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His face was colder than Cody had ever seen it. “Anything Callahan wants, he’s entitled to. Keep that in mind. Just remember...”
“Yes, sir,” Cody said, knowing what D’Arcy was going to say. “This is my case. I won’t forget.”
* * *
It was after six when Cody and Keira wrapped up for the day. Cody called Callahan, and although she only heard Cody’s side of the conversation, she could imagine what the other man was saying.
“You’re in, but remember the agency is running the show. You can’t let your emotions get in the way,” Cody warned. “We have to be professional about this.” He laughed at something Callahan said before he hung up.
Amateur, Keira thought, I’ll bet that’s what Callahan said that made him laugh.
Before she could think about it, she asked, “So, are you ever going to tell me what ‘amateur’ means when you and Callahan say it to each other?”
“How’d you kn—” he began, looking from the cell phone to her.
“The way you laughed,” she said simply. “It’s the same way you laughed before when he said it to you, and the way he laughed when you said it to him.”
Cody drew in a deep breath and expelled it slowly. “It’s not something I’m proud of, but I guess you have a right to know.”
“Only if you want to tell me.”
“Not here,” he said. “Not in the office.”
“Where?”
He gave her a steady, considering look. “My place?”
She thought about it for a second, then shook her head. “My condo?”
He nodded slowly. “Okay. Want to pick up some dinner on the way?”
“If you want to eat a decent meal, you’re going to have to,” she said with a wry smile. “I can open cans and heat up frozen dinners in the microwave, but my mom despaired of teaching me to cook.”
Cody smiled back. “Let me guess. None of your brothers can cook either. Right?”
“How’d you know?”
“Ahhh, that would be telling,” he teased her.
Keira’s eyes narrowed, but playfully. “Trace has a big mouth.”
Cody held up his hands in mock protest. “You didn’t hear it from me.”
“You asked him about me?” Keira was curious. “When?”
Cody’s playful smile turned rueful. “In the truck on the way up to Wyoming.”
“Oh.” Keira’s heart skipped a beat as she realized what this meant, what it had to mean. Even before he kissed me, she thought, a frisson of excitement running through her veins. He was interested even before that.
Cody raised a hand as if to touch her cheek, but stopped himself. “I wanted to know about you. Who knows you better than your partner?”
“You could have asked me.”
Cody shook his head. “I doubt it. I’ve been trying to ask you for almost two weeks, but...you never tell me anything about yourself. You always change the subject.” His eyes held hers and wouldn’t let her look away.
“Is that what...?” she asked, her heartbeat picking up the pace. “I knew you—” She stopped herself just in time before she said, I knew you wanted me. “I didn’t realize...”
He nodded, totally serious now. “Before we go any further, we need to talk about the agency’s rule on fraternization.”
“You’re not my supervisor,” she said quickly.
“I know that. But I am the agent in charge.” He hesitated. “Up ’til now I’ve told myself the time we’ve spent together is related to the case. Maybe I was stretching things a bit, telling myself what I wanted to believe, but...”
“You’re not my supervisor,” she reiterated, raising her chin and giving him a fierce look. “That’s the only hard-and-fast rule against fraternization—and we’re not breaking it.”
He stared down at her, one corner of his mouth teasing up into the little half grin she loved. “Okay,” he said finally. “Okay. But first I need to tell you some things about me. Things you’re entitled to know. Then...” He left the rest hanging, as if he wanted to leave Keira an out, just in case.
