Page 2 of Say Now
Rachel looked to where the eyes would be beneath the shadows, trying to work out who the person was and what they were doing there.
"Can I help you?"
She couldn’t help them.
Those were the last words she ever said
CHAPTER ONE
Dr.Alison Payne sat across from Special Agent Derek Sullivan at the quiet Oakland restaurant.The small eatery was half full, murmurs of conversation lilting across the room and the occasional clink of china.
They hadn’t met solely for business or pleasure.This was both.
Derek leaned in and showed the bruise above his right eye.
Alison winced at the sight of it."I can't believe you got punched in the face.How does it feel?"
"I’ve had worse," Derek admitted.The kink in his once-broken nose was a testament to that.Derek got the job done without violence most of the time, but he could put up more than a good fight when it came down to it.
"So, he just swung for you?"Alison asked.
"Yeah.We went in there to raid the place, and he was hiding in a cupboard in one of the office hallways."Derek took a swig of beer and sucked in a sharp breath through his teeth."I knocked.I had a sense someone was in there, you know?I waited, had my gun out, and then opened the door.He lunged at me, and he was a scrawny guy, but I didn't expect him to come flying out of the cupboard."
Alison shook her head as she listened to the story.
"I couldn’t shoot him," Derek continued."He just kind of lunged at me, even though I had a gun, and we went sprawling.He’s lucky that I held my finger.It would have been within my rights to take a shot as he burst out the closest to me.Anyway, he slams into me, we both go down, and he swung and hit."
Alison touched her own forehead, almost feeling his pain.
"You should have seen the way he looked at me after he punched me.I almost laughed.I think he was more surprised than I was.He almost freaked out after that, but I had him in cuffs shortly after."
"Who knew white collar crimes could be so dangerous?"Alison asked.
Derek smiled and took another swig of beer."Thankfully, I still have my good looks."
"Were you worried about losing your modeling contract?"
Derek laughed as he pushed some peas around on his plate."The fans want to see this face without any blemishes."
"I think that ship has sailed."Alison looked down at her plate before looking back at him."I mean…that sounded a little harsh.You’re a handsome man."
"And I’ve gained one more fan."Derek squished the peas and scooped them with his fork.
Derek had a partially bruised eye, which would disappear over time, but the kink in his nose was there to stay.He was a handsome man, even if he didn't play into that.He liked to have a layer of stubble, giving him a grizzled look that matched his personality perfectly.He usually wore a semi-crumpled suit when working, helping people to understand him (or, that was the goal, at least), but he had cleaned up a little for dinner.
Gone was the crumpled suit he usually wore when working; in its place was a pair of jeans and a polo shirt.Stubble still adorned his sharp jawline.Derek had dark hair and dark eyes that drew you in.
"Will you excuse me for a second?"Alison said.
Derek rose from his chair when Alison did, sitting back down when she left the table.Alison walked towards the back of the restaurant and to the bathroom.She went to the sink and ran the water for a while, holding her hands under the flowing water before drying them.She studied herself in the mirror.
She had piercing green eyes that flashed with intelligence.That intelligence was backed by her job as a forensic psychologist in the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.Her eyebrows were feathered thinly, and her long, black hair was tied up into a ponytail.
What am I doing here?
That was the question that had been rattling around in her mind long before they had met for dinner.It had been there for weeks, months.She asked herself the question again as she stared at herself in the mirror.
She’d met Derek when consulting with the FBI on cases.That encounter had developed into a working relationship, and they had solved numerous cases together, taking down dangerous serial killers and removing them from the streets.That working relationship had developed into something more.They had a great friendship, but there was more to it than that.
