Give In To Me by Lacey Alexander Read Free Book Online Page B

spotted—Martinez still hadn’t seen his face, but he might well have caught a
     glimpse of him from behind, and though he couldn’t risk turning to look, he suspected
     he was probably being followed through the club now.
    So Rogan kept moving—swiftly but not so hurriedly as to call too much attention to
     himself. He did his best to blend in further with the crowd, thankful that Friday
     nights still got busy here—yet he continued feeling vulnerable, still suffering from
     the nagging sensation that Martinez had indeed seen him ducking from the hallway and
     was still quietly pursuing him through the crowd. Could be he was imagining the whole
     thing, but Rogan wasn’t usually paranoid, and ever since he’d come to Miami, he’d
     learned to trust his instincts on such things, discovering they were usually spot-on.
    When he found himself near the old side entrance that led into the alley, exiting
     seemed the wisest move. Not that he had much time to examine his options. But leaving
     the club would bring this to a conclusion one way or another. Either Junior wouldn’t
     follow him—or he would, in which case Rogan would be ready and waiting.
    Once outside, in the same alley where he’d ended up not long ago—for a far different
     reason, yet still, ironically, related to the potential drug dealers he was looking
     to bust—Rogan let the door shut behind him, stepped to one side, and tensed for the
     confrontation that might be coming.
    * * *
    D arkness had descended over the streets of South Beach by the time April’s meeting
     with Kayla ended. Walking away, she thought back over the discussion and felt it had
     been productive. Though she hoped this would be the last time she’d have to venture
     to this neighborhood for a while. She liked it better after dark, she decided as she
     strolled back up Ocean Drive past the old art deco hotels. Probably because she felt
     a little more invisible now, like it was easier to blend in.
    Next: Time to go home and rest.
    Though she should also call Gram and check on her. Allison had been scheduled to take
     the kids over tonight to visit, so April should probably make sure that hadn’t meant
     dumping them there while Allison went to do something else. Arthritis had both of
     Gram’s knees in bad shape these days, and she could barely get around the apartment,
     let alone chase little kids. Oh, and that jogged April’s memory—she also needed to
     text Amber and remind her she’d promised to take Gram to the doctor tomorrow.
And hold her to it this time. No matter what excuse she gives or how important she
     makes it sound, don’t volunteer to leave work and take her yourself.
    Resting sounded all too good. She felt mentally exhausted.
    And, of course, she’d had the insanely bad luck of running into Mr. He-Man Alley Kisser.
     How had
that
happened? The timing had been . . . amazing. And horrific.
    Running away from him had not been one of her finer moments, but again . . . she was
     mentally exhausted. So she forgave herself.
    And really, even if it hadn’t been terribly mature, she wasn’t sure there had been
     a smarter option even if she’d felt perky, energetic, and fully on top of her game.
     What good could have come from having a conversation with him, after all?
Unless you really did want . . . more . . . of him . . . there was nothing to say.
So running off perhaps made more sense than the alternative. And of course she didn’t
really
want more. Of course she didn’t.
    Just then, she turned a corner that brought the Café Tropico into view. While it had
     been quiet there earlier, now loud music echoed from inside and it appeared so busy
     that remnants of the crowd spilled out onto the sidewalk. People stood around drinking,
     a few smoking. For some reason she suddenly wished she’d put back on the suit jacket
     she now carried in one hand, yet it had remained hot out—even after nightfall—so she
     hadn’t. While she’d