Indecent Danger (Danger Incorporated Book 3) (16 page)

Shane stood in
front of a display of stuffed teddy bears with the resort logo emblazoned in the tummy, acting as if he was a legitimate shopper. The real reason he was standing there, however, was it was the perfect vantage point to spy on Iris Perry as she thumbed through a rack of tie-dyed dresses. Travis had wanted him to take a shot at befriending her and see if she would talk. Shane had no doubt he could charm her into a drink, but from what Aubrey had said the woman was in deep denial about her boyfriend’s death. That didn’t bode well for extracting any helpful information.

Shane was almost sure that she was eyeing him when he wasn’t looking directly at her, and he was definitely sure when she worked her way through the shop until she was right beside him. With a hidden chuckle, he grabbed two bears off of the shelf and held them up.

“What do you think? The blue one or the brown one?” He gave her a dazzling smile that had melted the panties off of more women than he could count. Iris’s eyes widened in surprise, but then she smiled back and even fluttered her eyelashes. “It’s for my niece and I’m hopeless at choosing gifts. I’d appreciate your opinion.”

Her hand reached up to smooth her auburn hair before it came to rest on the brown bear, mere inches from his own.

“The brown definitely. So traditional but very adorable. How old is your niece, Mister…?”

“Just call me Shane.” He leaned closer, invading her personal space slightly. When she didn’t pull back he knew he had her interest. “Abigail is five and I always promise to get her something from all my business trips.”

He placed the blue bear back on the shelf, letting Iris hold the brown one. “What business are you in, Shane?”

“Oil and mining,” he replied, knowing exactly the reaction he was likely to get and he wasn’t disappointed. Iris wet her lips, her hand dropping from the bear and landing on his arm.

“That sounds very important. You must be a busy man so it’s sweet that you take time out to shop for your niece.”

Shane shrugged and did his best imitation of an “aw shucks” grin. “I could have one of my assistants do it I guess, but it just wouldn’t be the same.” He nodded toward the bar across the lobby. “I do have a few minutes between meetings. I don’t suppose I could buy you a drink? You know what they say about drinking alone.”

“It would be impolite not to join you,” she breathed, her voice husky. “Right now?”

Absolutely right now while you’re entranced by my charm.

“Just let me pay for this.” Shane pulled another brown bear from the shelf. “Let’s get one for you too. I think every pretty girl should get a new…toy.”

Her cheeks turned pink and she giggled as he led the way to the cashier. This was almost too easy and he felt a little dirty as he paid for the two stuffed animals. Charming women out of their clothes had been a hobby since he’d turned fifteen and had his growth spurt to over six feet tall. But all the women in the world couldn’t fill the empty space inside of him.

Only one woman could do that.

The cashier bagged his purchase and he linked Iris’s arm with his own.

“You’re a pretty smooth operator, Shane.”

Iris didn’t look like she cared much if this wasn’t a grand passion or true love.

“You’re not so bad yourself. Now let’s get that drink.”

He led her through the lobby and straight to the bar. A few drinks and Iris Perry just might tell him something useful.

‡

“I
need you
to go to New York City and talk to that bookie. I already called to have them ready the corporate jet.”

Travis pulled Shane aside while Aubrey was chatting with her sister on the phone. She’d been elated at the news that she was no longer under suspicion but of course sad that Martin and Caroline weren’t out of the woods yet. As far as Travis was concerned Detective Prather wasn’t thinking globally enough. He was concentrating only on the guests at the party. Bruce had far more enemies than just those people.

“I can do that,” Shane easily agreed. “I wouldn’t mind trying to talk to a few of Bruce’s business associates either. He had to have pissed off dozens over the years, what with his winning personality and caring attitude. I’ll fly out tonight. Are you staying here in Florida or heading back to Tremont?”

“Staying here for the time being. I hate to leave a friend when the shit has really hit the fan, if you know what I mean. I don’t know if I can help him but I want to try. Martin has done so many things for me all these years. I’d like to pay him back.”

Even now Martin was demonstrating amazing grace under pressure. Travis was more impressed than ever with his mentor and friend. Martin could have pulled the billionaire card and brought in a phalanx of attorneys, but instead he’d stayed open and accessible. The man was a class act.

“There’s only so much you can do, Trav. You can’t do the police’s job for them.”

“I’m only trying to help. I’m aware that most police officers are underpaid and overworked. I don’t doubt that Prather wants the real killer, but his limited resources don’t allow him to look further than the small pool of suspects right here at the party. He doesn’t have the manpower to look elsewhere.”

Shane tapped a note into his phone before shoving it back into his pocket. “Do you honestly believe the killer isn’t here this weekend? It’s a long shot. I agree with Prather on this one. Someone here had the best opportunity. The murderer is someone you know, maybe even someone you care about.”

Travis glanced sideways, ensuring that Aubrey was still deep in conversation with Gigi. “Is this your not so subtle way of saying you think it might be Martin? I’ve known the man for over fifteen years and he’s no killer.”

“All I’m saying is that it could be one of your friends here at the party. Someone you like and respect. You need to prepare yourself for that and not let your personal feelings blind you as we find out more information.”

There needed to be a change in subject. Now.

“Tell me what Iris said. Did you find out anything at all?”

Shane’s brows shot up and he grinned like the cat that ate the canary. “She has a boyfriend. Another one. But she never said his name. I think he was the one she was talking about to Aubrey because she mentioned he was really good looking. She didn’t have a lot to say about Bruce.”

Finally some information that might be useful.

“Two men and she had drinks with you. She’s sociable, I’ll give her that.”

“She was rather offhand about Bruce, didn’t seem all that broken up that he was gone. She spoke of her boyfriend in admiring terms so I think she’s just an incurable flirt. I got the feeling she likes the attention so I made sure to give her plenty.”

“Dating a man like Bruce I can’t say I blame her. I doubt he gave her much attention.” Travis stroked his chin in thought. “Did she tell you anything about the unknown boyfriend?”

“He’s old money,” Shane shrugged. “She mentioned his family had money but she was vague about what he did for living. But I got the feeling he was here this weekend. But that doesn’t narrow things down much. Not in this crowd.”

“Could her boyfriend have been jealous? That’s a powerful motivator for murder. He was jealous of Bruce and he killed him. It’s a viable theory. If the boyfriend is here this weekend someone must have seen them together. I’ll do some asking around while you’re in New York.”

Shane nodded toward Aubrey who was wrapping up her call. “What you really need to do is take that pretty lady out on the town tonight and celebrate her being cleared. If that’s not an excuse to romance a woman I don’t know what is.”

“Not that I need a reason but that’s a brilliant idea. I have an idea too that I think she’ll love. Text me when you get to the city. You can stay at my apartment. I’ll call the doorman and tell him to let you in.”

Aubrey deserved moonlight, roses, and champagne. She’d been under terrible stress these last two days and Travis wanted to give her a chance to relax and feel normal again.

But not too normal.

He also hoped that she was falling more in love with him after their night together. He sure as hell would never be the same. She was everything he’d hoped to find in a woman and if she didn’t want him it was going to break his heart.

Shane headed toward the door but stopped to drop a kiss on Aubrey’s forehead. Brotherly, and in no way romantic. “Make my cousin take you somewhere and treat you like a princess. No hanging around the room and ordering room service.”

Aubrey laughed, her face lit up and looking more beautiful than anyone had a right to. He felt that now familiar band tighten around his heart but he didn’t fight it, instead welcoming the warm rush of emotion. This was what love felt like and he was damn lucky to be given a chance to experience it.

“I like room service and movies but maybe we will go out tonight. I take it you won’t be joining us.”

“I’m off to the Big Apple, Bree, but I’ll be back before you know it. Try and stay out of trouble, you two. I won’t be here to supervise your activities,” Shane teased.

There was more than one kind of trouble and Travis couldn’t wait to get elbow deep in romancing his woman.

Anderson-style.

‡

T
ravis had rented
out an entire mini-amusement park for their celebration date. Just the two of them and a few acres of fun.

There was miniature golf, go-karts, water bumper boats, a batting cage, and two floors of video games. She couldn’t wait to go kill a few zombies after eating her weight in pizza, cake, and soda.

“I didn’t expect this but I love it.”

She hadn’t known exactly what to expect when he’d told her to dress casually but this was beyond any of her expectations. It was crazy but it was exactly what she would have asked for if she’d even known this was an option.

“I was hoping you’d like this. At first I was going to take you to a fancy restaurant and then maybe some dancing or a moonlit stroll down the beach. But then I thought about you and me, and honestly we’re not traditional romance people. I thought you might get a kick out of this. It is a celebration, after all.”

“How did you make this happen on such short notice?”

She shouldn’t have had to ask. She’d seen him in action too many times over the last several months and she knew how he’d done it. Money.

It made the world go round and it certainly opened doors. Or closed them to the public in this case.

“I know a few people, some friends. Do you want to eat first or play a little bit? We have the place until one in the morning.”

Aubrey looked around, turning her entire body three-hundred-sixty degrees to take in all her options. He’d given her quintessential fun on a platter but she still had to choose.

“There.” She pointed to the go-kart track. “I’m going to kick your ass.”

A slow smile spread across Travis’s handsome face.

“Care to make it interesting, kitten?”

Might as well make it fun whether she won or lost.

She took a deep breath and somehow managed to look him in the eye so he’d know she was damn serious about this. “Winner gets to be the boss when we get back to the hotel.”

He leaned forward and brushed a kiss over her cheekbone. “Just to let you know…I like to be called ‘Master’ when playing this particular bedroom game. Let’s do this.”

He looked so fucking sexy and he smelled so tantalizing Aubrey had to gulp down the lump lodged somewhere near her vocal chords. With just a smoldering look he had her dampening her panties.

“Let’s go,” she croaked, not sounding as cocky as she had the previous moment. Luckily Travis was already striding toward the go-kart track, leaving her to trail behind him questioning her wisdom in bringing out his competitive side. The Anderson boys – especially Travis – didn’t like to lose.

At all. In fact, they’d do just about anything to avoid it other than lie, cheat, or steal.

The game was on.

After buckling on helmets and climbing into the low-slung karts, they took a few practice laps before going at it seriously. Travis took the immediate lead but Aubrey stayed right on his tail, looking for an opportunity to pass. Blocking all attempts from her to make a move, he managed to stay in the lead for fourteen laps with only two to go. She’d have to do something bold or she was going to have to eat her trash talk.