Page 94 of Almost Dead (The Cahills 2)

Cissy gazed out the window. The unmarked police car was parked across the street, courtesy of Detective Paterno. He claimed he was concerned about her welfare, as well as that of her uncle and brother, and that was the reason for the continued protection. The police in Oregon were watching Nick and James while Paterno considered Cissy his responsibility. This was both comforting and annoying. It was weird having two officers stake out her house 24/7.

Cissy cast an eye toward the sky. It was still sunny, but cold. She opened the closet door in the foyer and pulled out her jacket. “Tanya’s supposed to come by in a bit and pick up her final check. If you want to get out for a while, you could ask her to watch Beej.”

“I thought you didn’t trust her.”

Cissy made a face. “I don’t know. It’s not really a matter of trust. We just never quite clicked.”

“Because I suggested her upon my dad’s recommendation?” Jack asked, daring her to argue the point. “You were prejudiced. Thought maybe they’d had a fling or something?”

“Tanya? No.”

One of his eyebrows arched.

“She wasn’t his type,” Cissy explained, shrugging into her coat. It wasn’t that she didn’t think Jonathan would hit on any attractive younger woman; he seemed to think it was practically a job requirement. But Cissy felt he wouldn’t have recommended Tanya if they were romantically involved. The man was a cheat, but he didn’t like untidiness in relationships. At least that was Cissy’s take. He wouldn’t want the woman he was currently “seeing” working for his son.

And lately Jonathan had seemed more interested in his various business endeavors than women. He was always looking for the big score, a man who would rather chase rainbows than work. The same could be said for Jack’s brother. J.J. was a chip off the old block if Cissy had ever seen one, except that he wanted next to nothing to do with Jack’s life. Where Jonathan insinuated himself into Jack’s affairs, J.J. stayed away. Cissy had met J.J.’s ex-wife, Amanda, long after they’d been divorced and was sorry that hadn’t worked out. She’d liked Amanda right away. But Amanda couldn’t take the womanizing and the big dreams that never materialized, so she divorced J.J. and struck out on her own. She’d done well since the divorce, much better than when she’d been married.

“What are you thinking about?” Jack asked when Cissy went quiet.

“Your dad…and Tanya. Not as a couple. Remember, Tanya fired me, not the other way around. She suggested I check with the nanny school. She also thought I should see a shrink.”

Jack snorted derisively.

“I probably should.” Cissy smiled. “I mean, look. I let you back in the house.”

“That was pure sanity on your part.”

“Uh-huh. Anyway, Tanya’s check’s on the counter.” Cissy walked into the kitchen and tapped the white envelope with a finger. “I’ll be back in a couple of hours.”

“With those guys, don’t count on it.” Jack took another pull from his beer, set the bottle on the counter, and eased Beej to the ground.

“’Bye.” She brushed a kiss over Jack’s lips, and he grinned. In one swift motion, he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her long and hard enough to steal the breath from her lungs and make her think longingly of their recent passionate nights in the bedroom.

When he lifted his head, he casually picked up his beer again, as if he hadn’t experienced the sensations that were still sizzling through her bloodstream. He took a long swallow, eyeing her with amusement.

“You’re a big tease, Jack Holt.”

“Stick around and see how much teasing there is.”

“Promises, promises…I’d love to, but, you know, I have this hot date with three stuffed shirts who want to talk about wills and trusts and limited liability corporations and tax advantages, and gee…it just sounds so damned fun, I’ll have to take a rain check.”

She headed toward the garage and hit the button for the garage door opener. As she climbed into her car and backed down the drive, she saw Sara wheel in next door. Sara climbed out of her car and left the engine running. Spying Cissy as she headed toward her front porch, she sketched a wave, then stopped. A moment later she was he

ading Cissy’s way.

Inwardly groaning, Cissy pasted a smile on her face and rolled down her window.

“Hey, I want to apologize for the other day,” Sara said. “I know you’re going through hell. Sometimes I just forge ahead and damn the consequences. I’m sorry.”

“It’s all right.”

Today Sara wore espresso-colored slacks and a matching jacket with a V-necked cream sweater and a dull-pink, cream and taupe silk scarf looped artlessly around her neck. “I’m meeting some clients,” she said. “Had to run home and pick up some docs. Thank God the sun’s out, at least for the moment. Sales are hard enough without a torrential downpour.”

“The clients from Philadelphia?”

“No, they’ve decided to come in a couple of weeks.” Sara peered at Cissy more closely. “You changing your mind about the house?”

“It’s not mine to change.”

---