“I’d fucking say so.” He proceeds to chug his whiskey, releasing an audible “ah” sound as he slams the cup back down on the wood table.
“Do share.” I nudge him, now with equally matched anticipation as his.
“It’s your lucky day, because the chief called me and said I can still work security at the gala tomorrow night.”
Excellent. I like where this is heading already.
“I’ll have a burner phone tomorrow for both you and me,” Alex begins. “So, you tell me when things start moving round back and when I need to start deflecting guys’ attention to the front of the building.”
“Will do, Alex,” I say, trying to wrap up our conversation, since it appears everything will go according to the original plan, despite this woman that Alex is so afraid of.
Reaching for my sport coat, Alex continues. “I have seniority, and more importantly, the respect of the guys working surveillance with Mendez. Now that I know Chief is letting me work security, deflecting attention should be a breeze. I need to make sure she is distracted, otherwise, I’m telling you, it’s going to be fucking game over for us,” he warns, oblivious to the chill that just hit my spine as I repeat the name he just said once more in my head.
Mendez. Why does that name sound so familiar?
Continuing to put on my sport coat, I process the name once more, until I remember the file from human resources I went over before heading out for the evening.Eric Mendez.Interest peaked, I lean in toward the table so that my elbows meet my knees, hunched toward Alex.
“Mendez, you say?” I ask, “That wouldn’t be the woman that has you all hot under the collar, is it?”
Expecting Alex to answer me, I remain hunched over. Instead of answering, I notice him take a deep gulp, forcing his Adam’s apple to slowly and visibly protrude as it glides down his throat. A gulp like that is what you would expect from downing a glass of whiskey, but it’s then I see that the agitation that briefly escaped his face is back, suddenly, with a vengeance.
He clamps down on his jaw as he bobs his head to the side. “Fucking Christ,” he mutters through a visibly tight jaw. “Speak of the fucking Devil.”
Curious as to who has Alex so perturbed, I turn around to scan the crowd behind me when I spot a petite beauty with bronze skin heading our way.
“Of course, she would remember I said I liked this place,” I hear Alex say as my back is toward him, still taking in the woman a mere few feet from us.
An uncontrollable grin begins to form as I refocus my attention toward Alex. “Well, that was your first mistake,” I begin to lecture him, teasingly. “If you didn’t want anyone knowing you frequent such places, probably would have been best to, you know, not mention it.” My grin is now turning into a mischievous chuckle.
“Oh, fuck, here she comes,” Alex says nervously, sweat visibly forming on his full brows. His eyes still locked on the woman walking up to us, he goes to grab his glass, forgetting he just drained it of its contents moments before.
“Fuck!” he exclaims, realizing just now that he is out of whiskey. Alex turns his head toward the main bar in a last-ditch effort to get José or Wanda’s attention, but both are busy tending to other patrons.
“Calm down,” I say, trying to reassure him. Just as the words leave my mouth, I am met with the scent of vanilla and the sound of a raspy woman’s voice saying his name.
Tugging on his hat, as if that will somehow make him disappear, Alex bows his head with a brief sigh before lifting his gaze to the woman, who is now standing by our table.
“Mendez.” He nods in her direction.
“Oh, please, Alex, we are off the clock. You can call me Vanessa,” she says as she runs her hand through her wavy, brown hair, tucking it behind her ear and revealing lobes full of dainty gold hoops.
As I sit back, waiting for Alex to introduce me to said Devil, as he likes to refer to her, I try to assess what it is about her that frightens Alex. She can’t be more than five feet tall, even with her heels on. She is striking, with her warm, bronzed skin and well-defined facial features. There is a warm glow to her face that is both inviting and intimidating. Though, beneath her pearly smile she has flashed to Alex too many times to count in the mere minutes she has been standing by our table, I detect a fierceness in the way she commands attention.
It’s not just her undeniable beauty that intimidates Alex, it’s her intellect. That is what terrifies him. A smart female, let alone a smart female detective, is going to be hard-pressed to believe the lies that I instruct Alex to spew to cover not only my ass, but his. So, if my inclination about her is correct, he is right in his fear of her.
Time to work my charm.
I lock eyes with Alex as he is flailing while talking to this Mendez woman.“Alex, don’t be rude,” I interrupt, immediately seeing the tension in Alex’s shoulders go down a few notches in the hopes that I will save him from his discomfort.
“Aren’t you going to introduce me to your colleague?” I say as I stand from my chair and turn toward her, extending my hand out to hers.
“This is Vanessa,” Alex introduces quickly.
She brings her hand into mine as her gold bracelets fall to her wrist.
“Pleasure to meet you, Vanessa.” I kiss the top of her hand, making her blush.
She parts her lips to speak, and just as I release her hand from my grip, my vision suddenly begins to tunnel. Vanessa is moving her mouth, but I hear no sound. The bustling, noise-filled space suddenly feels like a blanket of silence has engulfed it, while everything feels like it is moving in slow motion.
