“I’m having a few tests done, but they think it’s nothing serious.” She hated lying to Ryan, but she hated sympathy more. “Hey, I don’t suppose there’s a chance of a coffee in this posh place.
“Yeah, I’ll go make you one.”
She trailed after him into the luxurious kitchen,
“Wow, they must really like you. This place is…”
“Nice. Yeah, it is. But it was empty.” He shrugged and opened the fridge. “Unfortunately, it doesn’t come with milk.” He picked up the phone and punched in a number. “Graham, any chance of sending some coffee up to my place. Thanks.”
“Christ, all this and coffee on call. Maybe I can see why you took this job.”
He studied her for a moment, and she knew he was trying to come to a decision. Finally, he shrugged. “They’re still recruiting. I could put in a good word for you.”
His words shocked her. She didn’t know why, but she hadn’t expected it. “Recruiting for what? What is it you do here, Ryan? Your new partner looks like some sort of gang leader.”
Ryan grinned. “Ash has his moments, but he’s basically a good guy.”
“I’ll take your word for it. So…the job, what is it?”
“At the moment, liaison as much as anything. With potential customers. But CR Investigation takes on all sorts of jobs. It could be interesting.”
She’d bet it could. Talk about a whole load of words saying absolutely nothing. “All sorts of jobs” could cover a multitude of sins. Still, even if she had been prepared to leave the force, she was hardly in a position to take a new job right now. She had a time bomb ticking away in her head.
“Maybe once I’ve solved this murder, I’ll think about it.”
“And what if you never solve the murder?”
“I will.” She wished she were so certain.
“You said you had some information for me. What is it and how did you know about Roz being here?”
She’d been planning to tell him everything about the meeting with the colonel. Now, after seeing this setup and meeting his new “partner” she wondered if she should. But Ryan was still the same man and she trusted him. Besides, the colonel hadn’t actually told her not to mention their little talk.
“Come on, Faith, spit it out.”
She took a deep breath. “That wasn’t my first job offer of the day.”
“It wasn’t?”
“No. This morning I was approached by a couple of guys. They said they were working for a government department. They were investigating Christian Roth and—”
“What?” Ryan’s sounded shocked.
She opened her mouth to continue when a hard knock sounded on the door.
“Wait a second,” Ryan said.
She followed him through and waited as he spoke to whoever was on the other side, but she couldn’t hear the words. Finally, he opened the door wider and stood aside.
“You’d better come in.”
Chapter Four
Ash had expected an argument. He’d known Ryan didn’t want him in on this conversation, and he wasn’t sure why he wanted to be here anyway.
But instead of telling him to piss off, Ryan gestured for him to enter. It was unexpected and enough to pique his interest.
As he stepped into the room, he glanced across to where Faith lounged in the open doorway, arms folded across her chest, positively bristling with disapproval. He might think she didn’t like him, except he’d seen her initial reaction.
Oh, she liked him all right.
She just didn’t want to admit it.
He remembered the sensation when their hands had touched. His cock twitched in his pants at the memory, taking him totally by surprise. How long since he’d reacted to any woman. Actually, he knew exactly how long. Twenty-three years, four months, and three days. The last time he’d been with Lily, before they’d been separated and he’d lost her forever.
Banishing the memory, he crossed the room, putting the tray on the counter and turning to face them.
“I’d like Ash to hear this,” Ryan said.
She glanced between the two men, uncertain.
“Come on, Faith, trust me. I wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t important.”
She chewed on her lip while she thought about it. They were nice lips, not full, but wide and perfectly shaped. His gaze ran over the rest of her. She was tall for a woman and slender, her breast small but still visible beneath the shirt she wore and her legs were endless.
She was about as different from Lily as it was possible to get. Lily had looked like Tara, petite and blond. And she’d had a sweet disposition. Ash doubted Faith had ever been called sweet in her life. She was all sharp prickles, and he couldn’t help but wonder what it would be like to smooth those prickly bits.
Finally, she nodded and headed for the counter with the coffee. “Might as well. You’d tell him anyway once I’d gone. But coffee first.”
After pouring a cup, she added milk and without waiting for them to say anything else, she carried it through into the living area and settled herself on the corner of the couch. She took a sip and grinned at Ryan. “Actually, I know why you took this job. I might sell my soul for coffee like this.”