Strong, Sleek and Sinful - By Lorie O'Clare Page 0,159

system would keep him away from her. He was pulling macho bullshit, which now almost proved an embarrassing memory. It had proven effective that night, though. What he wouldn’t do to turn back time, remove himself to a period when his heart didn’t weigh so heavily in his chest. If they played their cards right, even though he hadn’t seen the entire deck, tonight was the night.

Kylie could very well be on a plane tomorrow heading out to her next assignment.

Perry fought the overwhelming urge to hurl the protective armor across the dark lot.

“Focus, motherfucker,” he growled. Shut down. Turn all emotions off. He’d pulled off not feeling for years, acting like a machine, taking care of his family and his city. He would keep doing just that.

Something stirred behind him and he grabbed his flashlight, unclipping the holster snap on his belt that secured his gun at the same time as he turned around. Two teenagers, a boy and a girl, appeared from behind the adjacent building, squinting and covering their eyes when he flashed the beam in their faces.

“Head home, now,” he growled.

“We weren’t doing anything wrong.” The boy had his arm draped around the girl, both of them looking not much older than Dani.

Perry ached to knock some parents upside the head for allowing their kids out this late, and obviously unchaperoned enough they could wander this far from a residential area or any business that was open.

Perry breathed in the smell of pot and lowered the beam enough to allow them to focus. The teenage girl wouldn’t meet Perry’s gaze, but the cocky boy, obviously thinking his idiocy would impress his girlfriend, stared at him boldly with bloodshot eyes.

“You don’t do as you’re told right now, that will change.” Perry made a show of taking a step toward them, which was obviously enough to break the bravery in the boy. He hesitated. Perry nodded toward the street. “Head home and walk along the sidewalk instead of in the shadows. Or do the two of you not know about a killer who loves little girls like your girlfriend there?”

That snapped the girl’s attention to Perry’s face. She looked shocked and then tugged at her boyfriend. “Let’s go,” she whispered.

“I’m not scared of the asshole,” the boy announced, but was already heading away from Perry to the street.

“But you better be scared of me,” he muttered under his breath.

He needed a fucking vacation. When did he get it in his head that bullying children protected them? Probably when they started acting like morons.

Shrugging into the bulletproof vest, he pulled the Velcro tight around his front as a patrol car slowed in front of him and signaled to turn into the parking lot across the street. The two teenagers started walking faster away from him and the other police car. Perry ignored them and focused on the number on the squad car.

“Franco, I’m going to take you down, motherfucker,” He scowled and reached inside the vest into his shirt pocket to pull out his Bluetooth. Perry placed a call into Dispatch while closing his trunk and walking around to the driver’s side. “This is Unit Number Seven. I’m returning to duty.”

“Ten four,” the dispatcher said. “Please hold, will advise.”

He started to tell her he’d received a tip but was put on hold. He shifted into drive and pulled out of his semi-secure hiding place, glancing at the clock on his dash. It was just after ten. If Franco was Peter he couldn’t believe the guy would use one of the city’s squad cars to commit such a heinous crime.

“Unit Seven, what is your ten twenty?” Dispatch asked when Perry pulled out into the street and cut across to the bowling-alley parking lot.

As he turned in, he spotted Kylie’s hybrid entering from the side entrance at the other end of the lot.

“This is Unit Seven,” he said, searching the lot for Franco’s squad car. “I’m at the bowling-alley parking lot. I received a tip earlier—”

“Unit Seven, report to the station, please,” she told him, cutting him off.

“Is Unit Six on a call?” Perry asked, ignoring her request. He wasn’t going anywhere.

“Stand by.”

His phone beeped in his ear, and he picked up the handheld, checking the screen to see who the caller was. Then not waiting for Dispatch to return, he switched over.

“Tell me what’s going on,” Perry demanded, relieved as hell Kylie was calling him.

“Get the hell out of sight,” she hissed.

“Where is your meeting point?” He turned and drove