Jude Devine Mystery Series (38 page)

Guessing he was uncomfortable with the idea that a creep like Hawke could even be in the running, she conceded, “Bobby Lee. Okay?”

“Mighty pleased to hear it.” From the doorway, Bobby Lee Parker drawled a greeting and strolled into the office like he owned the patent on cool. When he reached Jude’s desk, he removed his hat and placed it tenderly on top of the nearest filing cabinet.

She said, “That was a figurative question, Mr. Parker. I wouldn’t read anything into the answer.”

“All the same, do I need to speak with this Hawke dude, man to man?” He cocked his head in Tulley’s direction. “Know where he drinks, Deputy?”

Tulley snickered. “In his bedroom, I reckon.”

Bobby Lee flashed his white, perfect teeth. To Jude, he said, “That’s not the kind of man who’ll put a smile on your face.”

“Get out of here,” she ordered. “And take your posy.”

Strangely undeterred, he said, “Man, you’ve got it going on. Anyone ever tell you, you have the sexist voice since Marlene Dietrich?”

Jude got up. Normally the sight of her--5’ 10,” built, armed, and annoyed--terminated male overtures without so much as a whimper. Not in Parker’s case.

The guy stuck out his arm out and said, “Come on. Make a man happy. Take a walk with me, Detective Dee-Vine.”

Why couldn’t Mercy show up at her office with flowers and sweet talk? For a few seconds, Jude indulged herself in a pity party, then she laughed at her own lapse into romantic yearning, hooked her arm into Bobby Lee’s, and resigned herself to having to be blunter than usual. “Okay,” she said. “Let’s have a conversation.”

Grinning, Bobby Lee picked up his hat and pulled her close. He even smelled good. As they passed Tulley’s desk, he paused and offered his condolences.

“The face. That’s unacceptable. Was she drunk?”

“Nope.” Tulley touched his purple eye. “Just pissed.”

“I can tell you’re not a man who hits a woman.” Bobby Lee tightened his grip on Jude like he knew she was already regretting the impulse to talk with him. “But listen up, my friend. A chick who takes advantage of your fine manners is not worth having. Get some self-respect and dump her.”

“I did.”

“Good to know.” Bobby Lee seemed lost in thought for an instant. Then he asked, “Hey, pal. Want to get a beer later?”

“Sure,” Tulley said.

Jude could tell he was pleased. Did Parker think he could win her over by making friends with her associates? He already had Agatha eating out of his hand, after fixing a flat tire for her and carrying her parcels to the door. Jude tried to tug her arm free, but he kept a firm hold and started walking.

As soon as they got outside, he released his grip and she stepped away from him, demanding, “What are you playing at, Mr. Parker?”

“I like it better when you call me Bobby Lee.”

“Well, don’t get used it. Stop flirting and listen to me. You’re wasting your time. I am never going to date you.” She offered the excuse she thought would make the most sense to this hormonal cowboy. “The fact is, you’re too young for me. None of us can change the way attraction works. I choose lovers in their thirties.”

Bobby Lee opened his truck and held the passenger door. “Care to continue in air-conditioned comfort?”

“So long as this doesn’t take more than five minutes.” Jude got in the truck, thinking:
I need my head examined.

“You’re a hard woman,” Bobby Lee mourned.

“So I’m told.”

He took the seat next to her and started the motor. The vents threw hot air ahead of cold. Jude was already perspiring, which made her uniform feel like it was hugging way too closely for a situation like this.

She said, “I’m flattered. Really, I am. But there’s just no way. Do you understand?”

“That butch, huh?”

Her heart stopped in her chest, then began galloping at double time. Was this what she thought it was? Had the rules just changed in a split second? Coldly, she said, “Call it what you want.”

Bobby Lee’s brilliant blue eyes wandered lazily over her. “People think they know their own demarcation lines,” he said softly, “but I’ve found there’s a lot of slack between no and yes.”

Jude knew exactly what he was talking about. She was surprised. Who would have taken Bobby Lee Parker for the philosophical type? In another time or place, she might have allowed herself to be drawn into a conversation beyond the superficial. There was obviously more to him than met the eye. But this was not an anonymous bar somewhere in a big city.

Damply, she said, “That’s something we see in my line of work, too.”

“Mine changed in prison,” he replied, making her willful detachment feel cheap. “A man learns a lot about himself in a situation like that.”

“If you don’t quit robbing gas stations you’ll be having another learning experience soon.”

The dark center of each eye dilated, consuming the blue. He said, “I went through a rough patch when I got out. That’s in the past now.”

“You’ve found work?” He was probably growing weed for his mother and her pothead pals.

Another surprise. “I’m going back to school.”

“Good for you. I really hope it pans out.”

“There one thing I’m gonna miss real bad.”

Jude thought gloomily:
here it comes
.

“Love at first sight,” he mooned. “Never happened before.”

“You’ll get over it. College is wall to wall…attractive women.”

He wasn’t letting up. “I gotta tell you something—that place between no and yes is real familiar to me.”

Jude wasn’t sure how to translate this statement. Bobby Lee spared her brain cells.

“What I’m saying is I don’t limit myself like most folks. So, if you were interested, we could party. But the fact is, it’s your deputy that’s on my mind.”

Jude’s first thought was:
no fucking way!
Her voice hit a rare treble. “Tulley?”

“I prefer to call him Adonis.” Bobby Lee acknowledged this poeticism with a wry grin. “First moment I saw him, it was exactly like they say. A lightning bolt. Thought I could scope him out if everyone got the idea I was hot for you.”

“You sure had me fooled.”

“Disappointed? Just say the word and I’ll make it up to you.”

“I thought you were in love.”

“Doesn’t affect my competence with others, and for you…I’d go the extra mile.”

Jude burst out laughing. “Slut.”

“There’s no need to be unkind.”

Jude wanted to dislike him, but their conversation was refreshingly uncomplicated. Amazed that in a place like this, a young male would come out as bisexual or gay to anyone, she said, “You’re taking quite a risk talking to me like this,”

“There’s only been two females ever turned me down. The other one was a lesbian. So, I figured…”

“Tulley’s straight.”

“Poor taste in women, too.” Bobby Lee seemed unfazed.

Jude had no idea what to say. She consulted the desolate Uravan landscape and came up with a lame response. “I don’t think he shares your feelings.”

“That’s why I’ve decided to make friends with him, and hit on you instead.”

“Are you trying to make him jealous?”

“No. Just buying myself some access and doing us both a big favor. The Four Corners is not a good place to be gay. Or bi.”

Then leave Tulley alone
, Jude thought. “There’s something I’m not seeing. Who says anyone knows?”

“You’re a single female under fifty in a town where guys outnumber chicks three to one. You’ve been here awhile and you’ve turned down every guy who’s dropped a hint. They’re talking about you.”

Jude shrugged. “Talk is just talk.”

“This works for both of us,” he said. “’Specially in your situation.”

Jude frowned. Just how closely had the unexpectedly serious-minded Parker been watching her?

“Dr. Westmoreland’s a classy lady,” he said.

“We’re just friends.” Anger quickened her limbs. “Are you making some kind of threat?”

“Jesus. Chill. It’s not healthy to be wound up like you are. All I’m saying is there’s talk. Even my mom’s heard.”

Jude felt squeamish. This would mean curtains. No more 4.30 a.m. drives back from Grand Junction. No more checking in to separate rooms at the Hotchkiss Inn, miles from anywhere.

She said, “I don’t suppose it could do any harm to give them something else to gossip about.”

“That was my thinking.”

“I seriously doubt you’ll get anywhere with Tulley.”

“Me too.”

Who would buy
her
dating Bobby Lee Parker? Jude shook her head in disbelief that she was even considering this desperate measure. It wasn’t like her affair with Mercy was a star-crossed lovers situation. They were strictly about getting laid. All the same, good sex in this neck of the woods was nothing to be sneezed at, and if Mercy got wind that there was talk, their exhausting evenings would be over in a heartbeat.

She said, “What’s the big date in Cortez?”

“If you get lucky I’ll take you to Blondie’s.”

Also a popular outing for cops and their wives. Jude could see them now. “Christ,” she said.

Bobby Lee moved closer and dropped a tame kiss on her cheek. “No need to thank me, sweetheart.”

*

Jude lifted a handful of Mercy’s hair and kissed the smooth curve where neck met shoulder. Several small dark moles nestled in the hollow above her collarbone, as if Mother Nature had flicked some paint on the immaculate almond canvas of Mercy’s skin. A scant haze of ultra-fine blond hair was visible on her forearms, picked out by the morning sun. Her hands lay folded over her midriff, their fine-boned perfection thrown into relief, a latticework of pale blue veins visible beneath the pale translucence of her skin.

Jude tried to frame the words she wanted to say. They’d seen each other on and off ever since their evening in Denver. Jude’s feeble resistance to sharing Mercy crumbled every time she set eyes on her. Mercy only had to look at her and she was putty. Was she in love? She didn’t think so. She was in lust, but love hovered as a possibility. Sometimes she wanted to say that to Mercy, to check in and see if it was still too complicated.

She decided now seemed like a good time to revisit that, but before she could speak, Mercy moved closer and faced her. Playfully, she said, “We should do this again some time. You’re a truly accomplished lover.”

It seemed like a compliment, only Jude found herself hearing what Mercy didn’t say. Feelings were not mentioned. She didn’t say she wanted to see more of Jude, that maybe they could start including each other in their lives, not just in their beds. It was always like this. Sometimes they barely spoke, other than to voice their desires. Their dialogue was almost entirely sexual.

“Thank you. I’m glad I pass muster.” Jude could not miss the edge in her own voice. It was not lost on Mercy, either.

“Is something wrong?” She stroked Jude’s cheek.

“No.” Jude told herself to do better, to take a shot at saying what was really on her mind. “I was thinking. Maybe we could see a bit more of each other. It doesn’t always have to be about sex.”