Renegade - Kristin Coley Page 0,3

on his cheek.

“You’re coming tonight?” I verified, meeting his eyes in the mirror as Candy trimmed the hair at the nape of his neck.

“Wouldn’t miss it,” he confirmed, white teeth flashing as he grinned.

“And a date?” I fished, almost cross-eyed as I tried not to look at Candy, who happened to have one helluva crush on the handsome police officer.

He started to shake his head and then thought better of it as the scissors snipped by his ear. “No, Jailbait,” he answered with barely veiled impatience. "I don’t have a date and I’ll thank you not to set me up with one.” His gaze held a warning and I resisted the urge to sigh. The door jangled and Candy called over her shoulder, “Be right with you.”

“No rush,” a female voice answered and I glanced over with interest, not recognizing the voice. A woman stood at the counter, bleach blonde hair tangled around her shoulders, as she gazed around the shop curiously.

“You know her?” I questioned under my breath and Noah looked up, catching sight of the woman through the mirror. He made a negative sound in his throat but I noticed his gaze lingered on her. I tried for casual as I snuck another look at the woman, something about her bugging me. “You sure?”

He gave an impatient sigh and muttered, “Do you want me to go interrogate her?” I cocked an eyebrow and he hastily added, “No. That’s not happening.” My lips curved down and he closed his eyes. “Don’t even try to guilt me. I’m not Creed.”

“Fine,” I huffed, tapping my fingers on the counter. “I need to get Kara anyway.” I motioned to the back of the salon. “Ronnie in the back?” I asked Candy, about to go on back when she shook her head, giving me a puzzled glance. I paused, caught off guard. “She’s not here?”

“No, she called me last night, and asked me to take her shift today.” Candy shrugged, dusting Noah’s shoulders. “She sounded a little frazzled, but I just chalked it up to Clutch’s homecoming.” She dropped her voice. “I heard Johnny told her she wasn’t welcome.”

I rolled my shoulders uncomfortably, having heard the same thing, except I knew the request had come from Creed, not Johnny. Most of the guys felt Ronnie had done Clutch wrong by dropping him when he’d been sent away, but I knew exactly how hard it could be when your man was behind bars. Creed had only been gone a year, whereas Clutch had faced a twelve year sentence with almost no chance of getting paroled. “I was supposed to watch Kara today. I guess she forgot,” I explained, avoiding the rest of what Candy had said and casting my gaze downward as Noah stood up from the chair.

“Thanks, Candy,” he interjected, reaching for his wallet.

“It’s on the house, Noah,” Candy chided, the words practically rote, as she waved away the twenty he pulled out. “You know that.”

He laid the twenty on the counter, his head dipping down. “It’s always good to see ya, Candy.” His lips curved up. “Wish I could say the same for you, Jailbait,” he added teasingly, ignoring my quick grimace. “I’m sure I’ll see you both at the party.”

“It’s a surprise,” I reminded him and his mouth quirked.

“I’m sure it will be,” he answered enigmatically and my eyebrows drew down. He passed the woman at the counter, nodding as he said, “Miss,” and I noticed her eyes flashed when she saw his uniform. She smiled tightly and he did a double take, blinking at her for a second, as a strange sense of déjà vu coursed through me.

“I gotta go,” I excused myself from Candy, racing after Noah. “Hey,” I called as soon as I cleared the door. He slowed, turning to look at me, exasperation written on his face. “Don’t give me that look,” I scolded, wagging my finger at him. “I saw your face when she looked at you. You know her.”

He glanced up at the sky, no doubt hiding the fact that he was rolling his eyes. “I did not recognize her, Sloan,” he stated patiently. “Some people are uncomfortable around uniforms.”

I narrowed my eyes at him. “Something about her…” I trailed off, glancing back at the salon doors as I debated going back inside. “There’s something –”

“You should go,” Noah waved at the door, “Check her out, and get the gossip before anyone else.” He twisted, about to leave and forcing me to make a snap