Land of Entrapment (28 page)

Her tone was gentle.

I licked my lips nervously but did as she requested.

“Bra, too,” she added, back still to me.

“Geez, Sage. If you wanted to get me naked—”

“Eventually. And I can guarantee you won’t be arguing with me when I do.”

I almost choked on my breath but I took my bra off and stretched out on the bed, stomach down. I felt her straddle my lower back, thighs on either side of me. Oh, my God. Why? Why must she do this to me? The skin of her thighs brushed my sides. I heard her squeeze lotion into the palm of her hand and then she rubbed her hands together a bit, warming it. Before I was emotionally prepared, her hands met my bare back and I almost lost my mind. She started by caressing the muscles along my spine and shoulder blades then she increased the pressure, stopping a few times to add more lotion. I was caught between utter relaxation and complete arousal.

“God, that feels so good,” I muttered. I heard her laugh.

“Yes, it does.” She moved her hands to my lower back and kneaded carefully. “Nice art,” she added, in reference to the six-inch rendition of the jackal-headed Egyptian god Anubis on my shoulder blade.

He was kneeling, holding a scale. On one side was the feather of truth and on the other a heart. If a heart was lighter than the feather, that person had lived a good life and passed into all the good things the afterlife offered. If not, well, the person got stuck in the Egyptian version of hell. In my tattoo, the heart and the feather were equally balanced. “I don’t think you’ll need to worry,” Sage continued. “Your heart is much lighter than the feather.”

“You think so?” I mumbled.

“I know so.”

“Your hands are amazing,” I continued, not sure where the words were coming from.

“I’ll bet you say that to all the girls,” she said, teasing.

“Nope.” I sank into the heat beneath her palms and my attraction to her. Her fingers were on my shoulders now, rubbing. Her right hand worked on my neck and the muscles in her thighs contracted against my skin as she moved above me. “Sage, you’re a problem for me.”

“A problem, huh? How’s that?” She squeezed more lotion into her palm. Her voice was calm.

“You make me feel things.” God, I sounded and felt like I was drunk.

“And that’s a problem because?” Her hands moved the length of my back.

“I don’t know. Shit, I don’t know anything anymore.”

She stopped suddenly. “K.C., why do you look for problems in the middle of solutions?” She ran her fingers through my hair. “This is about me, Sage Crandall, wanting you, K.C. Fontero. And it’s about you, K.C. Fontero, wanting me, Sage Crandall. Where is the problem in that?”

I felt her lean down, felt her lips briefly on the back of my neck. “Swimming against the current is a lot harder than swimming with it.” Her hands were on my shoulders. “I’m not going anywhere. I want to know you better. So let me.” She pushed gently off of me. “Get some sleep. I’ll see you in the morning.” I grabbed my tee and put it on when she went into the bathroom to return the lotion to its rightful spot.

When she emerged, I blocked her way and slid my arms around her, pulling her against me.

“Thank you,” I breathed against her ear. Her arms encircled my neck. “I’m trying,” I said softly.

“I know,” she whispered. I felt her lips on my cheek. “It’s okay to jump.” She hugged me closer then released me. I followed her to the door. She turned, traced my jawline with her fingertips. “I’ve waited this long for you. I don’t mind waiting longer.” She held my gaze then turned and headed for the main house. I watched her ascend the steps.

“Good night, Sage.”

She paused. “Good night, K.C.” And then she went inside.

I shut the door and locked it and sat on the couch in the dark, thinking. I had dated here and there since Melissa. Nothing really serious, though. I had missed what I had with Melissa, but I wasn’t sure I missed Melissa during the years away. I missed the idea of her more. Life hadn’t been easy with her or her demons. Which isn’t to suggest that I wouldn’t do it again. I had fallen in love with her and I had loved her until it was done. On some levels, I loved her still.

I always would. She was part of me and my past, after all. But I didn’t feel for her now what I felt for her then. And what I felt for her then was nothing like what I was beginning to feel for Sage. I was different now, after all. I smiled in the dark. And Sage was completely different, too. Like nothing I’d ever experienced. Take the path, I heard my inner voice say.

Take it.

It might have been an epiphany I had that night.

Or it might just have been the effects of a great massage from an astounding woman. All I know is that I let go of Melissa and I let go of the years in between and it was a physical sensation, like a shedding of skin. Abuelita told me once years ago that opportunities and hard work are sometimes two sides of the same coin. To get to one, you need the other. I stood up and went to the bedroom. I wanted to give Sage my undivided attention and I couldn’t do that just yet. Not until this thing with Megan came to some sort of conclusion.

Chapter Sixteen

I HATED THE tattoos Dragon inked on my inner forearms, no matter that they were temporary. A small clenched fist surrounded by a Roman wreath-looking thing marked my inner left forearm, signifying white power. On my inner right he drew the number 88. Fortunately, they weren’t more than an inch in size. Small enough not to attract attention from people who didn’t know anything about white supremacists but just large enough to draw attention from people who had those inclinations.

He wouldn’t take money so I gave him a six-pack of expensive beer instead and he was very appreciative. I was glad I hadn’t gotten tatted until Monday night because I’d have made a very different impression at the County Assessor’s with them, which was where I spent a good two hours Monday afternoon. The woman was very friendly and called the office up in Santa Fe since Edgewood was in the lower southwest corner of that county. I learned that 457 Partridge Lane was owned by Geraldine Hastings, Raymond’s grandmother.

After a search, I discovered that she didn’t actually live there. Rather, she was in assisted living in Albuquerque. That might mean a variety of things.

Maybe she didn’t know about Raymond’s activities.

Or maybe she did and didn’t care, as long as the mortgage got paid. Or maybe she didn’t owe anything else on the house and Ray told her he’d take care of it for her. Whatever was going on, he clearly wasn’t doing a very good job by her.

Sage was busy most of the day with an installation and then dinner with friends, so I didn’t see her at all.

She invited me but I had to head over to Dragon’s at eight and didn’t leave his place until around nine. I was tired when I got back to Megan’s and I didn’t feel like doing anything. I turned on the TV then wandered into the kitchen for an iced tea. I checked in with Melissa. She was packing. Hillary was out of town and Melissa suspected she was at her brother’s house in Santa Fe. I told her I’d check in the next day.

I let Chris know about the status of the Edgewood house that afternoon after I finished with the County Assessor. She was still waiting to hear from Colorado and Utah. I felt cranky and out of sorts so I turned off the TV and put my workout clothes on. Maybe a run would help. This area was primarily residential so I wasn’t too worried about traffic. I ran in the middle of the streets for about thirty minutes, working up a good sweat. Back at Megan’s, I showered, mindful of the tattoos, and pulled on a pair of boxers and a muscle tee. The edge of my irritation dulled, I headed to bed.

I HAD JUST finished eating more fresh cinnamon rolls with Sage the next morning. She had left for campus and I was sighing happily as I sat on the couch in Megan’s living room, staring at the ceiling. I liked that this thing between us felt untapped but familiar. I liked the flirtatious tension we shared. I liked how my stomach jerked and my heart lodged in my throat when she looked at me. And I especially liked how it felt to allow myself the luxury of being in the moment with someone who moved me deeply.

I was grinning like an idiot when my phone rang. I checked the ID. “Hey, Detective Magnifica.”

I heard Chris smile. “Hola, chica. Still haven’t heard. But I had a talk with Mark and we want you to wear a wire at your meeting today.”

My coffee cup froze on its journey to my mouth. I set the cup on the coffee table and focused on the call.

“Uh—”

“Don’t worry. I’ll come by at three. We’re trying some new stuff out and I think you’ll approve.”

“I’m not sure I’m down with this.”

Pause. “Here’s my thinking. You’re going to meet with Cody anyway. So why not help build a better case against him? I’ll monitor you and get the recording.”

“What if I can’t get anything out of him?”

“Then we don’t have anything. But this is an opportunity that’ll help everybody in the long run.”

I stared into my cup. This was way too much like real police work and it weirded me out a little. “Chris, I thought you said that there’s a reason civilians don’t do stuff like this.”

“You’re right. I did say that. But the reality is, you’re going to meet with him anyway and I would much rather be able to hear exactly what goes on than wonder whether you’re okay or not.”

She had a point. Even though I was meeting him in a public place in broad daylight, he might try something. I doubted it, since if he did try to start anything, he’d be on the outs with the shop. Still, you never know. That didn’t make me feel much better about a wire. “I don’t want to fuck anything up.”

“You won’t. And I’ll be really close. Don’t worry about that. I will not let you do this without back-up.”

She waited. I didn’t say anything. When she spoke again, she sounded contrite. “Look, I don’t want you going into this blind. I want to make sure you’re okay and I can better monitor that if you have a wire.”

That was an even better point. I relaxed. “Okay.

I’ll be here.”

“Excellent.” She sounded as relieved as I felt. “See you then. Bye.”

“Bye.” I flipped my phone closed and set it carefully on the coffee table, like it was some kind of explosive device. I sat staring at it for a while. A wire.

Whoa. This put a whole new imperative on how my conversation with Cody would go this afternoon. God, I hope I’m up to this.

TUESDAY MORNING CRAWLED into Tuesday afternoon. I kept myself busy. I checked Megan’s e-mail, checked my e-mail, called Grandpa, then Mom, and then checked in with my tree-hugging sister Kara.

Everything seemed fine with the family. Joely was busy in Germany but I had gotten an e-mail from her and already responded. I then cleaned the house, starting with the kitchen. By the time Chris arrived, the place looked like it was ready for Better Homes and Gardens.

“Damn. Sage is definitely a good influence on you.”

“Oh, no. I’m doing this for you. ” I air-kissed her and sashayed around the living room with my dust cloth.

She laughed and handed me a car key with an automatic door clicker thing. I looked at her, bemused. “You bought me a car? Sweet! I’ll clean the house more often, honey!”

“Police work is trying to get into the twenty-first century. That’s your wire.”

“Shut up. ” I held it up and looked at it. “You are so shitting me.”

“Nope.” She handed me a carabiner. “Clip it to this and then clip it onto your belt loop. The latest fashion accessory. Plus you’ll look so butch. You’ll have Sage falling all over you.”

I blushed and Chris grinned. She brushed past me and got herself an iced tea out of the fridge.

“So it’s wireless. What’s its range?” I clipped the carabiner to my belt loop.

Chris stood in the doorway to the kitchen and leaned on the wall. “It’s supposed to be up to fifteen hundred feet, but it works best closer. I like within a hundred feet, but five hundred’s probably okay.

We’re doing trial runs on a few.” She took a long drink from her bottle and screwed the cap back on.

“Okay, let’s do some testing. Stand outside and let me see how the reception is. Try not to move around too much and make it bump against you. You don’t need to worry about talking loudly or doing anything differently. Come on.” She picked my cell phone up from the coffee table and handed it to me.

I followed her outside and waited as she went back to the street. A minute dragged past. My phone rang.

“Okay, esa. Start talking after we hang up.”

“Okee dokee. Bye.” I ended the call and started rambling about anything and everything in my usual speaking voice. I wandered over to the chile and tomato plants and talked to them. Then I started giving a lecture on political movements. My phone rang again.

“Nice! Pretty clear. When I hang up, finish that political stuff. That was kind of interesting.”

She hung up before my retort. When she returned, we went inside and caught up a bit. She still hadn’t heard anything from Colorado so there would be no arresting Cody today. Oh, well. We finished our iced teas. She was watching me.

“Ready?”

I wiped my palms nervously on my shorts.

“Thanks for coming with me.”

“Wouldn’t miss it. Remember, try not to think of it as a microphone. That’s just where you hang your car key. And don’t try to figure out where I am.”

“Okay.” I looked at her, a little freaked.

“Don’t worry. If anything happens, I’ve got your back.”

I knew she did. But I was still nervous. We went outside and I locked up. Once in my car, I rolled down the window. Chris leaned in.

“Kase, this is your stuff. You know how they operate. You know what they need to hear to get them to talk to you. If I didn’t think you were up to this, we wouldn’t be having this conversation.”

“Thanks.”

“Suerte. I’ll see you in a few.” She squeezed my shoulder and stepped back as I pulled away from the curb. I needed to get my thoughts in order and I hoped the brief drive would help.

I arrived at Eight Ball with about ten minutes to spare. This time I drove through the alley that separated the strip mall from the residential neighborhood that backed up against it. Yep. Parking in back. Five other cars and a truck were parked here as well. I decided to walk around to the front, which took an extra couple of minutes.