No Rep (Madd CrossFit 1)

She pulled back and fished her phone from her pocket, fiddling on it before sending me whatever she’d found.

“I sent you her details,” she said. “I’ll hitch a ride from the two that are still out in the parking lot arguing.”

“How do you know that they’re outside?” I wondered, looking over her shoulder to the small sliver of parking lot I could see.

“My sister has a sixth sense when it comes to Pearl Pope. She’ll be there. I was just hoping to avoid them seeing my grandmother as I feel this vibe coming off of them, and I wanted them to have some alone time,” she admitted.

I waited until she sighed and started to pull away before tightening my hands on her. “I love you, too.”

Her breath hitched, and those big blue jean eyes lifted to meet mine.

“And, if you’re into it, I have no problem going to get hitched in Vegas the moment this is all over,” I teased.

Her eyes went wide. “You were serious? I thought you were just putting on a show for my grandmother.”

I shook my head. “I wasn’t putting on any show. I want you. I want you to carry my name. And as long as you have no problem with my own grandmother being there and not yours, I’m down for Vegas.”

She shook her head. “When you get done here today, let’s go meet your grandmother. I want to make sure that she knows me.”

I winked. “I’ll call her and tell her we’re coming.”

CHAPTER 22

I thought I wanted a career. Turns out, I just want a paycheck.

-text from Fran to Taos

TAOS

“Taos, I’m dying.”

I looked over at my grandmother. The woman that would’ve raised me after my parents had passed away if she hadn’t been so ill—she’d battled cancer for many years before she’d finally beat it.

She was ninety-four.

But she was a spry ninety-four.

“You’re not dying,” I tried to argue.

“Tomorrow, I want you to go pick up Fran. And I want to go with you. Spend the day with you two.”

I looked at the chalkboard in front of me, at all the possibilities of who this serial killer could be and felt my stomach tense. “I can’t spend the day with you tomorrow. We have a new lead that we’re following up tomorrow. But as soon as this is all over, you’re going to come with me to Vegas and watch me marry the woman that I’ve fallen in love with.”

My grandmother’s breath hitched.

“Then come over to dinner tonight,” she ordered.

I grinned.

That’d been what I was trying to accomplish anyway.

I looked at her on the screen of my phone. “You’re not dying.” I paused. “But that sounds like fun. I’m sure Fran would love to have some spaghetti and meatballs.”

My grandmother’s laugh filled the air around me.

“Oh, Taos. I love you.” She shook her head. “I’ll see what I can scrounge up.”

I smiled.

“I’ll call Fran and tell her when to pick me up. And we’ll be over around dinner,” I promised.

Except, when I called Fran five minutes after hanging up with my Grans, it was to hear her say, “I’ll drop your car off to you, and I’ll hitch a ride over right now. Help her with dinner”

Something inside of my heart that was already hers bloomed into full-blown devotion. “She would love that.”

“And, seeing as my sister is now brooding, it’ll give me something to do that doesn’t have her growling and snapping at me for every single thing that I think, do or say.” She snickered.

After giving her the address, and her promising she’d leave my keys with the attendant at the front desk, I went back to work.

“All right,” I said, pinching the bridge of my nose. “This hair stylist has the means and clientele…” The chief’s phone rang, and he answered it on speaker. “Chief Wilkerson.”

“Chief Wilkerson, this is Chief Teller Kincaid. You and I spoke earlier about the traveling hair stylist that was in my city a couple of hours ago,” Chief Kincaid explained in a rough voice.

“Yes,” Chief Wilkerson confirmed. “Did you find something?”

“Sort of,” he answered. “I was heading to speak with her when we got the call about an altercation at her place of business. The parking lot of a gas station at the south side of town.” He paused. “She and a reporter were in the parking lot fighting.”

I looked over to Schultz who was closest to me. “Son of a bitch.”

Chief Wilkerson echoed my sentiments a half second later.

“Anyway, I have officers responding. I can hold them both now due to a physical altercation. And I can ask her about other things we have questions about,” Chief Teller offered. “No need for y’all to come down unless you want to.”

After thanking him for his help, I started to pack up my shit.

“I’m out,” I said. “I need a break. And I want to be there tonight for dinner.”