Hot Trick (A Detective Shelley Caldwell Novel) Read online

  Or to kill me?

  “The doctor will see you now,” a nurse informed me.

  Inside a curtained alcove, I played twenty questions with the doc. She rotated my shoulder until I groaned, after which she ordered an x-ray. Only two more hours and I was a free woman, shoulder still sore but definitely not broken. After asking me if I needed a prescription for pain—no! I needed a clear head so I could work—she gave me some home remedy tips.

  Great.

  All that time spent for advice I could have given myself.

  I headed for home thinking that if I was lucky I might be asleep by dawn. At an all-night drugstore, I bought some smelly stuff to rub on my shoulder plus over-the-counter pain killers. I downed a couple when I got back to the car, and was really slowing down by the time I arrived at my building and had to walk the stairs. The moment I got in my door, Sarge and Cadet swirled around my feet.

  No Jake tonight.

  I was mostly disappointed.

  “Hey, guys, sorry I haven’t been around.” I stooped to pet both cats and scratch behind their ears before going into the kitchen to open a can of food. “You guys eat, I’ll take a shower, then we can all curl up together.”

  I staggered toward the bathroom, removing clothing as I went. My body was a wreck-in-progress and the needles of hot water hitting all my sore places and even the places that were simply exhausted made me moan in ecstasy.

  Almost better than sex.

  I paid special attention to my shoulder. Thankfully I was able to move it more freely.

  After shutting down the water, I rubbed some of the smelly stuff on my shoulder. Instant heat. Then I wrapped a bath sheet around me and could only think of one thing.

  Bed.

  The cats were waiting for me, Sarge on a pillow and Cadet at the foot. I climbed on top and with a sigh, dived into the bedding, which felt absolutely luxurious. I was barely aware of the cats purring as I closed my eyes.

  “Ah, there you are.”

  Sebastian’s voice. I blink my eyes open and stare into his amused expression.

  “What are you doing here?” I ask. My heart immediately thuds in reaction.

  “I’ve come to do your bidding.”

  “I didn’t bid you to do anything.” I keep my voice far calmer than my body. “I simply want to sleep.”

  He reaches out and tugs at my bath sheet, and to my astonishment, I don’t try to stop him. It’s like I’m outside of myself looking in…like I’m watching an X-rated movie starring Sebastian and me.

  I feel his dark eyes on me like seductive fingers. The flesh between my thighs quivers.

  He reaches out and with one fingertip, circles a nipple, the pad barely meeting my flesh.

  “You are stunning,” he murmurs, his gaze connecting with the breast he is touching.

  My nipples lengthen in response. I hate this.

  “Tell me what you want.”

  I want Jake, not Sebastian. “For you to leave me alone.”

  He moves closer and I feel his breath on my face. “Say that like you mean it and I will.”

  His head dips to my breast and his mouth surrounds me, suckles me. I feel the pull all the way to my toes, but mostly in my center. I can’t help myself. My thighs loosen and I feel the damp, hot flesh there reaching toward him, wanting his touch.

  “Shelley, it’s been too long.”

  My senses stirred, I opened my eyes to find Jake’s face inches from mine, making me start.

  “Jake!”

  “You sound surprised. Expecting someone else?”

  My heart pounded. “Of course not.”

  I flushed with the lie. I’d half expected to see Sebastian in my bed, but was relieved it was Jake instead.

  Suddenly realizing he wasn’t wearing any clothes, I said, “You’re naked.”

  “I just followed your lead.”

  The bath sheet had fallen away from my body. He was stroking me, using the pad of a single fingertip to make my nipple stand alert.

  Just as Sebastian had done.

  My chest squeezed and I tried to move away, to roll away from him, to get up, but Jake held me trapped in place with his leg over my thighs.

  “I need you,” he whispered, his fingers trailing a path down to my stomach and lower.

  He loosened his leg and my thighs spread without my permission, as though my body was independent of my mind. I never could resist him when his mind was set.

  “I’ll keep it short tonight,” he promised. “For you.”

  I started to panic.

  I couldn’t do this.

  I couldn’t dream about one man and then make love to another.

  But my sex-deprived body told me I could. When Jake’s mouth followed his fingers, I arched into him and let him taste me. I needed him—him!—as much as he needed me.

  “You’re ready for me,” he murmured. “Something has you hot and sweet and juicy. Were you dreaming of me?”

  “Dreaming…oh…”

  I tugged at his hair. Tried to stop him again. One last desperate attempt.

  His mouth was on me, his fingers in me. All I could do effectively was moan, which urged him on. His thumb rubbed my clit as he moved up over me. He let his fingers slide slowly out of me and the pressure inside eased. The relief was short-lived. Within seconds, he filled me again, longer, thicker, harder.

  Rolling, he brought me on top, then watched as I rode him, as I tried to bring him with me when I peaked. It didn’t happen, of course. It never did the first time. Or rarely by the fifth. I tried everything to make him lose control, but he merely smiled as I took my pleasure.

  Once.

  Twice.

  “Three times’s my limit,” I murmured. “I really, really need some sleep. You have to come this time.”

  “My pleasure.”

  Tonight, three times was the charm. Jake let himself go and found nirvana with me.

  Afterward, he held me close.

  I pushed away the guilt that nagged at me.

  And when I dreamed, I dreamed only of him.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  At his drawing board sketching ideas for his next escape, some new hip-hop group blaring in the background, Sebastian tried to keep himself busy so he wouldn’t have to think about another failure.

  Patience, he told himself. Rome wasn’t built in a day.

  But the irony got to him, the fact that he hadn’t been the one to enjoy the fruits of his own labor.

  He stopped drawing for a moment and picked up the clip he’d taken from Shelley’s hair.

  She might be a tough nut to crack while awake—well, okay, awake she’d been uncrackable—but asleep, she let down her guard. Perfect. Having used the hair clip for a little personal mojo, he’d been well on his way to seducing her through dreams when she’d awakened.

  Frustration made him tremble with repressed energy.

  Back to the drawing board. Literally.

  Sebastian set down the clip and began sketching, concentrating on the new escape. His pencil pulled an owl from the page. And another. The winged ornamentations came not from his imagination but from the building where he would next perform.

  “Ooh, I like it.”

  Sebastian had been so intent on his work that he hadn’t realized he wasn’t alone until Oriel Leger spoke.

  Whirling around to block her view of the drawing board, he knew it was too late. She’d seen. Maybe she wouldn’t figure it out, though.

  “What are you doing here?”

  “I was bored.” Oriel stepped closer and ran inviting fingers over his chest. “I thought maybe you would have something interesting for me to work on. I’d like to be more than a showpiece for your act.”

  “It’s barely light out. I haven’t been to bed yet.”

  Oriel moved right up against him and gave him a suggestive look out of her kohl-rimmed eyes. “Me, neither,” she murmured, her lips nearly touching his.

  As if she could replace the woman continually on his
mind. Sebastian stepped away from her. “How did you get inside?”

  “I followed some guy into the vestibule. When I got up here, I knocked but you must not have heard me. I figured the music was too loud.”

  “That doesn’t explain how you got through the door.”

  “I turned the handle. You must have forgotten to lock it, silly.”

  Perhaps he had forgotten to latch the door, but he always protected his living space. When he’d moved in, he’d put No Entrance spells on the doors and windows. Had they weakened or was Oriel somehow exempt?

  “So…isn’t there anything I can do for you?” she asked, giving him a good view of her considerable cleavage.

  Suspecting she wanted something more than sex, Sebastian was tempted to take her up on her blatant offer if only to find out what. But truth be told, frustrated or not, he simply wasn’t interested. He’d always preferred a challenge over a sure thing.

  “I’ve never had an assistant quite like you before,” he said truthfully. She was intuitive, so much so that she seemed to know what he wanted of her before he asked. “What you can do is go home and get a good sleep so you’ll be at your usual best when you perform.”

  “Tonight?” Sounding excited, she glanced around him at the drawing board. “So you’re going to what? Fly?”

  “All in good time,” he said, hiding his annoyance. She was the best assistant he’d ever had, but nothing more. He wasn’t about to let her in on his plans before he had to. If at all. “Now go. I have work to do.”

  Oriel pouted, making the most of her bee-stung, red-glossed lips. When he didn’t react, she backed away slowly, swinging her hips.

  “If you change your mind…”

  “Just go.”

  Sebastian waited until she was out the door.

  If only she knew the scheme of things.

  His plans were brilliant, really. One down and three to go. With each step he took, he would gain more power. Soon he would be undefeatable.

  Then he would meet Jake head on and destroy him.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  I woke up with a cat wrapped around my head and another across my feet.

  “Morning, Sarge,” I mumbled, raising my arm to pat him.

  My sore shoulder brought last night’s events rushing back.

  Suddenly I was ticked. Not at Jake. I wanted to wring Sebastian’s neck.

  I sat up and rubbed my shoulder, then did some light stretches to ease the stiffness. The joint and muscles felt better than before.

  I would live.

  “Hey, kitties, are you hungry? Want to eat?”

  As if she understood, Cadet jumped from the foot of the bed and raced me to the kitchen. Sarge yawned and gave a leisurely stretch, content to let me lead the way.

  My thoughts wandered back to Sebastian.

  What had he been thinking, trying to seduce me in my sleep? Past believing I’d conjured him, I suspected he was a sensitive like Silke and me. He’d tried to get into my head when I was awake.

  But waiting until my guard was down and I couldn’t defend myself…

  That was just frickin’ ballsy.

  What was the point? Was he so attracted to me he couldn’t resist? I wasn’t egocentric enough to believe that. More than likely, he was trying to distract me, to throw me off the scent. Did he really think sex would keep me from putting his butt in jail if my investigation proved he was the murderer?

  Keeping him in jail would be another problem.

  Ignoring the part of me not horrified that Sebastian wanted to sleep with me, I fed the cats and grabbed a cup of the coffee Jake had made. Weird that he hadn’t awakened me for a kiss goodbye.

  I closed my eyes and faced the emotions flitting through me. Feelings for Jake that sometimes felt good, and other times terrified me. He had my back. Good…and bad. What if I couldn’t manage a tough case without him anymore? What if he stopped wanting to watch my back?

  Maybe that was the problem. Worrying about whether or not he would be there when I needed him. Look at what had happened to Mom. Dad had gotten himself killed, leaving her with two small girls to raise on her own. Love was no guarantee that you wouldn’t end up alone and heartbroken in the end.

  I checked the clock. The city was coming alive and so was I. Satisfying sex followed by five hours or so of uninterrupted sleep had made a new woman of me.

  I jumped in and out of the shower and was dressing when I heard the front door open.

  “Breakfast,” Jake called.

  “Bless you.” A thrill shot through me and I told myself it was because I was starving. Zipping up my pants, I padded out to the kitchen. “You meet all my needs.”

  Lightly dusting my mouth with his, Jake said, “I try my best.”

  He’d gone to a local diner for a couple of take-away meals. I inhaled the welcome fragrance.

  “Bacon…be still my heart.”

  “Hmm, is that what it takes to win your heart? You should have told me.”

  Laughing, I gave him a loud smack of a kiss, then grabbed a fork and my food and began devouring it like I hadn’t eaten in days.

  “I was going to put breakfast on plates.”

  “Okay,” I said with a sigh. I grabbed two plates and set them on the table.

  “I was hoping we could celebrate.”

  I stopped halfway through dishing out the food. “Celebrate what?”

  “The gallery sold two of my photographs.”

  Setting down the container, I threw my arms around his neck. “Jake, that’s wonderful.”

  His smile made me melt inside.

  “The gallery owner asked if I had any photos of Chicago, so I decided to start shooting again tonight.”

  I grinned. “This is good, Jake. Really good.”

  “Gets me off your back, huh.”

  “I didn’t mean that. Everyone needs something they love.”

  “I have something I love. You.”

  My breath caught in my throat. He’d said the L-word. He undoubtedly expected me to say it in return. Just thinking about it made it hard to breathe.

  Trying not to panic, I said instead, “I’m glad I didn’t drive you away.”

  “Never.”

  “And I’m glad you’re a bigger person than I am.”

  I really was glad. I would have felt horrible if Sebastian had fully had his way with me. I already hated the fact that I’d been unable to resist the dream.

  What the heck was wrong with me? How had I let the supernatural seduce me?

  Whether or not I had courted an affair with another man—whether or not it was in my head rather than in the flesh—I wouldn’t have been able to hide it. It would have ruined what Jake and I had together.

  The last thing in the world I wanted to happen even if I wasn’t ready to say the L-word.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Jake watched Shelley clean her plate with enthusiasm. Unlike other women he’d dated, she didn’t pick at her food but ate with gusto. That’s what he loved about her. No matter what she did, she put her whole being into it. Sometimes he couldn’t believe she was his.

  Which made him ask, “So how is the case going?”

  “In too many directions. There are so many pieces of the puzzle, I’m still trying to figure out how they fit together.”

  Then he zeroed in on what he really wanted to know. “Do you think this Sebastian is guilty?”

  “He’s a person of interest.”

  To both of them. Jake couldn’t forget that Sebastian had a photo of him. He didn’t like it. And Shelley’s answer sounded strained, as if she had more than a cop’s interest in the magician. He didn’t like that, either.

  “Is that all? You don’t have anything on him?”

  “Not yet. But I’m not counting him out.” She dropped her gaze to her empty plate. “We’ll see how things play out.”

  Jake’s gut clenched. The way she was acting made him think there was more. Things she wasn’t sharing.

  Af
ter she’d left the magician’s loft, Sebastian had worn a self-satisfied expression. Like he was after Shelley and thought he could get her?

  Jake clenched and unclenched his fists. He tried to remain neutral as he asked, “What’s your next move?”

  “Norelli’s in charge.”

  “Of you?”

  “No, but I’m trying to play nice.”

  He brushed his lips over hers. “You play very nice.” When he looked into her eyes, he could see a spark of sexual interest that hit him where it counted. But that’s not what he wanted right now. “I have something I want you to see.”

  “What?”

  “A surprise.”

  “Part of that celebration you mentioned before?”

  “Part of it,” he agreed, taking the dishes to the sink. “We can leave right now.”

  “I was about to head for work.”

  “Did you call in?”

  “No, not yet.”

  “Did Norelli tell you when you had to be back?”

  “He’s not the boss of me.”

  “Then another hour away from the cop shop won’t hurt anything. Right?”

  “Another hour?”

  He could see she was interested enough to be swayed. “It would mean a lot to me if you would let me show you now.”

  Shelley didn’t say anything right away, but when she parted those beautiful lips, she surprised him. “Okay. An hour. But I’ll take my car and follow you, so I can go straight to work from wherever it is.”

  Putting on his sunglasses as they left the apartment, Jake bit back his disappointment. At least she’d agreed to come. A major concession from his crime-obsessed woman.

  The drive was short, only ten minutes from her place, less from his. He parked in front of a narrow graffiti-marred industrial building straight west of the Loop. Not far, but just outside of the area being gentrified. He parked and she pulled up behind him. He was at her car door before she could alight.