Natalie stared at the folded piece of paper he tossed on her desk. She felt sick. She didn’t need to open it to know it was the check she’d written him for a retainer.
“My mother seems to be of the opinion that the reason I took this case is because I find you so attractive,” he said.
“You…you told your mother I hired you?” she asked, her queasiness mounting.
“I went to try and ask her about my dad’s behavior on the night of the crash. She’s not very happy with me at the moment.”
Compassion swelled in her breast. No wonder he seemed so out of sorts.
“I’ve been thinking about this situation all afternoon, and you know what I decided, Natalie?” He pointed at the check on her desk. “That was making things more complicated. Not me kissing you.”
She glanced up at him cautiously. He looked a little fearsome in that moment, his face tight and eyes blazing.
“What do you mean?”
“Maybe you were right for calling it business last night. You paying me made this a business arrangement, just like you said. So you can keep your money.”
Yes. Of course he was right, Natalie told herself. She quashed down her intense disappointment at the thought of Liam changing his mind about the investigation and forced herself to breathe evenly.
“I understand,” she said.
“No you don’t.”
She gaped at him as he continued.
“See, my mother was right, too. A little. I didn’t take the case just because I find you attractive, but it might have been a contributing factor.”
“I don’t believe that. You took the case because your gut told you it was the right thing to do.”
He didn’t reply for a moment, but just stared at her with stormy eyes.
“I agree, in essence,” he eventually said gruffly. “That’s why I came here, to tell you I’m completing the investigation to the best of my ability, but not for money.”
“But—”
&nb
sp; He pointed at her. “If you think I’m going to walk away now when I’m just starting to get a picture of what was happening with my dad on that night, you’re dead wrong. And I’ve got a hell of a lot more resources than any other investigator you could hire, so you’re not going to get rid of me unless you’ve decided you don’t care anymore about what happened on that night.”
“Of course I still care!”
“Fine. Then we can do this as partners. We’re two people with a common history who are looking into events that led up to a mutual family tragedy. See, this is personal to me, Natalie. Nobody can put something this personal on ice.”
He started for the door. “Liam…wait,” she said desperately. He paused and glanced around. Was it her imagination, or did she see a trace of regret on his face? “So you’re…you’re definitely going to continue with the investigation?”
He nodded solemnly. “I’m going to watch the tape at state police headquarters tomorrow. Why don’t I stop by your house afterward, around seven o’clock?”
“Stop by my house…”
He started to walk out the door again, making her fade off. “Yeah. I’ll take you out to dinner and tell you what I saw on the tape.” He opened the door and glanced back at her. “Just two single, consenting adults enjoying each other’s company and discussing matters of a highly personal nature. Can’t get any simpler than that, right?”
He closed the door quietly behind him. The only comfort she could take from the volatile meeting was that given Liam’s ironic tone as he took his leave, he obviously agreed with her that the situation was the polar opposite of simple.
His friend Derek Oberman was nice enough to set him up with a TV, VCR and an empty conference room at the state police headquarters in Lansing. He knew Derek from his early days on the Chicago Police Department when they’d both worked west-side patrol.
Derek lingered as Liam turned on the television and prepared the tape.
“Do you want me to stay and watch it with you?” Derek asked a little awkwardly as a gray-and-white image of what was undoubtedly the Silver Dunes bar flickered onto the screen. Liam paused the tape and turned to his friend.