he offered.
“The walk will do me good.”
He shrugged, careful to convey nothing but nonchalance. “Suit yourself. But if you faint again, you could break an arm. Might even land on your camera.”
The way she had so carefully tended to her camera before attempting to descend from the tree told him that hurting her camera would rank right up there with hurting an arm. Her quick change of mind didn’t surprise him.
“On second thought, Mr. Knight, I would appreciate that ride.”
They stepped out of the lodge to find the mist had lifted. The air was still chilly. When she swung the parka around her shoulders, he grabbed the sleeves to help her put her arms through. But he was careful to touch only her jacket this time.
They didn’t talk on the drive. Once they reached her vehicle, he circled around his truck to open the door for her. He held out his hand. She didn’t take it or attempt to get out.
“You didn’t come here just to tell me my personal ad wasn’t going to work, did you?” she asked.
“No,” he admitted, dropping his hand.
She held onto the door frame as she slipped off the seat. She stood before him and raised her eyes to his expectantly.
David knew the time had come to apologize for rejecting her case without explanation and to hand her his brother’s business card. But he also knew that he wasn’t going to do either of those things.
“I’ll find out about Todd for you.”
He turned around and headed toward her dark-green SUV. He opened the passenger door, slipped her backpack off his shoulders and laid it on the seat. By the time he’d closed the passenger door, she’d walked to the driver’s side.
But the question still hadn’t left her eyes. “Why?”
“You do want me to find out about him, don’t you?”
“Yes, but I meant why did you change your mind?”
“I have a case to finish up today, but after that, my schedule will be free. What time will you be home tonight?”
“Around six, I guess, but—”
“I’ll be by at seven.”
He whirled away from her then and quickly closed the distance to his truck. He purposely did not give her a chance to respond. He slipped behind the wheel and drove off, not once looking back.
On the long drive around Puget Sound to Silver Valley, David congratulated himself on the solid logic behind his decision. Handing Susan’s case off to Richard made no sense.
Today he and his brother, Jared, a detective in the Sheriff’s Department, would see that the bastard who seduced, videotaped and then dumped his underage teenage victims was arrested.
But after he wrapped up that last loose end, he had a clear schedule. Richard would still be tied up on his current case for another week. David already had knowledge of Susan and her request.
Handling Susan’s case was the professional thing for David to do.
Besides, his dad was right. His attraction to Susan was simply a sign that he was ready to get off his self-imposed celibacy bench and back into the game. Of course, playing any games with her still remained out of the question.
She was a vulnerable, pregnant woman in need of his help. He would never take advantage of a woman in such a situation. Besides, now she was his client. The number one rule for a private investigator was never to get personally involved with a client.
David was a man who knew how to follow the rules.
SUSAN WAS RELIEVED that David had agreed to find Todd for her. He was obviously a very good investigator. But she also couldn’t help feeling annoyed.
David was coming to her home tonight. She did not invite men to her home, and she had not invited him. He had invited himself.
This was a business arrangement she had entered into with him. She didn’t want him invading her private space. But her subsequent call to his office that day had not been successful in changing the arrangement.
A male clerk had informed her—in cordial if clipped tones—that David was not in, was not expected to come in and could not be reached.
Her mood hadn’t improved when she’d discovered that she’d only gotten two marginally good shots out of the long morning shoot. On top of that, heavy traffic caused her to be late getting home. She was irritated and frustrated when she pulled her car into the garage just after six-thirty.
She stomped out of the garage and sprinted up the few steps to the entrance to her town house. She worked long hours and looked forward to unwinding in the evenings.
Only tonight, David was coming by at seven, less than half an hour away. That was the time when she and Honey were normally having their dinner. Surely, David didn’t expect her to fix him something? He might. There was no telling with that man. He was so damn hard to figure out. She opened the door and stepped inside.
“Hi, Honey, I’m home.”
He barked happily, his white fur a whirl of moving light in the dark entry. He flew into her outstretched arms with all the unbridled love that only a cherished pet could put into a homecoming. All Susan’s irritation fled the instant she hugged his exuberant little body, and he washed her cheeks with his warm tongue.
Without Honey, these past few years would have been unbearably bleak. She would always be grateful for that day he came into her life, and her heart.
As she stood and switched on the light, she saw with sudden dismay that Honey’s paws and nose were thick with mud. He was up to his old tricks, digging holes in the backyard. He’d gotten the mud all over her, as well. A thick glob was hanging from her bangs.
She sighed. That was love for you. So damn messy. And what was this affinity males had for mud?
She dropped her shoulder bag and keys onto the brown bear figurine and picked up the squirming terrier. “Shower time for us both, little guy,” she said as she carried him up the stairs.
She would be lucky if she even had Honey dried by seven, much less herself. She hated being late, even if she wasn’t the one who’d set the schedule. Of course, men were seldom on time. David might not even show up until eight.
But whenever he did show, one thing was for sure. If he came around expecting food from her tonight, she’d hand him a bag of dog kibble.
DAVID RANG SUSAN’S doorbell at exactly seven. He knew she was home. He’d already glanced through the window of her garage and had seen her green SUV inside. Lights shone through the glass panels above the front door of her town house. A dog barked from somewhere within.
David let a minute go by before pressing the doorbell again.
Almost immediately the door flew open and a small, white terrier charged out. Since David had two dogs of his own, he was well versed in the proper etiquette when entering their territory. He stood still and let himself be sniffed. The dog efficiently circled his legs, wagged his tail happily and let out a welcoming bark. David leaned down to give him a pat.
The dog was a cute little guy and openly affectionate, if a little damp. He rubbed his head against David’s hand, obviously expecting a lot more than just a passing pat. David indulged him, rubbing his ears and back and getting a blissful little moan in response.
“You’re making a mistake,” Susan said. “He’s not going to let you alone for a minute now.”
David turned his head. The first thing he saw from his crouched position was her bare feet. Slowly his gaze followed the lovely curved bone of her ankles, long shins and cute knees. But when he got to the middle of the firm flesh on her slim thighs, the edge of a white terry-cloth robe suddenly intruded to spoil the rest of the view.
The