her up close, and whispered, “Just sleep now. I promise I won’t do anything in the night.” A note of humor was in his voice. He could feel her starting to relax little by little, and then she chuckled. He smiled, having gotten the reaction he hoped for. “I don’t think that’s very funny,” he said in mock humor.
“Well, it depends,” she said. “Are you referring to the fact that you won’t do anything during the night,
