A Sheikh for Christmas (All I want for Christmas is... 1)

She bit into her scone—and yes, she might have been a tad biased, given her empty stomach—but she’d swear it was the best thing she’d ever eaten. Ever. The creamy butter frosting mixed with the chunks of actual Christmas cookies baked into the scone was amazing. It was so, so good and…

She looked up to find Daveed still staring down at his phone screen, his expression troubled.

“What’s wrong?” she asked between bites, figuring he’d just tell her to mind her own business.

“Huh?” He glanced up, as if just remembering she was there. “Oh, nothing. The guys and I are trying to find a missing person and the only clue we have so far is this garbled note she left behind.”

“Sounds intriguing,” Melody said around another bite of scone. “Like Sherlock Holmes or something. Can I see it?”

“What?” Daveed’s dark brows drew together as he looked at her again. “Why?”

“I don’t know. I used to love puzzles when I was a kid. I was pretty good at solving them too. Maybe I can help.”

His reluctant expression said he doubted it very much, but he handed her the phone. On screen was a photo of the note in question. There were letters going every direction, like a crossword puzzle, but none of them seemed to form anything that made sense. Squinting, she turned the phone sideways and looked again, spotting her first word.

“I got one,” she said, handing him back the phone.

“One what?”

“A word. Not sure you’ll like it though.” She finished her treat as the helper returned to take away her empty plate. “If this gal is missing, it might not be a good sign.”

“What is it?” Daveed’s voice had developed an edge of tension. “Tell me.”

“Corruption.”

“Shit.” He raked a hand through his short brown curls and once again she had the sudden, crazy urge to slide her fingers through his hair too, just to see if it felt as soft as it looked. “That’s not good.”

“So is this person you’re looking for Murphy’s sister?” Melody straightened in her seat. “If you want me to keep searching that note to find more words, I can. Not like I’ve got anything else to do right now. I love doing the Times weekly puzzle too.”

Daveed held up a finger as he dialed his phone. “Yeah, it’s me. Listen, I think this note is some kind of puzzle. Like a crossword or something. Yeah, yeah. We found one word so far. Corruption. There are probably more, we just need time to find them.” He glanced over at Melody, his light mocha eyes intense. “Yes. Okay. We’ll meet you back at the condo in an hour.”

After he clicked off, Melody sat forward. “So, can I help or not?”

Exhaling slowly, Daveed clasped his hands atop the table and shook his head. “This goes against every instinct I have, but yes. You can help. Under the condition that you do whatever I tell you to do. Understand?”

They refilled their mugs and Daveed ordered a scone too. Once they were alone again, she smiled. “Guess I’m not the only one who’s hungry, eh?”

“Guess not.” Daveed sat back and crossed his arms. “Do we have a deal or not?”

“About the note? Yes.”

“What about my other conditions?”

“We’ll have to see on those.” It was her turn to wink at him. “You can trust me, you know.”

“Can I?” He sipped his coffee and took a bite of his scone. “I’m not so sure.”

“What’s not to trust?” she said, then regretted it instantly when he gave her a flat look.

“Let’s see. You ran off to Tahiti with a man you just met, you have no job, no money, no marketable skills, no—”

“All right, fine.” She looked away, cheeks heating. “Maybe I’m down on my luck right now, it’s true. But I need this. I need something to help me believe in myself again. If I can help you find this missing woman, maybe I can build up some confidence in myself again.”

He stared at her a long moment, silent, and for a moment Melody feared he’d say no. Then Daveed’s tense shoulders slumped. “Fine. Yes. You can help, but you must listen to me when I tell you things. No running off half-cocked on some crazy idea.”

“Yeah, I hate being half-cocked.” She chuckled. “Full cock all the way, baby.”

Daveed choked on his coffee then glared at her. “And none of that kind of talk. Things are going to be awkward enough as it is.”