Chapter Five

Uh oh, didn’t think this through…

She fought to keep from turning red.

“I have no idea what you mean,” Leah said breezily, feigning a sudden deep interest in her reading material as her heart began to race.

“Oh yes you do. I think there’s something going on with you two, as well,” he retorted, and grinned at her obviously flustered state as he used her own phrase against her.

“Call it a hunch.”

She just kept her voice from squeaking as she shot back, “There’s nothing there. He’s bossy. And he’s not even my type.”

“Now who’s in denial?” was Pete’s parting shot before he turned his attention back to the television show.

Crap, she thought.

Pete had definitely picked up on her view of Larry, all right.

But it doesn’t matter, she told herself. Even if he hadn’t left, he still has a job to do. I just need to put whatever this is aside and get Larry Fuller out of my head.

And even as Leah thought it, mental snapshots began to move in a carousel around her consciousness.

First up was the moment he’d first stepped into Shannon’s triage room. The grin as he’d approached that had widened into a smile, revealing two perfectly placed dimples.

The intense blue color of his eyes, and the surge of… something that had almost taken her breath away when he’d held his badge out on his palm and she’d made contact to take it.

Next, the apartment, as he’d physically shielded her once he realized her door was standing open when it shouldn’t be. The rush of him striding forward and pulling her close to him, so close she’d had to look almost straight up to make eye contact.

Seeing the wave of concern – of worry, she realized now – on his face at that moment was what had made her ache to kiss him.

Then it was the moment on the airplane, when she’d looked up and over at him and caught him staring at her in such a way that it made her insides flutter.

And finally, standing at the side of the truck, him with a slanted grin as he watched her every move. She hadn’t been able to decide whether to punch him or grab two handfuls of his suit jacket and pull him down so she could plant a kiss on him. To her credit, she’d done neither. Then he’d completely surprised her with that softly spoken compliment.

She fought back a quiet chuckle as she admitted that although Larry Fuller could definitely be bossy, for some reason she found it exhilarating coming from him.

Which is so out of character for me it’s unreal, she also admitted. Maybe because I can tell he only uses it when he has to, and even then, it’s for a purpose. It’s not just to be a jerk, like my ex.

Her ex.

Or as she liked to refer to him, ‘The Dink’.

Ten months had passed, and her soul still bore some scars from that relationship. He’d tried his best to kill her independent, free spirit – and he’d almost succeeded. Because of The Dink, she’d built an impenetrable fortress around her heart, vowing to never let anyone get close enough to wound her heart – or attempt to commandeer her life - like that ever, ever again.

But Larry Fuller was wired completely differently – she could feel it to her core. His bossy streak wasn’t borne of arrogance, or zero self-esteem, or sociopathic tendencies. His was rooted in a genuine desire to keep people he cared about safe. It made her want to dismantle some bricks from her carefully constructed wall and get to know him better…

And it clicked in her head.

That’s what it is. Being around him makes me feel safe, and warm, and desirable, and just… really, really happy, Leah realized, and her eyebrows raised as it sank in.

“I think I’m in deep trouble,” she whispered to herself.

“I’m sorry, what?” Pete asked, glancing over at her.

“Nothing. Thinking out loud,” she replied.

***

Meanwhile, Duffy had returned Larry to Meacham Field to catch his plane back to Chicago. He said goodbye to Duffy in the parking lot and called his office prior to boarding to get a battle plan lined out once he arrived. Then he climbed aboard the jet, grabbed a bottled water, and settled into one of the seats next to a window.

Larry’s plane had reached cruising altitude after ten minutes, and with nothing more he could do regarding the case until he landed, he closed his eyes and allowed himself to re-open that padlocked box.

Leah Culverton, he sighed. She’s something, all right. Tiny. Fearless. Gorgeous.

Yes, all those things. And so much more. Tenacious. Loyal. Caring. Independent. Tough, but with a soft side, too.

Every single tiny piece that he’d learned about her so far just made him want to know more. About her family and her childhood. About her hopes, her dreams, her goals and fears. Even her favorite food, color, and flower.

I want to experience the way she kisses, and how she looks in moonlight. I want to see her dance, make her laugh out loud and watch her eyes sparkle. I want to feel her in my arms and make her moan with desire for me and me alone…

“I think I’m in deep trouble,” Larry Fuller murmured as he gazed out the window at the clouds and wondered if Leah Culverton was thinking about him, too.

***

By the time Shannon woke from her nap, Pete was almost done with dinner.

“Wow, you cook?” Leah had exclaimed when he got up, moved to the kitchen, and pulled out a skillet and saucepan.

“I do,” he confirmed. “You two like beef stroganoff?”

“Oh,” she sighed. “That sounds so good! I haven’t had that in ages.”

“Coming right up,” Pete said with a smile. “Grab the steak and an onion from the fridge, will you?”

A half-hour later, Shannon padded into the kitchen on bare feet.

You look rested. I’m glad, Leah wrote to her, and she smiled, sitting at the table.

“Something smells awesome. What is that?”

Beef stroganoff. He’s cute AND he can cook. Double points for you! Leah teased with her notebook while Pete’s back was turned, and Shannon flushed beet red.

***

While dinner was underway at the farmhouse in Texas, a tired Larry Fuller was standing next to a lab tech in Chicago.

Among other things, they’d managed to salvage a partial palm print from the burned-out hull of Robert’s Mazda, and they’d lifted two more fingerprints from both apartments – Robert’s had also been burglarized. Now, all three prints were being scanned in for comparison against the national database.

“This could take a while,” the tech said. “Might want to go grab a bite and come back. Or I can call you if there’s a match.”

“I’ll hit the vending machine, but I’m not going far,” Larry answered. “Because we’re gonna narrow the search parameters to Chicago and the surrounding area. Something tells me we’re going to have a match sooner than later.”

“Man. You’re either really tired or you don’t care about taste if you’re settling for vending machine food. That stuff is legendary, and not in a good way,” the tech retorted.

“Yeah, well. Perks of the job,” Larry joked back, and headed down the hall to make what he hoped was a safe selection from the available choices.

Forty-eight minutes later, the tech turned to Larry and smiled.

“Got a match on all three, same guy,” the man said. “Charles Allen Zavier.”

“I know that name,” Larry muttered. “Thanks. Keep working on the other pieces, okay?”

“You got it.”

***

Ten minutes after that, Larry was in his office, at his terminal, calling up all his notes about Creach & Langford.

“I knew it,” he exclaimed in triumph, and reached for the phone.

“Hey, boss,” he said. “I’ve got a lead. I’m heading out now to chase it down.”

But he was destined to be disappointed when he arrived at the last address on record for Charles Allen Zavier. Larry had no way of knowing, but the man he sought was the last-minute passenger who boarded the nine-fifteen p.m. flight out of O’Hare to Dallas-Fort Worth.