Second Chance Hero (6 page)

For five seconds he stood there silently watching her and finally he sighed and nodded. “You’re right.”

That’s it. Two words. The right words, but still, she expected more.

“So?”

Another five seconds of silence served as her answer before he spoke again. “So I’m sorry. I just…” he stopped and looked at the bag of papers then back at her as he shrugged and continued. “I just don’t want you mixed up in this, but it’s too late. You’re in it. And I don’t want you in it alone. Ryan will use you any way he can. Alone that would put you in far more danger than with me. So yeah, I won’t screw with your brain like that again. It was wrong, and I’m sorry.”

Holy cow. Lil didn’t quite know how to respond so she settled for “Good” and picked the bag up off the table, but David wrapped his hand around her shoulder when she started to walk away.
 

“We still have to play the part when we’re out in public, Lil. It’s the only way.”

She stepped away from him and answered as she continued walking away. “In public we’ll do whatever it takes. You know that’s not what I’m talking about.”

Later Lil sat at the breakfast bar looking over the papers and trying to ignore the way her stomach growled at the scent of fresh pound cake. She was going to gain a hundred pounds living with him.

A monster died on the big screen television as he clobbered it with a boxing glove.

She wished finding and killing monsters were as easy as PlayStation made it.
 

Right now it felt like she was looking over the same words she’d already read. The same fragments and run-ons and usage errors in Solidad’s dreams of finding the perfect man and being the perfect mother and keeping the perfect house. Miguel’s same clearly defined goals, complete with timeline for graduating from law school and helping his family escape poverty.

She took a bite of the lemon pound cake and let it dissolve on her tongue.

He’d used six sticks of butter to make this cake. She’d watched him make it more times than she could remember. And several of those times had turned into one sensual culinary delight after another. Those days were over.

He lured another monster out, smashed it on the head and grabbed an extra life before moving on to the next level.

He’d pretty much done the same thing to her heart.

Smash, bam, slam, out-a here. Off to the next galaxy to break more hearts with that ironically angelic smile, with that wavy black hair that touched the collar of his shirt, with those hands that knew just where to touch, with those words that promised a lifetime of fun in the shortest time possible.

She’d been stupid before. He’d never even pretended to be about forever. But she’d thought...she didn’t know. He was so at home with his family and she’d wanted that. She’d wanted him.

And the minute she’d let him know, swoosh, and away he went.

Scamp sat at her feet snoring and she smiled. He’d known how upset she was and been by her side since they returned to the apartment.

Great. At least the dog loved her.

She looked down at the papers and closed her eyes. She needed one of the hugs he so easily gave. But she didn’t dare ask. Didn’t dare change the rules now that she’d made them so perfectly clear.

As if he could read her thoughts David stepped beside her, his hands splayed on the breakfast bar beside her. “You okay?”

Like he really cared. He was good at sounding sincere. She shrugged, pushed the papers away. “There’s nothing here, David. Nothing.”

“You’re too close to it right now. Too close to the emotion. You can look again tomorrow.”

“And it will still be the same.”

“Maybe. Maybe not.”

She closed her eyes and let his spicy scent soothe her. “I want to wake up and find this is all a nightmare.”

He didn’t say anything and she was glad because what could he say to that impossible wish?

“You ate the cake.” He looked at the crumbs left on her napkin and she shrugged.

“I tried to resist, but I couldn’t do it.”

“I understand.”

She looked at him and laughed half-heartedly. “Sure you do.” Like he knew anything at all about temptation. He tempted. He didn’t give in.

“No seriously.”

She just shook her head and tried to smile. “You’re being nice. Stop it.”

“Come on, Lil. You didn’t say anything at all about me not being nice.”

She laughed glad the tension from earlier was finally broken. Maybe they could do this. Maybe they could be friends.

If she could just get past her physical reaction to him any time he was anywhere near her. “Go away, Satan.”

“I should be offended.” But he wasn’t. She could tell by his easy smile.
 

“You’ve never been one to offend easily.”

“I could’ve challenged you to Scrabble. Now that would’ve been temptation.”

She laughed because maybe that was the answer. Maybe finding humor in their attraction was the way she could be with him all the time and stay sane. She lifted the next paper off the stack and waved it at him. “Go away. I’ve got clues to look for.”

“You got it, Sherlock,” he laughed as he started to walk down the hall to his bedroom.

David forced himself to walk away. What he wanted to do was take her in his arms and finish what they’d started in the parking lot. But that wasn’t going to happen. Not yet anyway. He’d made a promise and he wasn’t going to break it. She thought
he
was Satan? She had no idea what she was doing to him.
 

When the phone rang, he walked back into the kitchen, grabbed the phone on the third ring without checking caller ID.

“David.” At the sound of Ryan’s voice, he knew something in the case had shifted.

“What’s up?”

Lil moved to the chair next to him and waited, concern written across her face.

“They found the Hernandez father’s body outside a Juarez cemetery tonight.”

David couldn’t hold back a curse, and Ryan continued.
 
“Looks like the family might’ve been running a rescue service for some of the Degas girls.”

Ah hell.
 

“So this was personal?”

“Yeah. Real personal.”

Damn. “The family have any luck rescuing?”

“Looks like maybe they did.”

“Why didn’t they get help? ”
 

“They did. They sent Rafe to Lil and she called you. I don’t know how they knew, but they did. And if they knew, Degas could soon, too. Be careful, David. Things just got a hell of a lot more dangerous.”

“What?” Lil didn’t wait for David to tell her. The minute he hung up the phone she asked the question. And when she saw his face, she knew. “Miguel…”

David shook his head. “No, no. Not Miguel. Miguel’s father. They found his body in Juarez. At a cemetery there.”

“Oh no.” Lil closed her eyes and pushed the papers away suddenly nauseous. “If he’s dead, Miguel and Solidad…”

David started to touch her but pulled back before his hand touched her skin. “No, Lil. You can’t let yourself think that. Yes, it’s a possibility, but Rafe said his dad wasn’t there. Neither was Solidad.”

“But his father was killed by Degas.”

David nodded and Rafe’s story replayed itself in Lil’s mind as David explained what the family had been involved in. Miguel was with Degas now. They might be too late.

She wiped away a tear and David’s curse rang through the kitchen as he pulled her to him. She should push him away, but she couldn’t. Not now. Instead she buried her face in his chest and let him hold her and tell her it was okay even though she knew it was a lie.

When she could finally think straight, she did push away. And then she picked up the papers off the breakfast bar. “The answers have to be here somewhere, David.”

He nodded, but for the first time he looked skeptical. And that just made her angry.
 

“You were right. Miguel sent Rafe to me for a reason.
 
He had to know something.”

She’d hold on to that hope as long as she could because to do anything else was to accept defeat, and she couldn’t do that. Not when there was a chance Miguel and Solidad were alive.

Chapter Four

Lil let herself in the apartment and tried not to think about the hell the school day had been. The police had questioned everyone in the class, including her, and she’d lied to them all when they asked if she knew anything.
 

The students were understandably on edge. She’d refused to carry David’s gun. And the whole way home, she’d wondered about the wisdom of that.
 

She looked out the front window as she clicked the door lock into place and shivered. It felt like someone was watching her every move. But the street outside was empty.

All day she’d looked for something, anything that would explain where Solidad and Miguel might be. But just as with the papers, she’d struck out.

She set her school bag on the breakfast bar and laughed when Scamp nudged his empty food bowl twice. Silly dog.

Friday’s were always tough, but this was different. She’d never been so exhausted. So completely wilted.

She needed a shower and then some food and some wine. Anything to relax.
 

Why did she feel so dirty? She was helping. Telling the police what she knew would have been wrong and dangerous.

She slid out of her clothes, turned on the hot water and stepped under the spray.

No, telling the detective about Rafe Hernandez and what the little boy had told her would’ve destroyed everything she was supposed to be doing.

But God it was hard. She hated feeling powerless. She always had. A long time ago she’d learned to take charge of her life. To be in control. But control was impossible when she was surrounded by secrets. And David.
 

She hit the shower radio, turned it up to full blast and tried to forget everything as she sang along with the music.

David let himself in the apartment and smiled when he saw Scamp’s full food bowl and Lil’s bag on the breakfast bar.

The shower radio was blasting and Lil’s off-tuned voice sang along to the classic rock.

He smiled as an image of naked, wet Lil filled his memory.

Damn she was fine. And feisty. And fun.

And off limits.

He tossed Scamp a dog treat and cut a piece of pound cake as he tried not to think about Lil in his shower, in his bedroom, in his bed.

He was a fool for doing this. A fool.

It was too dangerous in more ways than one.

The shower stopped and he bit into the cake. Tried not to imagine Lil climbing out of the shower, toweling off.

Damn.

He tossed a bit of the cake to Scamp and laughed as the dog downed it in one bite.

If he walked in the bedroom right now, he could have her. He was sure of it. But it wouldn’t be right. Not for either of them.

He looked down at the papers sitting on the bar. Focused on them instead of imagining Lil and the full-sized white towels his mother’d brought over a month ago.

Lil was right. There was nothing of help in these papers. Just a bunch of domesticated dreams for Solidad and dreams of a bigger life for Miguel.

He heard the drawers opening and closing and forced himself to continue eating the cake, even though he couldn’t really taste it.

No way was he going in there. No way.

He shoved the papers in her school bag and waited until she finally opened the door.

She jumped when she saw him. “Oh. David. I didn’t know….”

And God help him he couldn’t stop himself. “You look good enough to eat little Lil.”

She rolled her eyes and unwrapped the towel from around her head. Her wet hair hung down past her shoulders. He tried not to think about how she’d respond if he kissed her clean neck softly.

How she’d moan his name and maybe ask for more than a simple kiss.

When she stepped closer he almost laughed. She’d never get so close if she knew what he was thinking.

She reached forward, grabbed a bite of the cake on his plate and popped it in her mouth.

“Good stuff, David. Excellent really.”

She was so close he could smell her. A slight turn of his head, and he could claim the kiss he wanted. And then she’d be out the door and on her own.

He pushed away from the breakfast bar and stood by the fridge. “The football game’s in a couple hours. I figured we’d eat then head on over.”

She turned away from him. “You can’t possibly think I’m going to the game. I can’t. There’s no way.”

He poured her a glass of wine and explained why they had no choice.

“We have to. It’s the perfect place to look for answers.”

“A football game. Please.” Completely unconvinced, he slid the wine glass toward her.

“Everyone goes to the games Friday nights. We can observe. See what’s out of place. Who’s there. Who’s not.”

She shook her head. “Solidad and Miguel are
not
. We’re supposed to be looking for them.”

She’d understand soon enough. “How often did they go to the games?”

Lil shrugged and sipped her wine. “Solidad not often. She partied and played. Went back and forth across the border. Loved the beach. She only went to the games if she was dating one of the guys. Miguel was always there.”

Interesting. “He doesn’t play?”

She shook her head. Smiled sadly. “No. He runs cross country. Plays soccer. He’s been scouted. Between his grades and soccer, he would have….”

She shook her head and looked away.

He couldn’t let her sit there miserable, thinking the worst.

“Hey.” He wrapped her hand with his. “None of that. He’s a good kid. Smart and strong. He knew to send his brother to you.”

She looked down at his hand but didn’t move away. Instead she met his eyes and frowned as she spoke. “What good did it do?”

He stood and wrapped his arms around her wishing like hell he could comfort her. Wishing he didn’t want her so badly it hurt. Wishing he could just be a friend and knowing that was impossible.

“We’ll go to the game. Observation’s our biggest tool right now.”

She nodded against his shoulder. “I’ll go, but I’m telling you right now, everything will be different. We won’t learn anything there.”