Read Online That Touch of Ink by Diane Vallere - Free Book Online

on, and I held my breath.
    “Madison, it’s Joanie from Joanie Loves Tchotchkes. I have a box of stuff here with your name on it. I’ll be open until six.” The message clicked off.
    I grabbed a notepad and scribbled a message to myself. “Is there anything else, Tex?”
    “Who was that?” he asked, his eyes trained on the phone.
    I waved my hand to dismiss his interest. “That’s a local thrift store owner. She calls me when she gets mid-century stuff. Ever since the Dallas Morning News ran that article about the pillow stalking, people know my routine. I used to fly under the radar and get first dibs on inventory but now everybody follows the obituaries.”
    Tex leaned back in his chair and studied my face.
    “Say what you want, but that’s my real life. Thrift stores, flea markets, Doris Day movies, dumpster diving. If you weren’t standing here, I’d be on my way to her store.”
    “Night, is that how you want to live? Deny reality and build a world from a movie set?”
    I stood up and slapped my hands palm-side down on the desk. “If I were interested in denying reality, I wouldn’t have called you. I wouldn’t be in the middle of this mess right now.”
    “What exactly do you want me to do?”
    “Can you nose around Brad’s background? See if you find any red flags?”
    “The man lies to you about being married, to spare you from getting involved in something probably illegal. You freak out at the news and wind up hospitalized and still, he doesn’t fess up. That was two years ago. Last May you got damn close to being killed by a murderer, and he doesn’t show up until now? The fact that he showed up at all suggests to me he’s known where you were the whole time. Want me to keep going?”
    “There’s a lot of history you don’t know.”
    “And I don’t want to know. That’s in the past. Aside from your wardrobe, you haven’t impressed me as someone who wants to live in the past.”
    “I’m not living in the past. I’m trying to live in the present. That’s why I need you. Can you help me? Do a background check on him or something?”
    “No, Madison, I can’t. There are codes of conduct to being a cop. I know it took a lot for you to tell me about this, but he’s a private citizen. U
    nless he breaks the law, he’s entitled to come and go as he wishes.”
    “So that’s it. I’m on my own.”
    “Not exactly.”
    The chimes announced the return of Rocky and Connie. I tried to stand up, but the fabric of the sweater had gotten caught in my chair. I shifted my shoulders up and down, trying to free it. Tex came around the back of my chair, sliding his hand behind my neck. His fingers were like soft pads of fire burning through my skin. I didn’t pull away. He freed the fabric and put his hands under my arms to help me stand. I stepped to the side of my chair and his hands slid down the sides of my body.
    I turned to face him. His hands rested on my waist, our bodies almost touching. The kitten heels felt unfamiliar and I swayed forward, falling against him. He easily righted me and I stepped away.
    Rocky bounded into the office. He yapped around Tex’s feet, his caramel fur bouncing as he sniffed the lieutenant’s leather shoes. He hopped up on his hind legs with his paws in the air. His back paws moved in tiny steps, like a ballerina in toe shoes for the first time. Connie came into the office as Tex withdrew a plastic bag filled with bone-shaped biscuits from the pocket of his windbreaker. He held one about six inches over Rocky’s head; Rocky snatched it. Tex ruffled Rocky’s fur and stood back up. Our eyes connected for a brief moment before I looked away, still flushed.
    “Take care, Madison.” He put on his silver aviator sunglasses and opened the door. Halfway through, he turned back and looked at Connie. “No hard feelings, Ms. Duncan.” The door snapped shut behind him and he disappeared around the side of the building.
    “Madison, is everything okay? What was a