Page 3 of Missing Justice

What was she doing flirting with Mad Dog Stephens?

Down girl. She glanced away, toward the bar.

Leo and friends were still watching, still talking. She could tell by the way they kept sizing her up that they were discussing Isabel.

God!Enough. Like she wasn’t already struggling to not let pain control every moment of her life without everyone always trying to fix her. If she believed that any or all of the experts here tonight could actually find Isabel, she would have been the first one to huddle up with them and explore their theories. But she’d heard them all, tried all the angles, got her hopes up with every new expert who came along and wanted to analyze the case. She would never give up looking for her sister, that was a given. If only hoping for something made it real.

Mad Dog Stephens tugged on her hand. “Taylor?”

She sighed, giving him her attention again and saw a touch of concern behind his smoldering eyes. Men like Stephens—unpredictable and mouthy—were generally a handful, but she liked a challenge on occasion, and it had been one hell of a dry spell. Plus, he wasn’t FBI. He couldn’t screw up her career or take her team away from her.

Your odds are looking up, wingman. At least he was an alternative to the scotch for now.

She withdrew her hand from his gentle grip and took a step closer to him, invading his personal space. Would he run when she moved in for the kill or stand his ground?

“Why are you here at the conference, Matt?” She ran a hand over his tie. “Are you looking to steal another of my cases? Why did you leave the police department? Who are you working for now, or did you go out on your own?”

“Jeez, Sinclair.” He frowned, but didn’t back away. Undaunted by her provocation, he moved closer, his chest grazing her nipples. His eyes searched hers and his voice lowered a notch. “What is this, an interrogation? If so, why don’t we take it somewhere more…private?”

Hot damn. He wasn’t running. She stood her ground, not letting him intimidate her. She liked—no,loved—his cockiness. “I don’t trust you, Mad Dog.”

“Dance with me and I’ll answer all of your questions.” He ran a finger over his left chest area. “Cross my heart.”

A negotiator. Even better. She could get what she wanted and leave him happy too.

Challenge danced in those blue peepers and she sighed. Men came onto her all the time, but few gave her pause.

Funny, this one did.

Her phone buzzed, the ringtone she knew all too well and avoided skillfully.

“Do you need to take that?” Matt asked.

“Nah, it’s nothing.”Just my mother. And wasn’t that exactly what she needed on top of everything else tonight? Her mother calling to sob about Isabel. Perfect.

Pain pinched her heart.Sorry, Mom. I just can’t tonight. She had enough demons for both of them.

I may need that bottle of scotch after all.

But then she looked into Matt’s eyes. He might be the only numbing agent she needed tonight in order to forget about the significance of today.

With all the old shit the conference had brought up, the one thing she didn’t want was to be alone with the memories of Isabel. No way she could face that cold, sterile hotel room tonight.

She tapped her foot for a moment. “One dance,” she agreed.

The challenge in Matt’s eyes morphed into self-assured confidence. If possible, his smile grew even wider. “You won’t be sorry.”

“Youwill be,” she said, as she let him lead her to the floor. “I have two left feet.”

The song was pop with a fast tempo and Taylor had no rhythm on a good day. Luckily, her new wingman was a skilled dancer and she had enough alcohol in her system to make her limbs loose. Matt twirled her out, brought her in close, guided her through a sexy bump and grind. She grew dizzy trying to keep up with him, but the light graze of his fingers on her shoulders, hips, and lower back, kept her moving in time with the beat and loving it. At one point, she laughed just because it felt so damn good.

Meanwhile, Leo watched, a subtle tick under his left eye.

Eat your heart out, Wellington. I am not discussing Isabel’s case with you.

Not tonight. Not ever.

As Matt spun her across the floor again, a bubbling sensation rose up from her chest into her throat.