9. Callum #3
“Winifred Rowley,” Aria snarls. “Are you attempting to remove a Level 4 Restricted Municipal Codex from my archive without a Scholar’s Clearance Pass?”
Shit shit shit shit.
Winifred stiffens, her knuckles turning white around the iron edges of the book. She opens her mouth—probably to offer some brilliant lie—but Aria is already reaching for a heavy brass bell on her desk. “That is a Class Two municipal violation. I am calling the Town Sentries—”
“It’s mine,” I cut in, stepping directly between Aria and the counter.
Aria pauses, her hand hovering an inch above the bell. “I beg your pardon?”
Before my brain can fully process the tactical risk, I close the distance between myself and Winifred. I reach out, wrapping my right arm firmly around her waist and pulling her flush against my side.
Winifred lets out a quiet gasp as her hip hits my thigh. I feel the sudden, rigid tension in her muscles, the heat of her bare midriff radiating right through the side of my shirt where her cropped tank top rides up.
I look Aria dead in the eye. “The book is for me, ma’am. I asked her to pull it.”
Aria narrows her huge, magnified eyes. “To check out a Restricted Codex, one must possess an official Municipal Research Pass issued by the Mayor’s office or a certified institution. Neither of you has such credentials.”
“I have these,” I say smoothly, reaching into my back pocket with my free hand and flipping open my leather badge wallet.
The silver shield of my precinct catches the dim shop light.
Thank god this was in my coat pocket the night I left my truck.
“I’m Detective McKinley. I’m currently conducting an official security appraisal on behalf of…
local law enforcement regarding recent perimeter anomalies. ”
Stella’s head snaps up, her green eyes widening even more in pure awe at the bullshit spilling out of my mouth.
“An appraisal?” Aria repeats, her tone shifting from furious to deeply curious.
“That’s right,” I lie seamlessly, resting my hand firmly on the small of Winifred’s back.
My thumb rests just against the skin exposed above the waistband of her patterned skirt.
“And part of my agreement with Mayor Brightfang involves evaluating high-priority historic structures for municipal security grants. If The Raven’s Quill meets the safety standards for historical preservation, you’d qualify for exclusive town funding and a primary archival tax exemption. ”
Aria’s mouth opens slightly. Her hands lower from the bell. “A tax exemption? On historic preservation?”
“Guaranteed,” I say, leaning down just enough so my jaw is inches from Winifred’s dark hair. The scent of strawberry shampoo washes over me, sweet and distracting. I look down at her, watching a pink flush creep to her cheekbones.
“I asked my girlfriend here to retrieve the codex for me while I spoke with you,” I add smoothly, letting my knuckles lightly brush against the soft fabric of her top.
“She knows your layout better than I do. And frankly, I was too busy watching her walk through the aisles to look for the shelf myself.”
Winifred’s breath hitches. Her silver eyes snap up to mine, wide, startled, and entirely stripped of her usual sarcastic armor.
For the first time since I met her, she’s completely speechless.
Her lips part slightly, her gaze dropping to my mouth for a fraction of a second before darting back to my eyes.
“Girlfriend?” Aria breathes out, her sharp face completely melting into a look of scandalous, gossipy delight.
She looks from my broad shoulders down to Winifred’s flushed face, clapping her hands together.
“Well…my goodness. A detective and a…well, I suppose you have improved your taste in company, Winifred.”
“He’s…very persuasive,” Winifred manages to choke out, her voice a little rasper than usual. She clears her throat, trying to regain her footing, but she doesn’t pull away from my side. If anything, she leans into me just a fraction more.
Aria instantly pulls a parchment scroll from under the desk, dipping her quill in ink. “If this is for an official security appraisal—and an evaluation for the Mayor’s grant—I can issue a Twenty-Four Hour Temporary Research Pass under the Detective’s name.”
“That would be deeply appreciated, Aria,” I say, giving her a charming nod while my thumb quietly traces a slow, steadying circle against Winifred’s waist.
Two minutes later, after Aria signs the parchment with a flourish and hands over the heavy iron book, the three of us—and one triumphant black cat—step out of the shop and back into the cool mountain air.
I reluctantly lift my arm from Winifred’s waist, stepping back.
The sudden absence of her body heat against my side feels startlingly cold.
Stella lets out a long, wheezing breath, clutching her chest. “Holy shit, McKinley! This whole time I thought you were just a grumpy cop or something. That was an absolute masterclass! I, for one, thought we were all thoroughly fucked.”
“I do my best,” I say, keeping my eyes straight ahead.
Beside me, Winifred is unusually quiet. She shifts the heavy codex in her arms, her dark bangs casting a shadow over her eyes, but the pink flush on her cheeks hasn’t faded.
“I must admit,” Jett purrs from her shoulder, trailing a black tail past her cheek. “The ‘girlfriend’ line was a touch cliché, but the tax exemption strategy was brilliant.”
“Shut up, Jett,” Winifred mutters, though there’s no bite in her tone. She finally turns her head, looking up at me through her lashes with a little smirk. “Girlfriend, huh? You’re a really good actor, loverboy.”
I slide my hands deeper into my jacket pockets. “Don’t let it get to your head, Winifred. It was purely tactical. Adapt and improvise.”
“Too late,” she says, her smirk turning into a dimpled grin that hits me straight in the gut. And considerably south of it. My jeans all of a sudden feel way too fucking small.
She leans into my space just enough that I catch that faint trace of strawberries again.
“My ego is already through the roof. Though, if we’re being honest, Detective, you looked a little too comfortable pulling me against your hip back there.
If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were using municipal fraud as an excuse to hold me. ”
I let out an involuntary scoff, shaking my head. “You’re completely off your rocker, woman.”
“And yet, here you are,” she shoots back as she turns to walk down the cobblestone street. “Come on, loverboy. Let’s go break some more rules.”