Tied Up in Knots (Marshals 3)

“I’m betting it was worded differently.”

“It was pretty close to that.”

“And how did that go over with the brass?”

“As well as can be expected.”

“I’m thinking the marshals’ office is not all that popular down at police headquarters at the moment.”

“I’m thinking you’re right.”

I sighed deeply. “I’ll watch the apology. I want to hear what it sounded like.”

“It sounded like politics, but at least they did it. You have to keep chipping away at this shit, or it’s never gonna change.”

That was very true. “Vegas is boring,” I told him.

“There’s the whole goddamn Strip, Jones, how the hell is it boring?”

“I’m not much for gambling.”

“Just the lights and the atmosphere are awesome.”

I grunted.

“You’re such a whiner, Jones.”

I told him to go to hell.

He told me to make sure I got some sleep.

I hung up without saying good-bye.

ACES AND Eights, it turned out, was a lounge close to the intersection of Naples and Paradise Road east of the Strip. We all changed so we looked better; they dressed up and I dressed down. I went all in black: dress pants, dress shirt, and the Alexander McQueen black monk strap boots I had with me. The holster on my calf was black too, not that anyone would see it, hopefully, and my star was on my belt under the untucked shirt. I’d slicked my hair back and thought about wearing sunglasses, but I was going for scary, not douchey.

Callahan cleaned up nice in dark jeans and a white linen shirt, but really, of the three of us, it was Redeker who was going to turn heads. Between the worn cowboy boots, dark-brown khakis, and short-sleeve white cotton button-down that strained around his biceps and accentuated the heavily veined forearms, I was thinking he could get laid just standing there breathing. Callahan was having trouble moving air through his lungs, from what I could tell. I hadn’t noticed him staring when we walked over together, him more or less at my back. But now, inside, under the dim lights, I could tell he was concentrating hard on the whole breathe in, breathe out thing.

When Redeker went to get us drinks, me a bottle of water and his partner a Coke, I rounded on Callahan.

“What?”

“Is Redeker gay?”

He almost swallowed his tongue. If Ian had been there, he wouldn’t have let me open my big fat mouth, because it was none of my business. But me there alone, without a keeper, everyone around me was fair game.

“The fuck did you—I—Jones, do you—what?”

I snorted out a laugh. Jesus. “You should tell him you want him to fuck your brains out, and if he doesn’t, find someone who will.”

He looked like I’d just kneed him in the balls.

“I can see it, the pining, clear as day,” I sympathized. “It’s gotta be exhausting for you.”

“No, you’ve got it all wrong.”

He didn’t trust me, but that was okay. He didn’t know me. “I’m gay,” I said levelly, meeting his gaze. “And everyone I work with knows and doesn’t give a shit. If they care here and that’s why you’re not telling your partner, you should think about transferring. My boss is looking to bring on four more guys.”

His face went from thinly veiled terror to discomfort, and I immediately understood.

“No, man, I live with someone already and he’s way prettier than you.”

Instant glare before he flipped me off.

I scoffed, and the smile I got in return was worth the time it took to finally see the full blazing glory of it directed at me. He was a very handsome man. If scruffy Malibu Ken dolls did it for me, I’d have been all over him.

“The hell?” Redeker was there, his hazel gaze darting between us. “You girls flirting over here?”

“Yep,” Callahan assured him. “You can bring whoever you want back to the room tonight. I’ll be in with Jones.”

The look on Redeker’s face, uncertainty mixed with something colder, deadlier, told me Callahan had much more of Redeker’s interest than he thought. “Wait—” I began.

“No,” Callahan snapped before he walked toward the bar.

Redeker rounded on me. “What the hell was that about?”

I weighed what to say and decided I didn’t care because I didn’t need to. Being careful wasn’t necessary here. “I think that your partner is tired of waiting.”

“What?”

“Could we not do that whole thing,” I said grumpily. “I know what I’m looking at.”

“And what is that?” I ignored him and he shook his head. “You’re way off base there, Jones. You have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Do something or don’t, it doesn’t affect me one bit,” I clarified. “I’m outta here tomorrow either way.”

Redeker studied me intently. “I could ruin his whole life, do you understand?”

I understood that he thought he could.

“Career, what he wants family-wise, all of it could just be gone in a moment if I forget what my responsibility is here.”