A Profiler's Case for Seduction(74)
“And there’s nothing worse than a killer who is brilliant.”
“And beautiful,” Mark added. Thinking about beautiful women brought a vision of Dora to his mind. He should probably warn her that he’d found something that might tie her sister to the murders, but he decided to wait.
Maybe by the next night when they went to the bonfire together he would hear back from the experts. In the meantime it was a wait-and-see situation.
A thrum of unexpected anxiety whirled inside of him. He just hoped the killer was taking a wait-and-see view on things, as well. He now believed there was a solid target on his back, and Professor Melinda Grayson didn’t strike him as a woman who liked to leave loose ends or incomplete projects.
As he left the building, heading to a nearby drive-through for an early dinner, he thought about Dora once again. If he arrested the woman she believed was her savior, then what did that make him to Dora? Judas? Traitor?
Certainly by doing his job he could kiss goodbye any hope for any future with Dora. A pall of depression settled over his shoulders despite the fact that they were one step closer to getting the guilty party behind bars.
Chapter 16
Friday afternoon Dora’s phone rang and to her surprise it was Mark. When she first saw his name on her caller ID, she assumed he’d called to cancel their date of sorts for the night. She figured everything she had told him about herself, about her past, had finally sunk into his overworked brain and he’d realized she wasn’t the kind of woman he wanted to spend time with.
Reluctantly she answered. “Dora.” His warm, deep voice swept over her and she closed her eyes, steeling herself for what she assumed was about to come.
“Hi, Mark.” She was grateful her voice sounded strong.
“Since I didn’t see you yesterday I just figured I’d call to confirm the plans for the night. I’ll be at your house around seven and then we’ll head to the bonfire together.”
Relief shuddered through her. Just one more night. She wanted just one more night to be in his company, to watch that slow, sexy smile steal across his features. “That sounds perfect,” she replied.
“I can’t tell you how much I’m looking forward to it,” he replied.
“Me, too.”
“Then I’ll see you tonight,” he replied, and after murmured goodbyes they hung up. Dora sat on the edge of the sofa with her phone still in hand.
Tonight. She would spend the night with a man she shouldn’t love, a man who would leave her heart wounded when he returned to his life in Dallas.
He was a highly respected FBI agent, not the kind of man who would want to continue to pursue any sort of relationship with her after this evening. Tonight was their swan song and while the very thought caused her heart to ache, she was comforted by the knowledge that she was strong enough to survive Mark Flynn.
Over the past couple of months she’d recognized that she had become the woman she’d always wanted to be, strong and self-sufficient and without the need for a man or anyone else to define or complete her.
She’d invited Mark into her life because she’d wanted to, because she’d known nobody could throw her off her determination to build a healthy, productive life. And she knew she’d be fine without Mark in her life. But she couldn’t help that the thought created a pool of sadness inside her.
She rose from the sofa and placed her phone on the end table. She wanted to leave tonight with her house clean and at some point work in a long, luxurious bubble bath.
Yesterday she’d even gone off campus to a local dress shop and had bought a beautiful bright red sweater with gold-trimmed V-neck. That, coupled with a pair of skinny jeans, would be perfect for displaying school colors during a fun night.
She ate a light lunch knowing that there would be hot dogs, marshmallows and other treats at the bonfire. She consciously schooled her thoughts away from the murders and Mark’s suspicions about Melinda.
She wanted nothing negative to screw up what would be her final time with Mark. Even if he wanted to continue their coffee drinking and friendship for the remainder of his time in Vengeance, she couldn’t.
As far as she was concerned the moment she’d told him about where she’d come from, the moment he’d told her he thought Melinda was responsible for the crimes, it had ended with a whimper. Tonight would be the final cut.
She would bow out of attending the football game with him tomorrow night. She would no longer require him meeting her at the bookstore to walk her home and she definitely wouldn’t give him an opportunity to sit at her table, where she’d begun to believe he belonged.