Stone Cold Heart (Tracers #13)(79)

But he read the message and put the phone down. He came back and stood beside her as she rinsed the plates.

Was he getting ready to leave? Nerves flitted through her stomach. She didn’t want him to go yet. She wanted him to spend the night, but he obviously still had his head wrapped up in his case. He might even be waiting for a call from Santos. Maybe he was looking forward to ducking out of here, just to even the score from the other night. Although a move like that seemed too vindictive for him.

She shut off the faucet and turned to face him, bracing herself for a tactful departure.

Nolan eased closer, resting his hand at her waist, and she felt the warmth of his fingers through the thin silk. Sara’s pulse started to thrum. He was gazing down at her with that simmering look she recognized.

“I don’t want to be your shrink, Sara.” He brushed his hand over her shoulder, dipping his finger under the fabric behind her neck and making her shiver. “I don’t want to be your life coach, either.” He pulled her close.

“What do you want?”

The corner of his mouth curved up. “For now? I want to be the guy who makes your bed squeak.” He kissed her forehead. “And eats pasta with you”—his mouth moved to her temple—“naked in the middle of the night.”

She slid her arms around his neck. She loved the way he felt against her. She loved the solid heat of his body and the way he made her forget all her hang-ups and get lost in the moment.

He pulled her tightly against him.

“We’re not naked,” she whispered.

“Not yet.”

? ? ?

They rode in the unmarked SUV Dax had used for his undercover work, and Talia was impressed. It had a crack in the windshield and fabric sagging down from the ceiling.

“I think this car’s older than I am,” she said.

Dax glanced at her. “You could be right.”

They turned onto Sixth Street, and she looked around. Partygoers spilled out of the bars and clustered on street corners. Chalkboard signs advertised musical acts and cover charges. Talia took it all in. Thursday was a big night, evidently. Or maybe this was every night. She didn’t hang out in Austin’s bar district.

A pedicab swerved in front of them, and Dax slammed on the brakes. The driver shot him the bird.

“You been here lately?” Dax looked at her.

“I haven’t.”

“Neighborhood’s changed a lot. More hotels, restaurants. Everything’s gotten pricier.”

He continued down the street, passing clusters of young people milling outside bars.

“So, tell me about your TO.”

Talia looked at him. “Who?”

“Nolan Hess. He’s your training officer, isn’t he?”

Dax had been doing his homework.

“More or less,” she said. “What about him?”

“You like him?”

She narrowed her gaze. “Why?”

“I’m wondering what his rep is. He used to work for us, you know.”

Obviously, he’d heard the rumors about why Nolan left APD. Talia had heard, too, and she knew they were crap.

“Nolan’s solid,” she said simply, and left it at that.

Dax hung a right into a narrow alley, then turned right again. Graffiti covered the walls on either side of them. He reached a corner and rolled to a stop. Looking down the side street, Talia spotted a blue neon sign on the corner.

“Blue Brew,” she said.

“You been there?”

“No, but I’ve heard of it.”

He looked at her.

“I like blues music,” she said. “I keep up.”

Why did she feel the need to back up her claim? Maybe because she didn’t want him to think she was limited just because she lived in a town where the nightlife consisted of a two-screen movie theater.

Talia turned her attention to the bar, where a line of people waited out front.

“She was seen there by the bouncer?” she asked.

“That’s right. Around eleven thirty.”

Dax continued down the narrow alley. He passed a Dumpster, and Talia clutched her door as he missed it by maybe half an inch. At the corner, he hung another right and pulled over in a no-parking zone. They’d made a loop and were facing Sixth Street again.

“Bouncer at Blue Brew wouldn’t let her in,” Dax said. “Didn’t like her ID.”

“It was fake.”

“Right. And it wasn’t even hers. Belonged to one of her friends. But that bouncer wasn’t the last to see her. Bouncer at this place”—Dax pointed through the windshield—“Sullivan’s Pub, he claims he saw her walking away from Blue Brew toward the hotel where she was staying. He said a white Tahoe pulled over, and she got inside.”

“He said that? She just ‘got inside’?”

“He said that’s what it looked like. They had a short conversation, and she got into the vehicle.”

Talia shook her head. “That’s the part I don’t understand. Why would she get a ride with some random guy?”

“Happens all the time.”

“Yeah, but we’re talking about a college student. She’s smart, supposedly. And she’s not from here, so you’d think she’d be cautious, not just hop into a car with some stranger.”