Actual Stop (Agent O’Connor #1)(23)

“Okay.” I could hear the scratching of a pen on his end of the line. “Do you know exactly when that is? You need to go back to Beltsville for that, right?”

“Yeah. It’s the week of the twenty-first.”

“Sounds good.”

“Do you want me to email the guys to tell them the good news about their PT tests?”

“No. I’ll take care of it. You concentrate on the visit.”

“Thanks, Jim. Talk to you later.”

“Sure thing. Stay safe.”

I nodded at Allison to hang up and tried to ignore her strange expression. I held out a hand for the phone, which I returned to my belt, as she continued to stare at me.

“What?” The unwavering attention unnerved me.

“You’re a PT coordinator?”

“Yeah.”

“And a rescue swimmer?”

I nodded.

“Huh.” She appeared amused.

“What?”

“Nothing.”

The ringing of my personal cell phone stopped my sharp retort. I pulled it out to answer it, and Allison snatched it out of my hands. Again. I gave her a look meant to wither, but she only laughed.

“You are the worst driver ever.” She gestured toward the windshield. “I need you to keep both hands on the wheel and as much of your focus on the road as you can, so we don’t die.”

“I’ll kill you myself if you don’t give me back my phone.”

Allison chuckled, hit the “accept” button displayed on the touch screen, and held it up for me. Her eyes danced. Clearly, she thought she was very clever.

“Hello?” I said, rolling my eyes at her to let her know exactly what I thought of her cute little quips.

“Hey, baby.” Lucia’s voice floated to me over the airwaves.

Blood rushed into my cheeks with all the subtlety of a massive volcanic eruption, and while I deliberately avoided looking at Allison, I could feel her dark eyes boring into me. “Hey. I’ve got you on speaker,” I said quickly. I wanted to make sure she didn’t say anything too personal or revealing. I refused to attempt to decipher why having Allison listening in on my interaction with the woman I was seeing would bother me.

“So that’s why you sound so funny,” Lucia said.

“Uh-huh.” It probably had more to do with Allison than the speaker phone, but she didn’t need to know that.

“Where are you right now?” Lucia asked

“On Chambers. Why? Do you need something?”

“Just my phone. You grabbed the wrong one when you left this morning. You got dressed in the dark again, didn’t you?”

My face burned even hotter. But I guess that’s what happens when your not-girlfriend teases you in front of your first love. I glanced at the clock on the dashboard.

“We’re on our way to grab something to eat,” I told Lucia, deliberately not answering her question. “We have a walkthrough at oh-nine-hundred. Do you have time to meet me someplace?”

“Of course. I can stop by the restaurant, if you want.”

“That works.” I gave her the name and the cross streets and said good-bye. Without turning my head, I took the phone from Allison, feeling as if the stupid thing had betrayed me somehow.

The silence in the car stretched out for an eternity. I kept my eyes on the road ahead, while Allison continued to watch me.

“That your girlfriend?”

“Uh…Yeah.” I decided it was easier to say that than to explain the nuances of our relationship. Besides, it wasn’t any of her business.

“I didn’t realize you were seeing anyone.”

I searched for a hidden meaning in her words but could divine nothing from her even tone.

“Yeah” was all I could come up with. I felt like a jerk because I’d spent the entire morning lusting after Allison, and Lucia hadn’t cropped up in my thoughts even once except during the conversation I’d had with Sarah. What the hell was the matter with me?

I lucked out and found a parking place right in front of the diner, which I managed to get into on the first try. I threw my police-issued parking placard on the dash and jumped out, drawing in a contented lungful of crisp, cool air.

“So, what’s she like?” Allison asked as she fell in step beside me.

I shrugged, distressed. It was childish, I’ll admit, but I hated that she could talk about my love life with such ease. It didn’t appear to bother her at all that I was seeing someone, and that stung. “She’s great.” I pushed open the door with my shoulder and walked into the restaurant.

The hostess, a matronly woman who didn’t look a day under eighty years old, led us to a booth near the windows and left us with our menus. I deliberately kept my eyes down and read every item listed with extreme care, even though I already knew what I wanted. I could feel Allison’s eyes on me.

“That’s it?” Allison demanded. “She’s great? That’s all I get?”

“What more do you want?” I still didn’t look up.

She dropped the menu on the table and abruptly stood. “I’m going to wash my hands,” she announced coolly as the waitress came over to deposit silverware and glasses of water on the table. “Order for me?”

“What do you want?”