Slenderman Read online

  “One moment sir, I think two of your party has been seated.” Her red-tipped nails slid down a list. “Yes, sir. Two are already here. If you’ll follow me.”

  She picked up two menus and swung to the back of the restaurant. Jo took in the nice-looking man dressed in a dark suit and a blue shirt and tie. He wasn’t drop dead gorgeous like Rhys, but few men were. What drew Jo’s gaze was the man’s expression. Adoration shone from his gaze as he chuckled at something the brunette on his right said.

  “Is that your friend?” Jo asked pointing to the couple.

  “Oh, I should’ve known, William and his wife Gabriella are always early.”

  There was one chair next to the brunette while Rhys and his friend would be at the heads of the table with Gabriella and Jo on one side. Across from them would be for the missing friend and his date.

  She didn’t care who sat at the head as long as her back was to the wall. Sliding into the chair Rhys held for her, and she smiled, glad she’d gone with the dark blue dress that made it look like she had boobs.

  “Josephine hon, this is William and his charming wife, Gabriella.” Rhys made the introductions and Jo shook their hands.

  “Pleasure to meet you, Josephine,” William said his voice warm and soothing. As if he’d brought his bedside manner to dinner with him. “He talks about you all the time.”

  Lacing her fingers with Rhys’s, she left Rhys to order their drinks while she corrected William on her name. “No need to be formal. Jo, please.”

  Gabriella shook her head. “But Josephine is such a pretty name.”

  “Maybe, but my porcupine won’t answer to it, will you, hon?” Rhys winked at her, and she rolled her eyes.

  “No, I won’t, lambchop,” Jo replied in a sugary sweet voice.

  He leaned in and whispered. “I’d prefer lemon icebox pie for my nickname, considering all the obscene sounds you make while devouring it.”

  She flushed and narrowed her eyes. “I’ll be sure to note that, how about just lemon for short? Or maybe pie?”

  He laughed and stole a kiss.

  This Valentine’s was turning out very different from their first, and she couldn’t help but relax as she took in Gabriella. Jo liked her; she wasn’t flashy though her diamond wedding set was platinum. Gabriella’s diamond and ruby tennis bracelet matched the pretty pendant that hung from her neck and ears. None of it was ostentatious, and it didn’t outshine the woman that graced them. The wine-colored dress looked velvety and soft as if begging to be touched.

  Jo easily saw through all the trappings to the friendly personality beyond. Just as their drinks were set down, the last two people in their group arrived. Where Gabriella came across as warm and friendly, Cristal, like the expensive champagne as she explained while taking her seat, was cold and brittle except with Gabriella.

  The woman was also flashy and drew attention with every move she made from the dramatic sigh at their table being stuffed into a corner, to the shimmering gold lamé dress that hugged every curve. Her bright blonde hair cascaded down her back in a mess of curls as if she’d just hopped from bed tousled and mussed. All the men in the room were staring except Rhys and William who had turned to Jo and Gabriella to discuss appetizers.

  “Do you want appetizers?” David asked his girlfriend.

  “Maybe some bruschetta.”

  David was tall, dark, and handsome. His jet-black hair and olive toned skin were a perfect foil for Cristal. Instead of appreciating what she had, Cristal’s eyes trailed over Rhys and interest sparked in their blue depths. Jo almost snorted in contempt. This woman had no chance with Rhys. Gabriella, on the other hand, was his type. Warm and inviting. But cold and hard? Nope. He received enough of that at the charity events and from his first fiancée. It pleased Jo when he only tipped his chin instead of releasing Jo’s hand to shake Cristal’s. Maybe it was petty, but this was her Valentine’s Day, and she would not have her fiancé drooled over, especially by a woman who had her own man sitting next to her vying for her attention.

  After the two ordered their drinks and together they all ordered two appetizers to share, the conversation flowed smoothly with Cristal and Gabriella talking about interior design, Gabriella’s job, and Cristal’s shops.

  Used to interrogations, Jo asked Cristal. “What types of shops do you own?”

  “A spa and several salons.” Cold blue eyes tracked over Jo and if the contempt was anything to go by Jo was found severely lacking. “I’m sure one of my stylists could fit you in.”

  Jo arched a cool brow. “As tempting as that sounds, I’ll stick with my stylist.”

  Gabriella sensing the tension distracted Cristal with some gossip she’d heard at one of the salons. Jo leaned toward Rhys. “I thought Gabriella was an interior designer.”

  “She is.” Rhys snagged a bruschetta and bit down. “But she also uses Cristal’s salons; it’s how they met, and how Cristal came to meet David.”

  She heard Cristal sniff again and shook her head, unsure how long she’d be able to keep her mouth closed. How all these people could look at the fake blonde and not see what was right in front of their eyes was mind-boggling.

  “Hon, what’s wrong?” Rhys asked as Jo continued to watch Rhys’s friends.

  David didn’t look as if he did drugs and Gabriella and William had none of the tell-tell signs of repeated use either. Were they that naïve? Jo wondered how long it’d be before Cristal went to the bathroom.

  Their waiter came to clear their appetizers and refill the drinks. Cristal stood and Jo barely kept from smirking. She hoped Rhys wouldn’t get too angry with her.

  “I need to run to the ladies’ room.” Cristal picked up her purse, and Jo watched her walk to the archway that led to the main hallway before she disappeared.

  With the noise of other diners, Jo was sure her question wouldn’t be heard. “David, how long have you known Cristal?”

  His brown gaze met hers. “We’ve been dating a month. Why?”

  Jo nibbled her lip. Before she could voice her suspicions, she spotted one of her many cousins headed her way. Statuesque and gorgeous like Botticelli’s Venus that she’d seen once in a coffee-table book. The only difference was instead of golden hair her cousin had deep red tresses.

  “Jo.”

  She stood and hugged her cousin. “Ronnie, what are you doing here?”

  “I was hired as the pastry chef. Didn’t Aunt Maddy tell you?”

  Jo looked Ronnie up and down and rolled her eyes. “You’re dressed a lot nicer than working in the kitchen warrants.”

  Ronnie giggled. “I’m going to a singles mixer. I’m only here to drop off the dessert I whipped up for you.”

  “Mom called you, didn’t she?”

  “Of course she did.”

  Remembering her manners, she turned and saw the wow expression on David’s face. Cristal sure as hell hadn’t drawn that from the man at all. Oh, this was too good. Jo was about to play cupid except with a police badge and gun instead of a diaper and an arrow. Leaning down, she whispered to Rhys. “I hope you don’t mind, but I’m about to change our Valentine’s Day up a bit.” Straightening, she grabbed her purse. “I need to run to the ladies’ room.”

  Ronnie’s eyes widened while Gabriella set her cloth napkin next to her plate and stood, oblivious to what was about to happen. “I’ll come with you.”

  Rhys snagged Jo’s wrist, and she bent closer to hear him. “You’re not arresting anyone, are you?”

  “Nope.”

  “You better not.” His gaze held a hint of worry.

  Her chuckle was low and sultry. “Oh, if I did, I’d get out of trouble with you easily. I’m wearing the red bustier and black thigh-high stockings you were drooling over.”

  His eyes heated to molten gold as they fell to her dres
s. “Are you now?”

  “Yes, and if I really need to apologize,” she moved closer to his ear, so her breath ghosted across the fine hairs of his neck. “I have the crotchless panties on too.”

  “Jesus, Jo.” He groaned as if in pain.

  She quickly stepped away when the grip on her wrist loosened and led the way with Ronnie behind her.

  “Jo-love, I know that look.”

  “Veronica Rayburn, you are never to use that name. Or I’ll use the nickname the cousins came up—”

  Ronnie’s hand slammed over Jo’s mouth. “Nope, no more Jo-love. But I know that look, Jo. You cannot arrest that woman. She’s David’s date.”

  Jo knew Ronnie too and could tell it hurt her to put Cristal with David. Ronnie craved someone to call her own and for Cristal to have it and not cherish it would rip Jo’s cousin’s soft heart apart. But Jo had a plan. Especially since she had seen Ronnie’s eyes light up with interest when they had landed on David much the same as his had done when they’d swept over Ronnie.

  “She’s arresting Cristal?” Gabriella’s hand lifted to her throat. “Seriously? Why?”

  “Yes,” Ronnie said just as Jo said “No.”

  Her cousin’s dark brown eyes widened. “You aren’t arresting her?”

  Jo shook her head. “No. But she’s definitely leaving and not calling David ever again if she knows what’s good for her. You know how I feel about people screwing with our family.”

  “I do.” Ronnie’s faced morphed from worry to bubbling happiness.

  “Good. You’re going in with me. While I deal with Cristal, you are putting on lip gloss, and then you’re taking Cristal’s place at our dinner.”

  “I’m what?” Ronnie squeaked, her eyes rounding in surprise.

  “She’s what?” Gabriella gasped.

  When she saw there was no more line to the bathroom door, Jo made her way to the door. Stepping into the bathroom was a revelation. She refrained from using the public facilities as inevitably she would spot someone doing something that forced her to arrest them. Most deals happened in the bathrooms. Pulling her badge from her purse, she thrust the bag at Ronnie. Jo looked underneath several stalls until she found the feet she was looking for, or more precisely the gold heels. Taking the stall to the right since the one to the left of Cristal was occupied, Jo carefully stepped on the seat of the toilet and propped her arms across the top of the stall.

  “Well hello, Cristal.” Jo over-enunciated the woman’s name dragging out ‘-tal.’ She watched as the woman slammed the top piece of her large gemstone necklace shut and hurriedly screwed the pieces together.

  “What the hell? Are you a pervert?” Cristal’s face reddened. Jo didn’t know if it was anger or the drugs coursing through Cristal’s system, and she didn’t care. She wanted this drama over so she could enjoy the rest of her evening with Rhys.

  “Nope, a cop.” She held her badge up then clipped it to the top of her dress. “You might want to clean the coke off your nose.”

  Cristal’s eyes narrowed to slivers. “I’ll have your badge.”

  “Meh, if it falls in the toilet then it’s all yours, because I’ll have to order a new one. Now get out of there.” She refrained from calling the classless bitch a junkie. Jo stepped from the seat of the toilet to the cream-colored tile and made her way to the sink across from Cristal’s stall. “Come on, Cristy. I don’t have all day. And just an FYI, if you make me drag your skank ass out of there, I’m arresting you on principle. We both know that big ass pendant around your neck is a hollowed-out stone where you keep your coke.”

  A squawk and Cristal came barging out of the stall baring her teeth. There was the junkie Jo knew to be hiding in the scrawny wrapped package decorated in gold lamé. “So here’s how this is will go.” Jo held a hand up. “Interrupt me, and I’ll have you searched. Keep annoying me, and I’ll have you strip searched. Do we understand each other?”

  Cristal’s chest heaved as she snarled. “What do you want? A bribe?”

  “Nope, I want you to call a Lyft and never contact David again. Consider him off your friends and family plan.” Jo curled her lips and stepped into Cristal’s space. “Because if you bother the nice man, I will make it my mission in life to destroy you.”

  “As if—”

  “You own a spa and several salons, correct?” Jo had been a cop too long and knew all the tricks. The ones she didn’t know her family did and by God, if she needed them to dig into every nook and cranny of this woman’s life, then she would ask them to do it.

  “Yes.”

  “Most of that is a cash business and it’s easy to launder money. I’d hate for the IRS to look into your holdings. You know how they love to nitpick, and if they find one penny out of place, then they get to dig further back. It’s almost like getting a colonoscopy without the drugs.”

  The bright red that flushed Cristal’s face slowly drained away, leaving behind a pale mask.

  To make sure the junkie understood, Jo drove in the knife. “Oh, and I’m sure the DEA will be very interested in the drugs you have stashed at your businesses. What better way to distribute them through appointments for say, massages or waxing?” Jo had no idea if the statement was true until Cristal took a stumbling step away and clutched her chest as if shot.

  “I’ll go. And I swear I’ll never contact him.”

  “See you don’t. Rhys will tell me, as will other people I’ll have watching.” Jo met Cristal’s gaze. Hers icy enough to freeze the devil himself. “Those two men, their wife, and future girlfriend are part of my family, and I will protect them.”

  “I got it.”

  “Call the Lyft. Now.”

  Not trusting the woman to follow through, Jo ushered her to the hired car when it pulled to the entrance of the restaurant and watched the taillights leave the parking lot. Turning, she found Gabriella and Ronnie behind her. Gabriella’s face held a foreboding frown that slid away as she craned her neck to follow the Lyft as it was lost in traffic. Ronnie’s expression held a wealth of nerves. From the nibbles she was taking out of her bottom lip to her scrunched up her nose as if gathering the courage to back out of joining them for dinner. Like hell would Jo allow that to happen.

  “She was doing drugs,” Gabriella breathed out the second they walked inside the restaurant.

  “Yep.” Jo popped her p. “Come on.”

  Gabriella wrapped her arms around Jo and hugged her. “Thank you so much for not embarrassing William or David tonight.”

  She awkwardly patted Gabriella. “No problem, and with Ronnie joining us, David will still have a date and a better one than Cristal could ever hope to be.”

  “Thanks Jo,” Ronnie whispered next to her.

  “That’s what family does.” Wiggling from Gabriella’s grip, Jo straightened her dress. “Now let’s go wow the men.”

  ~ ~ ~

  They turned onto the road that led to their home.

  “I can’t believe you got rid of Cristal without a big arrest scene and you found the perfect woman for David all in less than fifteen minutes,” Rhys said.

  “What can I say? I was motivated. I did not want our Valentine’s turning into a grade-A disaster again. As for Cristal, I hope you won’t get pissed at me, but I sicced Narcotics on her. She’s dealing dope out of her shops, and that’s unacceptable. Parents go there with their kids, and those women who pay her rent for their booths trust her. Hicks and Nyles will weed out those employees who helped stash and distribute the drugs and those that are innocent.”

  Rhys raised their linked hands, and he pressed a kiss to the back of hers. “My hero.” He pressed a button, the garage door rolled up, and they parked.

  Unwilling to let her out of the car, he held her hand tighter while pressing the button to close the garage door. “Now, I believe
a red bustier was mentioned . . . ”

  Jo laughed as she lunged for the door. “Think we’ll make it to the kitchen?”

  He grabbed her before she’d rounded the hood of his Audi. “I doubt it. I think my car could use a polish.”

  Her breath left her with a whoosh when he tossed her on the cold metal. “Jesus Rhys, it’s freezing.”

  “I’ll warm you up.” He held her in place by covering her with his body.

  Lost in the heat of him, she could only gasp “okay” as he staked his claim. Her jacket slid from her arms providing an ineffectual barrier between her and the cold metal. He dragged the dress from her leaving her in the bustier with the sheer thigh-high stockings held up by the thin straps of her garter belt. She had a moment of doubt when Rhys stepped away from her. Bright colors were not her. And harlot red was bright enough to attract a bull from a mile away. Worried, she raised her gaze to his. A blazing inferno lived in his gaze as it snapped over her, melting her. Each place his eyes touched left an electrical sizzle as he tore his clothes from his body and yanked her rear to the edge of the hood.

  Overwhelmed with sensation and tuned into Rhys on a molecular level, she felt him still, sending an icy tendril of doubt back into her. “What?” Was she making a fool of herself with the lingerie? Had she dented the hood?

  “No condom.”

  Oh. A bright smile replaced the frown. “I have one in my purse.” She had barely said ‘purse’ before he dropped to the concrete floor fumbling inside her handbag. “Watch the gun, you wouldn’t want it to go off.”

  His head popped up over the hood. “Are you talking about me or an actual gun?”

  Jo laughed. “An actual gun. You have better control.”

  “Damn right I do,” he grumbled, turning it into a crow of triumph as held the small package aloft.

  The teasing helped cool her and allowed them to build the heat again. When he finally pushed into her, she was so lost in him, she couldn’t find where she ended and he began.