Night Smoke - Night Tales 4 Part 15

"No." He regretted that, sometimes wondered if he always would.

"We were only together a couple of years. She hooked up with a plumber and moved to the suburbs." He reached out, skimmed a fingertip down the side of her neck, along the curve of her shoulder. "I'm beginning to think I like your shoulders as much as your legs." His eyes locked on hers. "Maybe it's the whole package."

"That's a fascinating compliment." She didn't give in to the urge to shift away, but she did switch from champagne to water. Suddenly her mouth was dry as dust. "But don't you think the current circ.u.mstances require a certain professional detachment?"

"No. If I thought you had anything to do with setting that fire, maybe." He liked the way her eyes lit and narrowed when he pushed the right b.u.t.ton. "But, as it stands, I can do my job just fine, and still wonder what it would be like to make love with you."

Her pulse jolted, scrambled. She used the time while their entrees were served to steady it. "I'd prefer if you'd concentrate on the first.

In fact, if you could bring me up-to-date-''

"Seems a waste to talk shop in a joint like this." But he shrugged his shoulders. "The bottom line is arson, an incendiary fire. The motive could be revenge, money, straight vandalism or malicious destruction. Or kicks."

"A pyromaniac." She preferred that one, only because it was less personal. "How do you handle that?"

"First, you don't go in biased. A lot of times people, and the media, start shouting 'pyro' whenever there's a series of fires. Even if they seem related, it's not always the case."

"But it often is."

"And it's often simple. Somebody burns a dozen cars because he's ticked he bought a lemon."

"So don't jump to conclusions."

"Exactly."

"But if itis someone who's disturbed?"

"Head doctors are always working on the whys. Are you going to let me taste that?''

"Hmmm? Oh, all right." She nudged her plate closer to his so that he could sample her lobster. "Do you work with psychiatrists?"

"Mostly the shrinks don't come into it until you've got the firebug in custody. That's good stuff," he added, nodding toward her plate.

"Anyway, that could be after any number of fires, months of investigation. Maybe they blame his mother. She paid too much attention to him. Or his father, because he didn't pay enough. You know how it goes."

Amused, interested, she cut off a piece of lobster and slipped it onto his plate. "You don't think much of psychiatry?"

"I didn't say that. I just don't go in for blaming somebody else when you did the crime."

"Now you sound like my brother."

"He's probably a good cop. Want some of this steak?"

"No, thanks." Like a bulldog, she kept her teeth in the topic.

"Wouldn't you, as an investigator, have to know something about the psychology of the fire starter?''

Ry chewed his steak, signaled for another beer. "You really want to get into this?"

"It's interesting. Particularly now."

"Okay. Short lesson. You can divide pathological fire starters into four groups. The mentally ill, the psychotic, the neurotic, and the sociopath. You're going to have some overlap most of the time, but that sorts them. The neurotic, or psychoneurotic, is the pyromaniac."

"Aren't they all?"

"No. The true pyro's a lot rarer than most people think. It's an uncontrollable compulsion. Hehas to set the fire. When the urge hits him, he goes with it, wherever, whenever. He's not really thinking about covering up or getting away, so he's usually easy to catch."

"I thoughtpyro was more of a general term." She started to tuck her hair behind her ear. Ry beat her to it, letting his fingers linger for a moment.

"I like to see your face when I talk to you." He kept his hand on hers, bringing them both back to the table. "I like to touch you when

I talk to you."

Silence hung for a full ten seconds.

"You're not talking," Natalie pointed out.

"Sometimes I just like to look. Come here a minute."

She recognized the light in his eyes, recognized her own helpless response to it. And to him. Deliberately she eased away. "I don't think so. You're a dangerous man, Inspector."

"Thanks. Why don't you come home with me, Natalie?" She let out a long, quiet breath. "You're also a very blunt one."

"A woman like you could get poetry and fancy moves any time she wanted." Ry neither had them nor believed in them. "You might want to try something more basic."

"This is certainly basic," she agreed. "I think we could use some coffee."

He signaled the waiter. "You didn't answer my question."

"No, I didn't. And no." She waited until the table was cleared, the coffee order given. "Despite a certain elemental attraction, I think it would be unwise to pursue this any further. We're both committed to our careers, diametrically opposed in personality and life-style. Even though our relationship has been brief and abrasive, I think it's clear we have nothing in common. We are, as we might say in my business, a bad risk."

He said nothing for a minute, only studied her, as if considering.

"That makes sense."

Her stomach muscles relaxed. She even smiled at him as she picked up her coffee. "Good, then we're agreed-"

"I didn't say I agreed," he pointed out. "I said it made sense." He lit a cigarette, his eyes on hers over the flame. "I've been thinking about you, Natalie. And I've got to tell you, I don't much like the way you make me feel. It's distracting, annoying and inconvenient."

Her chin angled. "I'm so glad we cleared this up," she said coolly.

"G.o.d knows it gets me right in the gut when you talk to me like that. d.u.c.h.ess to serf." He shook his head, drew in smoke. "I must be perverse. Anyway, I don't like it. I'm not altogether sure I like you." His eyes narrowed, the light in them stopping the pithy comment before it could slip through her lips. "But I've never wanted anyone so d.a.m.n much in my whole life. That's a problem."

"Yourproblem," she managed.

"Our problem. I've got a rep for being tenacious."

She set her cup down, carefully, before it could slip from her limp fingers. "I'd think a simple no would do, Ry."

"So would I." He shrugged. "Go figure. I haven't been able to clear you out of my head since I saw you standing there freezing at the fire scene. I made a mistake when I kissed you this afternoon. I figured once I had, that would be it. Case closed."

He moved quickly, and so smoothly she barely had time to blink before his mouth was hot and hard on hers. Dazed, she lifted a hand to his shoulder, but her fingers only dug in, held on, as she was buffeted with fresh excitement.

"I was wrong." He drew back. "Case isn't closed, and that'sour problem."

"Yeah." She let out a shaky breath. No amount of common sense could outweigh her instant and primitive response to him. He touched, she wanted. It was as simple and as terrifying as that. But common sense was her only defense. "This isn't going to work. It's ridiculous to think that it could. I'm not prepared to jump into an affair simply because of some basic animal l.u.s.t."