Authors: Kathy LaMee
Tansy Taylor (10 page)
“I’m fine. Thanks. I guess I was just lost in thought.” I stammered.
“Probably thinking about all those record deals, huh?” He asked. His eyes twinkled like he knew a secret.
“Oh, well, I guess.” What was he up to? I eyed him suspiciously.
“So, you like having pink hair?” The corners of his mouth twitched. I narrowed my eyes.
“It’s part of the persona. You know, like Pink?” I scowled and crossed my arms in front of me. “Thanks for helping me up, but I think that I’m okay now.” I started to get up but he reached up and forced me back down.
“I think you should stay here for a minute. The MAX isn’t due for another,” he checked his watch, “five minutes.”
“Fine, but I really am okay.” I really just wanted to get away from him. The feelings I was picking up on were confusing; I could feel that he was hiding something, but yet, it wasn’t dark. His aura was indicating that he was a healer or someone who protects. Things were just not adding up in my mind. Why would a glorified car wash/ mechanic be a protector and yet be hiding something? It just didn’t make sense.
“I do know you, don’t I?” he said, reaching out for my sunglasses.
I put my hands up to stop him, “I don’t know what you mean.”
“I’m sure you do, Sandra.” Crap. He had figured me out.
I sighed, but kept silent.
“However, I’m pretty sure that Sandra isn’t your real name either.” Double crap, he totally knows I’m lying. I didn’t know what to say, so I sat there, arms crossed, pouting that he had seen through my disguise.
“I did a little research after you and Callie came to the dealership, and Buster didn’t have any half sisters named Sandra.”
I narrowed my eyes even further. “Why would a sometime mechanic and wash bay boy need to do research? Unless…..you aren’t who you say you are either!” Things were falling into place like tumblers in a lock. I turned and poked him hard in the chest. “Who are you then? FBI?” I took off my glasses gave him what I thought of as the stink eye.
Johnny chuckled and did a quick glance around at the few bystanders who were waiting for the MAX as well. “Not hardly.” He stuck out his hand, “Sam Adams, private investigator.”
Now it was my turn to chuckle. “You expect me to believe that your real name is the same as a beer?”
He shrugged, took out a badge and flipped it open. “Here, see for yourself.” I looked it over, sure enough, it was a picture of him and the name Sam Adams with a private investigator license number. I had also caught a glimpse of a shoulder holster when he had pulled the badge out of his jacket pocket.
“So, you’re a private investigator.” I said it more of a statement rather than a question.
“I am,” he said, “but what and who are you?” He flashed those insightful and brilliantly blue eyes at me again and I faltered.
I could hear the MAX coming down the line. The crowd grew around us and people started gathering next to the platform.
“Can we go get a beer? I’ll spill it all.” I said, slumping back against the bench.
Sam laughed and took my hand. “Sure thing, but, first you need to tell me your name. I make it a habit not to drink with imposters.” He winked as he pulled me up off the bench and steered me back toward the sidewalk.
“Tansy,” I said. “Tansy Taylor; now, let’s go get that beer. After Ronnie and his slimy paws, I could really use a drink.” I slid my sunglasses back on and tried not to shudder with the thought of Ronnie; after all, I had a gorgeous man on my arm.
Chapter Nine
After three beers, I’d spilled the whole story to Sam; well, everything except the part about the ghosts. He seemed genuinely glad that I hadn’t purposely chosen my pink hair color. I supposed that this was good news, since he also seemed to be genuinely interested in me as a person, too.
“So, now that I’ve told you everything, are you going to tell me what you’re doing at Mr. Big’s? I’m sure you aren’t there for the extra spending money. You don’t seem like the type to need a second job to support a gambling habit, so what is it? Marital issues? If its Ronnie you’re investigating, I’m sure that man is cheating on his wife.” I took drink of beer and waited.
Sam wrung his hands in front of him on the table, saying nothing. The noise grew in the bar and marked the silence at our table. I tried an inquisitive look to prod him to open up a bit.
“Tansy, I can’t really tell you all that much.” He frowned. “Believe me; I’d love to tell you everything. Let’s just say that I think what you have told me is interesting, and may actually be a part of the bigger picture that I’m trying to see.”
I scowled at him over the table. “So, I sit here and tell you everything, and you tell me absolutely nothing. That doesn’t seem very fair.” Maybe I didn’t like him as much as I thought after all. I got up, ready to go use the ladies and grab another beer.
His frown deepened. “Sit down.”
I did. I figured that it might get him to say something. “Well?”
He took a deep breath, sighed, and then took another sip of beer. I made like I was going to get up and leave again. About two inches up, he opened his mouth.
“Okay, okay! But you can’t let this out. I can tell you I’m investigating something illegal that is going on in the area that may be tied to Big’s. I can’t go into details or tell you who I’m working for, but let’s just say that his numbers don’t add up. Big’s assets are considerably more than his reported income would afford.
He laid his hands flat on the table, and then flipped them over face up. “That’s it. But you have to promise me that you won’t say anything to Callie about why I am there. I don’t know who she is friends with or knows. For all I know, Buster could have been in on the whole thing as well.”
I sat there, taking in what he was saying. “Well, I suppose it’s not a stretch to think used car salesmen are involved in something shady; but I can’t swallow the idea that Buster was involved. He drove a beat up old pickup and couldn’t even afford to take Callie out to dinner. Besides, no one there seems to be capable of making someone go missing, you know?”
“Ya, I know. That’s what’s got me worried. I think maybe there is something bigger going on there; something a little more sinister.” He grimaced and took a big drink of beer.
I reached out and took his free hand, holding it between mine. It felt really nice. He had warm, smooth skin; surprising, actually for someone who worked on cars all day.
I looked at him and held his gaze. There was a definite connection between the two of us. Unfortunately, I needed to figure out how I could keep our relationship low key while we were trying to figure out what happened to Buster. When my feelings got all mushy so did my psychic abilities. I could tell that this man would definitely have an effect on my abilities.
“Do you suppose that Buster’s death had something to do with what you’re investigating?” I asked.
“Death? I thought the police said he was still considered missing?” He set his beer down and took both my hands in his now, holding them tight across the table.
“Well, Callie is positive that he’s dead. She said he would never just up and leave. I think the words she used to describe him were ‘faithful and trusting to the end.’ That doesn’t sound much like a guy who would just leave his truck parked in a used car lot and disappear. Also, I heard Mr. Big and some Russian guy talking the other night, and it sounded like they were talking about Buster and that they had ‘gotten rid of the problem’.” I lost my train of thought and focused in on how Sam was caressing my palms. It was hypnotic and extremely sexy.
I cleared my throat and tried to loosen my hands. “I don’t think this is a good idea,” I said, looking him in the eyes.
“You don’t think what is a good idea?” I could see from the twinkle in his eyes that he knew exactly what I was talking about, but wasn’t about to concede.
“You know; you and me. Not until I can figure out what happened to Buster. I need to keep my head clear. Romantic involvement tends to muddy my psychic clarity.”
Chords from the Twilight Zone theme song crept up to us from the bowels of my purse.
“Um, I think your purse is calling you.” Sam said jokingly.
“Oh, ya, I forgot that Becca changed the ringtone for me. I had this really annoying one that chirped before.” I scrambled though my bag trying to find the phone before the caller was sent off to voice mail. No luck, I fished it out right as the words ‘missed call’ showed up on the screen. “Damn.” I flipped my archaic phone open to check on who had called.
“That phone seems to be from an age gone past.” Sam said, giving it the once over. “I figured a savvy pink haired girl like you would have an iPhone, or one of those other fancy phones.
“Nope. I figure I’ll use this one until it breaks. I got it two years ago and I just figured out how to change the ring tone. I think I might end up in the insane asylum for the technologically challenged if I switch to one of those fancy touch screen phones. I hope it’s not too rude, but it was my mom that called, and she rarely calls me on this unless it’s something important. Do you mind?”
Sam’s eyes twinkled. “Not a problem. You call your mom and I’ll go get us one last beer and the check.” He stood and pressed the wrinkles out of the legs of his jeans. Wow, we had been sitting here a long time. I flipped the phone back open and dialed my mom.
Sam returned just as I flipped my phone shut and let out a sigh of exasperation.
“So, not to be too nosy, but what’s up?” He sat the beer in front of me.
“Thanks,” I said and took a sip.
I rolled my eyes. “It’s nothing really, just a nosy mother.”
Sam chuckled. “Want to tell me about it?” he asked, raising his eyebrows and giving me a total sexy ‘I’m here to listen to all of your problems’ look from across the table.
I waved my hand in front of my face and then took another drink of beer. “It’s nothing, she basically was just calling to see what I was up to since she called the house first and got my roommate, who told her I was out. Her and my dad are taking their first vacation in years tomorrow and I’m beginning to think that it will be just as much a vacation for me. I suppose I should be thankful that I have her in my life though. I know she’s just being a typical mother who is impatiently waiting for me to settle down and give her some grandchildren.” I scowled into my beer. Nice job Tansy, way to insert foot in mouth when on an almost first date.
Sam nodded his head like he was totally down with what I was saying, but I could tell that he was not quite sure how or if he should respond. Silence hung in the air and we both took a few more sips off our pints. Guns N’ Roses filtered through the ambient noise of the restaurant.
He smiled and reached out for my hands, stroking them softly. “So your mom’s like every mother of a mid-20’s single person then, huh? My mom’s the same way. Don’t worry. You just have to learn how to cope with it, or ignore it.” At least he didn’t think I was a complete freak. He continued to stroke my hands, moving up to my inner wrists. Oh, heaven help me, I thought.
“I suppose you’re right. She’s just really amped it up lately, you know.” I stopped talking because it was getting harder to form coherent thoughts with Sam caressing my hands. I was turning into a gelatinous mass and if I wasn’t careful I was sure I would melt right onto the floor. I sighed and leaned my head back against the booth. I wanted to tell him to stop but I couldn’t seem to speak.
“What’re you thinking?” His voice was low and sexy.
I gathered my wits and shook my head. “Stop being so sexy. I told you that I can’t be involved right now.” I tried to look stern.
He laughed. “Me, sexy? Never…” He brushed the inside of my forearm and sent chills, the good kind, through my body. When they subsided I felt heat in all the right places. I decided I needed to get my head back on straight or I was going to be worthless.
“Sam, please. We need to figure out what happened to Buster, and then we can delve into this mutual attraction.” I hated to beg, but he was really leaving me no choice.
“Are you holding your sexy pink haired body over my head?” He questioned me never cutting eye contact.
I groaned and closed my eyes, a mental image of what he had said swirling around in my head. Man, he was good.
“Oh, I’m sorry? Did I say something to bother you?” Sarcasm dripped amidst sexy undertones. He was good, definitely dangerous. I pulled my hands back onto my side of the table and wrapped them around my pint and the last couple sips of my beer.
“You know exactly what you are doing. And, while I am really excited to get to know you better, I made a promise to Callie and I just can’t do my best if my insides are all jumbled up. And you, Sam, totally make my insides all jumbled up. You ‘mess with my mojo’, make all of my psychic senses go wanky. Does that make sense?” I hoped my message was coming across without sounding too pathetic. I must have looked like I was in pain, which was close to accurate, and his eyes went from sexy and playful to full of concern.
“I’m sorry, I was just playing. I realize this is important to you, and to Callie. In fact, I’ll do whatever I can to help, okay?” He looked like he was really being sincere this time. I didn’t doubt that he wanted to help us out.
I relaxed into the booth. “That would be wonderful Sam.”
He smiled, and those gorgeous eyes sparkled. “Can I ask one favor?”
“Sure,” I said, tension lifting from the table.
“Can I get you back to your car safely, and maybe, if it’s okay give you a kiss goodnight? Just one?” He sounded like a little boy, and I just couldn’t refuse.
I grinned, and for whatever reason, felt a blush creep up my neck. “I’d really like it if you walked me back to my car. And, I suppose a little goodnight kiss wouldn’t cause much psychic cloudiness.”
I sat in my car in front of my house. The lights were on, and judging from the shadowy forms in the windows Jeni had some friends over. I wasn’t ready to let go of Sam’s perfect kiss that lingered with me all the way home. I had kissed many boys, but nothing compared to the energy that Sam and I created when we kissed. I drove all the way home on a euphoric high.
I sighed, and then decided that it was time to get in the house and back to reality. Plus, it was dark and a little creepy on the street tonight. More cars than usual dotted the streets and being a single woman in the city I was constantly trying to be aware of my surroundings.
So much had happened today. I was definitely in better spirits than when I had gotten out of bed this morning. I left the car and hustled up through the kitchen side door.
“Holy Crap! What in the heck happened to your hair?” Jeni and her friends all stopped what they were doing to stare at my hair. I’d forgotten all about it, actually. I guess lust will do that to you, which is exactly why I had to keep myself in check with Sam; otherwise I could end up missing something crucial in our Buster investigation. I couldn’t let that happen, Callie was depending on me.
“Oh, well, I told you I was going to try something different.” I shrugged and grabbed a glass and poured myself a taste of wine. “Is this a pinot? Did I forget we were doing wine tasting tonight?” I kicked my shoes off and headed into the living room.
I paused midstride. “Wait, its Wednesday, isn’t wine-tasting on Friday?” I said, taking a sniff and then a sip.
“Well, Jackie and her husband crafted this at home, so we decided to have an unofficial tasting tonight. It was a rough day all the way around. You, however, look positively glowing, and I’m not just talking about your hair. Is something up? Did you meet someone?” Jeni had this uncanny way of knowing exactly what was going on in my life.
“Well, aside from the hair, I had a productive day in my current pet project, and yes, I had a nice drink with a nice man. So, I guess the crappy start to my day turned into the highlight of my week, so far anyway.” I took another sip and savored the warmth of the wine as it slid down my throat. “Jackie, this is fabulous, by the way. Local grapes?” She nodded. There were several open bottles on the side table in the living room along with a nice spread of hors d’ouvres, so I went ahead and poured myself a nice sized glass and grabbed a plate with some brie and crackers.
“Yum, this is the best-you guys don’t mind if I join you?” I sank down into the couch and put my feet up on an ottoman.
“Of course you can join us! We were wondering where you were actually. So, is that girl from the PFN and her dead boyfriend your pet project?” Jeni sat down across from me and narrowed her eyes. “You aren’t getting too involved are you? It could be dangerous.”
I stuck a cheese covered cracker in my mouth. “Uh-uh. Not too involved.” No need to disclose my most recent escapade with Ronnie the used car slime with Jeni, she would only worry. At times, I thought that somehow my mother was paying her to keep an eye on me or somehow working through her telepathically.
“Is there something on my face?” I realized that I was staring. She would come unglued if she knew what I was thinking. Jeni was not a fan of my overbearing mother. Thank goodness she and my dad were getting on a plane right this minute.
“Oh, no, well actually there is a little smudge of cheese on the corner of your mouth.” I smiled and indicated with a wipe of my pinkie where she should aim. She wiped at her mouth, totally missing the cheese.
“Did I get it?”
I shook my head and she rose up from the chair and headed to the decorative mirror in the entryway. A loud fit of giggles erupted from the kitchen. I finished off my food and wine, went back for seconds and then excused myself upstairs. I had to figure out what I was going to do about my hair and I needed to call Callie.
My cell phone beeped to tell me I had a text. It was from Callie. I got into my comfy jammies, washed my face, scowled at my hair, and then called her back. After filling her in on Sam, the Ronnie incident, and about getting property scolded by Jeni, we decided that it was getting too dangerous to go snooping around too much more at Mr. Big’s. We still had the information on the Saturday meeting between Big and the Russian dude, so we decided to focus on that. Sam had not known anything about the Russian dude, or at least, nothing he could talk about.
“Why don’t we try a bug?” Callie asked.
“You mean like a wire tap?”
“Well, sort of. I checked it out on the internet. There’s a place in downtown that sells all sorts of spy stuff, including little listening devices. You just have to plant it somewhere they won’t see it. Then we can sit down the street with the transmitter and listen to what’s going on.”
“Isn’t that illegal?” I asked. “I’m not sure that we should go there.” I was okay with the little white lies we had been doing so far, but actually breaking the law was a whole other matter.
“Well, I think we need to. Buster’s dead. The cops aren’t interested, and we know something is going on. From what you said, Ronnie is probably in on whatever it is Big and the Russian are up to, so we’ve just go to do it.” I waited for her to add ‘so there.’ She sounded set on doing this thing one way or another.
“Don’t even think about trying to talk me out of it,” she added firmly.
“Well, what if we talk to Sam and he does it? He’s licensed to do that sort of stuff, anyway.” I crossed my fingers and hoped that this was my out; after all, Sam was at least licensed to do things like plant bugs.
“No. I don’t think that he’s any more interested in Ronnie than the cops would be. It sounds like he is investigating Big for something else. What does he care about Buster and Ronnie?” I could feel her pouting on the other end of the line.
I sighed; it was like trying to talk a three year old out of an ice cream cone. “Fine, but I’ll do it. I don’t think you should go in there. Ronnie already thinks I want to buy a car and possibly more, so at least I have a reason to be there.” I shivered just thinking about his slimy hands.
“Actually, Mr. Big called and there’s a box of Buster’s stuff that I need to pick up. I can wait around, chat with the secretary and stuff until Ronnie is out on the lot and slip in to his office and hide the bug under his desk.” She did have a point, and it would save me from having to have his slimy hands on me again.
“I suppose that makes sense. Do you want me to come along to provide a diversion?”
“Nah. I’ll go tomorrow after my lunch shift. Business at the car lot usually picks up in the afternoon. Also, it’s the first of the month, pay day, so they should be extra busy.” Callie seemed to have thought this all out.
“So do you need me to go pick up the bug?” I asked. Silence greeted me. “Callie?”
“Well, I sort of already picked up a couple. So we’re all set.” So, she’d known what she was doing all along. I’m guessing she had rounded the corner from sad to angry in the grief process. She was definitely a woman on a mission.
“Um, okay.” I grabbed my nail clippers and inspected my toes. I really needed to get in and have a pedicure, my feet were a mess. “Well, I’ll at least go with you, just say the word. And, if I don’t come, you’ll me when you are done, right? Just so that I know you are okay?” I picked at the remaining polish on my big toenail wondering if I had any nail polish remover. I caught my reflection in my door mirror, ugh, I had forgotten about my hair.
“Sounds good, I’ll see ya tomorrow. Have a good night and a good day at work.” She was off the phone and I was still stuck with pink hair.
