going to be a lot of insurance money getting paid out.”
Bree didn’t mention that doing more digging involved getting into Ken’s apartment to look around. Diego might frown on that, especially if she had to pick the lock to get in.
“Speaking of cases, have you figured out anything new about delirium yet?” she asked. “Did you ever get a chance to do any poking around?”
Diego sipped his drink. “Yeah. I followed your advice and did a little digging myself. But we’re not quite sure what to make of what we discovered.”
“Maybe I can help.”
He leaned forward, resting his forearms on the table. “It looks like this delirium thing started in Coffield Unit state prison with a scientist type who was an inmate there. It gets confusing after that, but the bottom line is that Ernest Hobbs might be involved as well.”
“The reporter?”
Diego nodded. “He was at the prison looking into another inmate around the time the delirium attacks started in Dallas.”
Bree blinked. This was big. “I’d like to say I’m stunned a reporter would sit on information like this, but even though I’ve only met Hobbs once, I think I can safely say this seems right on track for him.”
“No kidding.” Diego snorted. “He probably saw this story as a way to make himself famous and decided to sit on the information until the right time. Trey and I spent a good portion of the day trying to track him down with no luck.”
Bree was more than ready to talk some more about Diego’s case and help him come up with a plan to find Hobbs sooner rather than later, but he shook his head with a laugh, then took her hand and gently tugged her up from her chair.
“I know exactly what you’re doing,” he said, leading her onto the dance floor. “You think if we keep talking about Hobbs, delirium, and people stealing stuff, I’ll forget we came here to dance and you can avoid getting out there and embarrassing yourself.”
Bree laughed. Honestly, she had been delaying this part for as long as possible. “Okay, okay. But let’s go slow or I won’t be held responsible for stepping on your toes.”
In the end, it wasn’t nearly as bad as she’d thought it would be. They kept to the side of the dance floor at first, Diego walking her through the steps and keeping it simple until she found the rhythm of the moves. The basic salsa was a lot like other four-step dances she vaguely remembered, and within minutes, Diego had her out on the main part of the floor with everyone else, swinging and twirling without thinking about it.
It was easy to lose herself in the dance, her hands on Diego, their bodies occasionally coming together to slide against each other, his mouth finding hers at the perfect moments. She thought it would take all her attention to stay in step, but she quickly found she barely thought about the pattern of the dance at all.
She was definitely thinking about Diego, though. Like how warm his skin was where they touched. The taste of his lips when they kissed. The heat swirling deep inside her as she thought about where the evening might end.
Bree was so entranced with the way his eyes were glowing she didn’t realize something was wrong until Diego stiffened and suddenly pulled her to one side so quickly she nearly yelped in surprise. Just as she opened her mouth to ask what was wrong, a large body went flying past them, fist swinging in Diego’s direction. The attacker missed by a mile and went stumbling across the floor, aided by a well-placed shove from Diego. People scrambled and yelled in complaint as the man flipped over several times and came to a hard stop up against a set of speakers as tall as she was.
Bree knew it was her ex before the idiot got himself pushed upright and back on his feet. Stupid could be identified from any angle.
Dave spun around after getting his feet under him. The fall had busted open his lip, and he stood there glowering at her and Diego as he wiped the blood off with his hand. Standing there with blood running down his chin, eyes wide, skin flushed, and breath coming in ragged gasps, he seemed unhinged.
“What the hell are you doing with him?” Dave demanded, pinning her with a glare.
The music was still playing, but no one was dancing. Instead, everyone had moved to give them