An Act of Persuasion - By Stephanie Doyle Page 0,72
He’d already told Ben he had no plans to back off, but that had been before Anna brought Ben into the investigation. She, too, probably would prefer that Mark drop the matter and let Ben handle it. There was no doubt the man was completely capable of finding out whatever Mark would find out.
Sitting in this office, he felt a little silly now. He’d actually come here to offer a wager. It’s why he hadn’t wanted to discuss it in front of Anna when he saw her at the furniture store. Seemed a little insensitive to use the woman’s past as a challenge between him and Ben.
Only it had been months since he’d felt anything remotely challenging work-wise. Even the cases he took on seemed like no-brainers to him. He’d been polite when the officers had thanked him for his uncanny work in identifying clues and bringing new eyes to the case, but the truth was he thought whoever had worked those cases to begin with must have been fairly incompetent—or at best, overworked and under-observant.
No, the only real challenge Mark had faced since returning to the states was trying to win the affection of a teenager who hated his guts. So that wasn’t proving to be very satisfying. Since nothing got his juices going like matching wits with Ben, Mark thought he might use Anna’s situation for his own purposes. His conscience was appeased as long as Anna got the information she wanted. He figured no harm, no foul and a win-win for both of them.
Only Ben wanted him off the case. And, Mark realized, he felt like a jerk. “I haven’t changed my mind on this.”
“Look, Sharpe, it’s pointless to have us both looking into the matter. I’m the more obvious choice to do so—”
“You are?”
“I’m her... We’re going to be... What I mean is—”
“As far as I can see you’re still only her baby daddy and nothing else,” Mark said. “She gave the case to me first.”
“You have a business to run. You should be taking cases that pay.”
“I can do both. Besides, you know how I feel about Anna.” Mark watched a muscle in Ben’s jaw tick and he took an inappropriate amount of pleasure from it. After all, needling Ben was almost as fun as competing against him.
“No. Tell me. Exactly how do you feel about my Anna?”
Mark flashed the older man a smile. “She’s my friend. My only friend in the states really. And because, for some reason, she seems to like you, I won’t upset her by letting her know you referred to her as my Anna. I mean, really. Dude, it’s the twenty-first century.”
“If you won’t back off, then why did you come here today?”
“I thought we could... Well, it seems kind of stupid now.” Mark shrugged. “I thought maybe we could bet.”
“Bet? On what?”
“First man to find Anna’s parents.”
Ben actually laughed but it wasn’t a very funny sound. “You are unbelievable, Sharpe. You’re that desperate to prove you’re the better spy that you think we could race against each other to uncover Anna’s past?”
Was that what Mark was doing? Was he trying to prove something to himself? To Sophie?
“Look, it was a bad idea. I just thought— I need something. Something I can...win.”
“Still not getting along with your daughter?”
“You met her. You heard her.”
“She’s a teenager.” Ben offered the words as if they were explanation enough.
“She is and she isn’t.”
Mark thought about the performance he’d attended a few nights ago. The mayor of Philadelphia had hosted a fund-raiser and had asked Sophie to perform along with a few singers and dancers. Mark had insisted on accompanying her as a way to better understand the life she was living.
He had sat with Marie backstage and watched as, once again, Sophie did something to the piano he’d never seen another performer do. She didn’t play the instrument. She brought it to life. She didn’t make music. She told amazing, complex and wonderful stories.
When it was over, she’d graciously greeted the mayor and many of his guests. Answering the questions about her gift, her age and how she kept up with her schooling and her plans for the future. She behaved like...a professional.
A grown-up woman in a girl’s body. When he’d driven them home, he’d tried to pay her compliments to that effect. It seemed ridiculous to say, since he’d had nothing to do with raising her, but he’d been proud of her. Not only her talent, but her poise, as well.