Retribution Boxed Set (Books One and Two) (8 page)

They stopped under the awning shading her
doorstep, both breathing a little heavier from their sprint. She tilted her
head up to his and laughed. Sprinkles of rain covered his hair and cheeks.

He grinned and wiped a droplet from her nose.

“You didn’t have to walk me to my door in this
weather.”

“I wanted to.” Attraction glimmered in his eyes.

“I’m not going to invite you up, you know.”

His smile grew wider. “I figured you’d say that,
but a guy can hope.”

There was something about this man she really
adored. “I’ll see you in the morning?”

“About ten?”

“Ten, it is.” Compelling currents of attraction
raced through her, and she wished she dared to invite him to spend the night
with her. But she didn’t want him to get the wrong impression and think that
was something she did often. “Thank you for a wonderful evening.” She slid her
arms around his neck, moving in for a hug, but he kept his eyes pinned to hers,
and she found herself drawn to his face. She moved closer, and the next thing
she knew, she’d placed her lips on his.

Dangerous longing slammed into her, and she
couldn’t resist sliding her lips over his and deepening their kiss. He
responded by crushing her against him. Her tongue found his, and she slipped
her fingers into his rain-soaked hair.

Far too quickly, he pulled back, ending their
kiss. A sigh of satisfaction escaped her before she could stop it.

She met his darkened gaze with wide eyes. Had the
intensity of their kiss surprised him as well? She shook off the awkwardness
with a small laugh. “With that, I think I’ll say good night.”

He studied her with an unreadable expression, and
she quickly turned, removing her keys from her purse and unlocking the front
door. She let Stormy into the main foyer, but commanded her to stay before she
dashed up the stairs alone to their apartment. One of her neighbors always
freaked out if he saw Stormy without her leash. If her neighbor and her dog
came face to face without Nicole present, who knew what might happen.

She turned to Xander, still unable to decipher
his thoughts from viewing his expression. “See you in the morning.”

“Sweet dreams, Nicole.” A hint of a pleased smile
curved his lips before he turned and sprinted back through the rain to his car.

She stayed where she was, watching his form
disappear into the misty rain, waiting until his brake lights flared in the
night. The sound of his powerful engine rumbled into the darkness, and she put
a hand against her wildly beating heart.

Dear Lord, what had she gotten herself into?

*        *        *

At a red light, Xander punched in Sam’s cell
phone number and switched it to speaker phone. It rang a couple of times, and
Sam answered as the light turned green.

“Hey bud,” he greeted his friend. “I just dropped
off Nicole after spending the evening with her.”

“Really? And when you say you spent the evening
with her, do you mean…”

“Not sex.” Although they had shared one hell of a
kiss. The continuing bulge in his jeans was proof of how much she’d turned him
on. But he and Sam wouldn’t be discussing any of that. “We only talked.”

“That’s too bad. She’s pretty fine.”

“Hell, Sam. Is that what you do with all of your
suspects? Bed them and extract information through pillow talk?”

Sam chuckled. “I’ve never been lucky enough to
land someone who looked like her. Hunter always sends me the ugly losers, not
the sweet-looking thieves. In fact, I’m surprised he didn’t keep her for
himself.”

Xander cracked his window to allow some of the
rain-soaked air to come in and cool him. “Can we forget her body and get back
to business? It irritated him that Sam seemed focused only on her looks. He
agreed Nicole was a looker, but Sam didn’t need to discuss her as though she
was a street corner hooker.

“Sorry, man. It’s just that it’s not often I get
to deal with someone so pretty. As a cop or in Hunter’s escapades.”

“I’m sure there are plenty of beautiful women who
come into the police station.”

“Not many. Some that might have been pretty
before they got into drugs maybe, but not most of them.”

Xander shook his head to clear it as he crossed a
bridge. “Anyway,” he said, trying to redirect Sam’s focus. “A couple of things
came up during our conversation. Were you able to locate any actual witnesses
that placed her at the scene of the crime? And she’s wondering why the video
didn’t pick up the real thief.”

“Because
she’s
the thief.”

“
I know that
.” Why were he and his friend
having such a hard time communicating tonight? “I’m wondering if there
were
any actual eyewitnesses who placed her at the scene of the crime. Someone who
could testify against her, back up what the video shows.”

“Not that we’ve come across.” Sam sighed,
sounding like he’d had too many long days. “There are hundreds of people who
work in that building. We haven’t had time to interview them all, and we have
to wait until Monday, until they return to their positions to finish.” He
paused for a second. “Besides, she admitted she was there when I questioned her.
She’s hasn’t changed her story, has she?”

“No. What did she say when you questioned her?”

“All she said was that she’d gone back for her
TriMet pass, but I didn’t get an exact time out of her.”

“Still, I’d feel better if we have an actual
eyewitness when this thing goes to trial. She’s an extremely smooth operator,
and I don’t want her getting off on some technicality. If I didn’t know better,
I’d
believe every word she says, and a jury might, too.”

“Good point. I’ll ask for an update from the
officers who’ve been interviewing. See if we have anything solid yet.”

“Another thing. When I asked her how she got her
job, she mentioned that a head-hunter company had contacted her. She seemed
pretty vague, like she wasn’t quite sure. It raised some red flags with me. Can
you check with the company and see how she got hired on?”

“Sure thing. Did you get any info on her father?”

“No. That’s another thing. I tried to get her to
talk about her parents, and she totally shut me down. Like I said, she’s smooth.
But there are a couple of cracks in her veneer, and I think if I keep prodding
them, something is bound to break. Especially, if I can get that information
from you.”

“Okay. I’ll be in touch.”

Xander tossed his phone onto the passenger seat
after Sam signed off. As annoyed as he’d been with Sam, he respected and trusted
his friend beyond measure. The five of them had an interesting relationship,
and at the base of it all was trust. It had to be. Some would accuse them of
wrongdoing. Sam would suffer the most if their activities were ever discovered.
Leaking confidential police information was not something his buddy did lightly.
But Sam, along with the rest of them, had had an incident in his life where the
police had been bound by certain restrictions and had failed to provide justice.
At that point, they’d realized it was more important that justice be served,
and if they had to cross legal lines to keep things fair, they’d do it.

In the end, families were protected, and the
guilty paid their dues. That’s what everyone wanted, and that had become the
cause that joined the five of them together.

He doubted there was anything that could jeopardize
that bond.

For whatever reason, Nicole took extra care
getting ready the next morning. Maybe it was for Xander. Maybe it was because
she had possible jail time in her future, and she’d begun to appreciate every
freedom she had. She’d been tempted to hide behind a ball cap and sunglasses,
but it was still overcast outside, and damn it, she was innocent. Having Xander
by her side would give her the strength to face the public.

She donned her super soft, grass green sweater
and jeans, opting for her heeled boots over more comfortable shoes because they
made her legs look longer. She spritzed on her favorite perfume and glanced in
the mirror. Her bangs had grown much too long. She slid a finger across her
brow, pushing them to the side, but they quickly slipped back into her eyes. She
groaned, wishing she wouldn’t have postponed her hair appointment. Who knew how
her stylist would greet her now that she’d achieved infamy? She snipped at them
with a pair of scissors, making them seem more manageable.

The buzzer at her front door rang, and she ran to
answer the call button, Stormy chasing at her feet. “Hello?”

“Nicole? Xander’s deep voice came through her
small box, giving her a thrill. Stormy whined, either recognizing Xander’s
voice or sensing Nicole’s excitement.

“Hi Xander. I’ll be right down.”

She shrugged into her leather coat, and Stormy
raced for the door, more than ready to leave. “I’m sorry, baby. You can’t come
today.” She headed into the kitchen and grabbed two dog biscuits from the
container on the counter. Stormy knew the routine. If Nicole went for the
biscuits instead of her leash, she did not get to go. Her pup sat next to the
front door, doing an excellent job of guilting her with her big brown eyes.

Nicole tossed the treats to the side, and Stormy
quickly abandoned her guilt trip in favor of the biscuits. “I’ll be back soon.”

When she arrived downstairs, she found Xander
waiting outside the main entrance. She took a quick moment to appreciate him
before he noticed her. Tall, dark hair, the perfect gentleman. He wore his
leather jacket again, and although he looked pretty damned attractive, she kind
of missed the trench coat and tie. At first glance, he seemed to be a prince. Only
time would tell. All she knew was, right now, he was the only bright spot in
her future. She wished she could feel confident that she would have a future.

She pushed open the door, catching his attention.

His eyes flashed with appreciation as he gave her
the once over, leaving her cheeks and insides heated. “Good morning.”

“Hi.” She tried to temper her attraction and
protect herself, but her heart pushed right through that barrier and sent a
smile straight to her lips.

He held out a hand, and she took it. He pulled
her close, wrapping her in his embrace. The scent of his earthy cologne
surrounded her, tickling her senses. “You smell wonderful.” His deep voice
vibrated against her ear, giving her chills.

“I was going to say the same thing.”

He placed a quick kiss on her lips before
releasing her. “Let’s get going. We have a puppy to find.”

Nicole directed him to the pet shop. She did feel
a twinge of fear that someone might single her out as they pushed through the
store’s doors, but no one glanced in their direction as they made their way
past shelves of cat toys and dog leashes. She led him to the row of cages
alongside a wall. A young girl employee with blond braids greeted them with a
smile as several dogs yapped their excitement. Another couple with a young girl
held a squirming white poodle.

“No poodles,” Xander whispered in her ear. “Or
little yappers.”

Nicole smiled. “We’ll look until you fall in
love.”

He gave her a quizzical look.

“With a dog.” She rolled her eyes even as a delicious
tingle rolled through her.

“Let me know if you want me to get one out of the
kennel for you,” the young girl offered.

“Okay,” Xander replied as he squatted down in
front of one dog. “This one is cute.” He held his fingers against the edge of
the cage, letting the half-grown German Shepherd sniff him. The dog growled and
backed away.

The employee walked over to them. “Sorry. She’s
not super fond of guys.”

“Dogs discriminate? He raised his brows, giving
the girl an incredulous look.

“We think maybe there was a man who was mean to
her in the past.”

“That’s terrible.” Xander nodded to the dog and
backed away. “But I totally understand and won’t hold it against you,” he said
to the puppy.

“Most of our dogs come from the animal shelter,
and not all of them have always been treated well. We do our best to help them
find good homes.”

“That’s admirable.”

Nicole glanced over the rest of the available
choices, not seeing anything remotely close to what Xander had in mind. “Any
Australian Shepherds or Border Collies?”

The girl squinted as though she was digging deep
in her memory. “We had a cute multi-colored Border Collie in here last week. I
don’t think anyone adopted him. They may have sent him to our Gresham store
this week. The shelter rotates them in hopes of getting them in front of more
potential owners. If you like, I could call that store and ask.”

Xander nodded. “That would be great.”

When the girl had walked away, Nicole turned to
Xander. “Are you sure you’re ready for this? I feel like I talked you into it
last night, and I really don’t want to influence you. Dogs are a big
responsibility.”

Merriment sparkled in his eyes. “Are you having
second thoughts for
me
?”

“Maybe.” Although there was no reason for her to
be responsible for his choices. “I guess I am.”

“I’m a grown man, Nicole. I don’t take any of my
commitments lightly.” He captured her gaze, and the now-familiar attraction
sparked between them. “I told you, I’ve been considering adopting a dog for a
while. Seeing you with Stormy cemented it for me.” Then he blinked and shifted
his focus to the orphaned pets in front of him, leaving her to wonder if she
made him nervous. It was all a little strange. One second he was flirting with
her, the next he sort of shut down.

The girl returned, a bright smile on her face. “Apollo
is still available. They do have him at the Gresham store, if you don’t mind
driving farther.”

“Gresham’s not that far.” He looked to Nicole. “I
have time if you do.”

She shrugged. “You know me. I have no particular
place to go and all the time to get there.”

He gave her an admonishing glance before he
turned. “We’ll go check him out.”

“Good luck,” the girl said as they left.

“You know you’re going to need to buy a lot of
stuff, too,” Nicole said as he opened the passenger door for her. “A leash, dog
food. They have to have regular check-ups.”

“Stop trying to talk me out of it, already. I’m
getting a dog.”

He opened his door and climbed in. “I’m getting a
dog.” This time he said it with a touch of wonderment. He slid a sideways
glance at her and gave her a determined look. “I’m getting a dog.”

*        *        *

The trip to Gresham took them a good thirty
minutes, but Xander didn’t mind. Nicole was a captive audience when she was
trapped in his car, and it gave him a good chance to question her further. “Is
Stormy your first dog?”

She shook her head. “My aunt had a Yorkie when I
started living with her. Buster and I became fast friends. She used to curl up
in bed with me.

“She had a girl Yorkie named Buster?”

She shrugged. “When you meet my aunt, you’ll
understand. She’s always been one to go against the grain, especially for a
laugh.”

“I see.” Except he had no intention of meeting
her family unless it was to extract further information about Nicole.

“In the beginning, I worried she would get mad
because Buster seemed to like me better, and Buster was
her
dog.”

“But she didn’t?” Xander prompted.

“No.” She gave a soft snort. “She said Buster
could sense I was a wounded soul, and it was her job to fix me.”

He caught her gaze for a quick second.

“I think she was right. After my aunt had her
accident, Buster never left her side.”

“You make it sound like Buster is no longer
here.”

“She’s not. She died a few months ago. It was a
bad time for my aunt to lose her best friend.”

“She okay?”

She laughed. “She went out and bought two more
Yorkies who hate it when my aunt pays more attention to me than them. Jealous
little buggers.” But she said it with a laugh, and he really wanted to direct
the conversation elsewhere.

“When you say ‘wounded soul’, was it right after
your parents died that you moved in with her?”

She was quiet for a long moment, and he had to
glance at her to make sure she’d heard him. When he did, he found her studying
him with a measured gaze.

The atmosphere had chilled, and he’d obviously
overstepped his bounds. “Sorry. I know you said you don’t like to talk about
them. I don’t mean to keep bringing up unpleasant memories in your life. My
only excuse is I’m interested in you, and I figure they’re a part of who made
you what you are.”

She visibly swallowed. “The physical part, but
that’s pretty much it.”

He let her silence settle between them, waiting
to see if she’d give him more than that. When several minutes had passed, he
reached over and squeezed her hand, trying to regain the ground he’d lost. “I’m
sorry. I’ll try not to ask again.”

A heavy sigh escaped her lips, and he glanced to
find her staring out the passenger window at the lead-gray skies. “My mother
deserted me when I was six and left me with my father who didn’t have the ability
to care about anyone beyond himself. I learned not too long ago that my mother
had died of a heroin overdose the day I turned eight. For years, my father
absentmindedly toted me around the country with him while he worked many…jobs. I
ran away when I was thirteen. I got a job as a waitress, but someone found out
how old I was and turned me in to the state. I was pretty angry at the time,
but my aunt came for me. I thank God for her every day.”

His throat closed over his next words, and he had
to take a moment for his muscles to relax. “Jesus, Nicole.” Hunter and Sam had
given him very vague details on her thief of a father and that she’d been
raised by her aunt. But there had been nothing about her life prior to that. Nothing
about her mother. Even if Nicole was guilty, he felt like the biggest pile of
shit for making her recount her obviously painful story. “I’m so sorry. I
didn’t realize.”

“That’s exactly how I like it. I don’t want to
claim my childhood. I prefer to pretend it never happened.”

“But pretending it didn’t happen isn’t exactly
dealing with it.”

“What’s there to deal with? It happened. I can’t
change anything, so why keep talking about it?”

She had a point. “I can respect that.” After that
retelling, it was hard to believe she’d had any connection with her father
later in life, and that she’d had anything to do with his thefts. But that
didn’t mean she hadn’t had some kind of obsession with him or that she didn’t
have a goal to outdo him. Her early childhood could easily have affected her that
way. Not many people could suffer that kind of abuse and come out okay on the
other side. Maybe she’d been determined to show him up in some way. A ten
million dollar heist wasn’t something to be ignored. Then again, her father was
dead now and wouldn’t have known any difference.

The fact that the pieces didn’t fit as perfectly
as he’d hoped troubled him. There had to be more to the story. The best he
could do now was to try to dig his way out of the hole he found himself in and
win back her affection. “I didn’t mean to upset you. I’d understand if you’re
no longer in the mood for puppy shopping.”

“No.” She inhaled deeply and let the breath slide
out of her. “That’s exactly why we need to continue. My parents might have
screwed up my early years, but I own my life now.” A forced smile tilted her
lips. “I have a date with an attractive man to find a puppy, and that’s what
I’m going to do.”

Her outlook was genuine, he was certain, and he
admired her for it. If she didn’t have that other, darker side to her, he could
picture himself looking forward to spending a considerable amount of time
getting to know her better. Sometimes, though, life was a bitch.

Another minute passed, and it seemed some of the
tension eased in the car.

“Do you know what else? All traces of
vulnerability had vanished from her voice.

“What?”

“I’m going to enjoy it.”

He glanced at her again, finding a genuine,
determined expression on her face this time. “Good for you.”