Total pages in book: 65
Estimated words: 61427 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 307(@200wpm)___ 246(@250wpm)___ 205(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 61427 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 307(@200wpm)___ 246(@250wpm)___ 205(@300wpm)
He gave her a faint smile. “I look forward to it.”
Stepping out onto the porch, he thanked her for the coffee. After the door closed behind him, he released a ragged breath. Lord, that kiss. It was a miracle he’d been able to finish the rest of the conversation.
He could still taste her on his lips, and his current state of discomfort made walking next door difficult. He’d never been harder in his life, and if Marley were any other woman, it wouldn’t have stopped with one kiss. He felt it in the way she kissed him back and saw it in the disappointment clouding her eyes when they broke apart. If they were different people, he could’ve buried himself inside her and eased the ache in his groin. But he couldn’t. He couldn’t sleep with her.
Getting close to her in order to learn the truth was a necessary evil, but sleeping with her would pretty much purchase him a one-way ticket to hell. Because if she was innocent, he would have slept with a woman while lying about who he was. A woman who’d already been used by one liar. And if she was guilty, he’d have to live with the knowledge that he’d had sex with the woman helping Russ’s murderer.
He let himself in through the front door and went upstairs, where he found AJ in the master bedroom, manning the monitors.
The second Caleb entered the room, AJ let out a hoot, followed by a round of applause. “I’m thoroughly impressed,” his partner drawled. “You move fast, man.”
Caleb smothered a groan. He’d been hoping AJ hadn’t seen the kiss, but from the lewd way the man wiggled his eyebrows, he’d obviously caught the show.
“I was trying to distract her,” Caleb muttered.
“With your tongue? You could have just asked for a tour of the house.”
Caleb ignored the remark and said, “Aside from climbing trees, did you do anything productive today? Any headway on where the wire transfer came from?”
“Still nothing.” AJ leaned back in the chair. “But I’m close, and I can tell you, the money wasn’t wired from the States. I traced it to Europe. Not sure which country, though.”
Europe, huh? It made sense, if the money that had appeared in the account was being used to fund Grier’s way out of the country.
“What if Grier tries to move the money?” he asked, a frown puckering his brow.
“He can’t,” AJ answered, looking smug. “We set it up so that money can come in—that way we can track it—but Grier and Kincaid can’t move the money out. I hope they try, though. I’d love to be a fly on the wall when they realize the hundred Gs is stuck there.”
They. The word hung in Caleb’s mind like a black rain cloud. AJ still hadn’t ruled Marley out as a suspect, and it was beginning to bother him. After these last couple of encounters with Marley, he was less suspicious of her than ever. Caleb’s instincts continued to tell him Marley wasn’t helping Grier, but he knew he couldn’t rule it out entirely. Still, it grated a little, hearing AJ lump her into Grier’s villainous category.
“What about you?” AJ asked. “Aside from playing tonsil hockey with the nurse, what’d you find out?”
“Nothing,” Caleb said with a sigh.
Not entirely true, of course. He’d found out plenty of things. Like how sweet she tasted. How pliant and welcoming her lips were. How hot her skin felt beneath his fingers.
“You mean your overwhelming charisma didn’t win her over?”
Caleb bristled. “I offered to help her paint tomorrow, so maybe we’ll get lucky and she’ll open up then.”
AJ’s black eyes narrowed. “And what about you?”
“What do you mean?”
“Will you be getting lucky?”
The sudden bite to AJ’s tone was unexpected. Caleb met his partner’s wary gaze head-on. “Come on, AJ, I told you I’m not going to sleep with her.”
“You sure? Because that make-out session looked pretty damn hot. Actually, it looked like you were going to beat your chest a couple of times, throw her over your shoulder and drag her upstairs so you could screw her brains out.”
Caleb’s lips tightened. “I was playing a part. I have no intention of taking her to bed.”
“Uh-huh…”
“For the love of—”
“How long has it been since you got laid?”
Caleb’s eyes flashed. “That has nothing to do with anything.”
“No? I think it has a lot to do with this. Look, I get it. She’s an attractive woman. But don’t—”
“Don’t what?” Caleb cut in. “Forget why I’m here?”
“I’m just asking you to be careful. Grier needs to be behind bars for what he did to Russ. And I can’t have a cute blonde distracting you from catching him if he shows up.”
“She won’t. Trust me, I want Grier as much as you do.” Caleb swallowed. “Russ was the best friend I ever had, damn it. And tomorrow I plan on getting the truth out of Marley. If she knows anything, I’ll find out, okay?”