Page 24 of The Perfect People

“It’s kind of her thing,” Jessie acknowledged.

“What does her significant other think of that?” he wondered, his nonchalance failing him for once.

Jessie’s lips curved into a smile as she watched him avert his eyes.

“Why, Sergeant Breem—are you trying to probe into the relationship status of Detective Valentine?”

He gave up trying to look cool and returned her gaze.

“Ridiculous, right?” he said. “An old guy like me wondering about the status of some young whippersnapper like her.”

“Just how old are you?”

“I turned forty-one last month,” he said. “How old is she?”

“She’s twenty-nine,” Jessie said. “It’s definitely an age difference but I know she’s not seeing anyone right now, and I also know she’s had her fill of eager young bucks who can’t see beyond her obvious physical attributes. Do you want me to inquire as to whether there might be interest?”

His expression indicated that he absolutely did, but after a brief pause, he shook his head.

“Nah,” he said. “We’ve got a job to do here. There’s a killer out there somewhere. I don’t want to complicate finding them by inserting messy interpersonal stuff into the equation. Maybe when this is all done, we can revisit it.”

Jessie was about to reply when they were interrupted by a voice from upstairs.

“Jessie, are you planning on joining me any time today?” Susannah called down, clearly agitated.

“Be right there!” she called up before muttering to Breem, “Be careful what you wish for.”

She darted up the stairs, where Susannah was waiting impatiently outside the office door. As she walked over, it occurred to her that other than the unfortunate stretch where the detective had flirted with Ryan, aware that he was engaged, but not to Jessie, she’d never seen Susannah Valentine express romantic interest in anyone.

It was hard to blame her. After the trauma she’d suffered as a teenager, followed by years of catcalls and drooling leers, she likely didn’t have much faith in most guys. But Drake Breem wasn’t like most guys. From Jessie’s limited experience, he seemed like an antidote to the jerks Susannah typically dealt with.

“What took you so long?” the detective demanded in her typically charming tone.

“Sergeant Breem and I were just talking about what a ray of sunshine you are, and time got away from us,” Jessie teased.

Susannah looked briefly flummoxed, but then regained her composure.

“You ready?”

“Always,” Jessie assured her.

They stepped into the office, where Jelly had made herself comfortable behind the desk, with her feet propped up on it. She was typing on her phone. The woman was Latina, in her early thirties, heavyset with short-cropped, dyed blonde hair.

“Jelly, is it?” Susannah asked.

“In the flesh,” she replied.

“All right,” the detective replied firmly, “I’m going to need you to come over to this side of the desk and have a seat in one of these chairs.”

“You got it, boss,” Jelly said, hopping up and switching spots. “By the way, The Lady of the Evening wanted you to know that she’ll be stopping by momentarily to make her presence felt.”

“I’m sorry, what?” Susannah said, walking over to the other side of the desk but not sitting down.

Jessie stayed where she was, standing in between them at the edge of the desk, where she could get a sense of Jelly without being in direct opposition to her.

“You know, The Lady of the Evening, our Diva Queen,” she said, and when she got no response, added, “Chantilly Mace? She’s on her way to check out how the investigation is going.”

“That’s not how these things work—” Susannah started to say.

---