Читать книгу Tempest Court - Jan Walters - Страница 12

Chapter 6

The doorbell rang. Lisa ran past Brett, nearly shoving him into the hallway wall.

“Damn, woman. You nearly killed me,” Brett teased.

She fluffed her long curls, pushing them over her shoulder. Brett’s eyes narrowed. Damn! She was beautiful. Too bad they had company. Lisa smoothed her skirt and flung open the front door.

He turned and waited as the two women screamed and hugged each other. Brett’s eyes widened in surprise. Layla had an exotic look—sleek, black hair pulled back in a ponytail with bangs that grazed the top of her arched brows. She wore a long-sleeved crisp white blouse and tailored black pants. Her brown eyes twinkled as Lisa squeezed her.

Although Layla was gorgeous, it was Lisa who captured his attention. The tight skirt she wore piqued his imagination. He shook his head. No use thinking about that until their company was gone.

“I can’t believe you’re finally here. It’s been ages since we’ve seen one another.” Lisa motioned to the sofa. “Let’s sit down. Would you like something to drink?”

Layla shook her head. Her hair swung back and forth over narrow shoulders.

“No, I’m fine.”

“Oh, I forgot to introduce you to Brett, my fiancé. Brett, this is Layla.”

Brett stepped forward and shook the woman’s hand. “Glad to meet you. Lisa has told me about all your college escapades.”

Layla blushed. “I hope not,” she smiled. “I shudder at some of the things we did.”

Brett narrowed his gaze on their guest. “Do tell.”

Lisa blushed as she gazed up at him. “I’ll tell you later. Brett, would you please bring us some drinks?”

“Sure.” He nodded.

As he glanced out the kitchen window, Donnellson’s car pulled in the driveway. He expelled a nervous sigh and hurried to the back door before the detective knocked.

“What are you doing? Lisa hasn’t given me the green light yet.”

Donnellson rolled his blue eyes at him.

“Damn, O’Shea. You could be a little more grateful. I’ll stop in to meet her. If we don’t hit it off, there’s a petite brunette waiting for me to call.”

“Shhh! Lower your voice. If this ends badly, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

Brett ignored Donnellson’s chuckle as he set the drinks on the coffee table while Lisa looked past his shoulder. A frown filled her face. Brett straightened and motioned Donnellson over.

Brett feigned a smile. “Look who stopped by.”

Lisa and Layla rose to their feet, staring at his friend. Lisa’s mouth had a pinched look.

Donnellson stepped forward, draping his arm around Brett’s shoulder.

“Hey, Lisa. I’ve heard all about your vacation. It sounds like you and Brett had a great time.”

Charm oozed from Donnellson. Lisa’s frown melted away. Brett took a breath for the first time since Donnellson arrived.

Donnellson turned to the side and stared at Layla for several seconds. Brett wanted to nudge his brazen friend. Donnellson’s heated stare was making him feel uncomfortable. A glance at Layla showed that she was staring back at Donnellson. She was checking him out too. The temperature in the room was increasing by the second.

Brett bit back a smile before looking at Lisa, who shrugged.

Lisa clasped her hands together and cleared her throat. “Well, if everyone is ready, we have reservations for dinner,” Lisa announced. “I’m sure we can add one more person to the reservation.”

Donnellson’s grin lit his face. “Great. O’Shea owes me a steak dinner.”

Brett gave a subtle shake of his head. Damn it! Donnellson was going to get him killed.

* * * * *

As the waiter cleared the table, Lisa leaned toward Brett’s ear. “You’re so lucky Layla and Donnellson are getting along,” she whispered.

Brett reached under the table and grabbed her hand. Donnellson and Layla hadn’t taken their eyes off each other since they met. There were so many sparks flying he was surprised they didn’t burst into flames.

Lisa took a sip of water. “Layla, what is the exhibit you are working on?”

Layla took a deep breath, tearing her gaze away from Kevin. “A unique Egyptian display. It’s a great career opportunity for me. The mummy that is part of the exhibit is quite unusual. We believe he is the son of Akhethotep.”

Brett tensed. Mummy! “A mummy? Weren’t only pharaohs, priests, or important people mummified?”

“That would have been true in the Old Kingdom. But in 2130 BC and for the next five hundred years during the Middle Kingdom, anyone who could afford mummification would have it done. Those who were poor buried their dead in the sand, which dehydrated the body and morphed into natural mummification. Our mummy’s name in life was Lumeri. Here’s the interesting part about him: there’s a mystery surrounding Lumeri. Apparently, he was involved in some kind of scandal. As a result, he wasn’t buried with the rest of his family. His body was found in a small unadorned tomb. We were fortunate to find a scroll in his father’s tomb that listed Lumeri’s name.”

Lisa said, “The girl knows her stuff about Egypt.”

“Lummy the mummy,” Donnellson chortled. “Cool.”

“We prefer to call the mummy Lumeri.” Layla’s smile didn’t reach her eyes.

Donnellson leaned back. His cheeks turned pink. Brett risked a glance at Lisa, who was shooting visual daggers at Donnellson.

“So,” Donnellson changed the subject, “how do you like being back in Des Moines?”

Brett should have guessed no woman was going to shut down Donnellson’s suaveness.

“It feels like I never left. My uncle is glad I’ve returned.” Layla looked at Donnellson and then at Brett. “You guys might know him. He’s a police officer.”

“What’s his name?” Brett picked up a glass of water and took a sip.

“Officer Taylor, George Taylor. He’s the sweetest man.”

A buzzing sound filled Brett’s brain. He’d nearly spit water across the table. Taylor, sweet? No way!

Lisa peered into his eyes. She was the only one at the table who knew how much he despised Taylor. “Are you okay?”

He nodded. Layla’s questioning eyes studied him as well. Hell, what could he say? “Your uncle is a thief, criminal, and should be in prison. He isn’t worthy of being called a cop.”

Brett met Layla’s gaze and forced a smile. “Yeah, I’ve met him…several times.”

“Oh, that’s great!” She reached over and patted Brett’s forearm. “He’s always been so protective of me. As a kid, he didn’t want me out after 10:00 p.m. His favorite saying was ‘Nothing good happens late at night.’”

Brett snorted, drawing Donnellson’s curiosity. That was the only thing he’d agree on with Taylor.

Donnellson draped an arm over Layla’s back. “Well, don’t worry about being out late tonight. I’ll follow you home and make sure you get there safely.”

Brett smothered a laugh. Donnellson was moving in fast. His amusement quickly faded as Lisa punched his thigh.

“Speaking of getting home safely, it’s getting late.” Brett rose, dropping his napkin on the table. Since Brett drove everyone to the restaurant, they all filed into his car.

Layla and Donnellson softly whispered in the back seat. Lisa turned toward Brett, murmuring, “Next time, let’s talk about things before you invite Donnellson.”

Brett shrugged. “It was an impulse thing. Are you upset?”

Lisa rested her hand on his thigh. “No, but you’re so lucky that the two of them seem to hit it off.”

He flashed her a big smile. “Why don’t you let me make it up to you when we get home?”

Her fingers inched up his leg. With raised brows, he warned, “Watch yourself, sweetheart. You’re asking for trouble.”

She nestled against his shoulder. Her breath tickled his ear. “Does that mean you’ll have to handcuff me?”

He was stunned into temporary silence as her tongue circled the inside of his ear. He threw a glance over his shoulder toward the back seat. “Hang on, guys. We’re in a hurry.”