Suspicious Minds (Squeaky Clean Series, Book 2) (22 page)

"Stay. Please," I insisted.

She looked postured to spring. "Are you sure?"

"Positive." I sat on the other side of Parker and took his hand. He smiled weakly, not the million-dollar smile I'm used to seeing. "How are you?"

"I'm okay. Ready to get back to work" He glanced at Charlie, and the two exchanged a look.

"The doctor said you'll be staying home for at least a couple of weeks" I patted his hand and wondered how this gorgeous man had ever taken notice of me. "Then you'll have desk duty for a while to make sure you've fully recovered"

"That's going to be a beast" He groaned and pushed his head into the pillow behind him.

Charlie waved a finger at him. "You have to take care of yourself, or you're not going to be healthy enough to do your job. I don't want to lose you ... as a partner"

I watched the two of them interact, stunned by how perfect they were for each other. Why had I ever thought Parker and I were right for each other? Or had I just been reeling over being dumped by Riley for his fiancee?

Or maybe I was-I hated to even think it-lonely and desperate. Maybe that's why I felt so deeply for Mr. Hermit. Because I could relate to him.

I didn't want to live my life alone.

Impulsively, I asked, "Do you both want to come to my place for Thanksgiving dinner?"

Parker and Charlie both jerked their heads toward me and stared as if I'd just offered the two law enforcement officers a puff from a crack pipe.

Parker squeezed my hand, as if concerned about my mental well-being. "Gabby, you don't cook."

I shrugged. "Minor detail. So what do you say? Do you have plans, Charlie?"

She threw a worried glance at Parker before connecting with my gaze. "No, my family all lives up in New York. I won't be able to make it home:"

I looked at Parker. "And you?"

"Gabby, are you sure you're not biting off more than you can chew?" Great. Even when my boyfriend is close to death, he can still muster the energy to doubt me.

"Yeah, I've thought this through:" Okay, not really. But I'd thought it through about as much as I needed.

Parker and Charlie looked at each other. They looked a little scared. Finally, they both shrugged and nodded.

"I'll be there;' Parker said.

"Me too;' Charlie said.

I grinned. "Come together."

Parker's eyebrows collided together on his forehead. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, I want the two of you to show up together. As a couple:'

"Gabby-"

"We're not-"

I held up my hands. "I know, I know. You're not together:' I let go of Parker's hand. "But you should be. The two of you are perfect together. I don't know why I didn't see it before:"

"Gabby-" Parker tried to speak again.

I kissed his forehead. "I have to go. But I know she'll take good care of you:"

I nodded to Charlie on my way out. My step felt lighter as I walked away.

"HOW'D IT go?" Chad asked as we exited the hospital.

I swung my arms to the side, snapped my fingers, and clapped. It was a Chad move I'd copied. It looked so lighthearted when he did it that I couldn't resist trying it myself. "Great."

"Great?"

"Yeah. We broke up" I smiled at the stars shining on us outside. Granted, there were only a few stars. The rest were blocked because of smog and city lights. But the few that were brave enough to shine through were appreciated.

"You like broke up, broke up?" He ran a hand through his already messy hair.

"Yep" I'm free! Free as a bird. Free as a man wrongly accused being released from jail. Free as a-

"Shouldn't you be sad?"

I shrugged. "No, I was the one who called things off"

"You broke up with a man who was just shot in the chest?" Chad's voice rose. "That's harsh"

"No, not harsh. I did it out of love" I hit the clicker on my key ring and heard my van unlock a few feet away.

"You're weird. Do you know that?"

"People have mentioned it a time or two. By the way, what are you doing for Thanksgiving? I'm having some people over. Would you like to join us?"

He continued to eye me suspiciously until I disappeared out of sight and climbed into my van.

"I guess," he called from the opposite side.

"Great. I'll add you to the guest list"

I drummed my fingers on the steering wheel as I backed out of the parking space. My industrial-strength vacuum cleaner shifted in the back, and I made a mental note to secure the device when I got home. I couldn't have equipment flying around in the back of my van, especially when I considered where that equipment had been.

"I was thinking about something while at the hospital" Chad's voice drew me out of my state of delirium.

"Oh?"

"What do you think about going into business together?"

I practically slammed on the brakes. Thankfully, we were still in the parking lot. I eased off the brake and crept through the lot. "Say again?"

"We work well together. I can do the stuff that you're not that great at"

"There's stuff I'm not great at?"

"You know, lifting heavy stuff"

Okay, I guess I could concede that. "Continue"

"We could take more jobs, make more money. Split it fifty-fifty"

"Fifty-fifty?"

"Sixty-forty?"

"That's better"

"Think about it. I know you don't like working alone."

I didn't like working alone, but how did he know that? Had I mentioned it earlier?

"You want to be partners? Or would you be my employee?"

"If I were partner, then I would share the load"

Someone to share the load with. Now that was a tempting offer.

I dropped Chad off at his place, which was, of course, right on the beach. He asked if I wanted to hang out for a while but I declined. I both loathed and felt fascinated by the man, which basically equaled the same thing as Mentos mixed with Diet Dr. Pepper-fun, explosive, and a very bad idea. Besides, Parker and I had just broken up. I needed to clear my head.

I watched Chad climb the wooden stairs to his oceanside abode. He unlocked his door and waved before disappearing inside. I wondered what the inside of his apartment looked like. I pictured a surfboard in the corner and various beach pictures decorating the walls. For some reason, I smiled. Against my better judgment.

I hummed "Don't Worry, Be Happy" as I pulled away. Chad was a "don't worry, be happy" kind of guy.

Of course, my dad had been that kind of guy also. They weren't the marrying type.

Not that I wanted to get married anytime soon. And definitely not to Chad Davis.

I wasn't the type of girl who dreamed about a big princess wedding. No, I was the type who dreamed about going to Vegas ... where Elvis could officiate. Of course, I would never look at Elvis the same way again, so that dream had to die.

I leaned back in my seat and turned onto the highway. I couldn't wait to get home and unwind and listen to the new U2 CD I'd just purchased.

"Listen, and listen closely," someone whispered.

I bristled as I felt someone's breath tickle my cheek.

THE MAN'S breath felt warm and sticky and ... smelt like he'd just eaten a tub of popcorn. "I've got a gun, and I'm not afraid to use it."

Panic alarms wailed and whined in my head as I felt a barrel pressed into my side. The weapon of choice might have been a magic marker, but it could be a gun, and that was all I needed to know.

`Are you listening?" The voice was a harsh whisper, gruff.

I gripped the steering wheel so hard that my knuckles bulged like a snowcapped mountain range. "Yes"

"Leave the dead Elvis alone, got it?" The man's voice-and I was 99 percent sure the intruder was a man-sounded shaky. Great, I had a nervous criminal in my van. I just hoped he didn't accidentally pull the trigger if I hit a pothole. My eyes scanned the road briefly.

The gun poked harder. "Got it?"

"Got it" I glanced into my rearview mirror. Maybe I could get a look at the intruder, a clue to who the murderer was. Which could be useful ... if the man didn't kill me first.

"Don't do that!" The barrel pressed harder.

My rib cage cried for a time out. "Do what?"

"Keep your eyes on the road"

I licked my lips and stared at the taillights and traffic light ahead of me. "Okay" What street was I on? I needed to remember details, just in case I lived to tell the police about this. Great, no street signs. U2 would be proud that I was wandering where the streets have no name.

"I don't want to hurt you."

"I don't want you to hurt me" Keep your voice calm, Gabby. Calm. I had to resist the urge to freak out. Maybe I should throw on the brakes like I saw Sandra Bullock do in a movie one time. The gunman would be thrown forward, knocked out, and I could run away.

It sounded like a plan. I eased my left foot over to the brake and did a mental rehash of making sure my seatbelt was still fastened. I wanted to press the brakes but couldn't. Something mental stopped me. Something about the man accidentally pulling that trigger if I jostled him.

"If you don't ease up on your little investigation, you're going to end up like Elvis. Got it?"

"Absolutely. Drop the investigation. I'm on it. Or off it, depending on how you look at it." Stop talking, Gabby. Incessant babbling will only annoy him. Sweat poured down my forehead, and my heart pounded in my ears.

"I don't want to hurt anyone. I'm not that type of person. But it's too late now. I'm in too deep. I've killed two people. A third won't hurt my record much more"

"Of course"

"Don't patronize me" The man raised his voice, and the gun dug harder into my side.

I shrank. "Okay"

"Pull over"

I sucked in a breath and did as he said. While traffic zoomed by on the highway, I went right into a turn lane and threw on the brakes.

"If you look back at me, I'll shoot you:"

The door opened, and the man jumped out. I counted to ten and looked back. The man had disappeared. Drat.

I pulled into the parking lot and called my dear old friend Detective Adams.

"So since I've been through all of this pain and suffering, the least you can do is tell me something new about the case:" I smiled wide and blinked my eyes, trying to appear sweet as I stood in the grocery-store parking lot with police cars flashing their red and blue lights around me.