Courting Suspicion

‘Right.’

He watched her steadily, not buying it. She passed him a beer and took a quick sip of her own.

He drank more deeply before turning his attention back to the game. ‘How’s Rielle doing?’ he asked.

Thank God, a mutually safe topic. ‘She’s stronger than I realised, in a lot of ways.’

He cocked his head and frowned. ‘You don’t do Muay Thai, do you?’

‘God, no.’

The tension left his big body. ‘Good, the heels are hazardous enough.’

She might do a little Tai Chi every now and then, but the martial arts weren’t her thing, especially the brutal, sweaty, close-contact ones. She shifted in her seat. Although hot sweaty close contact wasn’t totally out of her realm.

Her ears turned hot. ‘I didn’t even know she practised that.’

‘You tried to protect her.’

She had, but her efforts hadn’t been good enough – not on their own. ‘You locked her stalker up, and you gathered the evidence to keep him there.’

‘It was the only way to keep Scott away from the guy.’

Darien Scott was Rielle’s boyfriend. They didn’t come any more dangerous than that one, except for maybe the man sitting next to her.

What was she doing here with a cop?

‘Darien’s getting back on his feet,’ she said. ‘He’s not a very patient patient.’

‘I know. We grabbed a beer the other night.’

Her eyebrows rose. She really didn’t like the sound of that. ‘When did you two become best buds?’

‘When you and your assistant came sashaying into our lives.’

Nina tapped her pen against the programme. She did not sashay.

‘Nice shoes, by the way.’

Her jaw set. ‘I like them.’

‘So do I.’

Again, his low tone stroked over her skin in a way that made her distinctly uncomfortable. ‘Drink your beer, Josh.’

He didn’t grin, but it was close.

They stayed that way, talking and sparring, as the game moved on, inning by inning. He was a tricky one, though. It was probably from all the interrogation training he undoubtedly had – or because he’d figured out a way under her skin. Nina found herself answering honestly more often than not, and it unsettled her. She was usually more careful than that … had more control. She’d taught herself to keep her opinions and personal matters private around clients. It was only around those closest to her that she allowed more of her true self to show.

The man was neither a client nor a friend.

Why was she letting him get to her?

‘F-8,’ he said, pointing at her scorecard.

She’d fallen behind again. The man was distracting, to say the least.

‘So what big scandal is going to pull me out to Luxxor next?’ he asked. The crack of the bat against a ball reverberated around the park as the Phillies’ catcher smoked a line drive down the third base line. The action stopped just as suddenly when the ball smacked into the third baseman’s glove.

‘Nothing.’ Nina could feel the detective’s gaze on her rather than the action on the field.

She diligently wrote the out in her scorecard. On paper, all the fuss seemed like nothing. A simple out, the end of the inning – no sign of a close call.

‘There’s always something going on over there,’ Morgan said, not letting the subject drop. ‘Why is that?’

She felt that sizzle of danger again, riding along her nerve endings.

‘I couldn’t say, but we’ve appreciated your diligence. There’s no reason you should have to visit us again.’

‘So give me one.’

Her pen stopped, frozen on the paper.

‘Go to dinner with me tomorrow,’ he said softly. ‘My treat this time.’

Her brain stalled out, too.

The invitation was unexpected. It shouldn’t have been tempting … but it was. The plan tonight was to thank him for his efforts and then walk away. He was too close already. He’d seen more than he should.

But the words just wouldn’t come.

She could feel his gaze on her like a heavy weight. She knew she couldn’t see him again, inside her office or out of it. Yet, with every inning that passed, she was dreading the end of the night more and more.

Silence loomed between them. He wasn’t letting her off the hook. She felt like everyone in the park was looking at them and began to imagine murmurs. People in the stands close to them even turned to watch.

Suddenly, Nina realised she wasn’t imagining it. Looking up, she caught their reflection on the scoreboard. She and Josh were posted in stunning clarity on the big screen.

Her stomach dropped. Oh, dear Lord, no.

The Kiss Cam.

Hoots and hollers rang up loud around them, and she did the only thing she could think of doing. She lifted her programme in front of her face and hid.

She was a self-assured, sophisticated woman who didn’t need the attention the selfies crowd seemed to crave these days. Luxxor was known for being discreet. She didn’t advertise her company. The last thing she needed was her face plastered on a fifty-foot-high LED screen.

But then the detective moved in his seat.

He caught her wrist and slowly pushed the programme down. His hand slipped into her hair, and he cupped the back of her head. Their gazes caught as he leaned in.