Chapter 15
Audrey had waited until she and Zoe had arrived at her home before she excused herself and went into the bedroom to phone Porter. When she had explained the situation, she had expected him to be disappointed, but had not been prepared for his anger or the accusation he had hurled at her.
"I don"t appreciate your canceling at the last minute," he had told her. "And for no better reason than to baby-sit Special Agent Ca.s.s"s teenage daughter. Why you would volunteer to-?"
"I thought I explained what happened."
"So you did, but it doesn"t ring true. My G.o.d, you aren"t interested in the man, are you? I wouldn"t have thought a Neanderthal like Ca.s.s was your type, but then I suppose most women prefer the blatantly male, chest-beating Me-Tarzan-You-Jane type."
"Porter, you"re being ridiculous." She had seen a side to Porter Bryant that she"d never seen before, not in the six months they had dated.
"For your sake, I hope I"m wrong. You have to know that up against Holly Johnston, you don"t stand a chance." He had slammed down the receiver.
Doing her best to put the unpleasant conversation with Porter out of her mind, Audrey had returned to the living room and suggested that Zoe might want to join her in the kitchen. They had prepared sandwiches and soup for their supper, and afterward, they had taken their bowls of chocolate ice cream and a plate of sugar cookies into the living room. Zoe had chosen Overboard Overboard from Audrey"s DVD movie collection, a romantic comedy starring Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn. And although Audrey tried to concentrate on the movie, she kept thinking about where J.D. was and what he was doing. Another young woman had disappeared, someone who fit the same profile as Jill Scott and Debra Gregory, a possible third victim of the Rocking Chair Killer. from Audrey"s DVD movie collection, a romantic comedy starring Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn. And although Audrey tried to concentrate on the movie, she kept thinking about where J.D. was and what he was doing. Another young woman had disappeared, someone who fit the same profile as Jill Scott and Debra Gregory, a possible third victim of the Rocking Chair Killer.
We"ve got an eyewitness who may be able to give us a description of a man she saw outside the woman"s apartment last night.
J.D."s comment replayed over and over inside her head. If the eyewitness could identify the man who might have kidnapped this young woman, wouldn"t that mean there was a good chance they could find him and rescue the woman before he killed her?
"I love this movie," Zoe said. "It"s so funny."
Coming out of her thoughts, Audrey replied, "You"ve never seen Overboard Overboard before?" before?"
"No, never." Zoe picked up another cookie from the plate on the coffee table and took a bite. "These are good. They"re kind of cake and cookie. Where"d you get them? At the grocery store or one of the bakeries?"
"Actually, I made them," Audrey said. "Baking is sort of a hobby of mine, especially desserts."
"Dang, how about that? I never thought that somebody like you...you know, an elegant, sophisticated career woman, would waste her time cooking."
Audrey laughed, her response a combination of amus.e.m.e.nt and appreciation for Zoe"s flattering description of her. She had never actually thought of herself as either elegant or sophisticated.
"A good friend"s mother taught me how to cook," Audrey explained. "I used to spend a lot of time at their house, and Geraldine is the best cook in the world. She let us make the desserts every weekend. And in the past few years, I"ve taken two gourmet cooking cla.s.ses."
"Could you teach me to make cookies like these?" Zoe stuffed the remainder of the cookie into her mouth and smiled at Audrey.
"I could. They"re not difficult to make."
"That would be great," Zoe mumbled as she chewed and then swallowed. "When? I know you"re probably busy tomorrow, but if you"re not, maybe..." Zoe frowned. "I"m sorry. I shouldn"t a.s.sume that because you"ve been so nice to me it means you"d want us to spend more time together."
Audrey understood only too well Zoe"s desperate need to be loved and accepted, to be wanted. But it would be unprofessional for her to allow herself to become a mother subst.i.tute for Zoe. And it would be so easy for that to happen because of the rapport they shared.
You could always refer Zoe and J.D. to one of your colleagues for their family-counseling sessions.
"Actually, I have an appointment for a manicure and pedicure in the morning," Audrey said. "If your father thinks it"s okay, then why don"t I pick you up around nine-thirty and you can go with me. I think Jessica might fit you in for a manicure and pedicure. And then we can come back here and I"ll give you your first cooking lesson. Sugar cookies a la Audrey."
They both laughed.
"After you make your first batch, we can call them sugar cookies a la Zoe."
Giggling, Zoe beamed with delight. "I"ve never had a manicure and pedicure or made cookies."
"Then, my dear Ms. Davidson, you"re in for a real treat."
They watched the rest of the movie as they talked and giggled and finished off the plate of cookies. Zoe lay sideways on the sofa, her head resting on a decorative pillow she"d placed on the armrest. After she yawned, she said, "Excuse me."
Audrey checked her watch. Ten forty-eight.
Why hadn"t J.D. called?
"Looks like your father has been delayed."
"Yeah, he"s probably forgotten all about letting me come home with you. He gets pretty involved with his job, and nothing else seems to matter."
"My father was like that." The moment she spoke, Audrey realized she shouldn"t have voiced her thoughts.
"Really?"
"He was a policeman, very dedicated to his job. Some men are like that." Audrey reached out, grasped Zoe"s hand, and tugged her up into a sitting position. "Come on. I"ll get you a pair of my pajamas. You can take a shower and sleep in my guest room tonight."
Zoe"s mouth dropped wide open as she stared at Audrey. "But if J.D. comes by to pick me up-"
"I"m sure he will. Eventually. But we have no idea when that will be. There is no point in your staying up when it"s obvious you"re tired. You go take a shower and I"ll see if I can get in touch with your father and tell him you"re staying here tonight. Give me his cell number again."
Zoe recited the phone number and Audrey memorized it. Then she shooed Zoe off toward the guest room while she headed for her bedroom. Audrey went through her lingerie drawer and chose a pair of lavender and white striped cotton pajamas to loan Zoe.
"Thanks so much," Zoe said. "It"s so nice of you to...well, thanks."
Audrey thought the fourteen-year-old looked like a small child on the verge of tears. She wanted nothing more than to put her arms around Zoe and comfort her, but she didn"t think it the wisest thing to do. Zoe needed to be the one who reached out first before she would be willing to accept comfort from anyone.
Audrey retreated to the living room, and as soon as she heard the shower running, she picked up the phone and dialed J.D."s number.
"Yeah, what"s wrong?" his deep, aggravated voice demanded.
"Bad night?" Audrey asked, ignoring his rudeness.
"Sorry, but yeah, it"s not such a good night."
"The eyewitness didn"t pan out as you had hoped?"
"Something like that."
"I wouldn"t have bothered you, but I wanted to catch you before you-"
"G.o.d d.a.m.n it!" She heard his voice as if he was holding the phone away from him, but she couldn"t make out anything else. Then suddenly, he said to her, "Look, Dr. Sherrod, tell Zoe I"ll pick her up in about an hour. I"ve got to go."
"But-but-"
J.D. had hung up on her.
She huffed loudly. Dear G.o.d, how that man infuriated her. She had half a mind to call him back and tell him exactly what she thought of him.
Within minutes, her temper had cooled enough for her to admit that calling him back was a bad idea. Instead, she went through her bedroom and into the adjoining bath and drew a tub of warm water to which she added some scented bath salts. A few minutes later as she lay there, her body immersed in the soothing heat, she tried to erase J.D. Ca.s.s from her mind, not an easy task when his daughter was asleep in her guest bedroom. The man was, if not an uncaring father, at the very least an insensitive one.
So much like her own father.
Don"t a.s.sume that the two men are identical.
Judging J.D. on such a short acquaintance wasn"t fair to him. And if she intended to work with him and Zoe as their therapist, she had to find a way to give him the benefit of the doubt.
You can"t continue to counsel them.
No, she couldn"t. Not if she formed a personal friendship with Zoe, which she wanted to do. She wanted to help Zoe, and oddly enough she believed that being her friend was more important than being her therapist.
She remained in the tub-a place where she often did her best thinking-until the water turned tepid. After drying off and putting on her turquoise pajamas and matching robe, she removed the towel from her head, shook loose her shoulder-length hair, and used her fingers as a makeshift comb. As she entered the hall, she paused outside the guest room and peeked inside, where Zoe lay sprawled across the bed, the covers at her feet. Audrey tiptoed into the room and pulled the top sheet and blanket over the sleeping child.
Zoe was such a pretty girl. Actually, she was beautiful. She had J.D."s dark eyes and hair and- Audrey shook off the thought of how attractive J.D. Ca.s.s was and closed the guest room door behind her as she returned to the hallway.
After checking the time, she noted that J.D. should be arriving within the next twenty minutes. She turned on the TV, kept the sound low, and curled up on the sofa. The next thing she knew, the insistent doorbell chimes woke her. She jumped to her feet and hurried to the front door, peered through the viewfinder, and then quickly unlocked and opened the door. J.D. stood there, a five o"clock shadow darkening his face and a world-weary look in his black eyes.
"Sorry I"m so late," he told her. "It"s been a h.e.l.l of a night."
She stepped aside to allow him entrance. "Come on in. Zoe"s asleep, so try to be quiet."
He gave her a puzzled look.
"It"s nearly midnight," Audrey reminded him. "When I called you earlier, I tried to tell you that Zoe was staying the night and you didn"t need to bother with picking her up."
"I apologize about earlier. But we were dealing with a situation...." He glanced into the living room. "Would you mind if I sit down for a few minutes?"
She floated her arm through the air, indicating an invitation.
He slumped down on the sofa, reared back, and closed his eyes. Audrey sensed how tired he was and pure feminine instinct took over.
"Have you had anything to eat?" she asked.
He opened his eyes and stared at her. "What I could use right now is a good stiff drink."
"I don"t think that"s a good idea. You"ll be driving home soon and-"
His rather sarcastic chuckle shut her up instantly.
"I don"t think one beer would impair my ability to drive home safely," he told her.
"I"m afraid I don"t have any beer."
"Why am I not surprised?"
"I have milk and cola and juice, or I could fix you hot tea or decaf coffee."
He scanned her from head to toe as he sat up straight on the sofa. "You"re being awfully nice to me. Why? It"s obvious that you personally dislike me and disapprove of me as a father."
"I don"t know you well enough to like or dislike you," she told him, a.s.suring herself that in this instance, a little white lie was acceptable. "As for my opinion of you as a father...I"ll reserve judgment until after you and Zoe complete your family-counseling sessions."
"Very well said, Dr. Sherrod. I almost believe you."
"Believe what you want." She kept her head high and her gaze locked with his. He wasn"t going to intimidate her with his swaggering masculinity.
"I wouldn"t mind some coffee...if your offer is still good."
She nodded. "It is." When she turned to go into the kitchen, she paused, glanced over her shoulder, and asked, "Would you like a sandwich? Roast beef? Ham and cheese?"
He got up off the sofa and came toward her. "You have no idea how much I"d like a sandwich. I"m so hungry I could eat a horse. Ham and cheese sounds great."
When he suggested that he could make his own sandwich while she prepared the coffeemaker, she told him where to locate all the ingredients and supplies in the refrigerator and the pantry. They worked together seamlessly, avoiding conversation and direct eye contact. He took his sandwich and sat down at the kitchen table, and by the time he"d gobbled down the first bite, Audrey poured him a mug of steaming black decaf coffee.
He glanced up at her, smiled, and said, "Thank you."
After placing the coffeepot back on the warmer, she pulled out a chair and sat across from him. He ate heartily and quickly. When he washed down the last bite with coffee, he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and looked at Audrey, catching her staring at him.
"Would you like another sandwich?" she asked.
"I could probably eat another one or even two more." He chuckled. "But no thanks. I need to be heading out and let you get to bed." He scooted back his chair and stood. "If you"ll give me a call in the morning after Zoe gets up, I"ll come by and pick her up."
"That won"t be necessary. Zoe and I sort of made plans for tomorrow." Audrey stood and faced him. "I hope you don"t mind, but I invited her to go with me and have her first manicure and pedicure, then lunch, and afterward I"m going to teach her how to make sugar cookies like the ones we had for dessert tonight."
J.D. narrowed his gaze and studied her closely as if he couldn"t quite figure out what her ulterior motive was for befriending his daughter. After a long, tense pause, he grinned. "Wouldn"t happen to have any of those sugar cookies left, would you?"
Surprised by his pleasant att.i.tude, Audrey took a couple of seconds to respond to his question. "Oh, yes, as a matter of fact, I do." She went to the pantry, removed a sealed plastic container from the shelf, popped off the lid, and offered him his pick of the cookies layered inside the rectangular box.
He took a handful of cookies, popped a whole one in his mouth, and moaned. "d.a.m.n, that was good." He looked straight at her. "You made these?"
"Yes, I made them," she snapped her reply. "And I"ll thank you not to act so surprised."
"Lady, I can"t figure you out. You obviously dislike me and yet you go out of your way not only to be kind to my daughter, but to offer me a meal in the middle of the night. You project a cool, superior, lady-of-the-manor att.i.tude and yet I find out you bake homemade cookies and plan to give my daughter a cooking lesson."
They stood there in Audrey"s kitchen, she in her pajamas and robe and he with cookie crumbs stuck on the corner of his mouth, and stared at each other. He took a hesitant step toward her. Immobilized by the look in his dark eyes, she watched him approach as her pulse quickened. When he was close enough to touch her, he stopped.
"You-you have crumbs on your mouth," she blurted out and then felt foolish for her outburst.
The tension between them snapped and they both laughed as J.D. reached up and wiped his mouth again. "Gone?" he asked.