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In the morning, Audie woke up, opened her bedroom door, and tripped over something large. She banged her head on the opposite wall and started cussing.
Qui
"God, Audie! You scared the shit out of me!"
"Me? You! You're pointing a gun at me! Put it away! What the hell are you doing in the hallway? Put away the gun!"
He holstered his weapon and groaned, rubbing a hand through his disheveled hair and over his scratchy beard, trying to calm his heart.
"I came to check on you last night."
She blinked at him and clambered to a stand, pulling down on her nightshirt, letting her pulse die down. "You were worried about me?"
"Yes."
OK, fine, Audie decided. He could be worried about her if he wanted. She'd find a way to live with that. She took a step forward and offered him her hand.
"Good morning, Qui
"My pleasure."
"And thanks for not shooting me."
"I aim to please."
Chapter 8
"Get the hell away from me with those things!"
Sta
"All you had to do was say 'No thanks.'"
Qui
"Jeez, Qui
"What?"
"Well, excuse me, but you don't usually ramble on like this unless you've been drinking."
Qui
Sta
"Not getting any, eh, buddy?"
Qui
"I take it she don't want to go there."
Qui
"She's a beautiful woman. Hell, she's fun, too, just wonderful. I think I'm in love with her myself." Sta
"You know, Qui
Sta
Still no reaction.
"Oh, well." He shrugged. "I'm sorry she's making you nuts."
Qui
"I think she's perfect for you. I really do. And I know it must be really hard to be close to gettin' some but not really gettin' any, if you get what I mean. It's gotta be tough, buddy."
"Are you done yet, Stan?"
"No, I'm not done, Stacey. You're going to tell me what's going on."
"No, I'm not."
"Sure you are. You're my partner and this is our case and she's our responsibility. So you're going to tell me what's going on."
Qui
"She's driving me completely crazy."
"What's she doin'?"
"Being Audie."
"I hear you."
"Being goofy and disorganized and sexy and tenderhearted. Being unable to tell a lie without falling over her own two feet. Being vulnerable." Qui
"Yeah. I got 'em. Kerr and McAffee should be here any minute." Sta
"Good. Tinley's a good guy."
"You going to keep doing the night shift?"
"As long as it's needed," Qui
Sta
"Blow me, Stan. Besides, you're on duty tonight until I get through with practice-probably ten-thirty or so."
"Yeah, I know. So, what's the deal-is she ru
"Sorry, no. She sleeps in old soccer jerseys."
Sta
Qui
Sta
Officer Rick Tinley was nice enough. He was about forty-five, soft-spoken, and had already shown her pictures of his three kids. But the idea of a policeman following her around made Audie terribly uneasy. Wasn't it supposed to have the opposite effect?
Audie was third in line at the coffee shop and kept glancing back at the officer as he leaned against the wall, nodding like one of those stupid wobbly-necked dogs in the back of a rusted-out car.
Good grief, she was bitchy this morning. Maybe once she got some caffeine in her system she'd mellow out. She rooted through her bag for some cash.
Tinley said he was on a diet and just wanted a medium house blend with skim milk, but Audie knew that only the big guns could handle her foul mood this morning. She sca
She sighed. No, it wasn't hot sex with Qui
She was weighing the advantages of a carrot muffin over her usual cranberry biscotti when the man at the front of the line turned around with his order. It was Tim Burke.
"Well, good morning, Audie. What a pleasure this is!"
Revulsion slammed into her at the sight of him, and a chill traveled up her back. Rick Tinley instantly appeared at her elbow.
At that moment, Audie felt trapped. She imagined how good it would feel just to scream at both of them to back off!
She saw the amusement flash through Tim's eyes as he smiled. "I'm glad to see that you're safe and sound. Bye now."
With a polite nod to the officer, Tim walked out onto Chicago Avenue, instantly disappearing into the morning crowds.
"This is nowhere near City Hall," Tinley said with disgust. "What's he doin' up here?"
Audie felt her heart pound and her stomach knot. With what she now knew about Tim, she couldn't bear to look at him! Was he following her? Was he dangerous?