Chapter 19
When Rod slowly leaned in to kiss Poppy, her instinct was to resist, to pull back, put her hands up to separate them. But this time, she didn’t. She kept her arms to her sides, and as his lips grazed hers, lightly at first, tentatively, still not completely sure if she would accept his advance, her whole body shivered. The warm memory of their one night of intimacy together, which happened over thirty years ago, washed over her, and she allowed him to put his arms around her and draw her close, enveloping her. He still wore the same inviting Calvin Klein cologne. He always smelled so good.
How did she let it get to this point? Their conversation on the car ride home from the art show had been innocent enough. Poppy had eagerly filled Rod in on why she thought Tofu had been lying about not knowing the murdered juror Alden Kenny, the obvious detail of him having been born and raised in Abilene. How could she possibly know that information unless she knew more about him than she was letting on? Poppy had also made a point of calling her “boss” Matt on his cell phone for an update in order to maintain the illusion that he was the one in charge of finding Rod’s daughter, Lara, but he didn’t pick up and the call went directly to his voicemail.
When they had arrived at Rod’s home, he’d invited her inside while he packed a bag for Palm Springs, still insisting he would drive her back to the desert and there was no need for her to book a rental car.
He had served her an iced tea and had her sit outside by the pool to watch the sunset while he showered and changed for the two-hour drive. When he had reappeared, looking very sexy in a pair of khaki shorts, deck shoes, and a casual orange Michael Kors button-up short-sleeved shirt that was open enough to show off his manly tufts of chest hair, Poppy had nearly gasped.
She had stood up, still clutching her glass of iced tea, and had opened her mouth to comment on how handsome he looked when he had suddenly seized the opportunity and tried to kiss her. And now here they were. Smooching in his backyard and Poppy knew she was officially done rebuffing him.
He stroked her hair as his mouth closed over hers and his probing tongue danced with hers until she began to feel light-headed. As if they were ballroom dancing, he glided her across the patio, leading her to a lounger by the pool, and with his hand firmly on her back lowered her down until she was lying flat and he was on top of her. She felt safe and desired, and she welcomed him by slinging an arm around his neck and pressing him down against her. She ran her fingers through the hair on his chest as he devoured her.
Suddenly they heard a loud knocking coming from the front door inside the house. Rod ignored it and continued kissing her and so Poppy decided she would ignore it, too. That is, until she heard a familiar voice calling out from around the side of the house.
“Mr. Harper, are you here?”
It was Matt.
Matt Flowers.
What on earth was he doing here?
Poppy immediately broke free from the lip-lock with Rod, her eyes popping open in a panic. “Rod, quick! Get off me!”
Rod quickly sprang to his feet and Poppy barely had time to roll off the lounger and fix her mess of hair enough to at least appear presentable and hopefully hide what they had been up to when Matt bounded around the corner, stopping short when he spotted the two of them.
“Oh, there you are! I’m so glad I caught you!” he said with a smile.
“Matt, what are you doing here?” Poppy asked, thoroughly confused.
“I have some potentially useful information about Lara that Rod should hear,” Matt said, staring at Poppy, who had reached into her bag for a compact in order to make sure her lipstick wasn’t smeared. “Iris and Violet told me you were still in LA and I could probably find you here.”
“Well, what is it?” Rod asked, annoyed his long-awaited tryst with Poppy had been so rudely interrupted as he casually buttoned up his orange shirt, which had been inadvertently ripped open to his navel by Poppy.
“I saw a blurb on a trade paper Web site when I was researching Lara about a big-time talent agent by the name of Carl Menkin who had recently signed her.”
Poppy turned to Rod. “Do you know him?”
“I’ve heard of him. He’s known for grooming young singers, boy bands, kids just starting out,” Rod said.
“Get this. I called him and conned my way into a meeting,” Matt said excitedly. “I had Wyatt take a video of me singing on his phone and he added shots of an audience cheering, making it look like they were watching me perform at a club. Then he edited in some professionals talking about how impressed they were about this up-and-coming talent, as if they were talking about me, and he bought it! That kid is an absolute genius!”
“I’m impressed,” Rod said, nodding.
“He’s only in town today. He flies to New York tomorrow night, so he told me I could have ten minutes at five o’clock. I raced here in record time. We need to be there in forty-five minutes so we’d better go. I told him I’d be bringing my mother, who is currently managing my career,” Matt said, gesturing to Poppy.
“Mother?” Poppy cried.
“It was the first thing that came to mind,” Matt said sheepishly.
“That I’m old enough to be your mother?” Poppy huffed.
“Well, I couldn’t very well tell him you were my boss,” Matt said.
Poppy’s heart sank.
She glared at Matt, waiting for him to realize his mistake.
But he wasn’t getting it just yet.
Rod stepped forward. “Boss? But I thought . . .”
It finally dawned on Matt, and his face turned beet red. “I mean . . .”
Rod turned to Poppy. “What’s he talking about?”
She considered spinning another lie, trying to convince him that the slipup was just a private joke between her and Matt, that sometimes he teased her and called her “boss” to make her feel more important, or as a term of endearment since as his secretary she was essentially “in charge” of his schedule. But at this point, after falling into Rod’s arms and picking up where they had left off thirty years ago, deception just didn’t seem to be an option anymore.
Matt tried to cover and quickly interjected, “What I meant was—”
Poppy stopped him. “No, Matt. Rod deserves to know the truth.”
Rod looked from Poppy to Matt, his face tense. “What truth?”
“The ‘Flowers’ in Desert Flowers Detective Agency does not stand for Matt Flowers. Matt’s real name is Matt Cameron. The ‘Flowers’ is really the three of us . . . Iris, Violet, and . . .”
“Poppy,” Rod said quietly. “Three kinds of flowers.”
“Yes,” Poppy said.
“I don’t understand what’s going on,” Rod said.
Matt decided to keep his mouth shut and let Poppy do the talking. He had screwed things up enough as it was.
“When I started the business, no one wanted to hire one, let alone three, women in their sixties. That wasn’t what most people pictured or wanted when they hired a private detective. So Matt, who is an actor . . .”
“You’re not actually a detective?” Rod asked as he looked at Matt, who shifted uncomfortably.
“Not in the traditional sense,” Matt said defensively. “But I’m learning on the job and I’m getting better every day.”
Rod took all this in, not sure how to react.
“I’m sorry, Rod. We should have been up front from the beginning,” Poppy said.
“Yes, you should have,” Rod said sharply.
He was angry.
And it made Poppy feel terrible.
He had trusted them, trusted her, and she had betrayed that trust.
“What ticks me off the most, Poppy, is that after all these years, considering our history, you would consider me some kind of misogynist.”
“You’re right. We hadn’t seen each other in a long time and I was surprised when you wanted to hire us to find Lara. I was worried you wouldn’t take me seriously. . . .”
“You were wrong. I’ve come a long way since the nineteen eighties. I’ve raised a daughter. Maybe I haven’t come around as quickly as a lot of more enlightened men, but I’m getting there, and I would have applauded you doing what you’ve done.”
Poppy nodded, eyes downcast. “I wouldn’t blame you if you found someone else to work on this case. . . .”
“And let you think you were right? Forget it,” Rod scoffed. “I want you to find my daughter. You, Poppy, I’ve hired you. So don’t disappoint me.”
“Yes, Rod,” she said softly before turning to Matt. “Go wait in the car. I’ll be right there.”
Matt, who was relieved to have been let off the hook for messing up, scrambled back around the house, leaving Poppy and Rod alone.
Rod walked toward Poppy.
She wasn’t sure if she was in for more scolding or not but she managed to hold her ground as he approached. He took her by the shoulders. “Actually, I think it’s incredibly hot that you’re no longer the secretary and now you’re the real-life Jack Colt.”
She smiled. “Thank you, Rod. And thank you for believing I can do this.”
He leaned in to resume kissing her.
She raised a finger to his lips to stop him. “And now that you know the truth, thank you for allowing our relationship to go back to being professional, at least until I get the job done.”
She could not have any more moments of weakness.
Rod looked at her and instinctively knew that she was resolved in her determination and that that was the best he was going to get for now.
“Go find her, Poppy,” he said impatiently.
Poppy nodded and then hurried around the side of the house to catch up with Matt.