Page 84 of Serving the Maestro

“Come on.” I kissed Cam on the cheek and pushed off the railing. “Let’s eat.”

* * *

Three plates of appetizers sat on the table between us, Danny sipping on a beer while Trent stuck with water. I nearly froze when the server asked if I’d wanted a cocktail. Across from me, Cam spoke up, ordering a peach sweet tea for me and another strawberry lemonade for herself.

As the server walked away, I gave Cam a thankful look.

Trent took my hand under the table and squeezed. “You okay?”

“Yeah. I just...” The words wouldn’t come, and I just shook my head.

“Trent told me that Roger ended up confessing to what he’d done.” Cam nudged my foot with hers under the table, eyes serious, concerned. “Not just to you, but others.”

“Yes.” Swallowing, I picked up my nearly empty glass of lemonade and sipped, the melted ice cubes watering down the tartness of lemons and blackberries. “The detective who took my statement said they’d received almost a dozen reports in this precinct over the past five years, but there just wasn’t enough information to hold the guy responsible.”

“How did the cops get the evidence then?” Danny asked.

I looked at Trent and smiled. “Ask this guy.”

Trent’s jaw was tight. Under the table, I stroked my thumb over the back of his hand and squeezed. It was my turn to soothe him.

After a few more seconds, he squeezed back and looked at Danny. “I went to the restaurant where they’d stopped for a drink. They let me watch the security feed.”

He stopped, picked up his water, and eyed it. “Fuck, I could use a scotch right now.”

Cam arched a brow. “The server is a few tables behind you. Want me to flag her down?”

“Nah.” Trent took a drink of water. “I can’t drink much as a rule.” Blowing out a breath, he continued. “If you look carefully at the video, you can see him drop something in Jazz’s drink, so I made a copy and took it to the cops. Once the detective saw it, they took Roger into custody.”

Danny looked as grim as Trent, his ordinarily cheerful smile missing. “Will he make bail?”

“Yeah, but not until Monday.” I selected an onion ring from the plate in front of me. “He held off saying anything last night. Didn’t ask for a lawyer until he really fucked up and confessed.”

“How did they get him to do that?” Cam took a tortilla chip and scooped up some guacamole.

“Smoke and mirrors.” The bite of the onion ring I’d taken felt like stone in my belly. “They had interviewed several of his former dates, and a common theme was that all of them had memory lapses from their date. Then, the detective showed him the security tape and he confessed.”

After Trent finished the story, I was suddenly aware that everybody at the table was watching me, and I forced a smile. “I’m okay, guys. I’m not going to break down.”

“You have every right to,” Danny said, compassion in his eyes, a lingering note of anger in his voice.

“I know.” Blowing out a breath, I managed a shaky smile. “But I prefer to have my breakdowns in private.”

Trent wrapped his arm around me and tugged me in, nuzzling my neck.

Eyes closed, I breathed in his scent, reveled in his warmth and how he made me feel so safe.

“Let’s talk about something else,” Cam said briskly. “Trent, what’s the project you’re working on?”

* * *

“How many times are you going to pee?”

Cam made a face at me as she came out of the stall, our eyes meeting in the mirror. “I don’t know. Ask your darling little godchild.”

“Well, I could, but I doubt she’d answer.” Patting her belly once, I scooted over to make more room at the counter as another woman joined us.

“No, she won’t. All she’ll do is bounce on my bladder harder.” Cam sighed, washed her hands, and then dumped her bag on the counter.

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