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I cleared my throat. “Is there anything else?”
“No,” he said, and I could almost see his jaw harden, as if he realized he’d revealed too much in even those few seconds of vulnerability. “Standard warning — don’t leave town without letting me know.”
“I don’t have plans to go anywhere,” I replied. “Well, except back out to Chuck’s ranch so I can get my car, but — ”
“I’ll drive you,” Calvin cut in. “Let’s go.”
He rose from his chair, and I stood as well, taking note of every miscellaneous ache and pain that had resulted from my night out in the open. Good thing I’d already planned to take the day off — I was going to need some time to recover from that little escapade.
As Calvin walked me to his SUV, the summer heat already beating down from above and baking up from the parking lot’s asphalt, I belatedly recalled that yesterday had been my birthday.
Heck of a way to turn thirty.
I obviously didn’t mention that little fact to Calvin. No, I just buckled my seatbelt and stared straight ahead as he pulled out of the space near the station’s entrance that had been reserved for the police chief, and maintained that stony silence all the way back to Chuck’s ranch.
As he slowed down to take the turn onto the dirt lane that led to the house, Calvin said, “I am sorry about this, Selena. But I wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t question the most obvious suspect.”
“Understood,” I replied. And honestly, I did understand. He had to be thorough.
Like him, though, I was just dead tired. I only wanted to go back to my apartment and sleep through the whole day.
Maybe it was exhaustion that finally loosened my tongue.
“Are we going to keep dancing around each other like this?”
His fingers tightened on the steering wheel. “Like what?”
“This. You made me think something was happening between us…and then you pulled a disappearing act. What’s going on?”
He didn’t look at me. “I realized it wouldn’t work out.”
“Why not?”
“Lots of reasons.”
One of which, I assumed, was that I wasn’t a member of the San Ramon Apache tribe. Fair enough. Still, it would have been helpful for him to take that minor detail into account before he led me to believe there might be a future for the two of us.
However, I was too tired then to start an argument. I just sat quietly until he pulled up next to my dusty blue Beetle and came to a stop. Almost at once, the door to the house opened and Chuck emerged, clearly intending to come over and make sure I was okay.
While I knew I should have been glad for his concern, right then I didn’t have the energy to care.
Just as I put my hand on the door, I turned toward Calvin and said distinctly, “Too bad you couldn’t have figured all that out before you kissed me.”
I didn’t wait for him to respond, but pushed down on the handle and slid out of the passenger seat. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see the way he stiffened. He didn’t make any attempt to stop me, though, only waited stolidly behind the wheel as I slammed the door shut.
Chuck was approaching, but Calvin clearly didn’t want to hang around and exchange pleasantries. No, he put his foot on the gas and was off in a cloud of dust before Chuck could reach my car.
He stared after the disappearing tribal police SUV and said, looking puzzled, “He’s in a hurry.”
“Police business,” I remarked, trying not to cough from the dust Calvin’s passage had stirred up.
Chuck’s eyebrows were quizzical, but he only said, “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” I replied. “He wanted to hear my story, but there’s no real evidence connecting me to Lilith’s murder except the fact that I had a beef with her. That’s not the sort of thing that’ll hold up in court, though.”
“So…you’re not under arrest?”
Not yet,I thought. However, I only shook my head and told him, “No. I’m not supposed to leave town while the investigation is open, but since I wasn’t planning on going anywhere, that’s not a big deal.”
