Page 18 of Phoenix Rising

“Just waiting for you.” He leaned down and kissed her, absorbing her gasp of surprise. He saw Yogi Vishnu watching them from the corner of his eye. Reese grabbed Audria’s hand and led her outside. He knew she had questions, but she didn’t say a word. She was and always had been intuitive and a true professional.

The target climbed into a souped-up black Mercedes Benz with flames emblazoned on the door and funky hubcaps. Nice car without the bling. He’d stopped in a no-parking zone in front of a fire hydrant. Too bad he hadn’t been towed. Reese surreptitiously snapped a picture of the license plate.Playa.He rolled his eyes and instructed Audria, “Drop your bag.”

Without asking questions, she pretended to trip and fumbled it. It hit the sidewalk and skidded.

Reese stopped to pick it up. He glanced back at the studio, and sure enough, Yogi Vishnu stood outside, watching them. Interesting. Did he have something to hide?

They found another café with outdoor seating and ordered lunch. Once the server left, Reese asked, “Did you pick up anything?”

“Just that Yogi Vishnu, or should I say, Ralph Morris, took a shine to you.”

Reese choked and slapped a hand over his mouth to stop water from spurting out. “Ralph Morris?”

“Yep.” Audria looked up from her phone with a smile. “From Lake Forest, Illinois.”

“How do you go from being Ralph Morris to Vishnu?”

Audria shook her head. “Vishnu is a supreme Hindu god, usually depicted with four arms and blue skin. Supposedly, he’s the preserver and protector of the universe.”

“Kind of a lofty name for a midwestern kid from one of the ritzy suburbs of Chicago.”

“It is,” Audria agreed. She took a drink of water. “Now tell me what you found out.”

Instead of answering, he scrolled to the video on his phone and handed it to her. She watched it once, hit replay, and zoomed in on the exchange before looking up at him.

“It appears that Yogi Vishnu is a druggie.”

Reese nodded. “It does.”

“The man we followed was his dealer?”

“Yeah, and I got a snap of his license plate.”

“I’m guessingPlayadoesn’t refer to an area of dried-up land in a desert basin, and instead means player in slang.”

He chuckled. Her knowledge never ceased to amaze him. “My thoughts too.”

#

Audria typed into her phone and placed it on the table. “I’ll have the office run his tags.”

“Doing drugs isn’t a big enough crime to draw Paige here,” Reese decided. “It might be illegal, but not to the level of luring a top investigative reporter to town.”

“Maybe he’s dealing too and using the fitness center as his base.”

Reese shook his head. “Could be, but still not enough. Her reports are layered and deep, involving movers and shakers. Ralph isn’t that big of a playa.”

Audria laughed. “Good point. As I headed to the locker room, I poked my head inside several doors, pretending to be lost, but saw nothing suspicious.” She recalled how Yogi Vishnu looked at Reese—like he wanted to eat him up with a fork. Being gay wasn’t a reason for Paige to investigate, either.

Audria’s thoughts returned to that surprise kiss. Even knowing now that he had been playing a part, she couldn’t help but react. She could easily, and with minimal effort, become addicted to them. Maybe it was her silly notions, but their lips fit perfectly together as if they were made for each other.

They both ordered salads, most likely because of the health benefits from the intense workout. They chatted while they ate, and Audria tried hard not to keep staring at his mouth, but it was so darn talented.

The girl who handed out daisies yesterday passed by with a limp, leaning heavily on her mobility walker. A man and woman accompanied her today, all wearing shirts advertising Sunshine Residence. Audria smiled and waved at her, and she waved back.

Her phone chimed a text, pulling her from people-watching. “The black Mercedes with thePlayalicense plate is registered to Vincenzo Fusco. He had a rap sheet for petty crimes in Alabama. No jail time.” She typed a note, requesting them to probe deeper.

“What is it we are doing this afternoon?”

---