Playing With Fire (7 page)

Seeing Erin’s pale face, Ettie Mae reached out and touched
her cheek again.

“You know honey, I’m older, not foolish. I never did buy
your story about wantin’ to get all new things….”

Nate struggled to control the fury threatening to overtake
him.

Erin blanched. She stared at the floor, refusing to look at
him, clearly devastated.

He said quietly, “I don’t recall seeing police reports on
either of those incidents, Erin. I’m sure it’s something I overlooked. But then
I’m surprised that Connor didn’t mention it either.”

Ettie Mae glanced from Nate to Erin and back again. She
raised a questioning brow.

“I thinks I’ll be goin’ now.”

Erin stepped over and opened the door.

“Yes, please, Ettie Mae. Detective Stryker will walk you
out.”

When both Nate and Ettie Mae just stared at her, Erin’s lips
trembled.

“Please, both of you. Leave. Now.”

Nate smiled pleasantly.

“Do you need me to walk you home, Mrs. J?”

Ettie Mae rolled her eyes, glancing at Erin. She tossed Nate
a look that said he’d be better off taking care of Erin than helping her.

“Nah. I’m no old lady. I can get myself home. I’m not
needin’ your help, detective.”

Nate stood in the doorway for several moments watching Ettie
Mae bustle down the sidewalk. After a lengthy silence, he walked over to the
card table and pulled Erin’s Rugar out of his boot. With a resounding smack he
put it on the table. She’d turned her back on him and didn’t look around at the
sound.

“You might want to get this registered. It’s a Class B
felony to carry a concealed weapon that isn’t registered. It’s probably a good
idea that you have a gun in this shithole. But you’re gonna need a certain
history to get a permit. I’ll talk to the registration folks in the morning.
Pull a few strings.”

He walked over and stood several feet away from her.

“One more thing, Erin. When did you eat last?”

She whirled on him her face contorted with rage.

“Get out of here. Now! Haven’t you humiliated me enough?
What more do you want, Nate?”

Nate saw that she was about ready to crack. He would have to
save his own temper for another time.

He spoke carefully.

“Erin, I am going to leave now because I’m so angry I don’t
trust myself to stay.”

She crossed her arms over her chest and turned away from
him, but not before he saw the tears flooding her eyes.

He stepped up behind her and put his arms around her,
pulling her back up against his chest. When she tried to pull away he tightened
his grip and nestled his lips in her hair. He held her for several moments,
feeling the mix of emotions ricocheting through her slender body. When she
settled somewhat, he leaned down to murmur in her ear.

“And, Erin, what happened there against the wall? That
wasn’t an accident. You’re as hot for me as I am for you. And, baby, just so
you know. I haven’t been this crazy hot for a woman in my life. We’re not done,
darlin’. Not by a longshot.”

He dropped a kiss on the top of her head, then left, closing
the door behind him.

~~~

Erin huddled on the floor leaning against the door for what
seemed like hours. Finally pulling out her phone, she reached in her pocket and
found Blake’s card. She left a message for him that she would like to have
dinner with him tomorrow night. She suggested that she could be ready at eight
o’clock.

She realized that more than any time in her life, she wanted
“normal.”

“Hey, Erin, wait up! Looks who’s here.”

Erin came out of the locker room to see Connor and his
father standing in the garage entrance to the station. She’d just showered and
pulled her damp hair up in a straggly pony tail. It had been a long hard night.
Two car accidents on Highway 2, and a dorm fire in one of the rooms at the
community college, kept them running for ten hours straight. Erin was sure she
looked as exhausted as she felt but pasted a welcoming smile on her face. She
moved toward the Lang men, noting again, how much Connor resembled his father.
No wonder he was so handsome she thought with a grin. And so totally different
from Nate. Just the thought of the arrogant overwhelming cop made her tremble,
losing what little sense of peace she had.

“Hey, half pint, what’s that frown about? My dad came by to
see if I wanted to take him to breakfast and we hoped you could join us.”

Erin felt her cheeks heat. Damn, when would she stop
blushing when she got scared, or uncomfortable or any other of a thousand
emotions? Guess that was one more curse of her pale Irish skin.

“No, no, Connor. Mr. Lang. I… I wasn’t frowning at you. I
just remembered something… never mind. I would love to have breakfast with you,
but I don’t want to interrupt your father/son bonding time.”

Connor’s father smiled at her, his gray eyes twinkling.

“First, young lady, my name is Marcus. ‘Mr. Lang’ makes me
feel even older than I am. And, second, I really came to invite you to
breakfast and Connor insisted on butting in.” He grinned at his son who
chuckled in return.

“To tell you the truth, we both need to be able to blame you
when we tell those women in our lives that you forced us to have breakfast at
Jo’s Diner. For some reason both Mama D and Kaitlin are convinced that those
‘all you can eat’ breakfasts aren’t good for my strapping son and me.”

Knowing there was nothing in her refrigerator except yogurt
and peanut butter, an ‘all you can eat’ breakfast sounded like heaven. Erin’s
stomach growled at the thought. She laughed.

“Thanks, Marcus. As you can tell, I haven’t eaten for a
while. Let me sign out and I’ll meet you both in front.”

An hour later, Erin leaned against the back of the booth
with a mock groan.

“I cannot believe that I ate this much food. You two are a
bad influence. I’d weigh two hundred pounds if I ate like this every day!”

Connor chuckled.

“Maybe that’s our problem, Pops. You and I do eat like this
every day.”

A frown replaced his pleasant grin.

“But, Erin, the last thing you need to worry about is
getting fat. If anything you are too thin. In fact, I’ve been meaning to talk
to you—”

Erin broke in, but with a warning smile.

“Uh uh, Connor. Didn’t your mama and Kaitlin and all those
sisters of yours ever tell you that discussing a woman’s weight is absolutely
verboten? And speaking of eating too much, if I eat another bite, I’d never
make it home. Thank goodness I’m a runner. But after all this food, I should
stop at the gym as well.”

She saw Connor and his father exchange a glance, and braced
herself for another lecture. She knew Connor didn’t approve of her running back
and forth to work and always insisted that one or another of the guys give her
a ride. She usually was able to beg off, claiming that the only way she stayed
in shape was to run.

Marcus waved the waitress over for a refill on his coffee
then settled back in the booth. He observed her thoughtfully as if he had
something he wanted to say.

She swallowed.

“Is something wrong? You… you look serious, Marcus.”

The older man smiled at her.

“Serious, but I hope in a good way. I admit, Erin, I did
have an ulterior motive in dragging you to breakfast. In addition to having the
prettiest company I can remember since Kaitlin ate with me. Now that she’s
pregnant, Kaitlin won’t—”

Connor interrupted.

“C’mon, Dad. Tell Erin what you were gonna say. You’re
scaring her.”

Surprised that the anxiety she was feeling showed on her
face, Erin did her best to smooth her expression.

Marcus nodded.

“You’re right, son. Sometimes I do tend to ramble. But,
here’s what I wanted to say, Erin. It’s come to my attention that you had a
problem with your car. It just so happens that we have an extra car sitting in
our garage. It’s nothing fancy, but—” He held up his hand when she tried to
interrupt. “No, young lady, let me finish. I think you know that Lucas,
Connor’s older brother, is over in Iraq. He’s the same age as Nate. They both
served together but Nate had three years on Luke, and.…”

Connor shook his head in disgust.

“Jeez, Dad. Just tell her. Look Erin, I didn’t know what
happened to your car. All you told me was that it couldn’t be repaired. Luke
won’t be home on leave for another six months. Meantime his car is available,
and my parents and I want you to use it.”

Erin was shocked and upset. She should have known that Nate
would blab to Connor, but his father? She shook her head and slid over to the
edge of the booth, preparing to escape.

“No, no. Thank you. Thank you both very much. But I cannot
accept. I appreciate the offer b…. “

Mr. Lang reached out and took hold of her arm.

“My wife said you’d say that, Erin. But she told me to tell
you that you’d be doing her a favor. She said every time she sees Lucas’s car
in the garage it reminds her that he is gone and in danger. Please accept this
offer. You need a car and we have one available.”

Erin hesitated. It was hard to brush off Marcus’s sincerity.
Instead she focused her frustration where it belonged. On Nate.

“Nate told you….He had no business, no right.…”

Connor interrupted, smacking his hand on the table. Erin
started, realizing for the first time that Connor was glaring at her, obviously
angry.

“You’re right, Erin. Nate did tell me what happened to your
car. We both had a long talk with Sonny James last night. Sonny was surprised
that you didn’t tell me about it. He assumed that you did, and said he’d told
you to report it to the police. Just so you know, Erin, it’s a damned good
thing Nate told me what happened. I would have been pissed as hell if he
didn’t… and I still wouldn’t know a goddamn thing….”

Marcus held up his hand with a frown, “Now, son, watch your
language. You’re talking to a lady.”

Connor gave a derisive snort.

“Lady? Damn, Pops, you should see her haul ass when we head
to a fire. She cusses with the best of us.”

He threw Erin a hard glare.

“Look, rookie, unless you want to deal with Nate on this
issue, I suggest that you thank my father — and my mother — and get your butt
across the street. That charcoal gray Celica parked at the corner is yours to
use as long as you need it.”

After thanking Mr. Lang for breakfast and the car, and
asking him to thank Mama D, Erin hurried after Connor who was waiting
impatiently at the entrance to the diner.

Trying to ignore his stiff carriage, Erin trotted after
Connor to the Toyota parked in front of the station. Without speaking, Connor
reached in his pocket and handed her the keys. Erin knew he was upset, and
decided she may as well get it out in the open.

“I… I know you are angry with me, Connor, but—”

“No, Erin, I’m not angry. I guess I… I thought that we were
friends.”

Erin was horrified.

“But, we are, aren’t we?”

Connor’s voice was as strained as his expression.

“I dunno, Erin. I thought we were. But in my book, friends
tell their friends when they’re in trouble. Some friends even ask their friends
for help.”

Erin turned away, trying to swallow around the enormous lump
in her throat. She squeezed her eyes tight, holding back the tears burning her
eyelids. She took a deep breath.

“I’m sorry Connor. You’re right. I’m not very good at being
a friend. I haven’t had a lot of experience. Thanks for the car. Please tell
your father I’m sorry, if I seemed ungrateful.”

Without looking at him, she unlocked the door and climbed
inside. Glancing up, she gave him a tentative smile. Inserting the key in the
ignition, she aimed for lightness.

“I hope your parents have insurance. I’m a bit of a speed
demon, you know.”

Connor laughed.

“You forget, half pint, I’ve seen you drive the ladder
truck. I’ll warn my buddies you’re out on the road.”

As she cranked on the engine, he leaned in and gave her a
peck on the cheek.

“One more thing, Erin. You’re a great friend. I’m glad you
are mine.”

Erin pressed her lips together to keep from crying.

“Thanks, Connor.”

Heading for the parkway, lost in the enormity of what had
happened, it took Erin a minute to realize that her phone was ringing. Reaching
in her pocket she saw an unfamiliar number. She frowned when she heard a man’s
voice then gave a sigh of relief when she realized it was Blake.

“Hi, Erin. What a pleasant surprise. I have to tell you, I
didn’t expect to hear from you. I thought I would have to begin ‘dropping in at
the gym’ to see if I could get your attention. Thanks for saving me the
embarrassment of becoming a stalker.”

Erin laughed and realized how good it felt to have a relaxed
telephone conversation with a man.

“I’m in a bit of a rush, Erin. I have to get back in a
meeting. How about I pick you up at eight o’clock as you suggested? I thought we
could hit that Irish pub on St. Mary’s Street. I hear they have great food plus
a good band on Friday nights.”

“That sounds like fun, Blake. But you don’t need to pick me
up. I can meet you there.”

“Oh. Okay.” She heard the hesitation in Blake’s voice. Then
he added, “Call me old fashioned, but I like the idea of picking up a beautiful
girl I’ve invited out for dinner. Seems a little more like a ‘date’ than a
‘meet-up.’ Unless… I am being presumptuous.”

Erin chided herself, reminding herself that “normal”
23-year-old women went on dates. Even if they were married fugitives on the
run. But deciding that she needed to take this ‘normal’ business one step at a
time, she said, “No you’re not being presumptuous, Blake. And I appreciate the
offer. I’d just feel more comfortable meeting you there.”

“Absolutely, Erin. That’s prudent. Even though I’m about as
close to Harvey Milquetoast as you can get, it doesn’t hurt for a girl to be
cautious. But, hey. I’m looking forward to getting to know you. See you at
eight?”