Indecent Danger (Danger Incorporated #3)(15)
From her brilliant smile it appeared she really liked that idea but then her lips turned down in sadness.
“I’d like nothing better but I have to get through this weekend first. That detective suspects me and let’s face it. I have a motive. A good one.”
A motive she hadn’t told the cop about, which worried Travis. If the detective found out about it on his own then Aubrey would be under even more suspicion.
“I wish you had been honest about Bruce’s blackmail but I understand why you weren’t. Although you should have known I wouldn’t care about your past. It hurts to think that you thought me that self-righteous and judgmental, baby.”
She tried to move from his lap but he held her fast. “It wasn’t that I thought you were like that but…I just thought you wouldn’t want…a used girlfriend.”
Travis sighed with frustration. “You’re not a car, you’re a woman. A beautiful, sexy, amazing woman and it never occurred to me that I was the first man to realize it. I’m sure you’ve had many boyfriends through the years.”
She opened her mouth to say something, then seemed to think better of it. “That’s another discussion but not for tonight. Right now all I can think of is that Bruce is dead and Prather thinks I did it.”
“He hasn’t talked to everyone yet,” Travis laughed, thinking about the guests this weekend. “Once he does he’ll see that there is no shortage of people that had motive to kill Bruce. Many of them much stronger than yours. The man was an * and pretty much everybody knew it. He didn’t bother to hide it.”
“Will he talk to everyone? Or will he just find a convenient scapegoat – namely me – and close the case?”
Her voice trembled with fear and he couldn’t stand the thought of her being so terrified. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you. I’ll get Shane out here and if I have to find the real killer myself, I damn well will. No one is going to railroad you into a murder charge on my watch.”
“Shane? How can he help?”
Aubrey didn’t know his cousin’s background.
“He’s an attorney. A damn good one too, which is important in business dealings. He’s not a member of the bar here in Florida but he does know the law. I’ll give him a call.”
Shoving her hair back from her face, Aubrey appeared slightly dazed. “This day has been so strange. First Bruce threatens me, then he ends up dead, and now I’ve told you my biggest secret. And you don’t seem to care.”
He’d told her several times already, but he had a feeling she was going to have to hear it many more times before she believed deep in her heart.
“I don’t care. I’m not going to judge you for what you’ve done. Hell, with everything that you’ve been through your reaction doesn’t seem all that extreme. Some people might have turned to drugs or crime.”
A smile bloomed on her beautiful face and his heart skipped a few beats. “Did I forget to mention the multi-million dollar crime syndicate I’m the head of?”
He captured her lips in a long, hot kiss that left them both breathless. “Baby, make me an offer I can’t refuse.”
“How about you shower up and I’ll rub your shoulders. Your forehead has those lines again so I know you’re feeling tense.”
Aubrey always seemed to know when he was feeling stressed just by looking at his expressions. He didn’t know how she did it but she was never wrong.
“I’m worried about Martin,” he admitted. “He has a powerful motive for murder and the police are bound to find out about it.”
“Do you think he did it?” Aubrey asked, her voice soft and tentative.
“No, but as you pointed out that won’t stop the police from ripping apart someone’s life. I think it might be a good idea to do a little investigating on our own. I don’t know much about the local law enforcement, but you made a good point earlier about placing too much trust there. We need to take control of this situation if we want to stay on top of it.”
His mind was moving in fast forward, making a list of things to be done and people to call.
“At this point I’m grateful for any help I can get,” Aubrey sighed. “I’m not too proud to admit that I’m scared. I didn’t like Bruce but I didn’t want him dead.”
“There are dozens of people who did and we’ll go through them with a fine-tooth comb. We’ll find who really did this and clear your name once and for all.”
If it was the last thing he’d do, Travis would help Aubrey put the past behind her and move forward.
With him.
Chapter Nine
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Aubrey couldn’t sleep. She’d tossed and turned for the last hour, wide awake, her head spinning with the events of the evening. She needed a shot of whiskey or maybe a sleeping pill. As it stood now she’d be up all night.
Throwing back the covers she padded into the bathroom, rummaging through her toiletry case for a few ibuprofen with the added sleep medication. She’d kill her headache and her sleeplessness in one shot. She tossed back two tablets with a glass of water and opened the bathroom door only to smack into a hard wall of warm, muscular man.
“Shit! You scared me.”