You Again (5 page)

Daisy sighed as she filled the last of the muffin holes.  "I was joking, Lil.  No need to bring my age into this."

"No jokes.  I'm about to go to jail for something I didn't do."

"That'll make you the first McAllister ever."

"Mom!"

"Alright, I'm being serious now."  She opened the oven door and slid the tray in.  "You said the cops visited you last night to question you."  She closed the door and joined her daughter at the kitchen table, bringing the bowl and spoon with her.  She handed the bowl to Lily.  "Do you know who it was?  Is he crooked?  If you're not sure, I can find out."

They'd come to the part Lily wanted to avoid even though she knew all along she'd have to tell her mother.  "Yes, I know him and no he's not crooked.  Not even a little kink.  It was Luke."

Her mother's gaze met hers, assessing, no doubt looking for an indication her daughter still held feelings for Luke.  Lily gave her nothing.  Or hoped she didn't.

Daisy humphed and licked the spoon.  "That's not good."

"Why?" Lily asked, running her finger around the inside of the bowl to scoop out as much leftover mixture as she could.

"I don't trust him."

"Why not?"  Lily licked her finger.  Mmmm, apple cinnamon.

"He's a cop."

"Any other reason?"

"Yes,” Daisy said quietly.  “He broke your heart."

For the first time since her arrival that morning, Lily saw a chink in her mother's tough shell.  "I thought you were happy we broke up.  I recall you saying something about me being too good for the likes of him." 

"You were.  Are.  And I was happy."  She looked away.  "I think."  She shrugged.  "It doesn't matter.  All water under the bridge now that it's over between you two.  But whatever I think of him, if he's your only chance at getting out of this then I'm afraid he's just become my new favorite person."  She pointed the wooden spoon at Lily.  "Don't tell anyone I said that.  Especially him."

Lily smiled but it quickly vanished.  "Don't worry.  I don't think he and I will be doing much talking at all."  She made a face at the bowl.  It was almost clean.  "Because I kind of screwed up.  We can strike him off our list of people who'll help."

Daisy shook her head and licked the wooden spoon.  "What did you do?  Or should that be, what did you say?"

Lily was about to deny it but knew she'd been caught.  Lying to her mother had never been something she was good at.  Actually, lying in general had been her lousiest subject.  That made her quite unique amongst the McAllister clan, and somewhat of an outcast.

"I kind of kicked him out before we resolved anything," she said.  "He said he believed me though, so that's a good thing right?"

Daisy said nothing, just licked her spoon and looked doubtful. 

"I'm sure he'll try to convince his superior officers that I didn't do anything wrong," Lily continued.  "All he has to do is put the squeeze on the Haywood-Smiths and they'll admit everything and I'll be off the hook.  Simple.  Hopefully I won't even have to see Luke again."

Except she wanted to see him again.  Her body had throbbed all night after they'd made love on the couch, keeping her awake into the early hours.  She couldn’t forget the warmth of his skin against hers, the weight of his body, the exquisite pressure of him inside her.

"Darling," Daisy said, leaning forward.  "First of all, ‘squeeze’ is only used in the movies.  Second, the Haywood-Smiths aren't the kind of people who admit their crimes.  They don't have to.  They have judges as their friends and neighbors.  Thirdly," she took Lily's hand and gave her a reassuring smile, "you're going to have to see Luke again.  There's no other way."

Lily groaned and thumped her head on the table.  "Now I
really
wish I hadn't slept with him last night."

"You did
what
?"

CHAPTER 5

Luke sat in his boss's office waiting for the Chief to return from a meeting.  He should have been thinking about how he was going broach the subject of Lily's innocence but all he could think about was Lily's body. 

And wishing he hadn't slept with her.

No.  Not true.  More like wishing that sleeping with her had got her out of his system.

It hadn't.  He couldn't stop thinking about her, more than ever.  Their sexual encounter had been over too fast but he could remember every detail.  The way her caress gave him an aching hard-on and how her feathery kisses sent a shiver through his tautly strung body.  Not to mention the way her heat surrounded him, pulled him in until he was submerged so deep he felt like he was drowning. 

Yep, he was screwed.  He had it worse for her than ever.  And she didn't want anything to do with him even though her freedom depended on him.

"Make it quick, Tanner, I've got to meet the Commissioner in ten."  The Chief barreled through the door, coffee mug in one hand and a fat briefcase in the other.  He slapped both items down on his desk and sat with a loud grunt.  "Your message said something about the Haywood-Smith theft.”  He popped the locks on his briefcase and pulled out a stack of papers.  "Tell me you solved it already," he said without looking up.

"I've solved it already."

The Chief reached for his coffee mug with one hand and a pen with the other.  He flicked through two sheets of paper, signing both at the bottom with a loose scrawl.  "Good result, Tanner.  Expect nothing less from your team.  So what's the problem?"

Luke sighed.  There was no easy way out of this.  "My ex girlfriend."

The Chief finally looked up, coffee mug half-way to his lips.  "The McAllister girl?"  He frowned, doing his best impersonation of a bulldog.  "You better tell me.  And don't leave out any details."

Luke told him about the theft, starting with the CCTV footage landing on his desk and ending with his visit to Lily's place.  Minus the sex part—although he suspected the Chief might like to hear those details too.  He summed it up with: "As you can see she's not guilty."

The Chief snorted but it was hard to tell if it was from laughter or anger.  Either way, the folds of his face didn't move out of their frown.  "Don't tell me you believe her?  Christ, Luke, you of all people should know you can't trust a McAllister.  Bunch of low-lifes the lot of them."

"Not Lily.  She's different."

"Yeah, she's too dumb to look for the hidden cameras."

Luke clenched his fists and pressed them into his thighs so he wouldn't be tempted to leap across the desk and use them on his boss's face.  "She's not dumb.  And she's not a criminal."

The Chief's gaze never wavered.  He made no movement, no sound, but somehow Luke knew that his boss could tell he wanted to punch the crap out of him. 

"You really think she was trying to return the necklace?" Chief asked.

"Yes."

"And that the Haywood-Smiths are committing insurance fraud?"

"Yes."

Chief grunted.  "You're a fool, Tanner."

"Maybe."

"She's got you by the balls."

If only.

The Chief leaned back and his chair creaked under the strain.  "So what are you going to do now?"

It was better than an outright order to arrest her.  More than Luke had hoped for.  "I want to follow the Haywood-Smiths, investigate their associates in the jewelry business, maybe search the house—."

The Chief's laugh erupted like a loud belch from deep within his enormous gut.  "You're shitting me?  Who do you think's gonna pay for the resources?  Who'll authorize them?  Me?"  He shook his head.  "The Haywood-Smiths are one of Melbourne’s most notable families.  They have influential friends, they have a financial interest in dozens of companies around the country and they give a small fortune to charities for Christ’s sakes.  We’re not going to stir up trouble over a pissing little insurance scam.”

It didn’t help ease Luke’s anger to know his boss was right.  “The insurance companies might think differently.”

“It's a lost cause, Tanner.  Give it up."

"I'll watch them," Luke said.  "You don't need to spare anyone else."

"I can't spare
you
.  The answer's no."  He returned to his paperwork.

A small part of Luke registered the stupidity of what he was about to say but somehow it got lost amongst the fierce anger burning inside him, blinding him to everything else.  "No,” he said, trying very hard not to shout.  “You can't let her go to jail.  She doesn't deserve it.  Do you understand me?”  He pointed, wanting to stab his finger into the Chief’s fleshy chest but restraining with the last remaining ounce of self-control he possessed.  “I will not let her go to jail for something she didn't do."

The Chief shook his head and sighed.  "She's got her claws right into you, hasn't she?”  He leaned forward and his chair groaned.  “Tanner, don't throw a brilliant career away over a woman.  Especially a McAllister woman.  They're all scum."

Just when Luke’s anger should have erupted, it disappeared.  Replaced by a sickening sensation that churned his stomach.  Is that how he sounded to Lily?  Like a blustering autocrat who tarred an entire clan with the same brush?  Oh God.  No wonder she hated him.  No wonder she wanted him gone from her life. 

The Chief had got one thing right—Luke was a fool. 

Well, not anymore. 

"How about you let me decide if she's worth it."  He stood and the backs of his legs pushed the chair into the wall. 

"Don't do anything stupid, Tanner.  I'm warning you, your job is on the line if you're caught doing anything unauthorized at the Haywood-Smiths."

"Guess I better not get caught then."  Luke opened the door and marched out.

"Tanner!  Tanner, get back here!"

CHAPTER 6

Lily knew it would be Luke ringing her doorbell.  He seemed to have a habit of turning up unannounced after dark.  So when she opened the door and saw him standing on her front porch, she was prepared this time and took only a fraction of a second to close it.

Unfortunately he was quicker and shoved his foot in the gap first.  “Just hear me out,” he said.  “That’s all I ask.”

She opened the door but didn’t move aside.  “Why should I?”

He looked all dark and broody with the light casting shadows beneath his eyes and sharpening his cheekbones.  Serious.  Sexy. 

Down girl.

“Fine,” he said, shifting his weight.  His hands were empty this time, no handcuffs, although they could be stuffed into his back pocket.  “But I really don’t think you want your neighbors overhearing this conversation.”

Were they going to have a conversation about their sexual encounter or about her imminent arrest?  Either way he was right.  She opened the door wider and stepped out of the way. 

He grunted but said nothing as he moved past her.  They didn’t touch but her awareness of him felt just as strong as the night before.  It rippled through her like a warm breeze, settling into her core with comfortable familiarity. 

She sighed.  She was such a loser to still want him so badly after the way he’d treated her.  He’d made it clear he hated her family, her background and even himself for having feelings for someone like her.  Someone he placed on a level with sewer rats.

He was dressed in all black—jeans, T-shirt and runners.  No cuffs in the back pocket.  She followed him down the hall to her lounge, trying not to look at his tight ass.  Oops, no such luck.

“Go get changed,” he said, spinning round and catching her in the act.  Fortunately he didn’t seem to notice her embarrassment because he focused on the top of her head instead of her face.  “All black,” he said.  “And comfortable clothes.”

“Why?”

“We’re going to do some surveillance tonight.”

“Outside the Haywood-Smith place?”

“Yes.” 

She could have kissed him.  Finally some action, and not of the arresting her kind.  Thank God he’d been able to convince his boss she was innocent. 

Boy, that sounded like she’d only had sex with him to get her out of her predicament.  So not true.  She’d had sex with him because he looked damn hot and his kisses had driven her libido crazy.