BAD BLOOD
“You didn’t needto follow me to work. I’ve made it more than fifty years so far, and I haven’t had someone babysit me yet.” I sneered at the tattooed Incubus, trying to feign innocence. He was dressed all in black as if on a mission, with a black knit cap pulled over his hair. “Your hat looks ridiculous, too. You know it’s like ninety degrees outside, right? How are you not sweating your ass off?”
Cole smirked and pointed to the dashboard. “It’s a chilly sixty-five in here. And I’m not babysitting you. I’m just making sure no one else is following you. I thought you would find it endearing to know someone was looking out for your safety like that.”
“I find it to be creepy. Did Sterling put you up to this?”
Cole looked around as if searching for the detective’s car. “No, but I wouldn’t put it past him to be lurking around here somewhere, too. That guy is like an international spy or something. I was at the gym yesterday, and he turned up there. I never knew he even had a membership. Then, I went to get lunch, and he was there too. I could have sworn he was following me.”
“Did you confront him?” I asked.
“Better.” His smirk grew, showing a line of perfectly straight, white teeth behind the grin. “I bought him a coffee and had the girl behind the counter bring it to him. Then I waved at him before heading out. He didn’t look pleased. It did put an end to my tail, though. At least as far as I could see. He didn’t turn up the rest of the day.”
“Doesn’t mean he wasn’t there. He probably just tried harder to go undetected.”
Cole shrugged, pulled the cap off, and tossed it in the seat beside him. “He can follow me all he wants. It’s kind of counterproductive, though, seeing as I am not the enemy. He should focus more of his attention on finding out who the real murderer is. My money is still on Damian, even though I know you don’t want to hear that. Have you heard from him since the police released him?”
“A couple of texts. He said he was taking care of a few things and he needed a few days. He seemed pretty shaken up that the police even considered him a suspect for a second.”
“Or.” Cole held up one finger. “Hear me out here. Now, he knows he is on their radar, and he is tying up loose ends to make sure they don’t find anything else on him. Even worse, he could be out committing another murder. We just don’t know, Dahlia. Sterling should really pay more attention to him. Then maybe we would have a better understanding of his guilt or innocence.”
“Maybe that’s why he’s following you?” I offered.
“No offense, Dahlia, but it isn’t me the police are interested in.”
“Sterling is the police. Maybe he knows something the rest of us don’t. I wouldn’t be jumping to conclusions. We literally know nothing right now. I mean, as far as our understanding goes, they have my hair at a crime scene. Even if they don’t necessarily know it is mine, that still places me firmly in the line of being a suspect. All I’m saying is, it could be anyone. Don’t get so wrapped up in what you think you know that you don’t see the truth in front of you.”
“Is that an admission of guilt?” he asked, leaning toward the window.
“No, just a reminder that everything isn’t always what it seems. Keep an open mind, Cole. I have to go to work.” I looked at the watch on my wrist. “You’ve already made me late with your conspiracy theories. Go home.”
“Yes, ma’am.” He placed both hands on the car door where the window would be if it weren’t in the down position and edged his face out. “I’ll leave, but not before you kiss me. And you better make me believe you mean it, or I’ll hang out here all day.”
I sighed. “You guys are going to drive me insane. Things were so much easier before you all burst into my life with your pheromones and sex appeal.”
I brought my face to him. Our noses gently touched for a second before we closed the distance. The heat from the initial graze was enough to make my juices flow. When his tongue parted my lips, electricity shot through my body, making me dizzy with need. I had to pull away.
“God, you taste so good.” His eyes were still closed.
“And now I’m wet. Thanks for that.” I giggled and wiped my mouth on my wrist, leaving the faintest streak of red from my lipstick that was supposed to be waterproof. It wasn’t Cole proof, apparently. “Now go home. I’ll see you later.”
“It’s a date,” he said before rolling up the window and pulling out of the lot. I watched him go until the car was no longer visible, giving my heart time to slow to a more acceptable rate and my pussy to get herself in check. The stories about what happens to a Succubus when she finds her true mate that I’d been told since childhood were definitely not exaggerated.
The whoosh of air that hit me as I opened the door helped bring my temperature back down. I quickly combed my hair with my fingers to ensure every tendril was in place before taking a further step inside.
“Just how many men do you make out with?” CeeCee eyed me from the other side of her desk. I hadn’t been aware she had such a clear view of the goings on of the parking lot, but from the set of her lips, she’d seen our entire exchange. “First you have the sexy detective coming in here to speak to you personally and he comes out of the conference room looking all hot and bothered, then I catch you with the boss. The details on that one are super hazy for some reason, but I know what I saw. Then, you’re playing tonsil hockey with a gorgeous man who looks like he could be a model in a tattoo magazine. I know your personal life is none of my business, but if you’re cheating on Mr. Sullivan, I’m not going to pretend not to know. He deserves better.”
“CeeCee, I am not in a relationship with Mr. Sullivan. I don’t know what you think you caught us doing, but I recall no such event. I told you, the detective came here to ask if I knew anything about a crime that was committed. He was probably worked up because he thought I knew something that I didn’t.” I took a breath, trying to figure out how to explain Cole, and decided I didn’t have to offer an explanation for him at all. Like she said, it was none of her business. “The man you saw outside is my boyfriend. We’ve only been seeing each other for about a week, so I would appreciate it if you left him out of things.”
“I don’t believe you.” She ignored the phone as it rang like it didn’t exist. “You’re up to something and I’m going to figure out what it is. Something about you makes me feel weird. At first, I liked it. You were mysterious, like a puzzle I couldn’t figure out. But now—” she shook her head. “Something isn’t right, and I want to know what it is.”
What was I supposed to do in a situation like this? I couldn’t press my pheromones on her when she was so adamant that there was something wrong. It was likely to have the opposite effect that I was looking for. I could lie to her more, but she was already onto me. I was tongue tied, and nothing was coming to mind.