Chapter 14

"Effie, what the heck are you doing out here?" Cooper's voice is sharp and his tone is laced with irritation.

I'll admit, it's a good look on him. He's traded his suit for jeans and a flannel, his shiny black shoes for a pair of sneakers, and it's the kind of dress code that makes me want to pull him into the woods and have my way with him.

I'm not sure why, but I'm pretty sure that's the dress code of every bad boy I've ever known, and deep down, I've always had a soft spot for bad boys. And with all that Lazzari blood running through his veins, Cooper is as bad as bad can be.

"It's not what it looks like," I say just as both Watson and Spooky turn my way and whimper as if to protest the lie because it's exactly what it looks like.

The Halloween Harvest Festival is in full swing to our left, but Cooper and I are across a clearing and next to a thicket of evergreens threatening to swallow us whole in the night. The air is crisp, the food smells heavenly, and the chaos from the crowd is essentially echoing what's going on inside my head. "I was just taking the pooches for a walk." More whimpering ensues.

Have I mentioned they're a couple of furry little traitors?

"A walk, really?" Cooper tips his head, looking not all that impressed with the direction I've chosen to take the conversation. "Because from where I'm standing, it looks like you're cozying up to a suspect in the middle of what could potentially be a brand new crime scene."

"So you'll admit, Johnny the Meatball Marino is a suspect!"

"Everyone who showed up at that crime scene is a suspect in my book."

I inch back and gag. "Are we back to this again? You don't really think I'm a cold-blooded killer, do you?"

He lifts a brow and looks ten times more handsome.

Darn those dark wooly brows of his.

"Are you?" he asks point-blank and it's like a shot to the heart. Mostly because he's forcing my hand and I'm about to dole out another half-truth.

"No," I shoot back.

"What were you really doing out here with Johnny?"

"You know me, always looking for new friends in all the wrong places."

"Okay." Cooper's jaw clenches, and I can see the frustration written on his face. "This isn't a joke, Effie. You could have gotten yourself killed—or worse, compromised the investigation. I don't need you quizzing any potential suspect for me. I can handle things from here on out."

"That might be so, but I got him to give us another clue. We have to speak to Sergio. I saw him having it out with Sal before someone pumped him full of bullets."

My purse suddenly feels like a glowing hot potato as it clings to my side because, let's face it, I'm in the woods with another man who just so happens to be on my hit list and my gun is perfectly fitted with a silencer.

Although this is Cooper we're talking about. He's trained to fire back. I'd hate for Watson to see his parents fighting it out with bullets. Spooky, on the other hand, would probably get a thrill out of it. He's weird that way.

"I'll take care of Sergio." He glowers at me as the dogs nearly leap from his arms and I scoop up their leashes. "And just to be clear, I knew he had it out with Sal that night because I reviewed the security footage."

"You did?" I gasp as I step his way. "So did you see who killed Sal?"

"No. The path leading to the alley didn't have a camera pointed at it."

"I bet the killer knew that! And by the way, I had no clue about the security cameras at all, so I guess that means you can safely rule me out."

"I'm not ruling you out of anything, sweetheart." His lips curve with the hint of a dangerous smile and it makes my insides explode with heat. "You're a walking, talking ball of trouble, Effie. This is your last warning and it's for your own good. Stay away from my suspects."

"Okay, fine," I say with all the drama of a petulant child. "But don't blame me if I bump into Sergio while I'm hunting down a killer pizza at Mangias."

"You're impossible."

"Some might say it's one of my finer traits," I shoot back. No one would say that, but they would agree with him without hesitation.

Watson and Spooky begin to yip and bark and dance in a circle like the furry cutie pies they are.

Cooper takes the leashes from me as he offers them both a hearty scratch.

"By the way, you do realize you had the dogs out here. You could have put them in harm's way, too."

A smidge of guilt creeps in. I did misfire my weapon and things could have gone horribly wrong.

"It's not my fault," I'm quick to say and slow to believe. "They've gotten into the habit of following me wherever I go. But don't worry, they weren't in any danger. They're more like my furry bodyguards."

"Furry bodyguards, huh?" He raises a brow once again and my insides go wild. If one more stray eyebrow goes rogue, I might be moved to try to get him to cuddle in the woods with me, naked. "Let's hope they're better at guarding than you are at staying out of trouble."

"Hey, I'll have you know that Watson here has a mean bark. And Spooky? He's got a killer cuddle game."

I hike my own brow his way and hope he takes the hint. Naked cuddling is still very much on the table for me.

Cooper shakes his head. "Just keep an eye on them, okay? We don't need any more things going wrong this month."

"Got it." I nod, feeling a pang of guilt for putting the dogs in harm's way—my way to be exact. "I'll make sure they stay out of trouble." Or at least try to.

His chest expands the size of the woods before he lets out a sigh.

"You know"—he says with a mischievous glint in his eye—"I heard the real reason people come to places like this is to load up on junk food. Could that have been your true intent all along?"

I scoff, pretending to take offense. "Hey, I'll have you know that I came here for the haunted atmosphere, the scary excitement—and maybe just a little bit for the deep-fried Oreos."

There is no greater truth.

Cooper Knox Lazzari really does have my number. I guess he's a pretty good detective after all.

"I hear they have a mean funnel cake," he says. "How about it? Are you in?"

I grin, unable to resist the temptation. "Well, maybe just one. Or two. Okay, fine, I'll admit it, I came here to indulge in all the guilty delicious pleasures this twisted harvest festival has to offer. But hey, you can't blame a girl for wanting to treat herself every now and then, right?" More like every few hours when it comes to me. "I bet I can out-eat you in the junk food department."

"I'd like to see you try. Just don't come crying to me when you're about to fall into a sugar coma."

"Some white and shining knight you are," I nudge him with my elbow as we start to head for the fairgrounds. "I'll have you know that I have the metabolism of a cheetah. Nothing can slow me down."

And nothing does. Cooper and I start off with four soft, warm pretzels, one for each of us, including our hungry doggies. We move on to the deep-fried Snickers, then the deep-fried sticks of butter—yes, that happened—cookies of every iteration, corn dogs that I'll dream about for years to come, and everything else they've managed to stick in a fryer. I may or may not have eaten a button. It was so-so.

Eventually, we round things off with the aforementioned funnel cake, the caramel apple nachos, and some pumpkin spice hand pies in the shape of a jack-o'-lantern with the face cut out into a goofy little grin.

"What now?" I say, holding my stomach as Watson and Spooky strain at their leashes, eager to run through the crowd of teenagers dressed as slutty princesses and ghoulish jocks.

"It looks like those two still have some energy to burn," he says before locking his gaze to mine. "How about I take us on a hot date you will never forget?"

My insides ignite once again as if a nuclear warhead just went off in my stomach, although that might just be the corn dog talking.

"A hot date I will never forget? How can I say no to that? Your place or mine?"

"Let's just say it's a place we'll both take up residence at eventually. And beware, it has the power to scare the socks right off of you."

Fair warning—we can start with taking my socks off, but with Cooper looking like my favorite sin tonight, the rest of my clothes won't be far behind either.