Winds of Fortune (11 page)

“Oh, I’m sure it’s not just the uniform,” Deo said with a laugh. “Was everything okay this morning? With you being late, I mean?”

Allie grimaced, remembering the chaos that just half a day later seemed a little bit unreal. Bri trembling in her arms was no fantasy, however. Signaling a line of cars to wait, she waved a group of shirtless men in skin-tight trunks that looked suspiciously like underwear across the intersection. “Right after I got in this morning, Chief Parker collapsed—heart attack. He’s in the hospital up at Hyannis.”

“Oh, man. That’s terrible. Is he going to be okay?”

“Nobody’s saying very much.” Allie sighed and gestured for the cars to move on. “Reese is there now. I’m going up after my shift.”

“Tonight? Jesus, you didn’t sleep at all last night. You must be beat.”

“And whose fault is that?” Allie teased. “I’m okay, plus we’re shorthanded. I don’t know when else I’ll have time. I’m due on shift again tomorrow at ten.”

“Well, since I’m the one who kept you awake, the least I can do is drive you up there and back tonight. That way you can sleep while I drive.”

Surprised, Allie briefly clasped Deo’s hand. “That’s sweet. Really. But you don’t need to. Last night was totally worth being wiped out today.”

“Look, I’d like to. I’m just going to be hanging around at home anyhow.”

“No company tonight?” Allie’s tone made it clear she wasn’t being critical.

“Let’s just say I don’t have the need.” Deo dropped her voice. “Last night took care of that for quite a while.”

Allie gave Deo a heated look. “God, you’re good.”

“I think you mentioned that.” When Allie laughed, some of Deo’s earlier melancholy evaporated. With Allie, she knew that what she offered was enough, and even if they never slept together again, what they’d shared was still special. “I’ll drive you up and wait for you. You take as long as you want. I’ll feel better, and the roads will probably be safer if you’re not driving half asleep.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah. Really.”

“Pick me up at the station at eleven, then.”

“I’ll be there.”

“And Deo,” Allie said, causing Deo to halt as she started to turn away. “We’re cool if it’s just a
ride
ride, right?”

“Yeah, totally.” Deo winked. “For tonight at least.”

Then Deo slipped off into the crowd to the sound of Allie’s laughter. As she walked the mile and a half toward her condo at the far west end of Bradford, she reflected on her night with Allie and smiled. Now and then she hooked up with a woman for a few weeks, but more often than not, one or two nights was the norm. She had a feeling with Allie there could be more. Allie seemed to be up for a friendly relationship that involved good sex, and they for sure had the good sex part down. But for some reason, she was okay if the only thing she and Allie ever shared again was friendship. She liked sex, sure, and the connection she felt for those few brief hours when she made love to a woman quieted some dark, angry place inside her. For a little while, she didn’t feel alone. But Allie wasn’t one of the strangers in town for a week who she could fuck and forget. Allie was a woman she liked, who she was going to run into regularly. Most importantly, she might be a friend. Joey and Pia were about her only friends, and they were family. Maybe sleeping with Allie again would screw up a chance for anything else.

“Jesus,” Deo muttered, her hands in her pockets as she strode more quickly along the less congested streets in the West End. “Since when did you worry about whether you’re going to sleep with a woman or not?”

And just that fast, she was back in the hallway outside Nita Burgoyne’s office feeling angry and baffled as to why Nita wouldn’t even accept an invitation to dinner when the look in her eyes said she was interested. In fact, for a few seconds Nita’s expression had said she was much more than interested. Just remembering the fiery gaze made Deo flush with heat and shiver with the familiar churning in the pit of her stomach.

Nita had said no—not once, but twice—and that ought to be enough. If Deo needed a few hours with a woman to settle her inner unrest, Allie was most likely willing and if not her, someone else. So why did she want the one who didn’t want her?

“Because,” Deo whispered, “because I know she’s lying.”

Nita Burgoyne had said no, but her eyes had betrayed her. No matter what else was going on, Nita was interested. Deo didn’t know why Nita refused to acknowledge that, but it was a challenge she couldn’t let go of.

*

When Deo and Allie walked into the crowded intensive care waiting room just after midnight, Bri’s face lit up at the sight of Allie. With Caroline in tow, she hurried to meet them. “What are you doing here?”

“Just wanted to see how you were doing.” Allie gave Bri a quick hug and smiled almost shyly at Caroline “Hi.”

Caroline returned the smile, resting her hand in the center of Bri’s back. “I’m glad you came.”

“Hey, Deo,” Bri said.

“Sorry about your dad.” Deo noticed that Bri’s eyes were red-rimmed but clear. “How’s he doing?”

“The nurses say everything looks good tonight,” Bri replied.

When several officers who Deo recognized as members of the Sheriff’s Department approached, Deo stepped back while Allie talked to them. Scanning the faces of the others gathered around, she saw Reese and Tory, Reese’s mother and her partner, and a couple of other law enforcement officers. With a jolt, her eyes met Nita’s. When she nodded, Nita tipped her head briefly in acknowledgment before looking away. Clearly having been dismissed, Deo leaned against the wall and watched Nita. As she had at the party, Nita appeared apart from the others. Not awkwardly or uncomfortably alone, Deo realized, but alone by choice. The circumstance was so different than Deo’s own isolation that she couldn’t help but be filled with questions. Questions and curiosity and an involuntary surge of sympathy. Alone was alone, and even if by choice, sometimes it spelled loneliness.

Driven by an appreciation for their shared discomfort, Deo sidled through the people who stood talking quietly in pairs or small groups until she reached Nita.

“Long day,” Deo said.

“I was just leaving.” Nita picked up a leather bag and slung it over her shoulder.

“Stay for a minute.”

Nita blinked. “Why?”

“I like your company.”

“How much have you had to drink?” Nita asked sharply.

“Two beers, six hours ago.”

“Then you have me confused with someone else.” Nita stepped sideways and Deo lightly grasped her arm. “What?”

“I don’t want to have to chase you down the hall again. It’s bad for my ego.”

“I don’t imagine anything puts a dent in your ego.”

Nita’s voice held an edge, but the barest glimmer of a smile showed for an instant and then disappeared. It was the first crack in her façade that Deo had seen, and encouraged, she leaned closer and lowered her voice. “Having you turn me down two days in a row hasn’t been so good for it.”

“It’s in very poor taste to make overtures to a woman with your girlfriend standing a few feet away.”

“My girlfriend?” Deo said, honestly confused. She followed Nita’s gaze to where Allie huddled with Reese and Bri and the other officers. “She’s a friend.”

Nita sighed. “There’s no need to explain, although considering you disappeared with her last night after the party, I’d say your definition of
friend
and mine are slightly different.”

“The way I see it, we’re just talking.”

“Really? You weren’t going to renew your invitation for
dinner
? My mistake again, then.”

Deo did some fast thinking. She
had
been about to try again, and because she didn’t think of her relationship with Allie as anything that would prevent her from doing so, she hadn’t considered how it might look to Nita. Hell, when had she ever considered how anything might look to a woman she was interested in? “Jesus, you’re confusing as all hell.”

“Look,” Nita began in a reasonable voice, determined to control a potentially uncomfortable situation that showed no signs of going away. Admittedly, she’d had a visceral response the instant she’d seen Deo enter the waiting area. Before she could contain herself, she had been both happy and excited to see her. That Deo had been with the pretty young brunette from the night before had helped her gain some perspective. There wasn’t much doubt in her mind where the bite on Deo’s neck had come from. Like a dash of cold water, the sight of the two of them was a blunt wakeup call and a stark reminder of just why Deo was dangerous. “This is a small town and we have a lot of acquaintances in common. We’re going to be running into one another all the time. Why don’t we just decide right now that the best thing we can do is have a nice casual friendly association.”

“I wasn’t proposing marriage.”

“I know what you
are
proposing. I’m not in the market.”

“And if you were, it wouldn’t be with me, right?”

Nita shrugged. “No. It wouldn’t be.”

“Because I’m not your type.” Deo made it a statement, not a question.

“I think I already mentioned that.”

“How about a contractor? Are you in the market for a general contractor?”

“Excuse me?” Nita said, thoroughly perplexed by not only the abrupt change in topic but by the fact that Deo seemed to have capitulated with no argument. And that bothered her. Lord, she must be sending out mixed signals because she certainly felt mixed up. She didn’t want the woman’s attention but it upset her when Deo simply gave up pursuing her as if it were of no further consequence. She hadn’t realized how vulnerable she was to any kind of attention from a woman. It had been a long time. Obviously, she needed a date—with someone non-threatening and low-key and normal. Someone whose attention would be pleasant but not distracting, someone with whom she could share something enjoyable but not consuming. Not someone like Deo whose mere presence stirred her up. Not someone like Deo—like Sylvia—who would occupy her mind twenty-four hours a day and keep her body in a state of constant arousal.

“You bought the Captain’s house,” Deo said, again stating fact. “If you plan on living in it, it’s going to take some serious work.”

“How do you know about my house?”

“It’s my business to know what’s happening with the properties in town.”

Nita shook her head. “Small-town living will take some getting used to. Yes, I bought it, but I haven’t made any decisions yet about what I’m going to do with it or who is going to do it.” What she didn’t add was that whoever she hired, it certainly would not be Deo Camara. The last thing she wanted was to see her on a daily basis for weeks.

“Rehabbing historic structures is my specialty,” Deo said, serious now. “You’re going to get the best prices if you go local, and I’m the best there is on the Cape. You’ll at least want a bid from me.”

“Lord, you really are too much.” Nita remembered Pia mentioning the township’s regulations regarding what could and couldn’t be done to historic buildings and realized she would be better off using a local builder. It was late, she was tired, and she didn’t want to argue. In fact, Deo made sense. Compromise. Compromise was something she’d always been good at. “Why don’t you send Joey around to look the place over. I’m closing on Friday afternoon and I’ll have the keys after that.”

“Joey’s not experienced enough.” Deo grinned. “Besides, he’s competition.”

“I’m sorry?”

“He wants to ask you out.”

Nita gaped. “Joey? My God, he’s just a boy.”

“He’s eighteen,” Deo said with a straight face, enjoying seeing Nita off balance.

“He’s also a patient.”

“He won’t be forever.”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Nita snapped. “You know I’m a lesbian.”

Deo lifted a shoulder. “Can’t prove it by personal experience.”

“And you never will.” Exasperated and recalling what Pia had said about their family enterprises, Nita said, “Then send one of your brothers to do the estimate. You must have half a dozen working with you.”

Deo jerked as if Nita had slapped her. Beneath her tan, Deo’s bronze skin paled and a world of hurt flashed across her face. For a fraction of a second, Nita actually thought she might faint. Without giving it a thought, driven only by her instinct to comfort, she grasped Deo’s hand. “What is it?” The fingers lying motionless in her palm were cold and trembling. “Deo?”

“Sorry,” Deo rasped, jerking her hand free. “No, no brothers.”

“I’m sor—”

“No problem.” Deo backed away a step. “Sorry to bother you.”

“Deo…” Nita called quietly, but Deo had already spun away. She felt terrible for bringing up something that was obviously still painful. She didn’t mind clashing with Deo’s arrogance or misplaced sense of entitlement where women were concerned, but she would never have willingly hurt her. “Damn it.”

“Everything all right?” Tory asked.

Nita gave a start, then flushed, wondering how much of the encounter Tory had witnessed. She’d always been a private person, and the terrible public humiliation of her relationship with Sylvia had solidified her desire to avoid any kind of display of her personal business. “Yes. Everything’s fine.”