by Jayne Castle
“Other direction. I’ll show you.”
“Thanks.”
She kept her smile firmly in place as she allowed the waiter to guide her toward the black-and-green fountain at the opposite end of the hall. But it wasn’t easy to maintain the facade of the happy, slightly drunk guest. Her heart was pounding.
That brief view of what Cooper had called the back of the house had been a revelation. She had felt as though she were standing on an elaborately decorated stage set, gazing into the wings behind the velvet curtains. The swinging doors were gates that divided the fantasy realm of the club from the real world on the other side.
The walls on the other side of the doors were not covered in gleaming black and amber tiles. Instead, they were painted drab beige. There was no carpet on the floor back there, and the lighting was the bright, cold kind that came from fluo-rez tubes installed in the ceiling.
In those few seconds she had glimpsed a number of people garbed in the various uniforms of their jobs—janitors, restaurant staff, croupiers, waiters—all moving about in a busy, purposeful manner.
She had noticed something else, too, something she was pretty sure would interest Cooper.
Harmony Drew, girl detective, eat your heart out.
Chapter 18
SHE WAS SIPPING HER NEW EMERALD GHOST WHEN Cooper finally reappeared.
“It’s about time you got back,” she said when he slid into the booth beside her. “I was starting to think that something had gone wrong on your little tour of the back of the house.”
“Nothing went wrong. I had to borrow a few things, and then I had to return them. Took a little more time than I had planned.” He looked at the magnificent cocktail in front of her. “I see you ordered another one of those froufrou drinks.”
“Actually, this is my third. I had to do something. The waiter was starting to feel sorry for me. He thought my date for the evening had ditched me.”
“Yeah? What did you tell him?”
“That you’d had too much to drink, started feeling ill, and had gone to the men’s room to throw up.”
“A colorful story.”
“I thought so.” She jiggled the swizzle stick in the Emerald Ghost. “What things did you borrow and return?”
“A janitor’s uniform and set of keys.”
“Where did you get the clothes and the keys?”
“Out of a janitorial closet, where else?” he said.
She choked on a swallow of the Emerald Ghost and hastily patted her mouth with a napkin. “You stole a janitor’s uniform and keys?”
“No,” he said patiently. “I told you, I borrowed them.”
“Good grief, Cooper, what if security had caught you? You could have been arrested.”
“I wasn’t.” He patted one of the pockets of his jacket. “Got lucky and came across a little photocopied map of the club attached to one of the janitorial carts. Looks like the janitor used it to keep track of the rooms he’d cleaned.”
“What are you going to do with it?” she asked, seriously alarmed now.
“I don’t know yet. But it’s always nice to have a good map.”
A deep suspicion unfurled inside her. “You had fun, didn’t you?”
“Fun?”
She took the swizzle stick out of the glass and aimed it at him. “I can tell you enjoyed yourself slipping around the back of the house, stealing stuff. You’ve got a real adrenaline buzz going, Cooper Boone.”
His mouth curved faintly. “You can tell that, huh?”
“Yes, I can.” She took another swallow of her drink. “What if I told you that three guys tried to hit on me while you were out playing detective?”
“Point ’em out to me, and I’ll fry their brains.”
“Hah. I don’t believe that for a second. You only conduct duels when there’s Guild business involved, remember?”
“We’re back to the duel thing?”
“Sorry. Couldn’t help it. Didn’t mean to bring up that subject, honest.” She examined her drink a little more closely. “You know, these things may be a bit sneaky. They taste good going down, but I seem to have become rather chatty in the past few minutes.”
He looked amused. “I think it’s time we went home. Been a long night.”
“Yes, it has, hasn’t it? Can’t waste this, though. It was a very expensive drink.” She picked up the glass and downed the last of the Emerald Ghost. When she was finished she smiled brightly at Cooper. “We can go now.”
He helped her out of the booth and steered her toward the green waterfall. “I do believe that this is the first time I’ve ever seen you tipsy.”
“Probably because I always had to be very careful about that kind of thing back in Aurora Springs.”
“I see.”
“Other issues, like hangovers, aside, Mom always made it clear that having the daughter of a Guild Council member get drunk in public would be very embarrassing for Dad.” She winked. “Guild image thing, you know.”
“Belonging to a high-ranking Guild family has put a lot of pressure on you over the years, hasn’t it?”
“Yep. Want to hear a little secret?”
“Sure.”
“Before I met you, I had made up my mind that I was going to marry outside the Guild, no matter what everyone thought.”
“Is that so?”
“Yep.” She noticed that they were on the path that meandered through the waterfalls. She held out a hand to let water splash on her palm. “I’d been plotting my escape ever since I was a teenager. That’s why you never had to worry about me running off with Palmer Frazier or anyone else on your dumb Council.”
“But you changed your mind when you met me?”
“Thought you were different.”
“What do you think about me now?” he asked.
“You’re definitely different,” she said. “But in a different way than I first thought. If you see what I mean.”
“Not sure that I do,” he said.
“Me, either,” she confessed.
Outside the nightclub, the streets were still busy. The lights of the cars and taxis were reflected in the veil of fog. Elly took several deep breaths in an attempt to clear her head. After a while she abandoned the effort as futile.
When Cooper bundled her into the front seat of the Spectrum, she collapsed with a small sigh of relief and closed her eyes.
“So,” Cooper said, climbing in beside her on the driver’s side. “I’ve been wondering about something.”
“What’s that?” she mumbled, half-asleep.
“Did your panties ever dry out?”
“Don’t know. Haven’t checked.”
He gave a low, sexy laugh and pulled away from the curb. “What do you mean? Can’t you feel them?”
“Nope.”
“Too far gone on those Emerald Ghosts to figure out whether or not your underwear is still damp?”
“Nope. Can’t tell if my panties ever got dry because they’re in my purse.”
“Your purse. What the hell are they doing there?”
“Took ’em off when I went to the ladies’ room because they were sort of uncomfortable, and I was afraid that if I sat down in them, they might create a potentially embarrassing spot on the back of my skirt, which happens to be rather expensive.”
“You were sitting there in that little scrap of a skirt without any panties on while you downed those Emerald Ghosts?” he demanded.
He sounded outraged to the depths of his Guild boss soul, she thought.
She smiled and snuggled into a more comfortable position in the seat. “Not exactly the sort of behavior you expect from a proper Guild boss wife, is it? Told you I did you a favor when I canceled our engagement.”
FIFTEEN MINUTES LATER COOPER PARKED IN THE FOG-BOUND alley behind St. Clair’s Herbal Emporium. He was still waging a private internal struggle between hot lust and masculine outrage. He couldn’t get the vision of Elly sitting in the booth without any panties on out of his head.
He went around to the passenger side and opened the door. She was sound asleep. She did not stir when he hauled her out and settled her over one shoulder.
He secured her with a hand high up on her thighs and immediately regretted the move. In her present position, the hem of her minuscule skirt was all the way up to the bottom of her sweetly rounded buttocks. His fingers were only inches away from the cleft between her legs. And she wasn’t wearing any panties.
He managed to get the door of the shop open and carried Elly inside without banging her head.
When he rezzed the light he saw Rose watching him from one of the workbenches. The dust bunny blinked her blue eyes a couple of times and bounced up and down in agitation.
“She’s okay,” Cooper said. “One too many Emerald Ghosts.”
He extended his arm. Rose scampered up his sleeve to his free shoulder.
He walked to the stairs. Pausing there, he adjusted Elly’s weight, and assessed the climb.
“A Guild boss has gotta do what a Guild boss has gotta do,” he announced to Rose.
He started up the stairs.
At the top he stopped to take a couple of deep breaths.
“She’s heavier than she looks,” he informed Rose. “Probably all muscle.”
He got his burden into the darkened bedroom and dumped her carefully onto the quilts. Rose hopped down beside Elly and nuzzled her chin.
Elly opened her eyes and patted Rose reassuringly. Then she gave Cooper a dreamy smile.
“Thanks for carrying me up the stairs,” she said. “Not sure I could have made it on my own tonight.”
“You’re welcome,” he said. “I needed the exercise.”
He leaned down and removed first one flashy little high heel and then the other.
Elly yawned. “No need to undress me. Just throw a quilt over me.”
“It’s no trouble,” he said, letting one palm glide up the curve of her leg.
“Go away,” she ordered. “I don’t think you could handle the shock of seeing me without my panties.”
“Guild bosses are sturdier than you might expect,” he said hopefully.
She reached for the edge of the quilt and tugged it over herself. “Good night, Cooper.”
He smiled and reluctantly went to the doorway. “Good night, Elly.”
“By the way, remind me to tell you what I noticed when I went to the ladies’ room tonight.”
“Does it involve underwear?”
“No,” she murmured, nestling deeper into the pillow. “Psi energy. The kind given off by those psi-bright herbs that Bertha found down in the catacombs. But real intense.”
“What?” He started back toward the bed. “Are you telling me you can pick up psi from plants?”
“I know, it’s weird.”
“Elly—”
She wagged a finger at him. “Big, dark family secret. The amber in my earrings is tuned. Promise me you won’t tell anyone.”
“Wait a second, Elly. Stay with me here. What were you saying about sensing herbs like those that Bertha found?”
“Bunch of ’em, I think. Enough to give off quite a buzz.” She yawned. “Stored somewhere in that hallway just beyond the ladies’ room at the club.”
She closed her eyes and went to sleep.
Cooper watched her for a long moment, aware of the deep, restless need that prowled through him.
After a while he went back out into the alley to retrieve his duffel bag from the trunk of his car.
On the way back up the stairs it occurred to him that he had neglected to tell Elly that he had checked out of his hotel earlier that day.
“Have to remember to mention it to her in the morning,” he said to Rose.
Chapter 19
SHE AWOKE TO A NAGGING HEADACHE AND A FAMILIAR little psi buzz. A small paw gently patted her cheek.
Elly opened her eyes and looked at Rose, huddled beside her on the pillow. The dust bunny had a fresh green flower clutched in one paw.
“You went out last night after we brought you home, didn’t you?” Elly asked, taking the flower.
Rose bounced up and down.
“Thanks. It’s beautiful. But I gotta tell you, every time you show up with one of these, I get very nervous. Promise me you’re not stealing them?”
Rose chortled happily, pleased that the gift had been accepted with proper appreciation.
Out in the kitchen a cupboard door closed.
Elly jackknifed into a sitting position. The movement allowed the quilt to fall to her waist. She looked down and saw that she was still wearing the dress she had put on to go out for the evening. A deep sense of unease gripped her.
Cautiously she peeked beneath the edge of the quilt. The skirt of the expensive cocktail dress was sadly crumpled. The hem had been pushed up almost to her waist. She noticed that she was not wearing any underwear.
Probably not a good sign, she thought.
Cooper appeared in the bedroom doorway. He was wearing his black-and-amber framed glasses, a black crew-neck pullover, and khaki trousers. He had a copy of the newspaper in his hand.
Instinctively, she yanked the quilt protectively up to her chin.
“What are you doing here?” she demanded.
“I’m your friend from out of town, remember? You’re letting me stay with you.”
“That was just a story. I didn’t mean it literally.”
“Unfortunately, I’m a literal kind of guy. At any rate, I checked out of my hotel. I don’t have anywhere else to go.”
“Now hold on here just a minute, Cooper. I never said—”
“How’s the head?”
“Terrible.” She massaged her temples with her fingertips. “I don’t feel very good. Maybe I’m coming down with the flu.”
“Don’t think so. What you have is a classic hangover. Remember those Emerald Ghosts last night?”
She concentrated. “I’ve got a vague recollection of a large glass filled with some sort of green stuff. It was delicious. Sweet and tart at the same time.”
“There were three large glasses, and they were obviously pretty potent.”
“Oh.” A few more memories floated back. A dark, intimate dance floor, sultry music, a kiss that had made her insides melt. She winced. “Right. I remember now.”
His smile was slow and knowing. “Yeah, I can see that. Got anything downstairs in your shop for that headache, or do you want something from the medicine cabinet?”
She marshaled her thoughts. “Downstairs. First cabinet. Bottom shelf. There’s a packet labeled Harmonic balm. Put a spoonful into a mug and add boiling water.”
He unfolded his arms and straightened. “I’ll get right on it.”
“On second thought, make that two spoonfuls.”
“Check.”
An uneasy thought intruded. “Wait a second,” she said when he turned to leave. “Where did you sleep last night?”
“On your sofa.”
“If that’s true, what happened to my underpants?”
He smiled slowly. “You know, I think I’m going to let you work that one out all by yourself. See you at breakfast.”
She heard him whistling in the hall.
SHE WAS STANDING UNDER AN INVIGORATING SPRAY OF hot water, trying in vain not to think about the night that had just passed, when the bathroom door opened.
“What in the world?” She grabbed a fistful of the shower curtain and peered around the edge.
Cooper stood in the small space, enveloped in steam. He had a mug in his hand. Rose was perched on his shoulder, nibbling on a piece of toast.
“You, again,” she said, beetling her brows at him. “Now what? I’m in the shower, for heaven’s sake.”
“Sorry,” Cooper said. “Didn’t mean to scare you. Thought you might want to get going on your special tonic.”
She sniffed, inhaling the soothing aroma of the Harmonic balm. The promise of headache relief seemed a lot more important at the moment than trying to make Coop
er aware of the fact that they were not on the sort of intimate terms that allowed him to wander in and out of her bathroom at will.
She took the mug from him. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome. When you come out, we’ll talk about what you said you sensed when you made your trip to the ladies’ room last night.
He departed, taking Rose with him.
She stood there for a while, sipping the tisane and forcing herself to relive the night.
She finally remembered what had happened to her panties.
“WHEN DID YOU FIGURE OUT YOU COULD SENSE PSI energy from plants?” Cooper asked, scraping eggs out of the pan onto Elly’s plate.
She shrugged, her attention riveted on the eggs. The tisane had done its job, and now she was ravenous. “At about the same age that my brothers came into their dissonance-energy para-rez abilities. Shortly after puberty.”
He put the plate in front of her. “The usual time when strong paranormal senses develop.”
“Yes.” She forked up a large helping of the eggs. “The thing is, my kind of talent isn’t supposed to exist.”
“Neither is mine,” he reminded her dryly.
“Correction. Yours may be a big Guild secret, but at least there are those who acknowledge that it exists. Heck, they’ve even gone to great lengths to conceal the information. But in my case, the experts would be strongly inclined to say that I was delusional. That kind of diagnosis would have killed my chances of leading a normal life. That’s why Mom and Dad were so serious about keeping it a secret.”
“Humans have only been living on Harmony for two hundred years,” Cooper said mildly. “That’s not very long in evolutionary development terms. We’ve only identified a narrow range of paranormal talents. Who’s to say that there aren’t a whole bunch more just waiting to be stimulated in the population?”
She aimed the fork at him. “The problem at the present time, as you and I both know, is that people tend to be very uneasy about parapsych talents that don’t fit the normal profiles.”
“Can’t argue that. Who figured out that your para-senses weren’t coming in at the usual points on the spectrum?”
“Mom. She noticed that I seemed unusually fascinated with plants and flowers and herbs of all kinds. I spent hours hiking through the woods hunting for them, and when I found the ones I wanted, I brought them home and ran experiments with them. Started blending my own herbal concoctions. Somehow I could tell which herbs would do what for a particular person.”