She looked at the paper in his hands.
“It’s what the hotel clerk found,” he said as they got into his SUV. “Your online credit card bill.”
She buckled up and then glanced again at the paper and frowned. “I was trying to fix it so I could pay my bills online. He offered to help.”
Which you should have refused, he thought, but he didn’t say it. He started the car and headed to his house. “Actually, I think this is going to help us end this case.”
“How?” Her big blues, tired blues, met his.
“I’ll rent another hotel room with your card. This time when Stan comes to call, my partner and I will be waiting.”
“Okay,” she said.
She didn’t say anything else, and Brit wondered why she didn’t seem as happy about this as he was. But even as doubt pulled at his mind, he pushed it away. But the closer they got to his house, the quieter she got. When he pulled into the garage, she looked almost afraid.
“Something wrong?” he asked.
She glanced at him. “I’m sure your sister thinks my hair color is an indication of my mental capabilities.”
“Don’t be silly. Susan told me she likes you.”
“Right,” Cali said, and they walked inside. A note on the table said Susan had gone to have lunch with John and wouldn’t be back until around three.
“Why is she doing this?” he muttered.
“Doing what?”
“Dating my partner. It’s going to end badly.”
“You don’t know that,” Cali said.
Brit frowned. “If he hurts her, I’ll have to kill him and I think my sergeant will frown upon that.”
She rolled her eyes. “Why do you think he’ll hurt her?”
“Because he’s a man,” he snapped.
“Hmm,” she said. “So maybe I should stay away from men, too.”
He exhaled. “I guess it’s a brother thing.”
“I guess so.” She offered a shy smile. “Good thing I don’t have any brothers.”
He remembered that she’d practically told him that she wanted to have sex with him. Not that he’d actually forgotten it. The thought had caused a tightening sensation low in his belly since she’d said it.
He opened the fridge, not knowing what he needed most, food, sleep, or to make love to Cali. “You hungry?”
“I ate, but thanks.” She ran her hand over the table as if nervous, and he decided sex would have to wait until later. Besides, he wanted to be at his best their first time, and with only a couple of hours of sleep in the past thirty-six hours, he didn’t think he’d be at his best. Food first, sleep, and then sex. Funny how sometimes the most important things got put last.
He pulled out the milk and frowned when he saw the nonfat label. Shoving the milk back in, he grabbed the carton of orange juice. After pouring a glass of OJ, he spread some mayonnaise on a slice of bread, added a piece of cheese, topped it with another slab of bread, and ate standing up.
Cali studied him. “Are you afraid to sit down because you might not be able to get up?”
He swallowed. “Yup. Did you sleep okay last night?”
She shook her head. “I never did go back to sleep. I’m pretty tired myself.”
He looked at her without trying to hide the want in his eyes. “Then you won’t blame me when my head hits the pillow and I’m out cold. And we catch up on other stuff when we’re both feeling recharged?”
“That’s fine.” Her cheeks grew redder and he knew she knew what he meant by catch up.
He leaned against the counter and grinned. “You’re blushing. You’re so damn refreshing.”
“I am not,” she said.
“Yes, you are. Can you even say sex without turning red?”
Her eyes widened. “Yes. I can say sex.”
He pointed a finger at her. “You’re turning redder.” He chuckled and polished off his sandwich. “Come on.” He wrapped his arm around her waist and led her to his bedroom. The bed had been made and his sister’s pajamas lay folded neatly on top. Cali’s doings, no doubt. His sister had never won any prize on neatness.
He pressed a kiss to Cali’s temple and moved her to the bed. She sat down on the edge. He kicked off his shoes, removed his shirt, and unsnapped his jeans, never taking his eyes off her.
“You gonna sleep in your clothes?” he asked.
“I’m plenty comfortable.” She sounded so prim and proper.
“Right,” he teased.
“Really, I’m fine.” She stood up.
Grinning, he removed his jeans, but left on his boxers for fear of shocking her that he was already hard for her. Then he pulled back the covers and motioned for her to climb in.