Nick paused and ran a hand through his dark hair, ruffling the thick mass. “I requested your harassment casefile regarding Jareth Davey from the Silverville police force.”
I paused. My current casefile? “Why?”
Even with the sun behind him, his eyes glowed a low amber. “I told you I’d find Jareth Davey for you. I’m surprised you didn’t tell me about the cards he sends to you.”
My stomach cramped, and I lifted my chin. “I haven’t asked you to find Jareth Davey. I don’t want to know where he is.” His location didn’t make one bit of a difference in my life, so long as he didn’t live in Idaho. “Why do you even care?”
For the first time, something flickered in Nick Basanelli’s eyes. Something uncertain. “I want to help.”
I didn’t need help. “How did you even discover that there is a current investigation?”
Nick rolled his eyes. “Seriously?”
Good point. Silverville. No secrets. “I don’t care about the cards.” I couldn’t prove that each anniversary and Christmas card came from Jareth Davey, and since he’d never made a move, I wasn’t going to spend my life letting him scare me. That was his plan, and he wouldn’t win. I passed each card on to the small police department in Silverville, and they fingerprinted them, with no luck. Then I ignored them, breathing easier from June until December because there would be no cards. “Drop this, Nick.”
“He still contacts you. You need to know where he is,” Nick said quietly.
“Why?” My voice rose just enough to give me caution. There was no reason Nick wanted to get involved with this. If he wanted to manipulate or control me with the promise of finding Jareth, he was dead wrong. “We can’t prove the cards are from him, and even so, that barely rises to harassment.”
“Maybe not,” Nick said. “But the cards prove he hasn’t forgotten about you.”
I thought about the well-kept Lady Smith & Wesson nine-millimeter handgun secured in my glovebox, even now. “That’s good. I haven’t forgotten about him, either.” Then I forced a smile. “I’ll see you tomorrow at work.” With a polite nod, I turned to head back to my family, my heart beating way too fast for me to keep the smile on my face.
Chapter 13
I went for a black skirt with a taupe silk shirt for Monday morning. Red kitten-heeled pumps and garnet jewelry added some color, and by the time I’d sucked down a double latte and entered my building, I was ready for the day. The office had been put to rights, but a cloud still hung over the premises. The entire floor seemed muted and subdued.
“You’re here.” Nick came out of his office and straight for me, dressed today in a dark blue suit with red power tie. Was he already running for office, or what?
“Yeah.” I dropped my purse inside my door.
“Good.” He grasped my arm and escorted me past the receptionist and back into the entryway for the building, his hold firm and his stride long.
I pulled free. “What are you doing?”
He paused near the stairwell and looked down at me. Finally seeing me. “Oh. Sorry.” He shook his head, but each hair remained perfectly in place. Why that was sexy to me, I’d never know. “I get on a roll and forget to take a moment.” His brows drew down, giving him a slightly clueless look.
“I bet juries love that expression,” I murmured.
His eyes sharpened, and a slow smile crossed his face. “Yeah. They do.”
I shook my left arm out so my bracelets fell where they should be. “How about you stop trying to manipulate me and just play it straight?” This guy had more angles than a geometry textbook, and I was getting tired of it.
His chin lifted. His nicely sculpted, cleanly shaven, dent in the middle chin. “That’s fair.”
I waited, forcing my feet to remain still and not tap. “Why are we outside the offices?”
“I set up the war room downstairs.” Gesturing me toward the marble stairway, now he waited.
Clipping carefully in the heels, I started down the stairs, acutely aware of him at my back. The lawyer let off some heat. “Why downstairs and not in our conference room?” My brain rushed to catch up. “Wait a minute. You don’t trust anybody there.” I turned on the bottom landing to face him.
He nodded. “They’re all still being investigated. We have no idea if anybody was working with Scot or not.” He moved past me and shoved open a