Apache Nights by Sheri Whitefeather Read Free Book Online Page A

gaped at him. “Very serious. Debonair, too.”
    â€œDamn straight.”
    She glanced at her watch. Eleven o’clock was still an hour away. “What should we do in the meantime?” Her dessert was nearly gone. His, too. He’d practically inhaled it. But he probably worked out for at least four hours a day, loving every excruciating minute of it. For that, she wanted to kick him.
    â€œWe could browse around like everyone else,” he said.
    â€œAre you suggesting that we behave like tourists?”
    â€œWhy not? There’s a slew of specialty stores. There’s even a gothic shop. An entire building filled with creepy collectibles.”
    â€œJust what every homicide detective needs. More gore.” She ate the last of her cake and decided that being a tourist sounded fun. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d shopped in nonsensical stores. And never with a man like Kyle.
    Â 
    To Kyle, CityWalk was like Disneyland, Hollywood Boulevard and the set of a blockbuster movie all rolled into one. Where else could you find a crashed flying saucer protruding from the roof of a sci-fi store? Or how about a rock and roll bowlingalley? Music madness and retail mayhem, he thought. It didn’t get any better than this.
    A stroke of marketing genius, CityWalk catered to over eight million people a year. Kyle and Joyce became two in a crowd.
    The first store they wandered into was a place that specialized in wind-up toys. Kyle felt like a kid in a pineapple under the sea. He found a SpongeBob Squarepants boat he was dying to have.
    He showed it to Joyce. “It drives around in circles.”
    She angled her head. “So?”
    â€œSo, I’m buying it.”
    â€œFor who?”
    â€œMyself.”
    She clucked her tongue. “Seriously?”
    â€œWould I lie about my favorite cartoon character?”
    â€œNo. I suppose not. My nieces and nephews like him, too. But they’re a lot younger than you.” She removed the boat from his hand and examined it. “Is this for the tub?”
    â€œYeah.” He moved closer, stealing a perverted peek down the front of her dress. “Want to soak with me later? We can test it out.”
    She held the wind-up toy between them. “Not without bubble bath.”
    Was she kidding? He would buy her a gallon of whatever tripped her fancy.
    He paid for the boat, then escorted her outside,where they returned to the shopping walk. He kept his eye open for girly stores, retailers that might sell bath and body products. He had no idea if Joyce was teasing him, but he was willing to take a chance.
    He spotted a shop with pretty things in the window. They went inside, and sure enough, there was a collection of bubbly items on a glass display.
    â€œPick out what you want,” he said.
    â€œI never said I wanted anything.”
    â€œHumor me,” he told her. “Give me a thrill.”
    She couldn’t decide. She looked at everything, fingering all the festive bottles and shrink-wrapped baskets. Finally she chose a bubble bath with an oceanic scent.
    Kyle wasn’t sure what that meant. “It doesn’t smell like saltwater, does it? That might be okay for SpongeBob, but—”
    She laughed and popped the cap, waving the bottle under his nose. The fragrance was crisp and sensual, breezy and fresh. It made him want to strip her where she stood.
    He took the bubble bath to the front counter and noticed a package of little pots advertised as lip sugar.
    He glanced at Joyce. She stood next to him in line, her stretchy black dress capturing her breasts and flowing to her ankles. He decided that lip sugar was just what they needed.
    In or out of the tub.
    He grabbed the shimmering pots, and she slanted him a curious look. He read the package. “They’re flavored. Cranberry, papaya, watermelon and mango. Just imagine what we can do with this stuff.”
    She leaned against him, pressing her mouth