“I don’t like it,” RT said after Calder Manning left.
Cait didn’t like it, either. That Manning showed up without calling as instructed left her with even more questions about him. “I’ll let Rook know he’s here.”
RT nodded, his eyes glued to the driveway and the tail end of Manning’s white Toyota rental. Rather than inviting Manning into the house, Cait suggested he return in the morning at ten. As genial as Manning had been, she didn’t like his arrogance, as if he alone could set her world straight and solve her problems.
“I thought you were still with the Harts.”
“I left after Rook and I talked. Good thing, too.”
“Your gun didn’t intimidate Manning. He looked amused.”
RT tucked his gun away. “He won’t feel that way long.” He leaned over and scratched behind Niki’s ears.
Niki didn’t need encouragement. He jumped at RT’s legs, begging for a treat.
“Maybe you should call Rook while I call Shep before he hops a plane out here.”
RT reached in his pocket for a treat for Niki. “You and that detective friend of yours have a thing going?”
Is it possible RT’s jealous of Shep? “He’s just an old friend from work. You know that.”
“If he comes here, we should have a party. Get to know one another.”
This side of RT secretly pleased her. “Royal Tanner, I do believe you’re jealous.”
His head shot up. His blue eyes bore into hers as he stepped close enough for her to smell strawberries on his breath. “I am not the jealous type.” He pulled her against him, kissed her hard, and released her. “Ain’t so.”
Cait smiled. Liar.
RT’s cell buzzed. He unclipped it from his belt and glanced at the display. His demeanor froze. “Tanner.”
Fear crept up Cait’s spine as she watched RT’s jaw tighten and his body stiffen, signs she recognized. She knew this was the dreaded call—RT summoned to another secret mission. It couldn’t have come at a worse time.
“Yes, sir.” RT closed his cell, looking as if it had bitten him.
Cait said, “You have to leave already?”
He nodded and gathered her in his arms. “Sometimes I hate this job.”
“What happened to the two-week furlough?”
“Nothing’s cast in cement.”
Velcro crept over and stood next to Niki and Cait as if aware something was wrong.
“Call Shep,” RT said. “Ask him to come. You two can party together.”
“Oh, shut up,” she mumbled into his chest.
Ilia’s yellow VW bug rolled up the driveway. He parked in front of the house and he and Fumié jumped out. They hesitated when they saw Cait and RT clinging to each other.
Cait and RT stepped apart.
“Something’s up and it doesn’t look good,” Fumié said.
“I have to leave,” RT said.
“Now?” Ilia asked, as if RT’s leaving was imprudent.
RT nodded.
“Who decides when to call you back? The Navy? The CIA?” Ilia asked.
RT shook his head.
Marcus cut across the front of the house with a plate of strawberry pie smothered in whipped cream in his hand. “Jim wants to see you, RT.” He looked at Fumié and Ilia. “What are you two doing here?”
“We’re going to the movies,” Ilia said, “and thought Cait and RT might want to come with us. But now . . .”
Marcus looked at Cait and RT. “Did I miss something?”
“RT has to leave,” Ilia said.
Marcus almost dropped his pie. “Well, that stinks.”
“Couldn’t have said it better,” RT said. “Calder Manning was just here. If I’d known I had to leave, I would have sat him down and had a hard talk with him. Now it’s too late. I’ll be gone by daybreak.”
“What the hell? He didn’t call?” Marcus asked.
“No,” Cait said. “He’ll return at ten in the morning.”
Marcus blinked and ran one hand over his spiked hair. “How did he know where to find you?”
“Contacts.” Cait reached into her pocket for her phone. “Shep will be upset Manning didn’t call.”
“I’ll call Rook.” RT walked away with his phone to his ear.
Cait watched him go. I want tonight to be memorable for both of us.
The evening was somber when RT returned to sit with Cait and the Harts at the kitchen counter. Fumié and Ilia had left for the movies, and Marcus went to visit his mother at a nursing home in Tracy. Cait and June prepared dinner.
RT didn’t bring up Shep’s name again, but Cait sensed he hadn’t forgotten him. Shep offered to fly out when she told him RT was leaving, but she convinced him that Rook had promised extra officers for the weekend.
“What time do you leave, RT?” June asked.
“Early.” He set his glass on the counter with a clink. “There’s a slight chance I can convince my boss how urgent the situation is here. If not . . .” He shook his head and refilled his wine glass.
Hope flared briefly for Cait. But she didn’t like this depressed side of RT. “Don’t jeopardize your career. Think about Mindy. Your daughter needs you. We’ll be waiting when you get back. Rook will have officers—”
RT’s dark eyes snapped. “Don’t be naive. You were a cop. There are never enough police for a situation like this.” He hesitated. “I should have asked Rook about bringing in one of Livermore’s K-nine dogs.”
“Maybe he should first check with the sheriff’s department, but I’ll ask him,” Cait said.
“Any idea where you’ll be going?” Jim asked.
“No, only that it’s in my area of expertise, whatever the hell that means.” RT finished his wine and stood. “Should I open another bottle?”
“Not for me.” Jim rose. “Back to the computer. Maybe Raven will want to buy back her painting and make you rich, Cait.”
“I don’t think it’s money that interests Kenneth Alt,” she said. “It’s personal.”
“Because Alt and Tasha had an affair,” RT interjected.
Cait didn’t want to get into it now, not with RT leaving in the morning.
“I’ll go with Jim,” June said. She gathered the plates and took them to the sink.
Jim held his hand out to RT. “If I don’t see you before you leave, be safe, and try not to worry about what’s going on here. Everything will work out. It usually does.”
Cait closed the door behind the Harts and turned to see RT at the desk in the office. “What are you doing?”
“Leaving a note for Marcus.”
She watched him write, fold the note, and slip it in an envelope. He propped it against the computer.
“I’m going to my trailer for a few things.”
“You don’t have to stay here. I’ll be fine with Niki.”
“I’m spending the night in the house.” He walked past her and into the kitchen. “I’ll leave the Hummer and trailer in the parking lot, if that’s okay.” He paused at the door and looked at her.
Confused, she wondered why he sounded angry. “Of course it’s okay.”
He opened the door. “Rook’s taking me to the airport.”
Stunned, Cait stared at the closed door. What just happened?
Cait waited for RT to return, but after awhile she went upstairs. The bedroom felt hot and stuffy. She opened the windows that weren’t sealed shut. Night had fallen. She sat on the windowsill and looked at the stars, the moon and their light caressing the vineyard.
She tried to think about her dad and not about RT’s leaving. He’d been a history professor at Ohio State, and when she was ready to leave home for college, he told her the true self is always in motion, like music, a river of life, and how self-appreciation leads to healthy self-esteem, a positive self-image, and a sense of dignity. And when she divorced, he said it again.
What words of wisdom would her dad offer her now? How did she really feel about RT? Is it possible he’d already left to avoid saying goodbye? She stepped away from the window, stripped out of her jeans and T-shirt—the shirt was stained with strawberry juice—and tossed them in a heap on the floor to be washed later. She took pink silk lounging pajamas from a drawer, and as she dressed, she heard music so soft she had to strain to hear. Drawn to the stairs, she listened, then continued barefoot to the second floor. When the music intensified, she recognized the powerful music from Phantom of the Opera and wondered if music was how RT released his frustrations.
Cait continued down until she saw a soft glow from the lamp on the piano. She tiptoed down a few more steps until she saw RT over the banister, then she sat on one of the steps to watch and listen. His fingers flew over the keys as he segued from one song to another.
Cait silently mouthed the words from Yentl, an older movie she’d discovered they both loved. RT segued into “Evergreen,” another favorite of hers, tightening her chest from the passion it evoked.
She closed her eyes and swayed to the music. Why did he choose that particular song?
Without missing a beat, RT said, “You’d be more comfortable down here beside me.”
Her eyes snapped open. “How did you know I was here?”
RT smiled up at her, his hands over the keys. “I know you and how you think. Don’t always agree with you, but you have to admit ours is an interesting relationship. Ever think about it and wonder where it will go?”
I try not to. “I wonder where you’ll go when you leave and if I’ll see you again.”
He chuckled. “And our relationship?”
She eased up off the step and leaned over the banister. “Do we have a relationship?”
RT continued to play, his eyes raised to hers. “We have a connection.”
“Tasha.”
He nodded and stood. “Yes, but it’s up to us what we do about it. I’ve been thinking a lot about our situation. Any suggestions?”
Oh, yeah. “One.” She dangled her ring of keys over the banister.
RT grinned. “Love the way your mind works.”