04 - Shock and Awesome (13 page)

 
   
"I know, right?" I heaved a breath and smoothed my damp dress with my free hand. "He didn't seem too thrilled, so I just ran."

 
   
Lily pointed with her index finger. "With the champagne?"

 
   
My shoulders slumped as I looked down, spying the bottle and the dead wire I pulled from my bosom, which it was wrapped around. "I forgot I was holding it." I also forgot that I was sticking David with the bill, but my date was a millionaire; and really, it would be the worst date story he could ever tell, which made it worth it. Plus, we hadn't even ordered before he caught fire. He would totally get sympathy dates after this. He might even catch a nurse. A fertile one.

 
   
"That's a good vintage," Lily decided, peering at the label. "Dom
Perignon
. Nice. Want me to get you a glass?"

 
   
"No. It's still corked. We should have it when the baby is born."

 
   
"
Frickin
' A! I love a silver lining."

 
   
"Can I cry now?"

 
   
"Sure. Why not? And maybe we should call the hospital and see what happened to your date?"

 
   
"He's not burned, just damp... and pissed... and a little bald."

 
   
"A little?"

 
   
I slumped onto the couch after Lily guided me to it with a little push. I thought about my last sight of David, drenched and hairless. "Completely bald. Maybe a little crispy."

 
   
"Worst dating story ever."

 
   
"Thank you." My stomach gave a rumble. "I'm hungry. We didn't even get dinner. Probably a good thing. David wanted to order rare steak."

 
   
Lily reached for the sheaf of takeout menus she kept under the coffee table. "Yuck. What are you in the mood for?"

 
   
"Is it bad if I say barbecue?" I winced, but my mouth watered all the same.

 
   
"Creepy munchies,
Lexi
. Remind me to never watch
Silence of the Lambs
with you."

 
   
"I can't eat lamb. They're too cute."

 
   
"But the smell of burning head puts you in the mood for a little barbecue?"

 
   
Hearing her put it that way, I had to admit she had a point. "Let's order pizza. Vegetarian," I suggested and Lily resisted a laugh.

 
   
~

 
   
I left the champagne with Lily. After all, the less reminders of David Markham, the better. "Great date," snorted Flaherty when I called him back after checking my phone and finding two voicemails and three texts asking me to get in touch. In my haste to leave, I forgot about him listening in nearby. I mentally thanked the heavens and stars I disconnected my wire before I got to Lily's.

 
   
"The best," I agreed. "So glad you could make it."

 
   
"You should have seen your date after you left. A catastrophe. A freakin' catastrophe!"

 
   
"Want to rub it in some more?"

 
   
"Like salve on a wound?" asked Flaherty with a snigger.

 
   
I winced. "Do you have to tell Solomon?"

 
   
"You can."

 
   
I thought about it, how mortifying it would be. "No, that's okay. You do it. Hey, how much did you record?" My heart thumped in the silence as I waited for his answer.

 
   
"Everything." With a peal of laughter, Flaherty hung up, before I even got a chance to ask if David was okay.

 
   
The aftermath, being alone again, and the enormous feeling of being let down, reminded me of the time right after I was attacked by
Somper
the Stomper, a psychotic soldier and murderer behind a drug smuggling ring. I'd just gotten home from the hospital for a short time when my door buzzer rang one night, only weeks ago.

 
   
I let Solomon in and we talked for more than an hour, sitting cozily on my couch like old friends, like lovers, and not at all like colleagues. He held both my hands in his and told me he loved me, but couldn't be with me right now, not while we both needed to get our heads straight. I knew he was right - I needed time to get over Maddox and make sense of what happened: whether Montgomery's hottest detective betrayed me or told me the truth about being undercover while kissing his undercover partner. It still choked me a little to hear Solomon lay out our current situation, sensibly and plain. He didn't explain what he needed to get his head straight about, and I was too choked up to ask or listen, the emotions of the past weeks finally registering. I certainly wasn't ready for the declaration of undying love that part of me wanted to hear from Solomon, but it was an amazing declaration nonetheless. And one I would never forget.

 
   
It wasn't until later, after Solomon left, when I was all sore and alone, that I realized I didn't tell him I loved him too. Truth was, I didn't know, so I said nothing. And I still didn't know how I felt. So, he was absolutely right that I needed to get my head straight.

 
   
One thing was undeniable though. I was butt-ugly jealous of the beautiful woman who answered his door; and that alone told me one thing: that I wasn't over Solomon at all.

 
   
Chapter Six

 
   
I would rather have
slunk
into work unobtrusively, but someone helpfully left a copy of the Montgomery Gazette on my desk. The headline read GREAT HAIRBALLS OF FIRE.

 
   
"Jeez," I muttered, tossing it to one side as I imagined the
Chics
reading the article over breakfast at their new apartment. "News travels fast."

 
   
"Heard you had a hot date last night," sniggered Fletcher as he walked by, a thick brown file in his hand. I stuck my tongue out at him. Okay, sticking my tongue out wasn't the smartest thing to do, but it gave me a brief surge of satisfaction. So I did it again when he passed by me again, this time
fileless
. He ignored me as he knocked on Solomon's door and stuck his head into the small office. I didn't catch what he said, but a moment later, Fletcher was out the door, grabbing his jacket and camera from where it lay atop his desk. "Later, hot stuff," he said, clicking his fingers at me.

 
   
Pulling my laptop from my shoulder bag, I leaned back onto one of the leather desk chairs Solomon finally furnished the office with. I began powering the machine up so I could write my report of last night's events. Before I could even enter my password, Solomon called my name. This may or may not have been a good thing, because so far the only thing I decided to write was "Oops."

 
   
"How you doing?" asked Solomon as I entered. He signaled for me to close the door behind me. I didn't think I was about to get fired for… well, setting someone on fire, given that Solomon usually liked the door closed during private meetings. He didn't mind whether the lights were on or off though. Wink-wink.

 
   
"David Markham was discharged from the hospital this morning," he told me. "Minor burns, but nothing too serious. He won't need surgery."

 
   
I let out the breath I was holding in. "That's good news."

 
   
Solomon gave me a skeptical look and I sucked the breath back in, waiting for whatever else he had to tell me. "That's the good news," he confirmed. "The bad news is David Markham's not our guy."

 
   
"I guess it was too much to hope we would be looking for a bald, angry thief in the near future." Solomon clearly struggled not to give me an eye roll, so I blustered on, latching onto the key point he just revealed. "Hey, how do you know he's not our guy?"

 
   
"There was a theft last night while Markham was getting treatment at the hospital. A big jewelry haul. I haven't seen the itemized list or photographs yet, but Maddox said it amounted to around a hundred thousand dollars."

 
   
"Wow."

 
   
"There's more bad news. We checked on the victim's recent dates and they included each of the three remaining suspects. There're a few others, but these are the only ones she has in common with all the other victims, so I'd say we're on the right track."

 
   
I brightened. I wouldn't have to date David again. My fertility was safe. Phew! "That sounds like good news!"

 
   
"It gets worse."

 
   
"It would, wouldn't it?" I sighed. I leaned against the doorjamb and waited for whatever bad news Solomon was going to unleash. Couldn't he just give me a list to peruse in my own time? Like over cocktails.

 
   
"Markham could press charges for assault."

 
   
I gasped. "Who assaulted him?"

 
   
Solomon gave me a pointed look. His nostrils flared and he nipped the corner of his bottom lip. Mmmm. "You."

 
   
Wait. What? "Oh yeah. No. Wait. I did not! If anything, he should sue the manufacturers of his hair product. Nothing so flammable should be allowed near an open flame. What a
doofus
! Is he really going to press charges? I'm so not going on a second date with him now! It's over. Um, can you tell him that? Please."

 
   
"You won't have to since he's in the clear now. Don't worry about the charges. I doubt they'll stick. Between MPD, Million Matches, and me, we'll make them go away."

 
   
"Thank you." I slumped in my seat and took a moment to admire my hot pink nail polish. No chips. I decided to take it as a sign that today would be awesome. Well, after this hiccup, it would be. "You know Maddox and Blake were at the gallery last night?" I asked, dropping the information casually.

 
   
"I heard the conversation on Flaherty's audio tape."

 
   
Of course he did. I struggled to remember if I said anything embarrassing. There was that bit about dating Blake, so... probably. "I thought we were doing this investigation low key. If MPD keep turning up on my dates, the suspect might get suspicious. I think the fewer eyeballs, the better."

 
   
"I agree. I didn't like the idea that they were going to be there."