“But there’s one mystery I can’t figure out. Not even with my amazing detecting skills.”

“Shocker.”

“When I was following you, you’d sometimes hang out on the mean streets with various scurvy-looking characters. What’s that about?”

He polished off his Coke. “Shootin’ the bull, that’s all.”

“I don’t believe you. Tell me. I’m like a priest.”

“You’re not anything like a priest. You’re—”

“Stop stalling.”

He shifted in his seat, suddenly uncomfortable. “I don’t know. It’s... I’m not going to do anything about it, so there’s no point discussing it.”

But something told her he wanted to talk, and she welcomed any topic that didn’t lead back to the bedroom. She waited.

He gazed out the passenger window. “I had this idea... But it takes too much time and too much effort, with no guarantee of a payoff.” He turned back to her. “All those empty city lots are a waste. Nothing but weeds and trash.”

She was starting to get the picture. “You’d like to do something more about that than throw seed bombs.”

He shrugged. “There are too many people with no jobs and no prospects. All those empty plots of land. Seems like an opportunity for somebody.”

“But not for you.”

“Hell, no. All I’m interested in now is business.” He pulled out his cell and called Tony.

She listened to them talk about the new bouncer Tony had hired to replace Dell, who’d been fired four days ago. She wondered if Coop had figured out yet that she’d finished her job for him.

After six nights on the floor, she’d done as much as she could. His staff was clean, and she and Tony had put together new procedures that should keep things relatively honest. Her salary from Coop, along with the pay from her chauffeur job, would hold her over for a while. How long depended on what was in the tip envelope the limo owner was collecting for her and how much further she could stretch out her job at Spiral. Her job that was over.

She told herself to think more like a shark and less like a Girl Scout. The salary Coop paid was her lifeline, and she needed to hold on to her job. Except there was no more she could do for him.

If only Duke hadn’t taught her about integrity—along with how to shoot, fish, and feel bad about being female. As much as she needed to bleed Coop a little longer, she couldn’t do it. As he ended his conversation with Tony, she gripped the wheel a little tighter. “I’ve done everything I can for you.”

He set his cell in the empty cup holder and practically leered at her. “Not quite everything...”