Seeing Red Read online

  In the dirt in front of the Dumpster was half a boot print with diagonal tread.

  Just like the one at the warehouse fire.

  Standing there, heart thumping, Joe squatted down, opened his kit and pulled out his accelerant meter.

  It registered.

  Kenny swore softly.

  “Yeah.” Whoever had been wearing this boot had stepped in something flammable, and Joe would be willing to bet it’d match the warehouse print, right down to the trace of gasoline in it, tying the two fires together. Which meant that without a doubt, the warehouse fire had not been an accident at all.

  Nor had this one.

  At home, Joe fell on his bed and crashed. He slept like the living dead until near dawn, when the dreams came.

  Creative Interiors II was on fire, flames leaping into the night, burning so hot he couldn’t get close. He stood back, watching in horror as the firefighters pulled Summer through the window.

  Only suddenly it wasn’t Summer surrounded by the flames, but him. His skin prickled with the heat. Sweat poured into his eyes. And then in a blink, the fire was gone and he was climbing into Summer’s window. He stood by her bed, bruised and battered from his father’s fists, breathing too harshly, tears that he refused to shed burning in his throat as he stared down at the only person in the world who’d ever given a shit about him.

  She didn’t sit up and hug him. She didn’t hand him her extra pillow and cover him with the throw cover on the foot of her bed.

  Nothing.

  “Red,” he whispered.

  She didn’t move.

  “Red?” Reaching out, he nudged her shoulder, then turned her over.

  She began to scream, writhing in agony as she burned, just as if she were that kid in that horrific house fire the other night, melting into the sheets—

  With a gasp he sat straight up in bed.

  His own bed.

  And he was no longer a kid.

  And neither was Summer.

  Drenched in sweat and shaking like a leaf, he picked up his phone and dialed before he had his thoughts together.

  “’Lo,” came Summer’s sleepy voice.

  “Hey.”

  “Joe?” She went from sleeping to alert, as always reading him better than he could read himself. “You okay?”

  “Sure.” He lay back, his legs still trembling. He knew why he’d dreamed badly. It was his suspicions about the two fires. It was that she could have died. It was the bone deep, gnawing fear. Fear for her. “Just checking on you.”

  She was quiet a moment. “You had a bad dream.”

  “No, I—”

  “You did.” Her voice was soft and warm and wrapped around him like a blanket. “I’m sorry.”

  “I’m fine,” he said.

  “Uh huh. And I don’t have panic attacks.” She snorted. “We’re pathetic, you know that? I’m coming over. I’ll bring something good and fattening.”

  “Don’t even think about it.” He let out a low laugh though, feeling better already. “Seriously, don’t.”

  “But—”

  “Have a good day, Red.”

  “Joe. Are you sure?”

  Oh, yeah. If she came over this early, looking rumpled and sexy, he’d never be able to resist. “Very.”

  “You going to work?”

  “Yeah.” Work was, and always had been, his only salvation.

  Chapter 14

  Joe skipped his run that morning and made a stop at McDonald’s for breakfast on his way to work, making his fall off the diet wagon complete. It was going to be a hell of a day, facing the implications of their new evidence on the Creative Interiors fires, and he needed all the fortification he could get.

  He parked and headed toward his office, not happy to see his light on, which meant someone was already waiting for him.

  Indeed, Cindy sat perched on his desk in a light blue suit snug to her curves, eyeing a box in the corner that hadn’t been there the night before.

  “Hi,” she said happily, as if she hadn’t tearfully dumped him in a restaurant two weeks ago.

  “Hi,” he said, playing along. He pointed to the box. “What’s that?”

  “Don’t know. Kenny just said to make sure it didn’t go anywhere, that he’d explain it to you later.” Cutting him off before he could escape behind his desk, she moved close to take his hand and press it against her heart. “Did you miss me?” she asked softly.

  He opened his mouth but she put a finger against it. “Wait.” She shot him a little smile. “I should go first.” She drew a slow breath. “There’s no smooth way to say this so I’m just going to spit it out. I shouldn’t have let you go, Joe.” She arched a little, making sure to press all her good parts, of which there were many, against him. “I missed you.”

  He waited for the usual zap of arousal to sing through his body, but nothing happened. He looked at her and felt warmth and affection for the time they’d spent together, but no heat. “Cindy—”

  “Mm-hmm?” She slipped her arms around him, glided them up his back, and then down to cup his ass. “Let’s go to my place.”

  Reaching back, he took her hands in his, brought them between their bodies.

  “Uh oh.” Smile fading, she pushed back so they weren’t touching. “What’s going on?”

  “We stopped seeing each other, remember?”

  “Oh, that. Just a little tiff really.”

  “Cindy. We both know my work isn’t conducive to a relationship—”

  “Don’t be ridiculous, we can work through that.”

  “You didn’t think so when you left me over that very thing.”

  She studied him closely. “Is there someone else already?”

  That it was even possible shook him deep, but there was. Beautiful, lazy-smiling, easygoing, come-what-may, churn-him-up Summer. “This is about you and me,” he said.

  “You enjoyed what we had. I know you did.”

  “I did,” he agreed. “But—”

  “I really hate buts, Joe.”

  “I’m sorry, because this is a big one. You asked if I missed you. It’s easier to tell you what I didn’t miss. I didn’t miss worrying about disappointing you, or stressing over how mad my work made you—”

  “You…didn’t miss me,” she said, shocked, making him wince. “Wow.” She seemed bowled over by this, and backed away to think. “I pictured you so miserable. I even waited an extra few days to dig that misery deep.” She sank back to his desk. “I can’t believe it. You didn’t miss me. Me.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “Me too.” She stood up again. “But that’s my problem, right? I mean I took the risk of leaving you. I actually thought I’d get a diamond ring out of it.”

  He felt himself pale, and she let out a mirthless laugh. “Don’t worry, Joe. I think I get it now.” She looked him over from head to toe, put her hand to her heart and gave one little fluttering sigh. “If only you weren’t so damn gorgeous.” She sighed. “But so am I. I’ll recover.”

  “Yeah, you will.” He hugged her when she leaned in, then watched her go, thinking he must be insane, because being with her had been a piece of cake compared to being with Summer.

  Too bad he’d never taken the easy route in his life.

  He blinked, then backed to his chair and fell into it, because he’d just realized where this thought process had taken him. He’d told Summer they were going to be just friends, that that’s all he wanted, and he’d lied through his teeth. He wanted more. He wanted it all. If that didn’t make him the biggest fool alive, he had no idea what did.

  Kenny poked his head in. “Cindy cut you loose again?”

  Still stunned by the revelation, Joe stared at him. “Huh?”

  “Did Cindy—”

  “Woof.”

  At the unmistakable sound of a puppy’s bark, Joe nearly had a coronary. He rushed past Kenny and looked inside the box. Inside was a downy soft blanket and a dark muddy-colored spot.

  A muddy-colore