Page 60 of Evidence of Deceit

“I guess. She didn’t seem happy when I mentioned Claire’s name. Did you notice that?”

“No. Probably your imagination. Maybe whoever was on the phone was giving her a hard time.”

Joe shrugged. “I really don’t care. You sure didn’t waste any time getting a date with her.”

Hank sighed. “I’m getting tired of one-night stands, but damn, I need to get my rocks off, and she looks like she’d be a hellcat in bed.”

Joe shook his head. “Be careful what you wish for, my man. Be careful.”

“Oh, I will bro, right after I explore her luscious body and have her screaming my name.”

“Screaming might be the only thing she does as she runs away from you.” Joe laughed.

Hank lightly punched him in the arm and sat back.

Thoughts of Claire screaming his name as she came permeated Joe’s thoughts the rest of the way to the office. They were getting together later, and he had plans for how to spend their time.

Chapter Thirty-Three

Claire put the final touches on the show scheduled for the next day. Standing back and admiring her work showcasing the new artist, she had a moment to reflect on how far she’d come. Under Keith’s thumb, she would never have been able to work here, show her art or even laugh. And if she were truthful, she wasn’t sorry that Keith was dead. He would have killed her eventually. Maybe not on purpose, but when you’re dead—you’re dead. It didn’t matter how you died.

Hillary and Roman left earlier. It was five o’clock, still warm and light out. The gallery was in a safe neighborhood, so she didn’t feel uncomfortable working alone. There were restaurants on either side of the gallery still open and busy. She planned to meet Joe at his house for dinner. The week had passed quickly so she only saw him the day he came to the gallery. She missed him. He had to leave for a weeklong job the next day, so they only had tonight to be with each other.

Their relationship was going strong, although she sensed that Joe was uncomfortable about something. Oh, he nevercame out and said what was bothering him. That was the only issue she had with him. He didn’t speak about feelings other than being happy with her.

She wondered if it had something to do with Roman. The man was a terrible but a harmless flirt. He flirted with every woman that came in. However, Claire happened to know that he doted on his girlfriend of three years and wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize that relationship. In fact, he flirted in front of his girlfriend, who just rolled her eyes and laughed. Claire thought it was disrespectful and told him so, but he had just shrugged and said it worked for them. Okay, then, Claire didn’t mind if that was as far as it went. He never touched her inappropriately or made her feel uncomfortable. It felt good to exchange flippant remarks with a guy or anybody, for that matter, without worrying about Keith getting upset or worse. She wondered if Joe could be upset about the flirting or if he thought it was more than that. Claire knew he would never believe she was cheating on him or let someone else believe she was available. It was time to have a discussion with Joe. Maybe tonight.

Claire locked the gallery door and stepped to the small employee parking lot behind the building. Her red Audi A5 convertible was parked close to the building, and she couldn’t wait to get in and put the top down. She’d always wanted a red convertible and loved that it had all the bells and whistles. Everything was at her fingertips on the steering wheel—cruise control, phone, radio controls,oh my.It was a sharp little car that she bought used. No sense in spending more on a car than she needed to, even though she could afford it—wasting money just because she had it wasn’t her style anyway.

She stepped up to the door and pressed the fob to unlock it. Something was off. She looked around, saw nothing out of the ordinary. She looked down at the car. It listed to the right.The tires on the driver’s side were okay. She walked around to the other side. Damn. She had a flat. How the heck could that have happened? She hadn’t left the building today, and no one came in to mention it to her.

Claire pulled out her phone, called Joe. “I’m going to be a little late. You won’t believe it, but I have a flat. I’m going to call Triple-A.”

“No,” Joe said as she explained the problem to him. “I’m not far. I’ll change it for you.”

“Joe, I don’t want to put you out, plus, that’s why I pay the big bucks to these companies, so someone else does the work.”

“Claire.” His voice was low and stern... “I’m at the office. I’ll be there in ten. Go back inside the gallery or get inside the car and lock the door.”

“Okay, okay. Bossy. I’ll see you when you get here.” She got in the car, locked the door and turned on the AC. Took the time to catch up with her messages on her phone.

In less than ten minutes, Joe pulled up behind her car. Claire got out, and they inspected the tire. “Well, we’re not going to inflate this. Looks like something punctured the tire. Open the trunk, and I’ll get the lug wrench.”

She opened the trunk. Joe grabbed the tool kit that he needed to change the tire and told her to bring the jack. He walked to the front of the car and opened the kit.

“Shit. Claire, how long has it been since you used this?”

“Never. Why?”

“It’s missing pieces.”

“Great. Guess we do need to call for help after all. Let me get my phone.” She got into the car to grab her purse.

It had gotten darker. An overhead lamp provided more than enough light for them to see what they were doing.

Footsteps.

Running.

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