“Well, he’s going to have to make room.” She sat, pulled off her boots. Just sat. “I don’t want to dream. I can feel dreams circling around in my head, just waiting until I close my eyes. I don’t want them.”
“Do you remember our last night on the island?”
“I remember there was a lot of non-drooping satisfaction.”
He smiled, lit the fire. “We spread a blanket on the beach, and we had a bottle of wine, a loaf of bread, cheese, fruit.”
“Those little eclair things.”
“And those. We ate, drank, watched the water, watched the sun go down until the water took it. And the moon came up.”
“We did more than sitting and watching,” she recalled as she rose to undress.
“We did, but we did sit and watch and it was quiet and lovely. It was the world right then.”
“If I’d known you owned an island, I might have married you for it. It was a nice bonus.”
He just kissed her forehead. “Dream of that,” he said, and led her to bed.
He slipped in beside her, drew her close, rubbed her back in the way he knew helped her drift away. “Dream of that tonight. Only that.”
And she did.
20
The now, the what came next, pushed at the edges of her brain and brought Eve out of sleep. In the dark, she reached for Roarke, the comfort and solidity. But he wasn’t there.
She sat up, then just curled into herself, knees to her chest, as the weight, the fresh misery of what she had to do fell over her.
She’d get her warrant, and she’d pull Kyle Knightly into the box. She’d break him. She knew how to break him. And then …
God, then.
In the dark, the cat jumped on the bed, padded to her, butted his head against her shins.
Eve picked him up—Christ, talk about weight—clutched him to her as a child might a teddy bear. The cat purred in her arms, rubbed his wide head against her shoulder.
“You always come through, don’t you?” she murmured, easing her hold to stroke and scratch. “Pretty smart of me to haul your fat ass home that day.” She rubbed her cheek against the top of his head. “Yeah, I’m pretty smart.”
She let out a sigh. “Lights, ten percent.”
In the faint glow, she called for the time. Oh-five-twenty-one.
“Might as well get started.”
After giving Galahad a last cuddle, she rolled out of bed, headed straight for coffee.
As she lifted the mug, the cat eyed her. Steely, unblinking.
“You wouldn’t tell me if Roarke already fed you.”
Those bicolored eyes seem to harden, and never wavered.
“You, pal, would be a challenge in the box. I’ve got to respect that.”
She ordered him up some kibble, added a salmon chaser. And when he pounced on it, took the coffee with her to shower.
No point in thinking about it, she told herself as she let the jets pummel and steam. She’d take the first steps, then the next until it was done. Case closed, move on.
When she came out again, Galahad—bowl empty—sat washing himself industriously.
She walked into the closet, stopped herself as she reached carelessly for the closest jacket at hand. She glanced back, reminded herself the cat couldn’t help her here. Besides, she wasn’t an idiot. Though she’d never buy that what she wore mattered in the day-to-day of cop work, today … Image, perception, presentation? It wouldn’t hurt to keep those things in mind regarding breaking Knightly.
Normally she avoided red for the job as it struck her as too female, too deliberately bold. But that might be exactly what the day called for.
She mulled over the section of red jackets, their various hues and tints, until she annoyed herself, so grabbed one at random.
Not bright so much as strong, she decided, and the fact it would hit just below her waist added another subtle point. Unbuttoned, it would show part of her weapon harness.
Because her mind wanted to swim when she scanned trousers, she grabbed a pair of straight-legged, simple pants out of the gray section.
She opted for a sweater rather than a shirt—easier movement, in case she got a chance to … or, rather, was required to physically restrain Knightly.
She dressed, grabbed boots the same shade as the pants as it seemed easiest, and considered the most aggravating portion of her day complete.
She stepped back into the room as Roarke walked in.
“Good morning. I’d hoped you’d sleep longer.”
“Long enough. What?” Her brow furrowed as he studied her. “Are you going to tell me there’s something wrong with this?” She waved her hands down her body.
“Quite the opposite, Lieutenant. I was just thinking you look strong, capable, and in charge.”
“Good. I am.”
He crossed to her, lifted her chin. “Then why do your eyes look sad?”
“Not sad, just working things out. What time did you get up to lord over the known universe?”
“A bit before five. I had a brief ’link conference.” He lifted her chin a little higher, kissed her. “Did you dream after all?”
“Not bad ones.” He saw too much of her, she thought, and evaded by shifting away to gather her things from a table. Restraints, ’link, comm, badge, loose credits.
“Is that all you have?”
“Of what?”
“Money.”