Chapter 20
Chapter Twenty
Vance
“Nice work in there,” I said, offering Deputy Hawkins a compliment as she slid into the front seat.
She scowled at me. “ I didn’t do anything. Although, I’m not sure you did, either, unless you want me to congratulate you on picking up a surefire date any time you want it. Didn’t know flirting was part of the job.” Daggers shot out of her eyes.
I looked at her, amused. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were jealous.”
“Jealous? Please.” She rolled her eyes and huffed.
“If you want me to flirt with you , all you have to do is ask.” I winked.
“I’m not interested in Leslie Evans’ leftovers,” she said, shooting me a look.
A look that was still so full of fire I began to wonder if she actually was jealous. That was a very interesting thought.
“When you’re questioning someone, you use the best tool for the job.
” I shifted into reverse and began backing out of the long driveway.
“Leslie was clearly someone who responds to flattery. She’s also protective of her son and was giving us rehearsed answers instead of opening up.
Best move in that situation is to be nonthreatening, make her feel like I’m on her side.
Makes it more likely I’ll get something useful. ”
“You’re probably right,” she admitted. “I’ve noticed Sheriff McGrath takes that approach a lot, too. Not the flirting, I mean. But making people feel like he’s on their side.”
I shrugged. “I’m not surprised. He’s an elected official. It’s his job to make people feel like he’s on their side—even when he’s not. Sometimes, winning trust is half the battle.”
She screwed up her lips. “Winning trust is not my strong suit.”
“I think you’re wrong about that.”
“Really?”
“Rob trusts you,” I pointed out. “So did Elsa. Even Sheriff McGrath trusts you. He wouldn’t have assigned you this case otherwise.”
“True.” She sighed. “But I could never have been as nice to Leslie as you were.”
“At least you know yourself,” I said, grinning. “But you did a decent job covering up your obvious disdain for her. You didn’t screw anything up by opening your mouth like you were dying to do.”
She scowled again.
“That was supposed to be a compliment,” I remarked, giving her a side-eye.
“Yeah, well, it’s not. I was wearing my poker face. It’s supposed to be foolproof. How could you tell I was dying to say something?”
I glanced at her again. “Have you ever actually won at poker?”
She slapped my arm. “Yes!”
“Must be some bad players,” I said, laughing. “Because you’re the easiest person to read that I’ve ever met.”
“Tell that to Travis,” she said, smirking. “I took two hundred bucks off him last month.”
“Maybe I’m just exceptionally good at reading people,” I said, winking.
“Well, then, tell me what you read off of Leslie Evans.”
I turned back onto the main drag of Wildwood. “She’s scared her son is a suspect. I think part of her is scared he did it, despite the supposed alibi.”
“That’s the impression I got, too.” Claire drummed her fingers on her knee. “She didn’t bat an eye when you mentioned snowmobiling.”
“Nope. There was no emotional reaction at all.”
“Oh, there was an emotion alright.” She shot me another annoyed look.
I grinned. Jealous Claire was fun. “Okay, but not a noteworthy one. She didn’t connect the comment to the case.”
“You didn’t push her very hard on Tony.” There was an edge of reproach in her voice.
“Setting her at ease, remember?”
“You sure it wasn’t because part of you liked the fact that she was looking at you like a cougar who’d just cornered a lost little lamb?”
I snorted. “So I’m a lost little lamb now?”
“Maybe in wolves’ clothing,” Claire muttered.
I pulled my car into a parking spot and turned to face her, delighted by the utter irritation on her face. “You are jealous.” The satisfaction it gave me was astonishing.
“I am not! Why would I be jealous of some vapid, lonely housewife looking to score?” She waved her hand and looked away.
“Exactly.” I touched her chin, bringing her eyes back to mine. “You asked why I knew you were fighting to stay quiet in there.”
She nodded.
“It’s because you wear your heart on your sleeve. Everything you feel, you feel deeply. Too deeply to mask. You’re authentic. Real. You don’t play games. And that makes you more special than a thousand woman like Leslie Evans.”
Claire’s eyes grew big. She held my gaze in silence.
“Don’t ever lose that,” I said softly. “That honesty. You can learn to wear a poker face during an investigation. I’ll even teach you how. But don’t ever let it define you.”
Her throat bobbed. “I won’t.”
“Good,” I said, dropping my hand.
She took a quick inhale and turned, facing the front. Her chest rose and fell rapidly, like she couldn’t quite catch her breath.
I wanted to explore that.
But movement caught the corner of my eye.
From where we were parked, I could see the men from the mayor’s breakfast slowly dispersing, filtering through the café doors with handshakes and final words before walking to their cars.
Mayor Evans was the last, and just like Claire had said he would, he walked down the street from the café to his office.
We’d planned our timing perfectly, but if he stuck to his routine, he wouldn’t be there long. I had to choose between exploring this moment with Claire or moving forward with the interview we’d planned.
No distractions. My father’s mantra echoed in my head.
We were working a homicide case. There was no question about what had to take priority. It was unprofessional for me to even be indulging this flirtation, no matter how enticing I found Claire.
So when she turned back to me, still wide-eyed, I gave her an easy grin. “Ready to ambush Mayor Evans?”
A flicker of nerves flashed on her face. “You should know that he doesn’t really like me,” she blurted out.
“Really? Why not?”
She flushed. “Probably for lots of reasons, but the big one? My first month on the job, I gave him a parking ticket.”
I blinked twice, then let out a deep laugh. “You gave the mayor a parking ticket? As a rookie deputy?”
“Yeah.” She let out a long breath. “I should have known better, right?”
“Or he shouldn’t have been illegally parked.” I chuckled. “You’ve got balls, Hawkins.”
Her smirk came back. “What I’ve got is more impressive than that. And we need to work on how you give compliments to women you aren’t wooing into bed.”
I had to bite my tongue to stop from giving a completely inappropriate response to that one. “Fair enough. But listen, maybe we can use the mayor’s feelings to our advantage.” A plan was starting to form for this interview. A way to get Mayor Evans on my side and make him trust me.
“How?” She gave me a skeptical look.
“Can you handle me being an ass to you?”
She snorted. “I’ve been handling it just fine, haven’t I?”
“I think I’ve been delightful so far,” I said, giving her my most charming smile and earning an eye roll in return. “From everything I’ve heard, it seems like Mayor Evans is a boys’-club kind of guy. Am I right?”
“Totally,” she confirmed.
I nodded. “Wendy told me as much. If he already dislikes you, even better. Odds are, he’s going to have a natural reaction against being questioned.
Even more so since we’re ambushing him on a Saturday instead of during his regular office hours.
But if I can get him to side with me—the two of us against you—he’ll be more open. ”
“That won’t be hard.”
“Alright. When we go in, you take the lead. Tell him we’re there to question him about Tony’s involvement with Katelyn Brown. Play the part of a rookie who doesn’t understand the power games, who doesn’t know she’s supposed to kiss his ass and play nice.”
She leaned forward, tantalizingly close. “In other words… Be myself?”
“Exactly.” I grinned.
“Got it. I’ll get his feathers ruffled.”
“Then I’ll smooth them out.”
Her lips twisted into a devious smile. “This will be fun.”