Chapter Eleven.
April
“Stone,” I called as he walked to a vehicle. Stone looked up, surprised, and stopped on the sidewalk as I approached.
“April.”
“Um, I’d like to say thanks for the voucher. I’m headed to the shop now. There were some dragon-eye dice I wanted, so… thank you,” I said lamely.
“Damn, that was a good guess that you’d still be addicted to the game.”
“It’s a hard one to quit playing. Um… I suppose I’d better be off.” I felt awkward in the light of Stone’s smile—clearly happy that he’d got my gift right.
I turned and began walking away, then I stopped. Stone seemed startled at my abrupt turn and quickly lifted his eyes from where he’d been gazing at my ass. A faint blush lit Stone’s cheeks before he squared his shoulders and met my gaze defiantly.
“Fancy a drink tonight?” I blurted, and again Stone looked like I’d hit him with a two-by-four.
“Sure. Oh, shit, I can’t.”
And there it was: the rejection. I nodded and turned away. “April, I’m on a stakeout tonight. Unless you feel like joining me, can we arrange for tomorrow night?”
“Surveillance?” I demanded, cocking my head. That was something I’d never done. It could be interesting.
“Yeah, I’m a PI now.”
“You are?” I exclaimed. Well, that was a surprise.
“Yup.” Stone’s smile was warm.
“Can I come?”
Stone blinked. “You want to join me on a stakeout?”
“It’s an experience I’ve not had before.”
“Okay, I’ll pick you up at half six. Wrap up; it’s going to be chilly tonight.”
“See you then.” I walked away feeling a warmth in my chest I’d not felt for a long time. I couldn’t have stopped my smile for a million bucks!
Harlequin
Goddamn, she was cute. April bounced down the steps of Clara’s house, and it was hard to suppress my grin.
I don’t know what she’d expected, but she’d clearly watched too many movies.
April’s hair was tucked up into a bun underneath a dark beanie.
Black jeans and a long-sleeved sweater matched it.
She carried a bag and two large drink containers.
April had also put two streaks on each cheek for blending in.
“I didn’t know how to dress!” she exclaimed with a laugh. “Was the camouflage too much?”
“A little,” I said, pulling out a tissue and trying to wipe the stripes off. Instead, I smeared them across her face. “Shit, I made that worse!”
We both began laughing as April pulled some wet wipes from her purse and cleaned them off.
“Guess that was stupid,” she admitted. “However, I’ve never done a stakeout.”
“They’re pretty boring,” I said as we walked towards the vehicle I was driving tonight. Slaughter had five cars, which the company used for things like this to save us from using our own. It helped to rotate them so a perp couldn’t easily spot our vehicle.
“We’re using this. It’s a common enough make of car, we won’t stand out.”
“Who are we watching?” April asked. She headed around to the passenger side, and I just beat her to open the door. April smiled shyly as she climbed in.
“We’re monitoring someone who I think knows more about an eighteen-year-old girl’s disappearance than he’s letting on. Do you remember Darren Rogers? His daughter, Julie, went missing six months ago. The cops haven’t got a lead. I confronted this guy two days ago, and something’s off.”
“Off how?” April asked as I started the car and drove away.
“Margrave’s whole demeanour is wrong. I caught him in a lie.
He claims the last time he saw Julie was when she left the library.
Margrave’s statement says he spotted Julie in passing.
However, that day, the library was shut, so he lied.
But Margrave did describe exactly what Julie was wearing, which is worrying. ”
“How old is this asshole?” April asked.
“Forty-seven.”
“Far too old for a teenager to run away with him.”
“Yeah, and the sleaze just rolls off him. I’m convinced Margrave knows more than he’s admitting,” I replied.
“Do you think he killed Julie?”
“Don’t know, April, but Margrave sets all my triggers off.”
“If you believe Margrave’s dirty, then I’m sure he is. Let’s go find us a criminal,” April said with a grin.
April
“Okay, this is now boring,” I complained three hours later.
“Warned you!” Stone replied with an amused smile.
“I’m even bored with the snacks and games,” I griped, and Stone laughed.
“Yeah, stakeouts are tedious but necessary. I don’t think Margrave is going to do anything tonight, but I need to stay at least a couple more hours.”
“It’s fine, this is the most unusual date I’ve ever had though. In fact, I bet it’s in the top ten of the weirdest dates of all time.”
Stone became still, and whatever he’d been about to say died as he gazed at me, startled. “This is a date?”
Shit, I’d fucked up. I’d believed that by asking him out for coffee, Stone would realise this was a date. However, it seemed he’d thought this was… what? A friend hangout? Fuck my life! Had I mistaken Stone’s kiss for more interest than he actually felt?
“Sorry, I just… I’ll call a taxi and make my way home. I wouldn’t want to pull you away, you might miss a crucial point.”
“April…”
“No, it’s fine. I assumed something I shouldn’t have. Hell, we know what assuming means; it makes an ass out of you and me. Look, I’ll…”
Stone sighed loudly, and his hands grabbed me as he hauled me across the seats and kissed me soundly.
My words died as Stone’s lips moulded to mine, and my skin heated as I tasted coffee and mint on his breath.
Stone’s scent rolled over me, reminding me of times bygone.
There was a lot of intensity in the kiss, as his fingers began roaming my body.
Goosebumps appeared where Stone touched me, as one hand cupped the back of my head. My pussy fluttered, and heat pooled between my legs. My hand automatically covered Stone’s cock, which pressed rigidly against his jeans. I rubbed it hard, and his hips moved of their own volition.
“April,” Stone groaned as he broke off the kiss.
“This is a date?” I asked, dazed, and Stone laughed.
“No. Tomorrow night I’ll take you out. Is that what you want, April? A relationship?”
I hesitated before nodding. A small voice deep inside was telling me this was a mistake, that I shouldn’t trust him again. But as Clara said, he’d grown up, had changed, hopefully.
“Yes,” I said, squashing the misgivings. If Stone betrayed me this time, I’d gut him.
◆◆◆
I was smiling as I left work. Stone was picking me up at six but had refused to tell me where we were going.
Last night had been a tedious, futile waste of time.
Margrave hadn’t done anything, even though Stone and I had stayed until the early hours of the morning.
Hell, come ten o’clock, I’d fallen asleep in the car and only woken up when Stone had driven me back home.
We’d kissed again before I let myself in, and then hurried to bed.
I couldn’t wait for my shift to be over. After lunch with Clara, I planned to pamper myself with a bubble bath, shave my legs and other lady bits, and get ready. Stone had texted me telling me to dress up, and I guessed we were going to a restaurant.
I beeped my keys to unlock my car and screeched as a hand closed over my mouth, and I was physically picked up. A bag was placed over my head as I struggled to break free, and something jabbed sharply into my temple.
“Keep struggling, and I’ll pull the trigger. Please come calmly, and nobody will get hurt,” a voice murmured.
I stiffened and allowed my attacker to lead me away. The person helped me into a van, and a door slid shut.
“You’re a nurse,” a man asked.
“Yes.”
“We don’t want to harm you. A colleague of ours is injured and needs some medical treatment. Help him, and we’ll set you free,” he replied.
I was scared stupid. They’d left my hands unbound, but I didn’t try to remove the hood. If I saw their faces, they definitely wouldn’t leave me alive to identify them.
“Okay,” I whispered.
“Lady, honest, nobody here will harm you,” the man soothed, and I nodded in my hood. Forgive me if I didn’t believe him!
We drove for what seemed like hours before the car stopped. I tried listening for identifying noises, but all I could hear was the crunch of boots on stone. Someone held my elbow.
“Come with me.”
“I don’t have a lot of choice,” I replied, fear making me prickly.
“Stop that humour, lady, the boss doesn’t like mouthy females,” I was told.
The boss? That meant these were criminals. I was in deep shit. Two men flanked me as they led me into what could be my final resting place. As much as I tried to keep track of the twists and turns, I got lost after six. Finally, they came to a stop.
“Wait here. Someone will come and get you. Don’t bother screaming. There’s nobody near who’ll help, and the boss is already in pain,” the guy said and then disappeared.
I tentatively lifted my hood and saw I was in a locked room. Plaster fell from the walls, and there was a damp smell. This was an abandoned building. A warehouse, I thought, which meant the guy had spoken the truth. There was nothing here that could help me identify this shithole.
I curled up in the corner and waited. Why was I here?
Harlequin
“Harlequin, a call came into nine-one-one. A nurse named Teagan just called in a kidnapping of her colleague, April Graham, from the staff car park.”
I spun and faced Diesel, feeling the blood drain from my face.
“What?”
“Your nurse, April, has been kidnapped,” Diesel replied.
“No!”
“We’ve got people already on it,” Diesel stated as I began heading for the door.
“I need to get out there.”
“Stay where you are, prospect,” Chance ordered, coming through the clubhouse doors. “There’s no point running around Spearfish like an idiot. You don’t want to be on the wrong side of the city when April’s located.”
“Prez, I can’t sit here and do fuck-all!” I growled out.
Chance stared, but I held his gaze. A lesser man would have flinched, “Thought April meant nothing.”
“I was wrong. What do we know?”