When the Heart Lies - By Christina North Page 0,34

as he focused closely on Xavier. “Why is Kinsley so close to you?”

Olivia flashed him a look of disapproval, visibly irritated with him being so forward.

Xavier gave him a hard stare. “She’s family, Jackson.” The question to all appearances hit him the wrong way, and he asked some questions of his own. “So, I understand the two of you were out until four this morning. What happened?”

Jackson’s turn to be annoyed. “I slipped her out of the building, so I could get more information.” He didn’t elaborate.

Xavier didn’t appear satisfied with the brief answer.

Jackson tilted his head, reminding him. “For you.”

Xavier maintained his fixed gaze. “And?”

“We talked, she became upset, it got late, and she fell asleep. I let her sleep a bit, but eventually I dozed off.”

The answer hadn’t won him any admiration. Both Xavier and Olivia waited for him to elaborate.

When he didn’t, Xavier shifted in his chair and leaned in, speaking intently. “Just a word of advice. A woman like Kinsley is easy to get attached to, and it’s never a good idea to get attached to a woman who is already involved.” Turning his attention to Olivia, he appeared to be about finished with the conversation.

Xavier’s statements had Jackson squirreling away some questions of his own. Answers to those questions, he had a feeling, wouldn’t be offered up freely. “You sound like you’ve had some experience with unhealthy attachments.” His tone remained purposely flat. “I’ll take it under advisement.”

Xavier’s turn from Olivia back to Jackson seemed deliberately slow. “When you get to be my age, you’ve learned a lot about a lot of things. Just some thoughtful advice. We’re done for now?”

“For now.” Undoubtedly, Xavier’s last statement wasn’t a question. Similarly, the fact he wasn’t thrilled with being challenged rang clear. However, at this point, he considered Kinsley his client regardless of who paid him. If anyone for that matter.

Xavier stood and turned to Olivia. “Chez Armand, at eight. I’ll have a rental car at the hotel for you.” He took her hand and gave her a lingering kiss on the cheek. Then he turned to Jackson and extended his hand. “Nice meeting you, Jackson.”

“Likewise.”

~ ~ ~

Jackson knocked on Olivia’s hotel room door directly across the hall from his.

“Who is it?” Olivia called out.

“Jackson.”

“Door’s open.” As he walked in, Olivia came from the bathroom with a seductive, mischievous smile on her face. She’d evidently been changing since she was half-dressed. “I figured you’d come.” She smiled and took a deep breath. Her scantily covered breast rose, giving him an enticing view.

He walked past her, and she swung the door closed. When she came around in front of him, placing her hands on his chest, he circled her wrists with his hands to stop her. “Olivia please, let it rest. I need to use your computer. Could you put on a robe or something?”

“Distracted?”

“No. Can you just give me the damn computer?” His eyes wandered the room as he waited. Olivia’s allure and pushiness always made it difficult to resist her, and beautiful women were hard for him to resist. Still, sending mixed messages wasn’t his style. He preferred to be up front with women. As much as he fussed about their nonsense, he respected them. Nevertheless, nudity was a distraction.

She handed him the computer and opened the door, waving her hand for him to go through. “Get the hell out.”

The door followed behind him fast; he turned, grasping the edge abruptly before it closed. “Get over this before tonight. Okay? And put some clothes on for God’s sake.”

She grimaced, he could see a smile underneath. Not in the mood for her flirtations, he headed to his room to get some work done on the case.

~ ~ ~

Max’s shaking of Kinsley’s arm woke her.

“Mommy, I waked up now.”

The bedroom she slept in with Wayde was small, dark, and dreary, so she was a little dazed and had to stop to think for a minute to remember where she was. She opened her eyes and rubbed the sleep from them. “Hey, stinker. What’s up?” She loved this part of naptime, waking up to his innocent smile and joyful voice.

He jumped up onto the bed beside her. “I want some Goldfish crackers and chocolate milk. Can we go to Colt’s house? His mom said we could come anytime. She said so Mom. She said so.”

“Whoa, slow down a bit. Let’s get up, and we can have some Goldfish. After snack time, we’ll go see Colt.” He hauled her from