Mad, Bad and Blonde - Cathie Linz [70]
She found Caine standing in front of the condom section. She slipped her arm around his waist. “Shopping, baby?” Her voice was low and husky as she went for a porn-star sound.
His initial double take made her feel good, but the anger she felt emanating from him made her heart skip. Or maybe it was the way he grabbed her and pulled her close. “You disobeyed orders,” he growled against her cheek.
“You’re not in the Marines anymore,” she growled right back before freezing at the sound of Nolan’s voice.
“I think our phones are bugged.”
“Why?” A man with a nasal male voice asked the question. This must be Fred Jr. Both men were in the opposite aisle.
“Maybe something to do with the ARC case,” Nolan said.
“But you’re not involved in the lawsuit.”
“I know. But it feels like someone has been following me. How about you? Have you felt the same thing?”
“Yeah, I have.”
“Who do you think it is?”
“I don’t know. Maybe Karl’s son the Marine.”
Caine didn’t say a word, but she felt him stiffen, and not in a sexy way but in a warrior-ready-for-battle way.
“Why the hell would Karl’s son be following me?” Nolan said.
“I don’t know,” Fred Jr. said. “Maybe it’s not him. Maybe it’s the lawyers. Maybe they’ve got investigators checking out anyone who worked at ARC’s research facility during that time.”
“Yeah, maybe.”
“Since I am suing them, that’s probably who’s following me,” Fred Jr. said.
“You should have warned me,” Nolan said. “I wouldn’t have arranged to meet with you if I’d known you were being tailed. Don’t call me again.”
“Hey, you’re the one who called me,” Fred Jr. said.
But Nolan was already on his way out the door, which Faith could see. She and Caine hurried out after him and got in the Mustang in time to trail Nolan back to his home. They had to park a block and a half away because there was nowhere else open.
Faith discreetly discarded her gum before speaking. “So what did we learn from that encounter?”
“Several things. That Nolan thinks his phone is bugged and that he’s being followed. Fred thinks he’s being followed too.”
“Do you think the lawyers defending the chemical company hired investigators to check Fred and Nolan out?”
“It’s possible, I suppose. Buddy claims he hasn’t bugged anyone’s phone and that if he was tailing Nolan and Fred, they’d never know it.”
“Our company and Vince’s are the two major investigative firms in the city. If the lawyers were going to hire someone, you’d think they’d contact one of our companies.”
“Your company already has a track record with my father’s case, so odds are that they’d want someone fresh.”
“Like Vince?”
Caine nodded. “I’ll see what I can dig up.”
“Okay. What else did we learn from their meeting?”
“That you can’t follow orders.” Caine turned to give her a steamy stare. “And that you look sinfully hot in that halter top.”
Thoughts of the case flew out of her mind. “Take your Cubs cap off,” Faith said.
“Why?”
“Because I can’t kiss a man wearing a Cubs cap.”
Caine whisked the cap off.
She grinned at him. “I didn’t say I was going to kiss you now, just stating a fact.”
“You’re bad. Has anyone ever told you that?”
“No.” She was rather pleased with herself.
“Maybe you should take off your sexy halter top.”
“Because you can’t kiss a woman wearing a sexy halter top?”
“I’d rather kiss one without a top.”
“Forget about it.”
“Is that your best Sopranos impersonation?”
“I’m afraid it is.”
“That’s okay. You’re good at other things.” With each word, he came closer, until his lips rested on hers, and he was kissing her.
She kissed him back before coming to her senses. “Wait, what about Nolan?”
“I don’t want to have sex with Nolan. I want to have it with you.”
“We are not having sex in the front seat of your car.”
“How about the backseat?”
“No, not there either.”
“So you think we should just park and make out? Sounds good to me.”
“What about the surveillance?”
“Finished for