KILLER DATE (SCANDALS) (6 page)

“Are we going to meet with Piper soon?” Dallas asked
.  “I’m still not convinced she’s as innocent in all this as Nigel thinks.”

“
What?
” Tulsa demanded, a little too loudly.  “You think she
wanted
to be raped?”

Eight stopped purring
, jumped to her feet and looked around in alarm.

“I’m just saying that, as a future attorney, I’ve been trained to consider all the options.  Perhaps it was consensual,
then
Piper panicked when he didn’t call her for the next few days and wanted him to get into trouble for ignoring her.”

“
It doesn’t matter if she flirted with him and kissed him and maybe even played along, once she said
no
, he should have let her go.”

“Maybe she didn’t say
no
,” Dallas commented with a shrug.

“You’re an ass!”  Tulsa sputtered.

“I agree that we need to meet with Piper as soon as possible,” Christopher interrupted before the discussion turned into a brawl.  “I’ll call Nigel and set something up as soon as…”

“Reno?
”  Pam opened the conference room door and leaned in.  “Jenny is here to see you.  Should I bring her in?”

I glanced around and everyone nodd
ed, including Christopher.

“We’ll talk again after I set up a time with Piper,” he said.

I turned back to Pam, “Yes, please show her back.”

A minute later
Jenny walked into the room.  The circles under her eyes that had been almost as dark as bruises were gone.  She was wearing a short skirt and a bright red blouse that looked damn good on her.  I jumped up and pulled a chair out for her, and she flashed me a relaxed smile as she sat.

“Can I get you coffee, water, soda?”
I asked.

“
No thanks.”

“
Are you okay?” I asked, wondering why she was here.  I was a little startled at how glad I was to see her.  That didn’t make any sense, because Jenny was the polar opposite from any woman I’d ever dated. 

“I
’m feeling great.  I got a full night’s sleep…the first one in days.  Then Angie called me again this morning while I was getting dressed.”

“
You were supposed to call me,” I reminded her gruffly.

“I know,” she answered, “but there was no hurry.  I thought I’d just drop by on my way to work.”

“Is she coming home?” Killeen asked.

For a moment, Jenny’s smile faded.  “No, but she
seemed happy.  She told me she had met this guy named Miguel…”

“
Abs guy?” Tulsa asked.

“I guess.  I didn’t have a chance to ask her.  Apparently, it was love at first sight, and they decided to take a little vacation before school starts in the fall.”  Jenny sighed.  “T
hey’re talking about getting an apartment together…”

“
So, there’s nothing to be concerned about.”  My comment earned me a glare from Jenny’s big, green eyes.

“I just wanted her to finish her degree before she…got involved with someone.  She’s going to be the first person in our family to attend college, and it’s important that she finish.”

“Important for her or important for you?” Tulsa asked.

Jenny’s mouth opened to protest, but instead, she paused.  Tears filled her eyes and she dropped her head. 
“Probably more important for me.  But she’s too young to know what’s good for her.  I was just trying to help her so she’d have a good career and a life where she doesn’t have to worry about every penny.”

“Is
that all she said?” I asked, trying to turn back to the conversation and make up for my earlier comment.

“That’s it.
She was in a hurry, sort of like yesterday.  She said she wasn’t sure where they were going, but she’d call me again in a few days.”  Jenny looked over at me.  “She left her phone charger in her bedroom.  I guess she can get a replacement, can’t she?”

Tulsa reassured her, “Most phone chargers are universal, so they’re pretty easy to find.
”

“At least it sounds like she’s okay,” Killeen said, tentatively.

“Maybe.  I just wish I had had a chance to meet this guy.  I don’t even know his last name.”  She reached into her purse and pulled out the photo she had taken with her yesterday.  “Did you get any results from your check?”

“Not yet.  He must not have any arrest records.  We’re checking the student IDs and
DMV files now,” Tulsa told her.

“
Once the excitement wears off, you can try and talk some sense into her,” Christopher commented.  “Didn’t you say she was only twenty?”

Jenny nodded.

“So, she’s not a minor,” he added.

“She’s got almost two months before classes start,” Dallas pointed out. 
“The relationship will probably burn out, and she’ll be glad to come back to her old life.”

Jenny considered that, then smiled.  “Yeah, it’s probably just a fling.  He’s her first real boyfriend.  I’m just mad that she didn’t tell me about him and talk it over with me.”

“She’s trying to be a grown-up
” Killeen jumped in to offer her opinion.  “I know how hurt my mom was when I decided to go to ASU instead of a college closer to home.  But I wanted to be independent and try it on my own.”  She rested her hand on her still flat stomach.  Her baby had been the result of an affair with an upper classman who had dumped her.  “Your sister will learn soon enough that her decisions have consequences…both good and bad.”

Jenny had no way of knowing that Killeen was pregnant, but she must have guessed.  Women had a weird way of sensing these things.

“Oh, gosh!” Jenny exclaimed.  “I hope she doesn’t get pregnant.  She can’t even take care of her stupid cat.  I’m allergic to him, so after her call this morning, I put him and his litter box outside on the back porch.  And if she does get an apartment, I’m going to drop him off there.”

Everyone nodded and laughed.

“I’m a dog person myself,” I told her.  “A guy who was teaching me some tricks had the smartest dog I’d ever seen.  He said he had thought about adding a cat in his show, but it didn’t work out. Have you ever tried to train a cat?  You’re better off with rabbits and ducks.  The only good thing about having a cat in the act is that it’s easy to make them disappear.”

Jenny had been sitting on the edge of her chair as her aggravation with her sister’s sudden romance had
accelerated.  Slowly, she relaxed…just as I hoped she would when I rattled on about cats.  The art of distraction was a magician’s best tool.  She glanced at her watch and stood.  “I’ve got to get to work.  Listen…you guys have been great, and I’m sorry that I’ve taken so much time.  I’ve got the money from Angela’s stash,” Jenny reached into her purse as she spoke.  “Since this is all her fault, I’d really like to pay you something.”

“
Still no,” I said sternly.  “We haven’t done anything of value for you.”

“
You sure?” Jenny addressed everyone in the room, but she was looking straight at me.

“I’m sure.
”

“Okay…well
, I’ll be seeing you guys.  Maybe you’ll catch me on Sixth Street. I work weekends down there.  Bye.”  With that she waved and headed toward the door.

“I’ll see you out.
” I was closer to the door and jumped up.

She smiled and nodded
, then exited the room toward the reception area.  I followed closely, trying to think of a way to delay her departure.  I kind of wanted to ask her out, but I was afraid there might be some sort of Roger’s Rule about not dating customers.  We were too quickly at the front door so I walked with her outside into the bright sunshine.  She stopped next to her car.

“Well…thanks Reno.”
  She reached out to shake my hand.

I gripped
it firmly.  “You’re welcome.  I’m glad your sister’s okay.”  I smiled and shaded my eyes from the sun’s rays.  I released her hand reluctantly, and I thought I sensed her reluctance as well.  Or maybe my magician’s fingertips were overly sensitive, and she was just anxious to get to her preschoolers. 

“So am I.” 
She opened the door of her car and then stopped.  “Listen…I was thinking about going out to dinner to celebrate…but it’s not much fun alone.  Would you like to go with me?  Angie’s paying.”

I did a little internal fist pump, but I made my expression stay c
ool.  “Sure, that sounds like fun.  When?” 

“How about tonight?
”

I
tried not to act too surprised.  This wasn’t my first date…just my first date in almost a month.  “Tonight it is.  Time?”

“I’m through with my
last group by about four, so is six too early?  We could grab a drink first.”

“Perfect.  I coul
d pick you up or meet you there…wherever there is.”

“How about I pick you up here?”

I nodded and tried not to smile too broadly.  “Okay, I’ll see you then.”

My cell phone rang just a couple minutes before six.  I
didn’t recognize the number and was glad to hear Jenny’s voice telling me she was outside.  Everyone else had already left, and the empty building was a little creepy as I turned off my office light, walked down the hall and through the reception area.  I was all the way outside before I remembered to go back in and set the alarm. 

As I crossed to her Honda,
Jenny leaned across the front seat and unlocked the door.  I slid in.

“
This model doesn’t have electric locks?”

“
The model does, but this car doesn’t.  Up until a couple years ago, they worked fine, but when they broke, I opted for an oil change at 50,000 miles instead.  Besides, it’s like a Yoga stretching exercise…keeps me limber.”

Jenny checked her mirror,
then backed out at speed higher than I would have guessed her car could obtain going forward.  After a fast check in her driver’s side mirror, she zipped out onto the main road.

“
You’re missing a passenger side mirror,” I pointed out.

“
It’s more of a challenge with only two.”  She stopped at a red light.  “Any restaurant preferences?”

“How about Earl’s Steakhouse?
  I could call for reservations.”

“I’ve never been there, but I’ve heard it’s good.”

“Great food, great service.  I’ve only been there once, so I have no idea where it is.  I don’t know my way around Austin yet.  In Vegas there’s the Strip and Freemont Street and couple of cross streets…life’s simple there.  Ever been?”

“No
pe.  Never had the time, money or, I guess, interest.”

“
The shows are amazing.  They have like eight or nine Cirque Du Soleil shows and dozens of major entertainers…so big, they only have one name.”

“Like Cher?  I wouldn’t mind seeing her.”

“Yeah, and Celine and Shania.  And there are killer dance clubs and, of course, some of the world’s best magic shows.”

“Do you miss it?”  She glanced over at me.

“Yes, I guess.  I’ve lived there for almost five years, and I’d forgotten what the real world is like.  Everything’s smoke and mirrors there.”

“Are you planning on going back?”

I considered her question for a moment.  “Honestly…I don’t know.  I still have my apartment there.  When I accepted Harlan’s offer to come to Austin, I had no idea that I was going to become a part of a family and a business…and a murder investigation.  Here, it’s life and death, not trap doors and fake curtains.  Austin is real and crawling with energy and talent.  It kind of makes Vegas look phony and cheap.”

She zipped around corners like a pro.  I forced myself not to grab the dashboard.  I didn’t want her to see that her driving made me nervous.  I was jus
t glad her Honda was so old, that it didn’t operate at full capacity.  In a new car, she would be terrifying.

As I worked with Dallas and Killeen all afternoon, I had made a mental list of all the things we might talk about during the drive to the restaurant.  Not only did her driving distract me, but the drive
itself was really short. She arrived at Earl’s Steakhouse in record time.