Night Moves

“Try explaining one more time.” Liam dropped his hands to his sides.

She immediately missed the warmth of his caress. Rather than mourn his touch, she shoved all thoughts about his eyes and expert fingers out of her head and concentrated on the disaster in front of her.

“I stole some documents from the lab before it went up in flames. They’re at your house. Under the deck.” Having that piece of information out eased the heavy weight in her stomach.

He actually smiled. “Interesting choice.”

“I put them under there before you came home. Checked on them right before we left for my condo, while you were in the bathroom.”

“So much for thinking I’m in charge around here.”

If he needed to think that, she’d let him, but she knew better. “You’re police. You should know.”

He blew out a long, ragged breath. “Let’s not go back to that thing where you ask questions and make statements, and I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Sometimes her thoughts bombarded her faster than she could say them. She tried to communicate, but not every sentence came out right before she moved on to something else. “Knowing what you know, would the police look there?”

“Former,” he said in a distant voice as if his mind had wandered somewhere else.

“Excuse me?”

“Never mind and probably not.”

Not the most comforting response, but helpful. A quick risk assessment led her to one conclusion. “I need to run. I can find a place with computer access and hack into my work account.”

“Wrong.”

The plan unspooled in her brain. “You can talk to the police, get a sense of what they’re thinking and relay it back to me.”

“Actually, I’m going to the house and you’re staying here.”

The words screeched to a halt on her tongue. “What?”

“You heard me.”

“No way. Someone could see me. Turn me in.”

He glanced at the houses around them. “It’s two in the morning. Every normal human being is asleep.”

It was obvious he had no intention of backing down. Fine, she’d adjust. “I’ll ride in the trunk. You can pull into the driveway and I’ll listen in. The conversation will probably be a bit garbled, but I should be able to follow along.”

“Are you kidding?”

“If there’s a chance to do it, I’ll slip into the house and hide out there until you make the police go away.”

Liam’s eyes narrowed. “You’ve been watching too much television. Bad television, I might add.”

She walked around to the driver’s side and hit the button to pop the trunk. “This will work.”

She stared into the dark, stale-smelling spot. She wasn’t a fan of cramped spaces. Intellectually, she knew she’d have enough air. Common sense told her she’d be fine. Still, her heartbeat kicked up to Big Band proportions at the thought of being trapped and vulnerable. Her instincts told her to stay out and free. Ignoring that voice bellowing inside her took all of her strength.

Liam put his hand on the top of the trunk. “That is not going to happen.”

As he pushed down, she pushed up. “It’s the only choice.”

“No, it’s not. There are three hundred other ways to play this. I know you’re blessed with a big brain—”

“There’s some debate, but overall brain size does seem to correlate with I.Q.”

“But you stink at everyday stuff. Tactics and strategies? Not where you excel.”

She refused to let that insult slide. “I managed to survive a fire and save evidence.”

“And along the way did something that had a guy attempt shooting his way into your condo.”

Her energy spurt crashed. “That’s not fair.”

“I’m in charge.”

She lifted her leg and scurried into the trunk as fast as possible without hurting herself. “Then start driving.”

LIAM CUT THE ENGINE and swore under his breath. His unwanted guest stood at the top of the driveway, just under the sensor light. Seeing the police arrive wasn’t a hardship, or even a surprise, but getting rid of this detective might be.

This was all Maura’s fault. She had him driving in circles, stuffing her into his trunk and otherwise acting like a man without a drop of common sense. The more she talked, the more confused he got. And the more he wanted her.

The officer met Liam as he stepped out of the car. “It’s a bit early for a visit, isn’t it?”

“Where have you been?” Detective Spanner asked.

Liam knew the man. With three hundred or so people in the Alexandria Police Department, Liam had never worked with Rick Spanner, but he was the detective who showed up at Dan’s house the day before. While Spanner’s partner had dropped disturbing hints about Maura’s part in the explosion, Spanner had played good cop. Liam wondered which role he’d try this morning.

“I’ve been out,” Liam said.

“With anyone in particular?”

He tried not to think about Maura curled up in his car. “Do we have a problem here?”

“Why don’t we move this discussion off the street and into your house?”

From the reasonable tone and calming hand gestures, Liam guessed the detective was aiming for friendly. Didn’t matter to Liam since he didn’t plan on talking with or trusting the guy. If he were going to tell someone about Maura, it would be Dan.

“I think we can talk just fine right here,” Liam said.

“You have something to hide, Officer Anderson?”

“It’s Mr. Anderson, but I think you know that.” Hell, everyone knew that. It wasn’t as if that part of his life stayed private. Liam had the six-inch scar on his leg to remind him every single day.

“I have some questions,” Spanner said.