"Her affection for you is one of her finest qualities."
"And you figure because the two of you don't rub smooth she'll let things slide?" Her eyes, colored to match her hair were round and sad. "That's jerk thinking, Summerset. Dallas'll work till she drops to do right by you, and I figure you know it. If somebody came after you, she'd step between and take the hit, because that's who she is. I figure you know that, too."
"I've done nothing." He spoke stiffly now, refusing to acknowledge any shame. "I would expect an efficient detective to deduce that, whatever her personal feelings."
"You're down," Mavis said gently. "You want to ventilate sometime, just give me a call." She teetered onto her toes to kiss his cheek. "I'll bring the brew."
"Your young man is very fortunate in you," Summerset managed then hurried down the hallway and disappeared through an open door.
"That was well done. Mavis." Roarke continued down the steps now and crossed to her to take her hands.
"He's bummed flat. Who can blame him?"
"And who could stay flat with you around?"
"It's like my mission to bubble things up. Let's see what we can do with the group in the parlor." She slid a smile up at him. "Am I staying for dinner?"
"I wouldn't have it any other way."
Despite the company, Eve managed to slip away long enough to dismiss McNab and Peabody, gather their reports and file them for later view. She cornered Summerset and, after a nasty little conversation, convinced him it would be in his best interest to report to Dr. Mira's office at eleven a.m. for testing.
At the end of it, her head throbbed badly enough for her to resort to a dose of painkiller. Roarke found her in the bathroom, scowling at the pills palmed in her hand.
"It must be unbearable, for you to even consider a pill."
"It's been a long day," she said with a shrug, and dumped the pills back into their tube. "But I can handle it."
"We'll run a bath. You need to relax."
"I've got work."
"Eve." Firmly, he took her arms, turned her to face him. "This is the part of your job I hate most. The shadows it puts under your eyes, and in them."
"I don't have a lot of time on this one."
"Time enough to take an hour for yourself." Still watching her, he began to rub at the knots in her shoulders.
"I have to read the reports, extrapolate from them for the official record. I keep hitting walls." There were nerves in her voice, and hearing them irritated her. "I haven't been able to trace the tokens at all, and you hit it on the statue. Thousands of them available at God shops all over the known universe. Even at five hundred credits a pop, she's a popular lady."
She started to pull back, but his hands held her still. "I have to give Whitney something by tomorrow. I told Mira everything."
His hands paused, a fraction of a moment, then continued kneading her muscles. "I see."
"Maybe I should have asked you first, but I did what I felt was necessary."
"There's no need to apologize."
"I'm not apologizing." This time she shrugged him off. "I'm saying." She stalked into the bedroom. Even excellent coffee could start to burn a hole in the gut. Despite it, Eve jammed at the AutoChef to program a pot. "I'm doing what needs to be done, and one of those duties is to advise you to increase your personal security until this case is closed."
"I believe my security is more than adequate."
"If that was the case, this bastard wouldn't have slipped through it to shoot transmissions from this house, to arrange for hotel rooms with one of your credit accounts, to draw a woman over from Ireland in your name."
Roarke angled his head, nodded. "Point taken. I'll have a look, personally, at my electronic security."
"Fine, that's a start." She slopped coffee into a cup. "I'm putting a tag on Summerset."
"I beg your pardon?"
"I'm tagging him." The fury was bubbling, couldn't be stopped. "For his own welfare. The next time I find a body, I want him well alibied. I put a tag on him, fit him with a security bracelet, or cage him. I figure the first is the easiest choice."
"Perhaps it is." Roarke decided brandy would go down easier than coffee. "And do you intend to put a tag on me, Lieutenant?''
"If I thought one could stick, damn right I would. Since you'd peel it off within an hour, it would be a waste of time."
"Well." He lifted his snifter in salute. "We understand each other."
"I think we do." She drew a breath. "I contacted the ME. There were traces of a tranq in Jennie O'Leary's system."
Roarke stared into his brandy. "Had she been raped?"
"No, there were no signs of sexual assault, no indication of struggle. She was still tranq'd when he strung her up. But the token – there was another token – the ME found it in her vagina. Again, there was no bruising or indication of force or struggle. It would appear that the token was inserted while she was unconscious. I'm sorry, but I thought you'd want the details."
"I do, yes."
"The ME reports that you've requested – as the victim has no next of kin – to be given possession of the body when it's released."
"She'd want to go back to Ireland."
"I assume you'll take the body back yourself."
"Yes."
The burn in her gut spread to her heart. "I'd appreciate it if you'd let me know when you've finalized your plans."
He looked up then, and the emotions swimming in those beautiful eyes stabbed her heart. "Did you think I would send her back alone? That I would wash my hands of it and go about my business?"
"No. I've got work."
"For Christ's sake."
It was the tone, impatience, frustration, and just a whiff of amusement that had her whirling on him. "Don't take that line with me, pal. Don't try to make me feel like an idiot. You loved her. Okay, fine. Do what you have to do, and so will I."
He was swearing viciously by the time he caught her. Even the whiff of amusement was extinguished. "Yes, I loved her, and what we once had was important to me. Even so it wasn't so much as a shadow against what I feel for you. Is that what you want to hear?"
Shame rushed over her, smothering temper. "I don't know what's wrong with me. It's all pushing into my head." Feeling helpless, she lifted her fingers to press at her temples. "None of the others mattered because… I don't know, they just don't matter to me. She does, and I hate myself for being jealous, even for a minute, of a dead woman."
"Eve." He laid a hand on her cheek. "From the first moment I met you, every other woman paled for me."
She only felt more foolish."I wasn't groping, it's just – ''
"You're all," he murmured, touching his lips to each pounding temple in turn. "You're only."
The burning around her heart turned to an ache, sweet and strong. "I need you." Her arms came tight around him, her mouth fused to his. "For so many things."
"Thank God." He deepened the kiss, gentled it until she sighed. "We'll take that hour now. Together."
CHAPTER ELEVEN
She could think again. Until she'd met Roarke, Eve hadn't realized how many benefits sex had to offer. Feeling limber, focused, and energized, she settled down in her office.
The new computer Roarke had arranged to have installed that morning was a beauty. Eve indulged herself, admiring it, tinkering with the tonal qualities. Her mood lifted even higher as it gobbled up the data she inputed like a hungry, yet well-mannered wolf.