Page 44 of Don't Bait Me (Nora Jacobs 3)

Eventually, Parker has to pull me over to the coatrack and help me out of my coat to snap me from my shock. Once I’ve shed my coat, hat, gloves, and scarf, Director West is right there to greet me with a smile. “Nora. To what do we owe the pleasure? I hope you haven’t come about the fey killings. I really can’t help you with them. I wish I could, but—”

“Don’t worry, Director.” I wave her off with a smile. “I’m here to discuss a boy problem with the city expert.”

It’s not a lie. I do intend to grill Ren about the whole siren’s harem thing. I have a sneaking suspicion he knows all about it and has been holding out on me. And if I happen to be looking through mug shots while we talk, well, what Director West doesn’t know won’t hurt her.

Director West follows my gaze to Ren and laughs. “All right. I’ll leave you to it. It’s good to see you again. We should do lunch sometime. Maybe after the fey issues are sorted out.”

I smirk. She’s only suggesting to wait until after this mess is sorted because she wants me to join the FUA, and she knows I won’t even consider it if it means I can no longer help the fey. “Maybe,” I say.

She matches my smirk with a small, confident smile. “I’ll get you eventually.”

With that, she nods good-bye and disappears down the hall to her office. Once she’s out of sight, Parker and I are left alone with Nick and Ren. It must be Darla’s night off, and Oliver’s probably back in his office. He’s the only other employee besides Director West that has an office. He says it’s because Director West needs him close by, but everyone else claims it’s because he’s the director’s favorite. The office pet, Ren calls him.

Parker takes a seat in one of the chairs in the reception area, and I head for Nick. He’s now leaning back in his chair, with his arms folded over his chest and his cowboy-boot covered feet up on his desk. He cocks a questioning brow when I mosey over to him instead of Ren. “What can I do for you, little spitfire?”

I smirk at his smug grin and knock his feet off the desk. He falls forward with a curse, and his hat drops to the floor. I pick it up and plop it on my head. “I have a question for you.”

Nick cocks his head to the side. His eyes lift to the hat on my head, and his smile falls crooked. “Very sexy. We need to get you some cowboy boots.”

“I think I’ll leave the snakeskin to you.” I put his hat back on his head, then sit on the edge of the desk where his feet used to be. I have to push a messy stack of papers out of the way to do it, but it’s not like they were organized or anything. In fact, I’d bet Nick hasn’t even read what’s in them.

Nick grins at my audacity and leans back in his chair again, lacing his hands behind his head. “Personally,” he says, “I think you should choose Oliver. He’s just so adorable and sweet.”

I snort. “Notthe question I was going to ask.”

“She’s saving that one for me,” Ren calls. “Aren’t you, Nora?”

I shoot him a look and point my finger at him. “I’ll get to you in a minute, mister. You are in trouble.”

He pouts. “What did I do?”

“In a minute,” I warn. “Nick first.”

When I look down at Nick again, he just cocks his brow once more and waits for me to get to my point. “Does the Agency keep arrest records on file like the human police?” I ask. “Or, more specifically, mug shots?”

Nick removes his arms from behind his head and casually folds them across his chest. “Yes,” he says, eyeing me with well-deserved suspicion. “We take mug shots of all perps who get processed.”

“Excellent. Can I see them?”

His eyes narrow. “If this is about the fey killings, you know I can’t get involved. West would be all over my ass. I got the warningagainlast night beforeandafter helping with the cleanup at the Riverfront. I’m not allowed to stick my nose in it.”

I pick up a pen off his desk and start clicking it. “Who says you’re getting involved with anything fey related?” I ask with a casual shrug. “I just asked if you guys take mug shots. If those happen to be pulled up on your computer while you, say, take a coffee break, and I just happen to sit at your desk while you’re gone, well, that’s not sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong, is it?”

I click the pen some more, waiting to see if he’ll go for it. He chews on the unspoken proposition for a minute, then breaks out into a wide smile. “Look at you, embracing your heritage already.”

“Huh?”

“The fey are sneaky creatures, and they love their loopholes.”

I bite back a smile. I’m not quite sure how I feel about him comparing me to the fey. I mean, I know that’s technically what I am, but it still freaks me out a little. Nick seems highly amused, though, and I dare say he looks proud. “Come to think of it,” he says, pushing himself into a stretch that shows off his defined abs through his tight Black Sabbath T-shirt, “I could use a cup of coffee.”

He clicks a few buttons on his computer before standing up. I beam a smile at him as he moves past me, leaving his desk unattended, and he winks at me. I plop into his chair, and sure enough, the arrest records database is open on his computer. “Thank you, Gorgeous!” I call out as he heads down the hallway toward the break room.

“No idea what you’re talking about, beautiful!”

After about fifteen minutesof sifting through mug shots, my eyes start to cross. I lean back and rub at them with the palms of my hands. “Damn. There are a lot of underworld criminals in this city.”

“That’s why Detroit was picked to be one of the FUA’s start-up cities,” Ren says, leaning away from his desk, as if he’s abandoning his work in favor of talking to me. “Lot of underworlders here, and most of them are up to no good.”

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