Ring Around the Rosy (30 page)

She shook her head. Nah, there was
more to it than that. A guy didn’t take you to meet his family if he wasn’t
thinking long term.

Clare grinned at her as if she
read her thoughts.

Susan hated that grin.

Chapter Twenty-Six

Dave arrived right on time, and
ran his fingers along his shirt collar and wiped his hands on his pantswhile
she introduced him to her father. Susan almost giggled. Never had she seen Dave
look so uncomfortable, so nervous. Of course, her father’s gruff attitude
didn’t help. And the way her mother gushed over Dave embarrassed Susan. She
could well imagine how he felt.

He said a quick hello to Clare and
Kate and looked at her. “Ready?”

“Just let me get my purse.” Susan
grabbed her purse, looked at her family, and smiled. “Don’t wait up. I might be
late.” She grabbed Dave’s arm and hurried him outside. She was almost sorry
they were going to Emily’s. She’d much rather spend the evening with him alone.

“So what did you call me about
this morning?” He opened the car door for her.

“There was another rose on my
car.”

“Shit, did you see anyone?” He
went around to the driver’s side and slid inside.

“Nope, but when I woke up and
looked out, it was there. Just like last time.”

“We’ll get this guy, Susan. I
promise.”

How many times had he said that?
She wondered if they’d ever get either of these guys. If, in fact, there were
two, which she doubted.

“So, did you miss me?” Dave
changed the subject.

Susan sent him a sideways glance.
Silly, it was only one day, but she had. He must be growing on her. “Yeah,
actually, I did. I guess I’ve gotten used to you being around. How about you —
did you miss me?”

May as well see where she stood.

Dave raised her hand to his lips
and brushed a light kiss over it. “I missed you immensely. I had to eat fast
food again.”

“Oh, so it’s my cooking you miss,
not me.”

His kiss sent tingles of excitement
through her. Just his nearness set her on fire. This man did things to her she
had never experienced before.

Dave laughed. “Well, that and a
few other things.”

Susan had a pretty good idea what
those other things might be. Luckily, they arrived at his sister’s.

Josh and Jake met their Uncle Dave
at the door. Josh jumped on his back.

“Whoa.” Dave steadied his balance
and picked up Jake. He brought Josh around to the front, grabbed Jake by the
seat of his pants, and laid him on the ground, setting Josh on top of him. Both
boys giggled while they struggled to get up.

“Boys! Give your uncle a chance to
get in the house.” Emily laughed and hugged Susan. “And don’t forget we have a
guest.” She took Susan’s jacket and hung it in the closet.

“I have to apologize for them. But
it is your fault, David.”

“I know, I know.” Dave chased the
boys into the living room.

“I swear I don’t know whose worse
— him or the kids. Come in the kitchen. You can give me a hand.” Emily linked
arms with Susan.

Squeals and laughter came from the
other room. Susan looked around the warm kitchen, a chef’s dream, Rich cherry
cupboards lined three walls, and a center island with a sink took up most of
the space. A professional six-burner range sat recessed in a brick enclosure,
making it look like a fireplace.

“Something to drink? Wine, soda,
beer, or I can make a martini?” Emily took a beer out of the refrigerator. “If
I know my brother, he’ll be in here any minute looking for this.”

“Wine sounds good.” Susan pulled
out a stool and sat down. “I love the countertops. What are they?” She ran her
hand along the smooth surface.

“Actually, they’re concrete. I saw
it on a television show, and I was hooked.
 
Rob and I did some research, and believe it or not, there’s a wide
variety of people who make them. And they come in a choice of color, or they
can be made to look like granite.” Emily poured the wine.

“I’m sorry. I tend to get carried
away when people ask about it. Come on, let’s go find the guys. I’ll see if I
can rescue Dave from my monsters.”

Dave jumped up and hid behind
Susan. “I’m on safe territory. No fair behind this line.” He drew an imaginary
line in front of her with his hand.

“Hey, don’t get me involved.”
Susan stepped around behind him and pushed him toward the boys, who immediately
pounced on him.

“Traitor!” Dave picked up each of
the boys and piled them on top of each other, and lay on top of them, pinning
them to the floor. “Give, say uncle.”

“Uncle, uncle,” they squealed
beneath him through their giggles.

“Okay, boys, that’s enough.
Where’s your father?” Emily pulled each boy up by his hand. “Come on, time to
settle down and let Uncle Dave catch his breath. He’s not as young as he used
to be.”

Dave sat next to Susan, put his
arm around her, leaned over, and kissed her.

Heat crept along her neck and into
her cheeks. Darn, she hated that. And she swore Dave did things in front of
people just to make her blush.

“So, you’re done wrestling for the
evening.” Rob came in and turned off the television. “Come on boys, settle down
now. You heard your mother.” He ruffled the boys’ hair.

Josh and Jake threw mischievous
looks at Dave. “Aw, okay. Can we have some pizza now?”

Emily shook her head and gave the
boys a look. Susan almost laughed. She remembered that look from her own mother
when she and her sisters acted up. Now that she thought about it, Clare used
the same look sometimes.

After a fun evening, learning to
play dominoes, Dave took her back to her mother’s. Susan relaxed in the car on
the way home, content and happy. It was fun being with Dave, and she enjoyed
his family. Rob and Emily treated her like part of the family.

Back at her mother’s, Dave took
her in his arms. He ran his finger along her cheek and across her lips, leaned
down, and brushed his lips across hers.

Something stirred in her, and she
melted into him, desire flaring deep inside her. It was a good thing they were
at her mother’s. She’d be half tempted to invite him in.

She wanted him, no sense trying to
deny it. But, until she knew where she stood, she couldn’t, wouldn’t give in.
She knew Dave desired her. It was written all over his face. It was in his eyes
when he looked at her. And it was in his kiss when he devoured her, like he was
doing now. But was it only desire? She wanted more than that. For the first
time in her life, she wanted a relationship, one that led to marriage. And
until she had that ring on her finger, desire or not, she wouldn’t give in. She
pulled away.

“I had a great time.” She opened
the door, not wanting to leave. She’d much rather be wrapped in his arms. But
her inner instinct told her it was time. “I really like your family.”

Dave stared at her.

A shadow of indecision or
something flickered across his face. She stood up on tiptoe, pulled his head
down to meet hers and kissed him, a quick brushing of her lips over his.
“Goodnight.”

She went in and closed the door
before he could reply. What was it she saw flash in his eyes? Doubt? Whatever
it was, she had to give him time to deal with it. An inner instinct told her he
was about to tell her he wasn’t going to see her anymore. She wasn’t about to
give him that chance. At least, not yet.

* * *

Dave stood looking at the closed
door for a minute, then turned and hurried to his car. What the hell was wrong
with him? All evening, he couldn’t keep his eyes off of her.

It was a good thing when they
arrived at his sisters. He had been half tempted to turn the car around and
take her back to her place, forty-five minute ride or not. The truth of the
matter was he had missed her. He missed everything about her, had grown used to
having her around and stopping at her place. And, yeah, he missed her cooking
and even missed helping her clean up after dinner.

Maybe he should make this
relationship permanent.

He almost laughed aloud at the
idea. Him, confirmed bachelor, Detective Dave Morgan, wanting a permanent
relationship. Was he nuts? Look what happened to Mike when he tried.

Nope. Marriage wasn’t in the
cards. Women didn’t understand a cop’s life, couldn’t handle the danger of it.
He’d better put the thought out of his mind and enjoy what he had, take it to
the next level maybe, but marriage was out of the question. Besides, what made
him think she’d even have him? Where was this going? He wanted to take her in
his arms again, wanted to go home with her, yet was glad she had pulled away.
Something tugged at his heart. Was he falling in love with her?

Hell, he knew better than that.
Maybe it was time to end this here and now, before it went any farther. Let
Greenwood stay on the case. Stay away from her. He almost told her that at the
door. But when he brushed his hand over her cheek, just the feel of her smooth
skin drove him crazy with wanting. Problem was, there was something else. If it
was only a physical attraction, that’d be one thing. But it was more. He wanted
her, all right. But he wanted to spend time with her, too. He enjoyed her
company. Hell, he even liked helping her in the kitchen. He liked their easy
camaraderie.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Susan got up early, and, after
writing a note for her parents, left for home before anyone else got up.

Her thoughts turned to Dave on the
drive home. What had she seen in his eyes? Doubt, indecision. Definitely not a
look she liked. Maybe it would be best to end things before they got too out of
hand. Spending time with his family probably wasn’t a good idea. Getting too
familiar, too involved. Nope, not a good idea. She had to end this. But the
thought of not spending time with him made her ache. Made her feel empty
inside. Still, if he didn’t want a permanent relationship, where would that
leave her. Pretty much in the same boat as Kate. Could she handle that?

She parked her
car and hurried into her building. Horace caught her at the elevator.

“How’s it going, Susan?”

“Good, Horace, how about with
you?” Susan tapped her foot While she waited for the elevator. Why wasn’t it
ever on the ground floor when she came in?

“I can’t complain much. Things
have been pretty slow around here. Even Mrs. Anderson hasn’t been calling me.
Probably, because she’s been keeping company with that new guy, Mr. Forester,
who moved in a couple weeks ago.” Horace smiled a toothless grin.

Something about it gave Susan a
creepy feeling. Why a man wouldn’t wear false teeth amazed her.

The elevator finally came and the
doors opened. Glad she didn’t have to continue the conversation, she smiled.
“See you later, Horace.”

Four roses lay outside Susan’s
apartment door. She bent down and picked them up, opened her door, and tossed
them in the garbage. She was almost to the point where they didn’t bother her
anymore.

Almost, but not quite. She could
handle them at her door, but when they started appearing at her mother’s… Well,
that was a different story.

She pushed the play button on the
answering machine and listened. A recording tried to sell her a new roof. At
least there weren’t any messages from him. Still, a niggling fear crawled up
her spine. Of course there wouldn’t be a message from him, he knew she wasn’t
home. If he was the one who left the roses, that is.

So who watched her? And from
where? Dave said her apartment had been staked out since the beginning. No one
strange had been hanging around, and Dave said no one with roses had come in,
either. Did that mean he lived here? How else was he getting in and out? Obviously,
whoever it was hid the roses. Dave had interviewed just about everyone in the
building. What or who was he missing?

She hadn’t heard from Dave since
he left her at her mother’s last night. He usually called first thing in the
morning. Maybe he wasn’t going to call her.

Maybe he hadn’t enjoyed her
company as much as she thought. Or maybe he didn’t think she fit in as well
with his family as during their visit in Florida. She had enjoyed playing
dominoes. Sure it took her a while to learn the game, but
 
once she caught on it was fun. She even won a
couple games. Well, nothing was stopping her from calling him. She picked up
the phone and dialed his number.

“Dave, hi, just wanted to let you
know I’m home.”

“Good, what’s for dinner?”

Susan laughed. Stupid imagination.
She had to quit seeing things that weren’t there. Dave was probably just tired,
and she knew this case had taken its toll on him. “I’ll see what I can whip up.
I knew I was good for something.” They hung up and Susan took stock of her refrigerator
and freezer. It looked like a trip to the store was in order.