All I've Ever Wanted - Adrianne Byrd [51]
What did it matter? Kennedy tossed up her hands. She had to figure out a way to get her hands on some money in order to get to Memphis. She could try to get a loan from Bennie. Of course the chance of pigs flying had better odds.
She paced the floor, but she couldn’t seem to churn out a solution to her problem.
There was a crash outside of the bedroom. Max. She’d forgotten about him. She headed toward the door, but froze when her hand landed on the doorknob.
No police. Kennedy shook her head. What was she going to do about the promise she’d made to Max? Well, it really wasn’t a promise, but she had the feeling that he would say otherwise. But what could she do?
She leaned her head against the door and she could hear the racket Max made in the kitchen. Maybe he was creating another of his culinary masterpieces. The thought made her smile.
He was a wonderful guy, regardless of what may have happened between them last night. She let her smile fade again and turned away from the door.
Kelly paced the floor in front of Dossman’s bed as they reviewed the Underwood case. “The problem is that we don’t have any hard evidence that links The Skulls to the crime.”
“Right. But we do know that Keenan Lawrence wants Ms. St. James dead for some reason. It’s a good thing that she’s with Max. Right now, she’s our ace in the hole,” Dossman said, pushing himself up in bed.
“Should you be doing that?”
“Probably not. But it’s starting to feel like my butt is sticking to the sheets.”
She shook her head as she rushed to his bedside to help. “Careful, don’t overexert yourself.”
Dossman took her by surprise when he tugged her down onto the bed.
She squealed, and then looked embarrassed for having done so.
He laughed against her ear and inhaled the floral scent of her hair.
Kelly slapped his arm away and pulled back to her feet. “Will you please behave? Someone from the precinct could walk in at any moment.”
“Hey, what happened to my pity party we were throwing last night?”
“It ended. Your choice, remember?”
“Doesn’t mean that I can’t tease you with what you’ll be missing.”
She continued to laugh. “I’m starting to think that you also suffered some head trauma last night.”
“You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”
“It would probably be an improvement.”
He laughed. He couldn’t remember the last time they had just played with each other. For the past few months, everything had been so serious between them. Their light banter was a welcome reprieve.
For a long while, they just stared at each other and smiled.
“Assure me that we’re doing the right thing by breaking up,” Kelly said, taking his hand.
“I can’t.” His smile faded. “I’m not too sure myself.”
“What on earth is taking her so long?” Max wondered, looking at his watch. He’d left Kennedy well over an hour ago. “Five more minutes. After that I’m going in to get her,” he decided.
Leaning over the stove, he tasted his homemade Alfredo sauce and smiled. He anticipated her surprise when she learned that he really did know how to cook. He smiled at the thought.
He took his time preparing the table. He even thought about calling the hospital, but then remembered that Kennedy was still on the phone.
Five minutes passed and he negotiated with his inner voice to give her another five. Pretty soon an additional twenty minutes had gone by and his irritation had begun to turn to worry about her.
Quietly, he walked down the hallway. He didn’t hear her on the phone. In fact, he didn’t hear her at all. Had she gone back to sleep?
He knocked. “Kennedy?” He frowned when there was no answer. Undoubtedly, she was still mad at him.
“Kennedy, wake up.” He knocked again.
No response.
He turned the doorknob and opened the door. “Kennedy?” He poked his head through the crack. His frown deepened when he saw the rumpled bed. It was empty.
He swung the door open. The room was empty. He stormed over to the closed bathroom door and knocked. “Kennedy?”
No response.
He opened the door. It was empty. Not only that, he didn’t see her clothes that had been folded