Cold Midnight (20 page)

30

CHASE SLOWED FOR A STOPLIGHT AND CHECKED
the rearview mirror. Traffic made it impossible to tell whether anyone followed the Explorer. He would have preferred to skip going over to Kylie’s so she could pack some things, but he understood her need for clean clothes after the fire.

He glanced over at her, noting that she kept massaging her right knee. Had she hurt it in the fire, or was it a nervous gesture? That’d be something, he thought. Kylie McKay with a nervous gesture.

As he turned onto a side street that would take them to her house without using the main thoroughfares, he did another mirror check. No other vehicles followed.

He’d just begun to relax when he spotted the silver BMW convertible in front of her house. The sun reflecting in the Beemer’s wheel rims nearly blinded him as he stomped on the brake. “Whose car is that?”

“Wade’s,” she said.

He looked at her. “Wade who?”

“Wade Bell.”

The name clicked. The doctor who repaired her knee ten years ago. He remembered not liking the guy back then, but his skills had paid off for Kylie. “What’s he—”

Movement at the side of the house snatched his attention, and Chase tensed.

“That’s him,” Kylie said, as though sensing his high-alert status.

“What’s he doing here?”

“I don’t know. He probably came by to check on me.”

“Why would he do that?” He glanced at her, noting her expression had become maddeningly impassive. “Are you having a problem with your knee?”

“No. My knee is fine.”

“Then why would he check on you?”

She sighed. “Would you just chill? He’s a friend.”

The way she said “friend” set his teeth on edge, and Chase watched the man striding toward the SUV, disliking him all over again. He was tall and lean in black slacks and a prissy pink polo, his eyes shielded from the sun by fancy sunglasses that probably cost more than Chase made in a week.

When the doctor spotted Kylie in the truck, his deeply tanned face broke into a broad smile, as if the sun had come out after the rain and shot rainbows all over the fucking place. Friend, my ass, Chase thought. That guy was head over heels for her.

Opening her door, Kylie got out of the truck to greet him.

Chase’s resentment of the doctor faltered when he noticed she favored her right leg. Her knee was
not
fine. She must have hurt it when she’d pulled T.J. out of the burning house. Why the hell hadn’t she said anything?

His blood pressure only spiked further when the doctor met her at the front of the SUV and folded her into his arms, the embrace more intimate than any man had a right to give a woman he wasn’t sleeping with.

Chase got out of the truck and slammed the door harder than necessary, but it didn’t help to ease his growing agitation.

Wade drew back from Kylie, but his hands stayed on her arms. “I hope you don’t mind that I stopped by to check on you. I went around back to see if maybe you were on the deck.”

Kylie gestured at Chase. “You probably remember Chase Manning, Wade. He’s a detective now, working on the reopened case.”

Wade drew off his sunglasses and extended his hand. “Of course I remember. It’s been a long time, though.”

Forcing a civil expression, Chase gave the doctor’s hand a firm pump.

“Easy there, detective, I need that hand.”

Chase let go, feeling childish but satisfied nonetheless. The scrawny son of a bitch probably couldn’t take a punch, either. “Good to see you again, doctor.”

Wade turned back to Kylie, and his pearly white smile faded as he looked her over, taking in the smudged shirt and dirty jeans. “What happened? Were you in an accident?”

“Just a little mishap,” she said.

Chase almost snorted. A little mishap indeed. Who the hell did she think she was kidding? Well, she was going to hate him for sure in about a second. “Maybe he could take a look at your knee.”

Kylie flashed him an I’m-going-to-kill-you look as Wade glanced down. “Is it bothering you?” the doctor asked.

She shook her head. “I just need to rest it.”

“He’s here,” Chase said. “You might as well let him take a look.”

“I’d prefer it,” Wade said. “You don’t want to mess around with that knee.”

“Fine,” she said, rolling her eyes, and led the way to the house.

Chase’s triumph lasted only until he noticed how the other guy’s gaze slid down her back and over her ass. Yeah, she had a good, cuppable butt, but where were the doctor’s manners? He had at least fifteen years on Kylie, yet he looked her over like a man taking measurements for a wedding gown.

In the house, Wade took in Kylie’s jeans and said, “Hmm, well . . .”

“I’ll go put on some shorts,” Kylie said. As she walked by Chase, she muttered, “You’d better not hurt him while I’m gone.”

He leaned against the wall and folded his arms. The thought had crossed his mind.

Alone with the doctor, Chase said nothing. He had nothing
to
say.

“Chase Manning,” Wade said, cocking his head. “You were Kylie’s—”

“Yes,” Chase snapped. “What about you?”

“What about me?”

“You have a thing for her.” It wasn’t a question.

A small smile twitched at Wade’s lips. “A thing? What is this, high school?”

Chase straightened away from the wall, but before he could do anything stupid and immature, like take a swing at the guy, Kylie returned, wearing a clean white T-shirt and navy shorts with double white stripes up the sides. She was barefoot, and her legs, Chase noticed, were toned and tan except for the startling paleness of her skin where she wore the knee brace during lessons. A sun-kissed circle of tanned skin in the center of her knee resembled a target.

Sensing her gaze on him, he looked up to see her shooting him a squinty-eyed, go-the-hell-away look. Jesus, why had she gotten so tense again?

Wade gestured at the khaki easy chair adjacent to the matching sofa. “Have a seat, and I’ll check you out.”

Wade moved aside the wicker chest that served as a coffee table and knelt before her. He lifted her bare foot onto his thigh, then slid his pale, manicured hands over her calf and to the back of her knee, gentle as a groom divesting his new bride of her garter belt. The intimacy of the gesture hit Chase like a blow to the temple. That wasn’t the impersonal touch of a doctor.

Wade’s voice cut through the growing buzz in Chase’s head. “You’ve got a lot more muscle tone than you should. Makes me think that perhaps you’ve been playing harder than you’re supposed to.”

Chase’s hands formed fists. If he didn’t turn away, he was going to grab the guy and hurl him against the wall.

Kylie met his gaze again, and one brow ticked up ever so slightly, her steel-blue eyes seeming to ask him what his problem was.

He turned abruptly and walked into the kitchen.

31

KYLIE’S HEART HITCHED AND SPUTTERED AS SHE
watched Chase’s retreating back. On one hand, she was relieved to be free of his intense scrutiny. On the other, she feared her scars repulsed him or made him feel sorry for her. She couldn’t stand it if he felt sorry for her. It shouldn’t matter, but it did. Maybe because she was so incredibly tired.

“Kylie?”

She focused on Wade. “I’m sorry?”

“I was wondering if you’ve been playing tennis harder than you’re supposed to.”

“Oh. Maybe. I fell earlier. I’m sure that’s why it’s bothering me.”

“Where’s the pain on a scale of one to ten?”

“Maybe a three.”

“Which means it’s more like a six.” He sat back on his heels with a knowing smile. “Other than some swelling, everything looks good structurally. As far as I can tell without an X-ray, anyway. Are you good with ibuprofen or do you want a prescription for something stronger?”

“Ibuprofen is fine.”

Rising, he held out a hand to help her up. She took it, but when she stood in front of him, he didn’t release her. His thumb slid over the back of her hand, and she looked up, surprised at the caress. He leaned toward her, and before she realized his intent, he captured her mouth in a seeking kiss.

She didn’t react at first, taken by surprise, and then she jerked back so quickly, the backs of her legs hit the chair behind her.

As Wade grabbed her by the arms to prevent her from falling, his cheeks reddened. “I’m sorry. I . . . that was an impulse. I’m sorry.”

Before she could respond, she heard the kitchen door slide open then slam shut hard enough to shake the house. Well, the broken doors had obviously been fixed, but one more slam like that and she’d have to have them replaced again.

Wade’s mouth lifted at one corner in a sheepish smile. “Oops. I think someone’s jealous.”

Kylie sighed. What an incredibly crappy day.

“Let’s not make more of this than it is,” Wade said. “I wasn’t thinking. Seriously. I know you don’t . . . love me.”

She wanted to ask him how he knew she didn’t love him. She thought she’d done everything she was supposed to. She’d laughed at his jokes, returned his smiles, liked it when he held her hand, responded to his kisses. Of course, they hadn’t been like Chase’s kisses. Hot and wild and breathtaking.

“I just miss you, Ky,” Wade said. “I miss you a lot.”

Ky. Her heart didn’t skip when he called her that. Didn’t even pause. Only one man could do that to her.

“Ky?”

She raised her gaze to Wade’s, tried to recall what he’d said. Oh, yes, he missed her. “I miss you, too.”

His lips pressed into a thin line, as though to say, “Sure, you do.”

Sighing, he moved the wicker chest back into position in front of the sofa and chair, then headed for the door. “Take it easy on the knee. Technically, you shouldn’t be playing tennis at all, and the swelling won’t go down if you keep abusing it.”

He shut the door without looking back, and Kylie stood there and felt like a jerk. The guy cared enough to stop by to check on her, and all she’d done was make him feel bad. She couldn’t win with anyone.

Alone, she sank into the squishy cushion of the chair, laid her head back and shut out the world.

32

CHASE CALLED TO THE DOCTOR BEFORE HE COULD
get to his shiny new Beemer. “Dr. Bell.”

Wade turned, his look quizzical as he propped his sunglasses on his head. “Yes, detective?”

“I have a few questions for you, if you’ve got a minute.”

“A few questions about what?”

“Just bear with me,” Chase said, flipping open his notebook and jotting the doctor’s name at the top of a page. His pulse was just now slowing since he’d stood at the spot where kitchen tile met carpet and watched the doctor lay a kiss on Kylie’s ready and waiting lips. He hadn’t waited for the embrace to end, just about-faced and stalked outside, where he’d braced his hands on the deck railing and heaved in deep, calming breaths, fighting the urge to rip the railing from the deck and snap it like a twig, preferably over the doctor’s skull. Instead, he’d stared out at the gulf waves rolling ashore, concentrating on the ebb and flow until he could notch his brain into work gear.

That was when he decided that Wade Bell might be someone worth questioning.

Jealous bastard? Sure, why not? Cop with a job? Even better.

“Where were you this morning?” Chase asked.

The doctor’s blond brows shot straight up. “Why?”

“Just answer the question.”

Wade hesitated. “I’d like to know what this is about first.”

“I’d like an answer first.”

“I was with someone.”

“That someone have a name?”

“I answered your question, now you can answer mine.”

Chase took a step closer. “Who exactly do you think is in charge of this conversation?”

“You are, but wouldn’t it be easier if you gave a little instead of being a total asshole?”

Smiling, Chase backed off. So the doctor wasn’t easily intimidated. He could deal. “Kylie’s had a little trouble lately.”

“Yes, I know. I read the newspaper.”

“Not everything that happens to her ends up in the paper. Someone smashed her windshield with a bat yesterday, just like the one used to destroy her knee. And this morning, she got caught in a deliberately set fire.”

Wade paled beneath his tan. “Holy Christ. I had no idea.” Then, as it clicked why Chase was questioning him, his shoulders went rigid. “Wait a minute. You think I had something to do with that?”

“I’m just covering all the bases.”

“Why would I do anything to hurt her?”

“You used to be a couple, didn’t you?” Chase asked.

“So?”

“Who instigated the split?”

“I don’t see what this has to do with—”

“Just answer the question.”

Wade rolled his eyes. “Maybe you’ll find this hard to believe, but I did.”

He was right. Chase didn’t believe him. “Why?”

Wade leaned back against the car and folded his arms. “I wanted all of her, and she wasn’t ready for that kind of commitment.”

Chase didn’t find that hard to believe. “What was the tone of the breakup?”

“Amicable, of course. Did you see her tell me to get the hell away from her when you two got here earlier?”

Chase didn’t respond at first as the image of that kiss seared through his frontal lobe. “I’m just wondering if you’re one of those guys who tries to win over a woman by scaring the shit out of her.”

Wade jerked his keys out of his pocket. “I’m leaving before one of us gets punched.”

Chase couldn’t help the tight smile. “I wouldn’t recommend assaulting a police officer, doctor. Why don’t you tell me your whereabouts this morning?”

Grabbing the sunglasses off his head, Wade folded them and shoved them into his shirt pocket. “Like I said, I was with someone. I’d rather not say who.”

A secret. Now they were getting somewhere. “I can be discreet, Dr. Bell.”