To Love a Cop

And...he’d better think long and hard before he spent any more time with Laura Vennetti anyway. He had a hard time picturing her having casual affairs. Anything else—they had some major strikes against them. It really might be smarter not to start anything.

But he waited until Jake let himself in the front door, only then acknowledging how disappointed he was not to catch a glimpse of Laura.

And admitting how much he wanted to see her again.

CHAPTER FOUR

ETHAN WAITED JUST inside Laura Vennetti’s front door for Jake to change into basketball shoes. She hovered politely, giving him a chance to scan her dirty, ripped jeans and ragged flannel shirt—none of which disguised the lush curves he’d like to linger on but didn’t.

“I’m feeling guilty,” he said after a brief silence that had the potential to become awkward. “I could help scrape the deck instead of taking your helper away from you.”

She sneaked a look over her shoulder toward the hall, and still lowered her voice. “Take him away. Please,” she begged, surprising a laugh from him. “He whines more than he works.”

Still grinning, he said, “Is this where I admit I don’t blame him? It sounds like a crappy job.”

Her freckled nose crinkled. “It is a crappy job, but I think I can mostly finish today. Especially if I’m left alone to do it in peace. Painting is bound to be more fun.”

He looked past her to see Jake approaching. “You set?” Ethan asked.

“Yeah.” The boy sounded eager. “You’re not coming, are you, Mom?”

“And now I feel so welcome.” She stuck out her tongue at him. “No, I’m not. But I was about to invite Ethan to stay to lunch when you get back if he’d like.”

“I’d love to stay,” he said without hesitation.

Her smile was more uncomplicated than any he’d yet seen. It lit her face. And, yes, he’d been right; her eyes were a brighter blue when she was happy.

“Good,” she said, bumping her shoulder against her son’s as he passed. “Have fun.”

Talking idly about nothing in particular, they drove to Jake’s school, which had the closest available outdoor courts. Despite the lack of rain, the sky was sullen enough they could have one hoop to themselves, Ethan was glad to find.

It felt good to palm a basketball, to feel the flow of muscles as he let loose of some long jump shots. He played often enough he hadn’t lost the instincts, the reflexes. Funny, though, how long it had been since he’d played on an asphalt schoolyard court like this.

Ethan shot from way outside and watched as the ball dropped through the rim and Jake snagged it. Hit by memories, he said, “Man, I spent hours at a school near my house when I was your age, doing nothing but shooting. Half the time there wasn’t any net. I was sure I’d be an NBA star.”

“How come you’re not?” Jake asked.

“I don’t know if I’d have made it or not, and I doubt I’d have been a star no matter what. But by then I’d changed my mind. I loved playing college ball, though.”

“You’re tall enough to play pro, aren’t you?”

“Probably. I’m almost six foot four. I played forward for Portland State, but I might have been able to move to guard.” He shrugged. “There are a lot of good college ball players, though, who had the same dreams I did. It’s probably just as well I’d moved on. If nothing else, pro ball isn’t a career that lasts long. One knee injury can end it just like that.” He snapped his fingers, and then beckoned for the ball, which Jake bounced to him. “Can you shoot from the free throw line yet?”

The boy grimaced. “Kind of.”

They worked on it for a while, Ethan offering a few suggestions and Jake noticeably improving, before Ethan asked how his week had gone at school. “You try standing up for yourself?” he asked.

Jake gave a stiff shrug. “I said what you suggested to a couple of people. I don’t know. Mostly people are still looking funny at me.”

“They’ll get over it.” Ethan stole the ball from him, dribbled a couple of times and did an effortless slam dunk. Aware of the openmouthed stare from a group of boys playing a short distance away, Ethan felt some amusement at himself. Showboating, were you? He tipped his head toward the boys. “That anyone you know?”

Jake didn’t look. “One is in my class. Another of those guys used to be a friend. Ron.”

Ethan made an acknowledging sound. “What d’ya say we dazzle ’em, then?”

“Yeah!”

They played hard, Jake’s layups getting smoother, his moves as he tried to steal the ball from Ethan sneakier. When they finally decided to quit, Ethan waited until they were walking past the other boys before he said easily, “Practice, and you’ll play varsity, no problem. You’re good for your age.”

Jake flushed with pleasure. “Thanks. I mean—that’d be cool, you know?”

Ethan tapped him lightly on the back. They were past being in earshot of the little shits who’d snubbed Jake. “Looks like you might get some height from your mom, too. I don’t think your dad was tall enough to seriously play basketball.”

“He played baseball in high school.” His forehead crinkled. “I think football, too, but mostly he was a really great first baseman.”

Hearing how uncertain but also defiant he sounded, Ethan had to wonder how well the boy remembered his father. Ethan’s own memories before age six or seven were pretty skimpy. Did Laura try to keep Matt’s memory alive for his son, or had too much anger gotten in the way?

“I played on a baseball team with your dad one year,” he commented as he buckled his seat belt and put the key in the ignition of his SUV. “You know, just for fun. Our team was made up of firefighters and police officers. You’re right, your dad was dynamite at first base. Hell of a hitter, too. I’d kind of forgotten.”

“I wish I’d seen,” Jake said sadly.

Counting back, Ethan said, “If you were born at all then, you’d have been only a baby. Your mom might have brought you to games.”

“You didn’t see her?”

“If I met her, I don’t remember.” He had trouble now imagining how he could ever have set eyes on Laura Vennetti and forgotten her, but he’d been married himself then and not looking. In fact, if he’d really noticed her, he would have made a point after that of not looking.

“I bet you were a good baseball player, too.”

“I wasn’t bad, but basketball was always my sport.” He flicked on his windshield wipers and said unnecessarily, “It’s starting to rain.”

“Mom won’t like that.”

Ethan grinned. “No, she won’t.”

When they let themselves into the house, she was just emerging from what he guessed was her bedroom down the hall. Her hair, loose now, gleamed, and she’d changed to clean jeans and a V-neck sweater snug-fitting enough to cause his body to stir.

“You quit before you got wet,” she said, seeming pleased to see them. “I didn’t even know the rain had started until I got out of the shower.”

“You finished with the deck?” Ethan asked.

“It’s as scraped as it’s going to get. Who knows when I’ll be able to paint now, though. The forecast isn’t very promising.”

“I noticed.” He and Jake both followed her to the kitchen.

She turned to see them looking expectant and laughed. “I cheated. I called to order a pizza. It should be here any minute. What do you want to drink?”

They had a brief skirmish, but Ethan insisted on paying for the pizza when it arrived, and Laura didn’t seem too disgruntled. Conversation flowed as they ate. Ethan nodded when told about the basketball camp Jake wanted to take that summer and repeated what he’d said at the school. Flushing with pleasure, Jake told her about how Ethan had dunked the ball.

“Like it was easy,” he marveled. “And he makes baskets from way out. I wish I could do that.”

“I couldn’t when I was your age, either.” Ethan reached for another slice of pizza. “You’re not tall enough yet and your hands aren’t big enough. Plus, it took a lot of practice.”

“The school is too far for me to go over there whenever I want,” Jake grumbled.

Ethan had had a thought about that, but figured it wasn’t something he should say to Laura in front of her kid. He’d wait.

Laura talked about her week at work, and he did the same. He’d made an arrest on an assault case he’d been pursuing for a while, and was working with the DA’s office now to make sure there were no holes in the case that might result in an acquittal.

“I do enjoy arresting someone who thinks he’s gotten away with something crummy,” he admitted when Jake asked. “It’s one of the pleasures of the job.”

Jake leaned forward, his expression almost as avid as when he’d looked at handguns. “What else do you especially like?”

It was obvious Laura was alarmed by the question. Ethan was amused to meet her hard stare, daring him to give the wrong answer.

“Hmm,” he said, giving himself a minute to think about how he would answer. It wasn’t a common question. Probably a good thing, given that the satisfaction and frustration, boredom and adrenaline became so entangled, picking them apart was no easy task. “I meet good people along with the bad,” he said at last. “I like helping people. Giving them justice even if I can’t put everything back the way it was before the crime was committed.” He smiled faintly. “Becoming a detective was my goal from the beginning because I enjoy puzzles. Putting all those pieces together until the picture is whole. That aha! moment can’t be beat.”

Jake looked appalled. “That’s the best part? Not...I don’t know...the way people look up to you?”

“No.” Ethan’s smile widened. “It’s true that in certain circumstances I need respect from people, even a little fear. But most day-to-day policing goes better if I can connect with people. Encourage openness.”

The boy sneaked a look at his mother that Ethan didn’t understand, then burst out, “Is that what Dad thought, too?”

“He seemed like a good cop to me, when we worked together.” Ethan kept his voice relaxed, friendly, instinctively trying to ratchet down any tension between Laura and Jake. “People liked Matt. He had a gift for talking people down from whatever cliff they’d climbed up on. He could calm an enraged guy or a distraught woman like no one else I ever knew. I told him he should think about training to become a negotiator. I don’t know if he considered that later.”

“If he did, he didn’t tell me,” Laura said. “But he was really good at cooling tempers. I’d kind of forgotten. I’ll bet family get-togethers have been way more tempestuous without him.”

Ethan heard the wryness in that. The family hadn’t had to do without their peacekeeper. They could have chosen to forgive his mistake, however terrible the result had been, to support him when he needed them as he never had before. Instead, they’d turned their backs, with yet more terrible results.

Jake seemed not to have heard the subtext. His face scrunched as he appeared to struggle to pull up memories of his father. “Mostly I remember Dad being fun.” His eyes focused on Ethan again. “Wrestling with me, laughing, helping me learn to throw the ball. Stuff like that. Oh!” He brightened. “And he had a motorcycle. Was it a Harley, Mom?” He saw her nod, but didn’t see her expression. “He’d take me on drives. Just slow, like around the block, but I thought it was the best.”

Laura’s eyes shimmered with unshed tears. “I’m glad you remember,” she said softly. “I wasn’t sure you did.”

“I wish you’d kept the motorcycle,” Jake said discontentedly. “Then I could have had it someday.”

“We needed the money I got for it.” She gave a funny, broken laugh. “I have to admit, the idea of letting my teenage son head out on his Harley sends a chill down my spine, too. Maybe by the time you can afford to buy your own, I won’t be so worried about you riding it.”

“Didn’t you go for rides with Dad on it?”

“We did in the early days.” Having apparently conquered the tears, she smiled at him. “Before you were born. After that, well—” she laughed “—I’m a secret coward. I never enjoyed the open road the way your dad did.”

“Really?” he marveled. He turned to Ethan. “Do you have a motorcycle?”

“Nope. I was never that interested in anything with an engine.” Replete, Ethan pushed his plate away. “Now, windsurfing on the Columbia River, that’s a charge. I’ll take you this summer.” He frowned. “You can swim, can’t you?”

“Yeah!”

Ethan smiled at Laura. “Both of you.” He’d really like to see her in a bikini. Even a tight-fitting one-piece. Although nothing would be even better.

He never had had that heart-to-heart with his common sense over whether getting too involved with both Vennettis was smart. Reaching out a hand to the boy, that was one thing; he could even think of it as part of his job. He remembered Ken describing Jake as a lit fuse. The spark could still be doused.

He felt a spark low in his belly every time he looked at Laura, too, but this one was entirely personal. He hadn’t decided whether it would be better stamped out, too.

It’s not too late to back off, he told himself, but had a bad feeling he was lying to himself, something he tried not to do.

His unease was such that he made his excuses right after Laura closed the box on the two remaining slices of pizza and, when he declined to take the leftovers, stood to put them in the refrigerator.

“Would you clear up the rest?” she asked Jake, and walked Ethan to the door.

“Thank you for doing this,” she said, sounding more formal than she had since he first arrived.

“I like your son. I had fun, too. I don’t take time to do something like shoot baskets often enough.” He grinned. “And, just so you know, the slam dunk was meant to impress some boys Jake knows who were ignoring him.”

“Jerks,” she muttered.

“Yeah, I figured they deserved to see that he has cooler friends than they do.”

Her eyes sparkled and her laugh was a delighted ripple. “His friend isn’t so modest, though.”

Ethan shook his head. “Laura, Laura. You don’t understand preteen boys. Modesty is not a virtue they admire.”

That gained him another laugh. “Then thank you for the dunk, too.”

“Ah, listen. I had an idea,” he said. “I didn’t want to say anything in front of Jake.”

Her smile faded.

“Nothing bad. I was just thinking I could install a hoop above your garage, if you’re okay with it. It would be healthier for him to be out shooting baskets than doing whatever he does in his room.”

Laura made a face. “Probably computer games.” She looked toward the garage. “Our driveway is flat.”

“Pretty much perfect.”

“If you mean that, I’ll go ahead and buy a...backboard. Isn’t that what they’re called?”

“Yep. I could make one if I had time, but I can’t promise right now.”

In the end, she agreed to let him pick one up since she knew nothing about them and his vehicle was better suited for hauling something that might come in a huge box than hers was. She insisted on paying for it, though.

He was starting to turn away when she touched his arm. “I...wanted to ask you something.”

Ethan tensed at the way she’d lowered her voice. “Sure.”

“Please be honest with me. Do you, um...” She visibly squared her shoulders. “Are you carrying a gun?”

He felt a spurt of anger that he knew wasn’t fair. For all she could tell, he might have a backup weapon; a lot of cops never got dressed without donning an ankle holster. He wasn’t one of them. Maybe someday he’d be sorry, but he didn’t think so.

“No,” he said tersely. “Did you think I’d come to lunch or dinner at your house carrying, after you told me how you felt about it?”

Those shoulders sagged. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have even asked. It’s just...”

He got over his pique. “Hey. I do understand, Laura. It’s a hot button for you, and for good reason. I respect that.”

Desperate eyes searched his. “Thank you. I hope it’s not uncomfortable for you. I mean, being unarmed.”

He couldn’t resist wrapping his hand around her upper arm and squeezing gently. “No. I’m not one of those guys who can’t go to the john without his gun. I carry a backup only on the job, and even then only when I’m involved in something that might call for it.” He managed a smile. “Didn’t figure the playground was one of those places.”

“I’m glad.”

Somehow as he’d turned back to face her they’d ended up so close, only a few inches separated their bodies. Their voices had gone quiet, too; intimate. Her gaze was suddenly shy, her cheeks flushed. Ethan couldn’t stop himself from bending to kiss her cheek, warm, soft and sweet-smelling. He heard her inhalation and went still for a moment. Man, he wanted to kiss her mouth, too, but he made himself straighten, let her go and back away.

“See you Tuesday.”

“Oh! You don’t have to pick him up, you know. I’d be glad to drive him.”

No dinner invitation, then. He still didn’t know if she was attracted to him, too, but thought she was. She’d have her own alarm system, though, and he had no doubt he triggered it.

“Why don’t you bring him,” he suggested, “and I’ll run him home afterward?”

“Thank you. If—”

He mock-glowered. “Don’t say, ‘If you mean it.’”

She almost laughed. “I promise.”

“All right.” Even as he was loping across her front yard to the curb, he lifted a hand to her.

Once again, she remained in the open doorway, watching as he drove away.

* * *

SUNDAY AFTERNOON, LAURA spread bills out on the desk as she calculated what she could afford to pay and when. Her sister had picked up Jake to go with them to the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, a perfect choice when rain was pitter-pattering down, so she had peace and quiet.

Her phone rang. She didn’t recognize the number, but it was local, so she answered.

“Laura?” It was a woman’s voice. “This is Emily. Emiliana?”

Laura’s hand tightened on the phone. What was she supposed to say? Oh, how nice to hear from you after all these years?

“Matt’s sister?”

“I’d forgotten your voice,” Laura said coolly.

That opened a pool of silence. Finally Emily broke it. “Tino told us what you said to him. He’s ashamed he encouraged his kids to talk about what happened.”

“Is he? He should be ashamed. Him a grown-up, preying on a child. Did he mention that word has spread throughout the school? That Jake’s friends have quit calling? That he hears kids whispering ‘Murderer’ as he passes?”

“I’m so sorry.”

“Does Mama know you’re calling? I’m sure she wouldn’t approve. Or did you sneak out so Guido doesn’t know, either? He never could stand up to her.”

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