Alex Kava Bundle - Alex Kava [225]
“Maggie?”
She tossed the sticky gloves and yanked off the surgical mask from around her neck, adding it to the garbage.
“Hi, Nick.” She pretended to sound casual while wading the rest of the way out, suddenly acutely aware of flies now attracted and interested in her. She swatted at them and tucked wild strands of hair behind her ears and away from her face.
“That’s right. I keep forgetting you two know each other.” Ford was smiling, too. “Maggie had some free time this morning,” he said to Nick.
“Jesus, it’s good to see you, Maggie.”
Immediately, she felt her face flush.
“It might not be so good to smell me,” she said, needing to stop any sentimental reunion.
She gripped the edge of the Dumpster and swung a leg over the side. Her foot dangled, searching for the milk crate. Before she could find it, Nick’s hands were on her waist to help. Her hip brushed against his chest on the way down. Despite being bombarded with smells all morning, she recognized the subtle scent of his cologne.
Once both her feet were on the ground, his hands lingered, but she avoided looking up at him. She avoided looking at either of them, needing the extra time to compose herself while waiting for the unexpected flutter to leave. Damn it! She wasn’t some schoolgirl. Why the hell did her body respond like this?
She occupied herself wiping the sticking garbage from her pant legs and shoes. Unfortunately, when she did look up, both men were watching her. She continued to avoid Nick’s eyes, remembering how they could look deep inside her and uncover vulnerabilities she had hidden even from herself.
“So,” Ford finally said, glancing back into the Dumpster, “did you find anything interesting?”
She wondered how much Turner and Delaney had shared with Ford about her obsession with Stucky. Had Detective Ford seen how close to the edge she had come last night? And what had he discussed with Nick? She didn’t think for a minute he had forgotten they knew each other. After all, Ford had invited Nick to have dinner with them last night, though there had never been an explanation as to why Nick hadn’t joined them. Suddenly she was curious if Nick had simply wanted to avoid seeing her again. After all, if he was now living in Boston, why hadn’t he called? She could feel his eyes taking her in, watching her, smiling at her, but thankfully not making a big deal of their reunion.
“No, I didn’t find anything,” she finally answered. She needed to change the subject before Detective Ford discovered it was body parts she had been rummaging for and not simply overlooked evidence. “Is this your case now?”
“Not officially. More than likely Milhaven and I will be putting in some hours on it. Today’s supposed to be my day off. Nick and I were just about to get an early lunch.”
“And you always take the alleys?”
Ford grinned and glanced at Nick.
“She doesn’t let anybody get away with anything, does she?”
“No, she certainly doesn’t.” Nick’s eyes caught hers, and she knew his simple statement had much deeper meaning, reminding her of the intimacies they had shared and those they had almost shared.
“So come on, Detective Ford.” She needed to keep things light, capitalize on their jovial mood. She needed to keep Ford from realizing she had no business snooping around in his jurisdiction. She was already in enough trouble with Cunningham. “You’re down here taking another look, too, right?”
“Okay, you caught me.” He held up both hands as if in surrender. “I was telling Nick about last night.”
Maggie cringed, and again she wondered what exactly had been discussed. Nick knew the whole story, all the gory details about her and Stucky. He had experienced firsthand her nightmares. Still, she kept her face impassive, pretending last night had been just another routine chase for her. Truth was, she didn’t care if Ford thought she was losing it. But maybe she did care if Nick thought it. She waited and Ford continued.
“You sorta got my curiosity up last night, O’Dell.”
Oh God, she thought, but instead said, “How is that?”
“All that talk about Albert