The Evasion (6 page)

“How naughty?” Ellie wanted to know.

He turned to the shop owner. “Make me howl.”

The woman’s gaze dropped to his crotch and Jo made a gagging sound. How funny was that?

“I have just the thing.”

Jo tugged his T-shirt. “You’ve lost your mind.”

“Not yet, I haven’t.”

“Right this way.” Ellie stormed through a curtained doorway. “The fitting room is in the back. I’ll get you settled and bring you some things to look at.”

As soon as the women were out of the room, Gabe snatched the phone from the desk and hit redial. Come to daddy. The number scrolled on the screen and he swiped a piece of scratch paper and a pen from the counter.

Gotcha
.

What he had, who knew, but that had never stopped him before. They’d have to fly under the radar or his buddy the sheriff would be pissed.

Ellie emerged from the back room just as Gabe tucked the phone number in his pocket. Good timing, that.

“I found some lovely things for her to try. I think you’ll be happy.”

Little did Ellie know Gabe’s favorite outfit on Jo was her birthday suit. Call him crazy but sexy to him was just plain naked.

“Y’all passing through?” Once again, Ellie eyed him. Not a big deal. Women did shit like that all the time. He’d grown used to it, used it to his advantage.

He smiled. “How’d you guess?”

“The accents give it away some. New York?”

Sorry. No dice.
Ellie might have that southern charm going for her, but she was certifiable if she thought he’d tell her where they were from.

“We needed a vacation,” he said, ignoring her inquiry. “We’re road-tripping. Not sure where exactly we’re going, but here we are.”

“Oh, that sounds fun. To just up and leave.”

The curtain separating the back room from the store flew open and Jo stepped through wearing her regular clothes.

“What? No fashion show?”

“Relax. You’ll get a fashion show.” She set something red, silky and skimpy on the counter. “We’ll take this one.”

But when she dug into her purse for her wallet, Gabe stepped up. Maybe they were playing a role or maybe it was a turning point in their relationship, but they’d spent so much damned time hiding from their bosses that he’d never bought her lingerie. Suddenly, he wanted to.

He put his hand over hers. “I’ve got this.”

“No. I want to.”

They’d never discussed their personal finances in detail, but any idiot would know a lawyer of her caliber made more than a cop. He gave her
the
look. The one that sent the guys under his command scattering. “
Honey
, I’m buying.”

She stared up at him a minute, clearly contemplating an argument because that’s what she did. Argued, debated, challenged. All good things generally. Between the two of them, they were goofy that way. They got off on the conflict. Their own brand of wacky foreplay.

Jo backed off. Physically took a step away from the counter. “Okay, sailor. You got it.”

Whether she understood his wanting to buy her a gift or simply chose not to do battle, he wasn’t sure. Either way, he’d chalk it up to a win. Where Jo was concerned, he didn’t win very often.

“Thank you,” he said.

“Anything for you,
honey
.”

And God help him, she batted her eyes, completely charming Ellie. Maybe that fluttering thing worked for some women. Jo? Not a chance. He hated it on her. He wanted her tough and clawing.

What kind of freak was he?
Not exploring it
.

Ellie rang up the lingerie and he grabbed the bag. Holy smokes, his budget couldn’t take too much of that. Another thing he’d have to get used to—Jo probably made as much in one day as he made in a week. She could afford to pay a hundred bucks for lingerie. Him? No way.
Suck it up, pal
. “Thanks for your help, Ellie.”

“Y’all come back and see us again.”

Oh, we will, Ellie. We will.
It just wouldn’t be to purchase lingerie.

Chapter Four

“You sneaky devil!” Jo grinned at Gabe after he admitted to scamming the supplier’s number from Ellie’s phone.

I adore this man
.

Hand in hand, they strolled down Main Street, passing the closed pharmacy and bakery on their way back to their rental car. The evening air was thick and moist and heavy and for some reason, Jo liked it. Maybe it was the lack of chaos and noise. Small town quiet versus screaming sirens and traffic.

Across the street a couple had taken over a bench by the huge pond in the town square. In the center of the pond was a brass statue that poked at Jo’s curiosity. She’d have to wander by to see who the statue represented.

Her curiosity also went to the couple on the bench. The man was stretched flat, his head in the woman’s lap. Jo considered steering Gabe in that direction. Why not? At home, they didn’t have the luxury of holding hands and stretching out on a bench. Too much risk of getting caught.

Now that she’d had a taste of freedom when it came to their relationship, she resented all the secrecy.

“I needed something to do while you were in the dressing room,” Gabe said.

Jo focused on him, watched his lips move and in her mind replayed where they were in the conversation. Ah, the phone number. “I’d say you made good use of your time, sergeant.”

He squeezed her hand and she glanced down, took in his long fingers. Fingers that, before today, she only held behind closed doors because they were too terrified—yes, the big, bad ESU sergeant was terrified—their bosses would toss one of them off the task force.

For now, they were in tiny Leeville where only the sexist sheriff knew their identities and, damn it, Jo wanted to hold her man’s hand. Wasn’t a lot to ask. She lifted their joined hands, kissed the back of his. There. Affection in public. The horrors.

“Careful,” Gabe said. “I might start to enjoy all this domesticity.”

As usual, their thoughts had aligned. Amazing how that happened. Even when they disagreed about work, their minds were in perfect tune. “Exactly!”

“What?”

“I was just thinking I never get to touch you unless we’re in private. I like holding your hand. Makes me realize what we don’t have at home. It bothers me. Like we’re doing something wrong. What we have together isn’t wrong.”

“I agree. But there’s not much we can do about it.”

Unless one of them left the task force. And they weren’t deluding themselves. If one of them left, it would be Gabe. Jo was the driving force on project Clean Sweep. She’d been the one to badger the mayor into forming the task force. She had the manufacturer contacts. And she had the passion for it. Not that Gabe wasn’t dedicated, but he didn’t live and breathe Clean Sweep like she did. He just wanted to be good at his job. At least that’s what he told her.

If it came down to it and they had to choose, he’d be the one to leave the task force. She knew that. He’d give up a position that put him in the mayor’s path every day. A position that showcased his excellent tactical and management skills and would earn him a promotion to lieutenant in the not-so-distant future. In the land of goals and dreams, Jo knew Gabe wanted to make lieutenant by the time he was thirty-five.

But she also knew he’d walk away. He’d do it for
her
. Some would call him a fool. She’d call him an honorable man. A man willing to sacrifice for his loved ones.

I adore this man
.

And yet, she couldn’t let him give up the task force. Not when it could catapult his career. If the roles were reversed, she wouldn’t want to make that decision and she didn’t want him to either. Stuck. That’s what they were.

“You look like you’re thinking. That always scares me.”

She shrugged, held their joined hands in front of them. “It just bugs me that we can’t do this at home.”

“I can leave the task force.”

“No.”

“Then why are we talking about this? There’s nothing we can do except catch this Martinson asshole.”

Right. She waggled the fingers of her free hand in front of her. “Let me have that phone number. I’ll get one of the firm’s investigators on it. See who that phone is registered to.”

“I was going to call Tom with it.”

“It’ll be faster if I have one of my people do it. Besides, you’re the one who wants to do this quietly. Tom will ask questions.”

He stopped walking and still holding her hand, squared off with her.

“Gabe, you know I’m right. Tom will have a million questions.”

He let go of her hand, dug the number from his pocket and handed it to her.

“Thank you. By the time we get to the hotel, we’ll know who that phone is registered to. Count on it.”

—:—

Gabe parked the rental car in the small lot behind the hotel and stared up at the back of the old Victorian. In his world, this facility would be called a bed-and-breakfast. A hotel meant a Marriott or a Hilton and would be forty stories high with long, door-lined hallways. This
hotel
was a big ancient house dropped on the edge of town next to other big ancient houses.

“Wow,” Jo said. “How fun is this?”

He glanced at her, ready to jump in with an equally snide comment, but she stared out the windshield with a quiet sense of wonderment he didn’t always see on her. Conclusion: her comment wasn’t meant to be sarcastic.

He sighed. “I hope our room has a king-sized bed.”

Christ, he hated those midget beds that his giant feet hung off of.

“Don’t be such a worry wart. I requested a king and the owner said it shouldn’t be a problem. I mean, how busy can this place be?”

She didn’t sound too convinced and just as he was about to share that thought, her phone rang.

“Ha!” she said. “That’s Sherry’s ringtone. Told you we’d have an answer fast.”

Sherry, one of Jo’s investigators, scared the hell out of him even more than Jo with the risks she took. These women thought nothing of entering back rooms and basements of stores in their never ending quest to find counterfeit merchandise. As a cop, Gabe understood their motivation, their need to conquer the bad guy and all that crap. He got it. No problem. But as a man with street sense, he couldn’t wrap his mind around it.

Jo took the call, rummaged in her purse for her notepad and made notes. A minute later, she punched off. “Okay, Mr. August, that phone number you stole belongs to a business here in town. TBR Industries. I have the address. We should check it out.”

Gabe checked his watch. Almost nine. He could get Jo settled in and do a sneak-and-peek. He wouldn’t actually go into the building since they were already pushing the boundaries of investigating on their own, but maybe a drive-by and a look in the windows.

Keeping silent, he eased out of the car.

“Gabe, did you hear me?”

“Sure did.”

“Oh, come on.”

This would make, what, the eight-hundredth time they’d had this argument? The one where he told her to keep that beautiful ass of hers inside and out of danger while she let him do his job. No matter how many times she agreed, she never could resist the pull of action.

He didn’t blame her. If he had to sit at a desk all day, he’d take his service weapon and blow his brains out. Adrenaline freaks, the two of them.

This sneak-and-peek, he supposed, was kindergarten stuff. If he took her along, he might score points for the next time he threw his weight around.
Yeah, that’s a plan
. He’d take her, but insist she stay in the car. Which she’d debate. No doubt there. Whether she’d realized it or not, they’d fallen into a rhythm. He’d give a little, remind her that he’d given a little and she’d give some too. Perfect harmony in their fucked up world.

He closed the car door and headed to the trunk for their gear. “Here’s the deal. We get checked in and then we find this address. See what’s what. When we get there, if I think it’s safe to take a look, you wait in the car while I go in.”

She folded her arms, watching him retrieve the bags. “If you’re with me, why can’t I get out?”

“Uh, because someone might shoot us?”

“Oh, stop it. Nobody knows we’re here. Who’s going to shoot us?”

Stranger things had happened and he wasn’t risking it. That sheriff could be in bed with any number of people. “I’m not kidding. I could lock you in the hotel room. And you know I’ll do it. Take what you can get, Jo, and live with it.”

“You wouldn’t dare.”

“Yeah, I would. My guess is this big Victorian has a nice, heavy bed I can cuff you to. I’m not talking for sexual reasons either, although, we should definitely explore that.”
Definitely explore that
. “That’s my offer, Counselor. Take it or leave it.”

She bumped her fist against her leg. “I wouldn’t put it past you to confine me. You’re mean that way.”

“If it keeps you out of harm’s way, you bet your ass I am.”

Jo stood back while Gabe, being the macho man that he was, unlocked the hotel room door. Why not? This minor stuff gave him a sense of control and let him feel like a gentleman. Down deep, under her I’m-an-independent-woman attitude, she kinda liked having a man to rely on. Not that she’d ever admit that to anyone. Her inner feminist was already preparing to launch the first stone.