It's A Crime (4 page)

“Thanks
, Tony.” I climbed into the back seat of the cab.

“My pleasure
, Miss Preston.”

I waved my hand
as we pulled away.

I walked into Luke’s
less than ten minutes later to find Michelle sitting alone at a table for two by the front door.

“Hey, smexy, is this seat taken
?” I asked using a word she hated.

Michelle
looked up and smirked. “You would be about what I’d be able to get.” Michelle was a petite, pretty brunette with soft hazel eyes. She was a tough cookie, never minced words, and she loved me like a sister, no, more than a sister, and I loved her right back.

“Hey, not nice
...
Bitch
...What, was this the last table?” I said jokingly, looking around. I pulled out the chair and sat down, hooking my bag over the back of the chair. A glass of Pinot Noir sat in front of me. I lifted the glass to my mouth and took a long sip.

“That bad
, huh?” she asked.

“Hell yeah.”  I picked the glass back up and took another sip.

Michelle rolled her eyes knowingly. She had that “here she goes again” look. I told her the short version about what transpired between me and Jonathan and she cursed in all the right places.

“That piece of shit.”
She pointed her finger in my face, before taking a sip of her wine, “He is nowhere near deserving of you. He’s lucky you stayed with him at all after he pulled that shit with that whore.”

“I don’t want to talk about it anymore.”
I shook my head. “Tell me what happened with Jeff.”

Oh, boy, was I going to regret
asking that.

Chapter 3

Cole Grayson left the meeting with the 412 Group, his nickname for Kinckerbocker Properties, Inc., the people who currently owned 412 2
nd
Avenue—the property he was hot to acquire—feeling totally used. The group was pitting bidders against each other. Something he did himself, but when on the other side of the deal, it was extremely unpleasant.

He had been hoping to charm the group with both his name and
, most importantly, his money. He was up against high-powered, well-financed bidders. Cole
knew
his competition. He previously had business dealings with three of the five.

Commercial real estate
was a competitive business to begin with, and New York City real estate was an anomaly all its own. His lawyers advised he let this one go. “There are other buildings in Manhattan.” But Cole wanted this one. He sent his attorneys away on his private jet back to Denver directly after the meeting. He had set up two meetings on Monday and planned to do his due diligence, as well as research his competition.

He went back to the Asbury Hotel, where he
kept an apartment for his frequent visits to New York City, his mood extremely volatile. He walked into his office, not prepared to see the overly large picture poised on his desk of him standing next to Lauren. His hand was possessively on her lower back and she faced him, her eyes glistening, staring into his. All fake; she was a fraud, a manipulator, but he didn’t know it then as he stood posing next to her for the photographer at their engagement party, prelude to a marriage he never wanted. 
Thank God I found out what she was before I committed; that would have been an unholy mess for sure.

Cole shook his head. Lauren was an absolutely beautiful woman, but the saying
about a sheep in wolf’s clothing wasn’t the description of her. Lauren was a snake, slithering along the floor ever ready to bite and mortally wound everyone…anyone who disagreed with her. An exquisite beauty, blade in hand, always ready to plunge it straight into his back. Cole lowered the large photo, frame and all, into the garbage next to his desk. His way of exorcising his demons, or in this case demon. He turned the monitors in his office on and quickly caught up with the financial news, his stocks strong.

He paced the living room, too restless to settle in and watch a movie. He needed to get out of the apartment. He wasn’t in the mood for the club scene
; the loud music and overzealous women would be more than an annoyance. Maybe another time, but not tonight. He wasn’t hungry, which left one option: a bar. Which one was the big question.

He had been to a decent bar across from Central Park once or twice before. It was quieter than a club, but still upbeat. A place
he could sit back, have a drink, and forget his extraordinarily disappointing day. He went into the bedroom and after getting underdressed hung his suit in the closet, and threw his shirt in the laundry chute.

He pushed a few buttons
, which turned the water on in the shower, and stepped in letting the hot water wash the day’s tension away. After getting out, he wrapped a towel around his waist and walked into the dressing room.

He pulled out his jeans and denim shirt and got dressed. He chose his custom-made leather boots, liking the way they looked with his Loro Piano leather jacket. After looking briefly at his reflection in the full length mirror, pleased with the results, he took the elevator down to the lobby and walked to the reception desk requesting a car for the night. He didn’t want to take a taxi, but was obviously not driving his car, not after the day he had.
bourbon was most definitely his medicine of choice.

When the car pulled up in front of Luke’s
, Cole climbed out of the black BMW SUV and leaned in telling the driver he’d call him when he was ready to leave. He reached out to open the bar door, holding it open for two women who eyed him as they entered.

“Oooh, hello there
, handsome,” the brunette purred.

Cole just smiled while he held the door
.
Not tonight, ladies
. Not in the mood. He walked down the length of the long bar, spotting a stool at the other end, and made his way to it.

He pulled out a bill and called the bartender over.

“Blanton’s neat.”

“Right up.” She went off to get his drink. Cole handed her the fifty he pulled out and with a wave of his hand indicated the change was hers.

“What…um, thank you very much.” She quickly shoved the money into her bra. “You’re not from New York, are you?”

“It’s that obvious?”

“Well, not really. But it was a good way to get you talking.” She smiled broadly. “Hi, I’m Sarah.”

Cole smiled back
. “Cole Grayson. Nice to know you, Sarah.” He eyed her; she was pleasant to look at and his physical aggravation over the day’s events began to diminish. But he wasn’t interested in company.

“So, where you from then?”
she asked him.

“Denver
,” he answered curtly.

“Here on business?”
she persisted.

“Yeah, you can call it that. I have another name for it…” Cole
’s smile returned to its proper place. Its effect on Sarah was immediate. She leaned in closer to the bar, her cleavage about to spill out of her top.

Nice girl, not my type.

Cole liked a woman who presented a challenge, at least a little one; he had standards.

As Sarah was called away to assist another customer, h
e sat back in the chair and turned his body sideways, trying to gauge the mood of the crowd. He liked New York City, if only for the anonymity it offered. In Denver, it was rather difficult to go out without being noticed either by the paparazzi, aggressive money-seeking woman, or pushier-than-thou businessmen. He was known in Denver. Here, he was just another guy out for a drink.

He scanned the patrons looking for interesting individuals
. He was bored, wanting a diversion. However, right now, he needed another bourbon. He looked back to the bar ready to call Sarah, only to find her on standby standing in front of him.

“There you are
. I’ll have another,” Cole requested.

Sarah giggled
. “Certainly, but this one’s on me.” She grabbed a clean glass and poured him another, this time heavy in her pour.

“Thank you
, Sarah.” He took a sip. He once again leaned back in his chair and looked down the row of booths. He briefly scanned over the tables, immediately stopping when he spotted the blonde. She sat at a table for two near the door, chatting with a tiny brunette, obviously her friend. She was what his overstimulated mind needed right now. A golden goddess, a pretty face, a woman to admire from afar. He wanted a better look, but short of walking over to her table and introducing himself, it wasn't happening. From what he could see, she was absolutely beautiful.

With my luck
, she’ll be one of those incessant chatty types.

Thinking better of his self-introduction he turned to Sarah and asked her if she knew who the woman was.

“Who are you talking about, where…?”

He indicated with his eyes, but Sarah was unable to focus on what Cole wanted her to
in this crowd. He resorted to pointing in the direction of the woman’s table. That along with the physical description was enough to guide Sarah to his intended target.

An
expression flashed across Sarah’s face that showed she knew who the woman was. He also figured whatever Sarah told him about the woman was most likely not even close to the truth. A kind of rivalry seethed from Sarah; obviously she and the woman were competitors, although he found it hard to believe. Sarah was a nice bartender; the blonde, however, was unattainable.

Cole looked back
in the direction of the blonde’s table as she got up and walked toward the bar. He nearly fell off the stool.

Well fuck me please
...
She was smokin’ hot.

She was tall, with long
, perfectly shaped legs as outlined in her tight jeans. She had large breasts, evident from the fit of her tee shirt. She looked up from the bar in his direction, trying to get Sarah’s attention. Cole was able to see she was indeed exceedingly beautiful.

“Sarah, I believe you have a customer at the end of the bar
,” Cole prodded.

He could have sworn Sarah mumble
d “
fuck me
” under her breath as she walked to the other end of the bar. He smiled broadly.

This was turning out to be a very interesting evening indeed.

Sarah came back over to where he sat, grabbing the bottle of Blanton’s with a little too much irritation, then walked to the end and poured the woman her drink. Cole leaned forward and watched the scene play out in front of him. The blonde took a sip, and looked right at him, their gazes locked. Beyond her stunning blue eyes, he immediately saw the telltale sign confirming she had never tasted bourbon before tonight. He let out a hearty chuckle at her expense.

She quickly composed herself and drained the remaining drink in one gulp, a self-satisfied smirk on her lips. She smiled in his direction.
His cock hardened.

She’s good
, this one. Very entertaining, to say the least.
             

Cole was having a good time watching the play in front of him. She ordered another immediately after and carried it with her to her table.

Now he had what he needed to approach her. She’d outright flirted with him.
My turn...
Cole thought. He stood up, and slowly walked toward her table, noticing her uneasiness at seeing him.
Here we go.

“So…
bourbon?” Cole asked her, testing the waters.

“I do now.” Her voice matched her
; sultry, sexy and totally fuckable.

This was going to be fun
; she had spirit.

“Can I get you another?”

“As soon as I finish this one, Ace”

“Ace?” Cole laughed out loud.

Yes, he was looking forward to getting to know this woman.

Chapter 4

He walked into Luke’s right past the table I sat at with Michelle. I was listening to her complain about her boyfriend and she was now moving on to her job. Feeling like I heard this story a few times before, not that I didn’t ask for it, I turned my head when I heard the door open.  I was looking for a distraction from Michelle’s incessant complaining, and I watched as a tall man walked past and chose a seat at the end of the bar.
Mmm. Tall, dark and handsome, at least from the back.

He walked with a slow but steady gait, over-confident even, and I couldn’t
help but watch as he continued to the barstool at the end of the bar. I didn’t pay too much attention as my mind was trying to focus on nodding and shaking my head at the right moment during Michelle’s tirade.

The atmosphere
inside Luke’s was a melting pot of upper West Siders, all of who wanted to see and be seen. It fell short, by a small degree, of being labeled a meat market, but was clean, the food good, the drinks made to my liking. So it never had a shortage of great looking guys, who could be found in numbers any night of the week. Which is what brought in the ladies, and I use that term loosely.