My eyes lower to the first photograph in the stack he digs out of a manila folder. It’s a six by ten-inch surveillance image of Mr. Gregg and a man I’ve never seen before.
“Do you know who this man is?”
Noticing he said ‘man,’ I keep the powerplay between us even. “Which man?”
The skin under his eyes twitches, but instead of reacting to my taunt, he points to the man standing across from Mr. Gregg. “This one. It was taken a few days before Mr. Gregg’s accident. Things look heated.”
His reply exposes more than he intended. Not only is this photograph proof he’s been on this side of the country longer than he stated, it also reveals he knew who Melody was before he drove me to her dorm.
“I’ve never seen him before.” When Grayson attempts to remove the photographs from my hand, I snatch them back. “This guy, however, I’ve seen him on the news.” I push across the first picture until it exposes the man I’m referencing in the second printout. It shows Cormack McGregor walking into a rundown warehouse with a man around his age. “Wasn’t he charged with rape earlier this year?”
“We’re not interested in him.”
Grayson glares at me when I ask, “Why? Keeping the streets free of rapists above your team’s caliber, is it?”
I’m being sarcastic, but he doesn’t hear it like that. “Yep. Something like that.” He sounds frustrated, and it has my brain ticking overtime, but before I can sort through a single fact, Grayson says, “What about the guy with Cormack, have you seen him around?”
I take in the dark-haired, gray-eyed man with more diligence before shaking my head. “Is he of interest to your team?”
I hiss when Grayson’s grab for the surveillance image gives me a papercut.
“That’s what you get for being nosey.”
I talk around my index finger popped in my mouth. “I’m not being nosey, I’m keeping an eye out for my girl. You have a surveillance image of her dad in a file full of criminals. Only an idiot wouldn’t be cautious.”
His eyes soften like he understands my plight. “You don’t need to worry about Melody. She’s good. I swear to you, we’re not investigating her or her family.”
Trust isn’t something I easily give, but I trust Grayson. “Do you want me to show the photo to Melody? See if she knows who he is?”
“Would you mind?”
“Not at all.” The relief on his face switches to annoyed when I add, “For a price.” He doesn’t say anything, but his silence speaks volumes. He’s not happy I’m bartering, but he’s willing to negotiate if it gets him what he needs. “Can you show me how to get past the security on my father’s computer?”
His blond brow pops up. “You’re still working that angle?”
“Yep. I don’t care what anyone says. There’s more to Melody’s rejections from Browns than people are letting on, and I’m just as convinced my father was helming more than one campaign when our college applications were submitted.”
Grayson waits a beat, his chest rising and falling in rhythm to mine. “If I show you the way in, will you let me follow your lead?”
Now it’s my turn to pause. I want to find out what my dad’s problem is, but do I really want the FBI involved in a family matter?
When I reach a decision, I lock my hazel eyes with Grayson’s baby blues. “Who will you share your information with?”
“No one.” He scratches his jaw, which is usually a sign of lying, but since it occurs while he says, “This is a personal matter,” I’m suspicious he’s lying to no one but himself.
“All right, but no external hacking. You’ll have to get your information directly from the source. If you get me in, I’ll let you snoop around a little.” I grab the top photograph off the pile, slip out of his cab, and make my way back to the dress shop.
Aware I’m not taking no for an answer, Grayson shadows my walk. His boots click the floorboards faster when his arrival into the boutique gains him the admired eyes of three of its clients. He dips his grin in greeting, but not an ounce of interest flares through his eyes.
After checking that Melody is dressed, I gesture for Grayson to join us in the dressing cubicle. Melody’s smile greatens when she spots him behind my shoulder. They’ve only met in passing, but they class each other as friends.
Grayson’s eyes stray from the green dress Melody has chosen to me. “I told you she’d go for the green dress.”
He smirks like a smug prick when I roll my eyes. “That isn’t exactly how I remember it, but if it makes you feel better, we can pretend it is.”
Between reading Grayson’s lips and my signed reply, Melody quickly catches the gist of our conversation. “Don’t pick on him. He has been tortured all morning.” Grayson looks a little unwell when she rakes her fingernails across my chest before cuddling into my side. Or is it envy? The cut features of his face make him a little hard to read. “Everything okay?” Even via American Sign Language I’m confident Melody’s question would’ve been a whisper if she could talk.
I jerk up my chin. “Yeah. Grayson’s team is back in town to take a closer look at the Browns’ admission scam.” Grayson chokes on his spit, but I continue talking as if he isn’t about to blow my cover. I don’t like lying to Melody, but I’d rather it over her believing any of the lies my father has been sporting about her the past fifteen months. He’s still adamant Mr. Gregg was never in the military, and he tells anyone willing to listen. “One of the agents stumbled onto a photo of interest during the investigation, so Grayson thought he would check if either of us knows who he is.”
