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“THANK YOU FOR MEETING with me for lunch, Troy,” Dana said the next day while they were seated in a restaurant.
“Anytime, Dana. I’ll always make time for you.”
He’ll always make time for me?
Okay, what does that mean? What does that mean?
Dana’s heart fluttered hard in her chest.
Was he being professional because she always seemed to inadvertently help him out on his cases? Or did that mean he wanted to get close and personal with her?
Mixed signals.
Always go with caution when there are mixed signals, Dana. Just like when there are no working lights at a traffic stop. You don’t know if it should be green for go or red for stop. So you just...slow down, stop and proceed with caution! Treat it as a four-way stop sign. Let him go first. Don’t go making the first move.
Oh, why was it so hard to read what a guy was thinking? The last thing she wanted to do was confuse their professional relationship for anything else.
She tried hard not to flush. Boy, he was so cute. But she was there for a professional reason. He looked positively handsome in his dark blue suit and emerald green silk tie that really brought out the ocean blueness of his sexy eyes.
Focus, Dana. Focus. Not on the hot detective. Focus on the case.
She twirled the delicious spaghetti and meatball pasta with her fork, trying to avoid his gaze. The last thing she wanted was to melt under the heat of his sexy gaze again. Especially because he hadn’t asked her out yet. He probably didn’t want to. He probably just saw her as a professional helping his team out. Nothing more.
“I wanted to talk to you about the blue shirt again,” Dana said.
“Oh, right that.”
“What it is? Why did you say it like that?”
He sighed deeply. “I had the boys track down the garbage truck. It turns out that the shirt had been used to clean up some spill in his apartment so he threw it out.”
Dana frowned.
“Dana. I know you really want to help us with clues in the case but...”
“No, you don’t understand, Troy. I...I saw red stains on the shirt.”
“Yes, I had Mr. Terrence and Thomas Sampson in for questioning. They both have air tight alibis for the murder of Lichelle.”
“Really?”
“Yes, really. In fact, they were both seen at the Berry Cove Bar & Grill the time she was killed.”
Dana’s face fell. “But Troy, doesn’t that seem a little too convenient?”
“Dana, there’s no crime in getting together with someone at a bar. So Mr. T knew the victim’s brother.” He sighed. “I agree it all seems a bit fishy but we’ve got to follow strict procedure.”
“Well, something just doesn’t seem to add up.”
He reached across the table to take her hand and electricity pulsed between them.
Troy then withdrew his hand abruptly as if he’d felt it too and he didn’t like what he felt.
Darn it.
“Listen, let’s just...enjoy our meal and not jump to any conclusions about the case.”
She swallowed hard. What was happening or not happening between them? Was she that desperate or lonely? Or was the chemistry between them frightening for both of them?
“Sure, let’s enjoy the meal,” she said quietly.
She hoped she could enjoy her entrée after what just happened or didn’t happen between them. Detective Troy was a real mystery case himself, is she were being honest with herself. Would she ever figure him out?