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“Same here.” She leaned forward to kiss his cheek. Then she bent down to do the same for Lillian. “You, my dear lady, look fabulous,” she declared. “I’m not sure you should be allowed to retire.”
“And I’m not sure I’m ready to leave,” Lillian replied with the air of someone who’d made peace with death. “But God has other ideas. So I’ll trust in His decision.”
Silently, Sloane marveled at her courage. “Derek,” she said aloud. “This awe-inspiring woman is tonight’s honored guest, Dr. Lillian Doyle. Her escort, who also happens to be a friend of mine and a great guy, is her son, Luke.” She gestured from Luke and Lillian to Derek. “This is Special Agent Derek Parker. We were colleagues in the FBI field office in Cleveland, and we’ve been working together on special cases here in the Big Apple.”
“Now, that sounds intriguing.” Lillian’s eyes twinkled as she shook Derek’s hand. “I’d love to ask you questions about those cases, since I find criminal investigations fascinating. But I know better. As Sloane has taught me over the years, everything is either confidential or classified. Both those words mean ‘butt out.’”
Derek chuckled, reaching over to meet Luke’s firm handshake. “We try to say it more diplomatically than that, but, yes, I’m afraid that comes with the job.”
The twinkle vanished from Lillian’s eyes. “Speaking of which, is there any news on Cynthia Alexander? Or is that question taboo?”
“It’s not taboo,” Sloane answered carefully. “You’ve read pretty much all there is to know in the newspapers. Leads are great—if they actually go somewhere. Right now they’re not. But we’re working on it.”
“That must be driving you crazy,” Luke commented. “Spinning in neutral isn’t your virtue under the best of circumstances. And these are the worst.”
“True,” Sloane acknowledged. “I’m having a hard time with this. Especially when I have to update Cynthia’s mother. The poor woman just wants news about her daughter. And I have nothing to offer.”
“Now, that’s not true,” Luke countered. “I’ve seen you deal with people—even when the circumstances are more horrible and less hopeful than these. You have a way of getting through to them like no one else can.”
“Thank you,” Sloane replied with simple gratitude. “I hope you’re right.”
“He is,” Derek affirmed curtly. “It’s what made you such an incredible hostage negotiator, and an excep
tional agent. And it’s why your leaving was such a huge loss to the Bureau.”
Sloane started, glancing up at Derek and blinking in surprise. He wasn’t one to dole out compliments. And he sure as hell didn’t want to open up this particular Pandora’s box in public. So where was this coming from?
“Turning in her badge was a huge loss to Sloane as well.” Poor Luke was walking straight into the minefield, unaware of the detonator he was about to step on. “You were still in Cleveland at the time, so you and your team probably didn’t realize how torn up she was.”
“Three surgeries and continuing physical therapy. Yes, I heard.”
“I wasn’t referring to her hand,” Luke clarified. “Although she coped with enormous amounts of pain, and rarely uttered a complaint. No, what I was referring to was her life. She loved being an FBI agent. And suddenly her career was yanked out from under her. Starting over is never easy. But she pulled it off. She’s got a will of iron.”
“That I knew.” Derek’s tone was conversational, but his jaw was clenched so tight, Sloane wondered if it might snap. “Just as I knew about her reluctance to turn in her badge. What I didn’t know was that you two were such close friends.”
Internally, Sloane winced. She could actually feel Derek’s surging testosterone, manifesting itself in primal male possessiveness. Not only was it totally unnecessary, but it was embarrassing and infuriating.
It was Elliot who came to her rescue. “It was easier for Sloane and me to stay such good friends. I have tons of her high school secrets stored away up here.” He tapped his head. “If all else fails, I can resort to blackmail.” He gave Sloane an affectionate hug. “So far, I haven’t needed to. She’s one hell of a friend.”
“I agree.” Luke’s gaze flickered from Elliot to Derek. Clearly, he was groping for a way to clarify his friendship with Sloane, even as he struggled to get a handle on what the relationship was between her and Derek.
In the end, he opted to try forging a kinship with Derek. “Sloane mentioned that before you joined the FBI, you were an Army Ranger.”
“Sure was,” Derek confirmed.
“I served in the army, too, although nothing as elite as the Rangers. I was a combat medic, stationed at Camp Casey in South Korea. But I’ll tell you, I got more training there than I did from all my anatomy and physiology classes and clinical experience combined.”
“I can believe that.”
“Enough army talk,” Lillian said abruptly, reaching up to grip her son’s arm. “I don’t like reliving those days. I worried every moment Luke was overseas.”
“Well, I’m right here now.” Luke dropped the subject like a stone, hell-bent on not upsetting his mother. Instead, he glanced at his watch. “Time to take your pills,” he informed Lillian, giving her shoulder a gentle squeeze. “I’ll get you a glass of water and some food. You haven’t eaten a thing since noon.” He gazed questioningly at Sloane, Derek, and Elliot. “Can I get you anything?”
“Thanks, no. We’re all set,” Sloane assured him. “The food is fabulous and the punch is spiked just enough to give it a zing.” She smiled. “But wait for my strawberry cheesecake. It’ll blow the rest of the meal out of the water.”
“I’ve been anticipating it all week,” Lillian assured her.
“On that note, I’ll be right back.” Luke went off to get his mother her sustenance.
