“You really didn’t hear anything about an accident?” she asked him.
“Hey, it’s Miami. There are lots of accidents. In fact, it’s a strange day where there isn’t a pile-up on one of the highways,” he reminded her.
“Do you know where the local section from Saturday is? There ought to be a blurb or something. I mean, a man was killed. At least, I’m pretty sure he was dead.”
“Um…yeah, I’ll get it for you. It’s in the bedroom.”
“I can go.”
“Sharon is in the shower, I think,” he murmured.
“Oh. Well, I can wait until you have your first cup of coffee. It’s just been bugging me all weekend.”
“You didn’t have fun?”
“Of course I had fun.”
“Thinking about a dead man on the highway the whole time?” he queried. “You want some toast or something.”
“No, thanks, I’m not hungry.”
“You’re going off to a full day at the academy. You should eat.”
“I had something ghastly late last night at a rest stop,” she told him. “That will do me until lunch.”
“Something ghastly?”
“I think it was supposed to be a hamburger.”
“Ah, so you young ladies crawled in really late. Of course, I figured it had to be late, since we keep the place open ’til twelve on Sundays and I didn’t turn in until after one.”
“Three,” Ashley admitted.
“Great,” he said, mildly sarcastic. “You’ve had lots of sleep, and you probably have a full day ahead.”
“Every day is a full day,” Ashley admitted. “But I’m young. I’m sure I can deal with lack of sleep at this point in my life.”
Nick arched a brow, trying to decide if her response was in respect to the fact that he wasn’t quite so young anymore and decided he wasn’t going to wait any longer for coffee. He pulled the carafe out from beneath the dripping coffee and slid in a large mug in its place. He was quick—only a few drops missed the mug and hit the heating unit below.
“I’m pouring you a cup anyway, because you may be young—and implying that I’m old—but you sure as hell look as if you’re going to need it. Did you sleep at all on that trip?”
She laughed. “I would never dream of implying that you’re old. You’re in your prime. And, yes, honestly, we did get some sleep. We went to a show on Friday night, then went to one of the dance clubs, got in late and slept until three the next afternoon. We didn’t stay out so late the next night and still slept until twelve, which put Karen into a panic, because she didn’t want to get charged for an extra night. So I’m actually in pretty good shape—even if your comment implied that I’m looking haggard.”
He sipped his coffee, leaned on an elbow and grinned. “Most of the good cops I know look haggard. Goes with the territory.”
“So you think I’m going to be a good cop?”
“You’d better be. And I’ll get that paper for you. Good almost-cops don’t show up at the academy late. Hop in the shower and get dressed. I’ll find the local news from Saturday for you.”
She nodded, drained the coffee he’d poured for her, and headed off for her room and a shower.