Page 4 of Ace of Spades
“I sent all but one of my boys back to the station. How long you people gonna be out here?”
“We’re about done,” she said. “Our team will be here any minute to take over.” It was hot, they were both sweaty from the humid Everglades air, mosquitoes were buzzing around them, and she was past ready to get out of here.
“Why don’t you leave your man behind to keep the traffic moving? No reason for you to stay.” Nate swatted at a mosquito about to land on his nose. “Unless you feel like sticking around and donating blood to the insect population.”
“Nope. I prefer to keep my blood. You people keep me informed, you hear?”
“We will,” Nate said. “Not,” he muttered after the police captain was gone.
No, they wouldn’t. The FBI didn’t play well with others. Taylor eyed the body. Although she wanted to shed tears for the woman, she would wait to do that in private. Even Nate, her best friend, the one person who knew her story, wouldn’t understand the sadness she felt at seeing how this woman’s life had ended.
Nate touched her arm. “You okay?”
Maybe he did understand a little. “Yeah.” She forced a smile she didn’t feel, but it turned real at the sight of the people walking toward them. “Our forensic team arrives. Oh, good, the M.E.’s with them. I vote for getting out of here.” The medical examiner was one of the best in his field, and would have his preliminary report to them by tonight or tomorrow, along with more photos.
“I’m riding back with you,” Nate said as they headed for her car after briefing the new arrivals. “Rothmire wants us to go straight to the office. He’s got the files on the first two already.”
When he slid into the passenger seat, he adjusted it as far back as it would go to accommodate his legs. Normally, Taylor would enjoy a long ride with him, but she wished today that she could be alone with her thoughts. It wasn’t often that her past reared up, but the dead prostitute had her remembering things she did her best to keep locked away.
“Want to talk about it?”
She glanced at him. “We need to check the national database. See if any murders in other cities—”
“That’s not what I’m asking.”
No, it wasn’t, but she didn’t want to talk about her mother. Not today. “I’m fine. I want to catch this bastard before he kills again.”
Nate put his hand on her arm. “Don’t let this become personal, Taylor.”
It already was. “When are you going back to Dunnellon?” she asked, hoping to divert his attention. They both had issues they hadn’t dealt with concerning their mothers, which she supposed was one reason they understood each other so well.
“Depends on this case, I guess.”
“You could slip away tomorrow before things heat up.”
He shrugged. “They always say be careful what you ask for. Maybe I should just leave it alone.”
“Court and Alex are determined to find your mother, or at least find out what happened to her, so you should go back soon. Get the answers so you’ll know how to handle it with them.”
“You’re sneaky, you know? We’re supposed to be talking about you and what’s going through your mind. Since you don’t want to do that, I’m going to take a little nap.” He popped a wintergreen-flavored Tic Tac candy—his one addiction—into his mouth, reclined his seat, and closed his eyes.
Pot to kettle, my friend.A nap was his way to avoid talking about his mother, too. She wished she could fall asleep that fast. While he slept, she studied him, something she liked to do when he wasn’t paying attention.
There were very few men Taylor liked long hair on, but Nate was one. The ponytail he always wore suited him, as did the one ruby stud earring. Even though she rarely saw him in anything other than black, red was his color. Since he worked undercover at his biker bar, Aces & Eights, he typically dressed like a biker: black T-shirts, jeans or leather pants, chains hanging from his pockets, motorcycle boots, and her favorite thing, the black leather bands he wore on his wrists. It all added up to one very hot man.
One of her favorite fantasies was of him, his body covering hers, and while he devoured her with those fathomless black eyes, she would pull the leather band from his ponytail. His black hair would fall around his shoulders like some long-ago warrior, and she would comb her hands through it, then trail them down to the shoulders bunching with muscles before—
“Stop staring at me.”
Busted!Heat crept up her neck as she choked out a laugh. “You’re cute when you drool.”
He swiped his hand over his mouth. “Don’t drool.”
“Besides, you were asleep, so you don’t know if I was looking at you or not.”
“I felt your eyes on me.” He brought his seat back upright. “Sorry for conking out.”
Was he really so attuned to her that he could sense her watching him even though his eyes were closed? If so, that was very interesting.
