LITMIR.BIZ

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leaned over and hugged the buxom blonde. “Thank you, Sadie. We’re both so worried. We really appreciate your help.” It was clear Claire felt a deep sense of responsibility for Sam’s disappearance. The pain she suffered was almost palpable.

      And yet he couldn’t help thinking that some of it was deserved. If she had come to him when Laura had first given her his name, or even after Laura got sick, none of this would have happened.

      Sadie looked at Ben. “Troy’s bad about holding grudges. Once you’ve pissed him off, he can’t seem to let it go. But I don’t think he’d hurt your boy. At least not when he’s sober.”

      Ben’s jaw hardened. Troy Bennett had better not hurt his son. If he did, he wouldn’t have to worry about going to prison.

      He would be dead.

      * * *

      Claire was exhausted by the time the plane landed back in Santa Monica and they started the drive to her apartment. It was late but the trip had been worth it.

      “Let’s get something to eat,” Ben said, spotting a row of fast-food restaurants up ahead. “McDonald’s all right?”

      “At this point anything is good.” She rarely ate fast food, but she was starving. They ordered from the drive-through, then sat in the parking lot to eat so the food wouldn’t get cold.

      “I’m mostly a steak-and-potatoes guy,” Ben said as he unwrapped his burger. “I cook for myself at home. Mostly steaks or chops on the grill and salad. It’s not gourmet, but it’s healthier than this stuff.” He took a big bite, talked around it. “On the other hand, sometimes you just can’t beat a Big Mac.”

      Claire smiled. She had ordered a chicken sandwich. She wished it didn’t taste so good. “You’re from Pittsburgh. How did you get to Houston?”

      “SEAL buddy. Houston was his hometown. He talked me into giving it a try, then a couple years later, moved away.”

      “I know you don’t have a wife or family.”

      “I’m not the family type’or at least I wasn’t. What about you? You born in L.A.?”

      “I’m from upstate New York. White Plains. I did social work there for a couple of years after I graduated from college, but my family still lives there. I wanted to be a little more independent, get out on my own.”

      “Brothers and sisters?”

      “No, just me. My parents and I are still pretty close. I talk to my mom every week, but right now they’re out of the country.” She smiled. “Mediterranean cruise. It’s a lifelong dream.”

      “Sounds nice.”

      “They’re crazy about each other.”

      He glanced away, and she wondered if it bothered him to talk about family, since he didn’t have one.

      “So you like L.A?” he asked.

      She shrugged. “It’s okay. I don’t think I want to live here forever.” She took another bite of her sandwich, enjoying the taste of real mayonnaise, a treat she rarely allowed herself. She was reaching for her Diet Coke when Ben’s iPhone started ringing.

      He dug it out of his pocket and pressed it against his ear. “Slocum.” He nodded as if the guy on the other end could see, turned toward Claire. “O-positive,” he said, looking relieved.

      Claire felt a shot of that same relief. The lab was calling. It wasn’t Sam’s blood.

      “How long till you get the DNA?” A moment passed and Ben nodded. “I appreciate the extra effort. Call me if you get a match.” Ben hung up and stuck the phone back into the pocket of his jeans. “One of the guys at the lab was a friend of Brodie’s. He worked late, since a child was involved and he owed Brodie a favor. Be a couple more days for the DNA. They’ll run it through the system, see what turns up.”

      “But the blood wasn’t Sam’s.”

      “No.”

      “If Troy’s never been arrested, he won’t be in the system.”

      “You’re right. There’s a chance they won’t find him. We need to talk to this guy Jeffries, see if he can give us any new information.”

      They continued on to her apartment, Claire finishing her sandwich along the way. It was after midnight and she was bone-tired when they walked in the door. Ben didn’t seem to notice. The man had boundless energy. Or maybe it was just concern for his son.

      Taking his laptop out of his black canvas duffel, he went to work setting the computer up on the kitchen table. As she watched him, Claire unfastened the gold clip at the nape of her neck and shook her head, letting her hair fall free. She dragged a hand through the heavy dark strands.

      “I’m going to take a shower,” she said. “Let me know if you find something.”

      Ben looked up and those sexy blue eyes ran over her, took in her loosened hair, the shape of her breasts. “I don’t suppose you want company?”

      Heat slid through her, desire hot and sharp. She could tell by the way he was looking at her that he wasn’t entirely kidding.

      “We’re working together, Ben. That’s all.”

      “Yeah, I know.” His gaze swung away from her. He finished plugging in his laptop, sat down and started typing on the keyboard.

      Claire forced her legs to move toward the bedroom. She hadn’t had sex since she and Michael had ended their relationship. Michael Sullivan was a well-known investigative journalist and was gone so much it was a stretch to call it more than a three-year affair.

      When Michael had taken a five-month assignment in South America, Claire made the decision to end things between them.

      “This isn’t working, Michael,” she had said. “I care for you very much, but I want more than you can give me. We both know the time just isn’t right.”

      “I just need to get my career a little more established. Give me a few more months. I love you, Claire.”

      But she’d heard the words too many times. “Love isn’t always enough, Michael.”

      He had left the next day. He’d been in touch off and on, but the calls came more and more rarely. Still, he always said he loved her and that sooner or later, they would find a way to make it work.

      Claire was more realistic. Michael was a great friend, but their relationship had never been one of grand passion. At least not for her.

      She had never looked at Michael the way she’d looked at Ben Slocum that morning. And Michael had never looked at her the way Ben had looked at her just now.

      She had wondered if Ben found her attractive. Now she knew for sure. But she was smart enough to recognize lust when she felt it. It wasn’t a feeling she’d experienced often, and definitely not something she planned to act on.

      Still, as she stripped off her clothes and slipped beneath the hot wet spray, her breasts felt sensitive. Faint arousal throbbed between her legs. Claire thought of Ben and wondered what it would be like to make love with a virile, hot-blooded male like him.

      It wasn’t going to happen. Sam came first.

      The boy’s sweet, smiling face popped into her head and her heart pinched. She should have pressed harder for custody, should have found a way to keep him with her. She should have told him how much he meant to her. She had failed him so badly.

      Dear God, she prayed, keep him safe till I can bring him home.

      Seven

      Eddie Jeffries was in jail. Early the next morning, Ben put Sol to work trying to locate the guy, and an hour ago he’d struck pay dirt. Though Sol was still working on information on Bridger/Bennett, he’d found

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