Eden's Pleasure (Pulse Book 1) (22 page)

“Did you come here alone, Miss Fox?” he asked in a gruff tone without an introduction. “Have you been here all day?”

Eden shook her head and answered the odd man. “No, I got here maybe twenty minutes ago. Mr. Dean brought me to collect some of my things so that I could work from his home office.”

Never making an attempt at eye contact, he asked, “Who and where would this Mr. Dean be now?” He raised his notepad and scribbled as they spoke.

“I’m right here,” Chase called from the guarded doorway. Kelly put his hand up, and gestured for the officer to let him enter.

“What the hell’s going on, and who are you?” Chase asked, looking around the room from Kelly to Eden and then suspiciously at the stranger. He sat beside Eden, taking her hand in his and kissing her knuckles softly. “Did something happen?”

Eden looked from the detective to Kelly, then to Chase and slightly nodded her head. “Yes.”

“Detective Blackstock,” the stranger announced, making no attempt to offer a handshake to either of them and barely making eye contact. “So you’re her husband, boyfriend…what?” This man was cold and callus, and Chase was visibly annoyed.

“Friend. Why does that matter?” Chase questioned with disgust.

Blackstock shrugged. “It doesn’t. I was simply asking.” He kept writing silently before finally making eye contact with Eden. The dubious look in his eye made her nervous, causing her to drop her gaze to her lap.

Kelly handed the Detective the letter and photo. He viewed them, and looked from Eden to Chase and back again. Handing them to Kelly, he made a grunt before scribbling on his notepad.

“So Miss Fox…are these letters the only contact this Mr. Hartley has had with you? No phone calls, texts, emails?”

“Wait, letters? I thought you only got one letter.” Chase looked at her, waiting for a reply.

“I found another letter here in the washroom and a photo of us dancing together. No, Detective. No phone calls or anything else.”

“Shit, that was months ago,” Chase exclaimed. “How did you get here so fast?” Chase asked Officer Kelly.

“We came to speak with Miss Fox. We were already in the building. I found her in the office washroom,” Kellyexplained.

“What did you want to speak to me about?” Eden probed.

The tension in the room could be cut with a knife, making her very uncomfortable. Chase watched the detective guardedly, and the detective seemed suspicious of Chase and her, eyeing up the pair as he looked around the room taking notes. He took a pencil from her desk and looked through the contents of her purse and briefcase. “You don’t mind do you?” he asked, and Eden shook her head no.

The way he rummaged through her things and lifted a suspicious eye to her from time to time was unnerving her. There was nothing to hide, nothing she needed to worry about. She
was
frightened, though, that this detective was much smarter than he looked and would figure out that they were sleeping together, and it would come out in the open. Hawthorn would fire her.

Chase turned to the door. “That’s Mason, my private security man. I want him in on this conversation. You mind if he listens in?”

“That would be up to Miss Fox to decide. If it’s ok with you, Miss Fox, I don’t give a damn.” Blackstock took in the sight of the man as he walked past the officers, making them look small and insignificant.

“Yes, I trust Mason, he should be here.” She looked over to him, and gave him a slight smile as he moved to stand behind her, placing a protective hand on her shoulder and squeezing gently. His gesture warmed her heart and she patted his large hand.

“We ran a background check and found military records for Mr. Hartley. It seems that he was dishonorably discharged from the army. After being charged with attempted murder against a fellow officer, he escaped and did a disappearing act. We also found his fingerprints linked to several sexual assault cases.”

Eden raised her hand to her mouth and took in a deep breath. “Oh my god!”

Blackstock fanned through his notepad pages. “That’s not everything. Jackson Hartley is wanted by the FBI for the murder of a police officer in Austin, Texas, during an attempted robbery.”

Watching Eden intently as he spoke, Blackstock informed her, “Miss Fox, we believe that your life is in danger. With the new evidence you supplied today, Mr. Dean may be a new target.” He stared at them, putting his notepad back in his pocket and replacing his cigar to the corner of his mouth.

“What did the letter say?” Chase asked the detective, who reached his hand to Kelly. Kelly handed him the letter, now sealed in a plastic sleeve, and Chase read the words while Mason read it over his shoulder.

Chase and Mason shared unspoken stares. The air felt heavy with testosterone. Mason took his phone from his pocket, blasting into action, texting at the speed of light. Chase took out his phone after excusing himself and started making calls.

Drawing his attention away from the pair, Blackstock said quietly, “Miss Fox, I’m going to assign around-the-clock officers to watch Mr. Dean’s penthouse. I understand that’s the address where you’re presently residing? I strongly suggest you go there and stay there.”

“I’m staying there for now. I don’t have anywhere else I can go.” Hearing the words that left her mouth, she looked to see that Chase was too preoccupied to notice and sighed with relief. She didn’t want to hurt him when he was taking such good care of her.

“Sir?” Eden whispered to get the detective’s attention as he scowled at Chase. “Please find Jackson before he finds me. I have no doubt that if he does…he’ll kill me, and Chase too.”

“We’ll do our best to make sure that he’s found. I think with these two around, he won’t get near you.” Blackstock eyed the pair, not amused at all.

“I hope you’re right,” Eden whispered to the detective as she watched the show going on between Mason and Chase at the far side of the room. Her brow furrowed as she wondered what they were up to. Her attention drawn in both directions made her head spin.

Mason came over to Eden and leaned in close. “Don’t worry, sweetheart, we’ll get this son of a bitch. I’ll be waiting for you at the elevator.”

Detective Blackstock turned to Chase after overhearing Mason’s comment. “Mr. Dean, you need to keep your man out of this investigation and work on keeping Miss Fox safe. We can handle it ourselves. We don’t need outside interference to foul things up.”

“I have no intention of interfering in your investigation, so you do your job, Detective, and my men will do theirs.” Chase glared. “If we’re finished here, I’d like to get Miss Fox home. She’s had quite a rough time these last few days, she needs to get some rest.”

The detective eyed the pair hesitantly. “You’re free to go, but I may need to ask more questions Miss Fox…and I’m thinking there’s more you need to be telling me.”

“I don’t know what you mean, Detective,” Eden said, feeling the collection of perspiration on her upper lip and wiping it away nervously.

“Of course,” Blackstock grunted with scowling eyes.

Chase took Eden around the waist after collecting her purse and briefcase, and they started out of the office. Eden could feel the hair on the back of her neck stand on end, knowing that the detective was watching her as she was about to walk through the door.

Blackstock was clearly a smart man, and it was obvious that he could see right through their deception. She prayed that he wouldn’t run into Hawthorn and share his suspicions. Tugging at her sweater nervously to smooth it out, she felt the photos in her pocket.

“Wait…I forgot to give these to the detective.” She reached into her pocket and pulled out the photos, and they slipped from her hand to the floor. Chase knelt down and picked them up, viewing each one as he did.

“He’s been a very busy fellow,” he said, handing the photos to Blackstock. “You better get him, Detective…you just better get him!” Chase gritted his teeth and pulled Eden into his side, shielding her as they headed to the elevator.

***

“I hope she’s worth it, man,” Mason said, leaning forward and eyeing up his next shot.

“Well worth it,” Chase declared without hesitation as Mason sunk his ball and made his way around the pool table for his next shot.

Mason applied blue chalk to the end of his cue and blew the tip lightly. “You’re really stuck on this one. I just hope you know what you’re doing.”

“Back off before you say something stupid that you’re going to regret.” No doubt angry at his friend’s statement, Chase replaced his cue in the rack and walked across the room. Taking a decanter from the bar and pouring two glasses of scotch, he handed one to Mason.

Mason looked at the glass and said, “Women have always come and gone around here. Your track record isn’t a good one.” He took a sip as if testing the content. “Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing better than a good piece of ass, but you got her staying here and sleeping in your fucking bed.” Mason’s head threw back as he downed the shot.

Chase replenished their shots and clinked the glasses before swigging it back and feeling the welcome burn as it flowed down his throat. “Not that it’s any of your fucking business who I sleep with, but Eden’s different. She’s not just a piece of ass.”

“They’re all different, man. Don’t forget, I’ve been here through them all. The good and the bad. The end result’s always the same. The difference is this one’s carrying quite a bit of baggage. You sure you want this?”

“Fuck off!”

“Don’t get me wrong, fucknuts, I like her,” Mason admitted. “I just hate watching you get fucked over.”

Mason’s cell rang, saving him from the proverbial beating Chase was going to give him if he didn’t shut up. He listened intently to the caller, looking up to make eye contact with Chase and raising his index finger in a wait-a-minute gesture.

Eden wasn’t going to screw him over, Chase felt it in his heart. She did something to him that no other woman ever had, brought something out of him that he couldn’t quite put a finger on. He felt something he couldn’t even put into words, and it wasn’t just sexual. Although it did excite him, the thought of taming her sexually. Just being with her satisfied him. Having her wrapped in his arms meant a lot more. The thought of someone trying to hurt her made him convulse with rage.

Chase finished his drink in one mouthful, slamming his glass on the bar. He put his hands in his pockets and paced back and forth across the room, waiting. He hated this. It was so frustrating not to be in control of this thing. He ran his hand through his hair and stretched his head from side to side, trying to relieve some of the built up tension.

“Good. Just keep him in your sights. At the first opportunity, take action. You know what to do…and keep it clean, right? Good.” Mason spoke in his take-no-prisoners tone.

“They found him…” Mason raised his hand before Chase could speak. “Unfortunately, he’s not far from here. He’s slippery and fast, man. They’re having trouble staying on him. I think it’s time we get you two out of here. We’ll go to the house. There’s no way he’s going to find you there. We’ll leave tonight after dark.” Chase nodded in agreement.

“I’m going to go tell Eden.” Chase headed to the door and turned to face Mason. “Hey…I get what you’re saying, but I can handle it.” He turned away and then back again, pointing a warning finger at his friend. “And if you say one more negative thing about her again, I’ll punch you in the fucking head.”

Mason chortled, shaking his head, watching Chase leave the room. “What a fucking control
freak! You’re an asshole, my friend!”

***

Eden sat at Chase’s desk drawing away, very much in a world of her own, and didn’t notice Chase when he came into the room. He quietly sauntered over to her and watched as she swept over the paper with a fist full of colored pens, elegantly creating her masterpiece.

Leaning one hand on her chair and the other on the desk, he moved in to bite at her ear. She gasped, striking out at him, her fist making contact with his chin. Chase stood, held his hand to his chin and reverberated with laughter.

“Oh my god!” She jumped up, laughing, and wrapped her arms around his waist, her pens rolling across the surface of the desk. “I’m so sorry, but you scared the shit out of me!”

Raising his hands in surrender, he said with a laugh, “Totally my fault. You have quite the hook there, baby!” He hugged her tight to him and kissed the top of her head.

“Did I hurt you?”

“I’ll survive, Rocky. What are you drawing?” he asked, focusing in on the picture partially hidden under the colored pens.

Her childlike grin amused him as she tried to cover his view. “It’s a surprise…but I guess since I tried to knock you on your ass, you can see it now. It’s rough though.” She picked it up and handed it to him, biting her lip and anticipating his reaction.

“This is great! Whose room is this?” He looked at her and then the drawing again.

Her brow furrowed. “It’s your guest room, silly. You said you wanted me to design it, and it’s so pathetic in there, I thought…” She stopped, looking at him questioningly.

“I guess I did…sorry,” he said uncomfortably, as the color drained from his face. It was a cheap line used to possibly get into her pants that first night. He felt suddenly ashamed. “It really is beautiful…but it’s too nice for that room,” he quietly stated.

She was perplexed by what he said and grabbed the sketch from his hand. Hurrying to the desk, she scooped up her pens and placed them in her pouch, taking care to line them up in order. The reality that he had used this excuse to draw her in made her feel like a fool. “You don’t want me to design anything. It was a pick-up line, right? I’m such an idiot.”

“You’re no idiot. I’m an idiot. Yes, it was a pick-up line but…I’m sorry, Eden.” His admission embarrassed them both. “I’m so, so sorry. It’s…I hate that room. It’s just an empty room full of bad memories.” He rubbed his hands over his face and through his hair, took in a long, deep breath and blew it out fast and furious.

He took her by the waist and lifted her to sit on the desk, taking a seat in the chair, positioning his chest between her knees and resting his head on her lap. Eden looked at him, uncertain what he would say next. The tension in the air was thick. She played with a curl of his hair as she sat waiting for an explanation. It was a room. She didn’t understand. Maybe he hated the way it looked but his words meant much more than that.