Sacred Sins

wild. “But we all need to relax now and again, right, Doctor?”
    “In our own way.”
    “I have tickets to the Noel Coward play at the Kennedy Center tomorrow night. Why don't we relax together?”
    The last time, the only time, she'd agreed to relax with him, she'd barely escaped with the clothes on her back. Worse, before the tug-of-war, she'd been bored to death for three hours. “It's nice of you to think of me, Frank.” Again she lied without hesitation. “I'm afraid I'm already booked for tomorrow.”
    “Why don't we—”
    The doors opened. “Oops, I'm late.” Sending him a cheery smile, she stepped inside. “Don't work too hard, Frank. You know what they say.”
    Due to the pounding rain and traffic, she ate up nearly all of her extra time driving to the station house. Strangely enough, the half-hour battle left her rather cheerful. Perhaps, she thought, because she had escaped so neatly from Frank. If she'd had the heart, and she didn't, she would simply have told him he was a jerk and that would be the end of it. Until he pushed her into enough corners, she'd use tact and excuses.
    Reaching beside her, she picked up a felt hat and bundled her hair under it. She glanced in the rearview mirror and wrinkled her nose. No use doing any repairs now. The rain would make it a waste of time. Still, there was bound to be a ladies room inside where she could dig into her bag of tricks and come out looking dignified and professional. For now she was just going to look wet.

    Pushing open the door of the car, Tess grabbed her hat with one hand and made a dash for the building.
    “Check this out.” Ben halted his partner on the steps leading to headquarters. They watched, heedless of the rain, as Tess jumped over puddles.
    “Nice legs,” Ed commented.
    “Damn. They're better than Lowenstein's.”
    “Maybe.” Ed gave it a moment's thought. “Hard to tell in the rain.”
    Still running, head down, Tess dashed up the steps and collided with Ben. He heard her swear before he took her shoulders, pulling her back just far enough to get a look at her face.
    It was worth getting wet for.
    Elegant. Even with rain washing over it, Ben thought of elegance. The slash of cheekbones was strong, high enough to make him think of Viking maidens. Her mouth was soft and moist, making him think of other things. Her skin was pale, with just a touch of rose. But it was her eyes that made him lose track of the glib remark he'd thought to make. They were big, cool, and just a bit annoyed. And violet. He'd thought the color had been reserved for Elizabeth Taylor and wildflowers.
    “Sorry,” Tess managed when she got her breath back. “I didn't see you.”
    “No.” He wanted to go on staring, but managed to bring himself around. He had a reputation with women that was mythical. Exaggerated, but based on fact. “At the rate you were traveling, I'm not surprised.” It felt good to hold her, to watch the rain cling to her lashes. “I could run you in for assaulting an officer.”
    “The lady's getting wet,” Ed murmured.

    Until then Tess had only been aware of the man who held her, staring at her as though she'd appeared in a puff of smoke. Now she made herself look away and over, then up. She saw a wet giant with laughing blue eyes and a mass of dripping red hair. Was this a police station, she thought, or a fairy tale?
    Ben kept one hand on her arm as he pushed open the door. He'd let her inside, but he wasn't going to let her slip away. Not yet.
    Once in, Tess gave Ed another look, decided he was real, and turned to Ben. So was he. And he was still holding her arm. Amused, she lifted a brow. “Officer, I warn you, if you arrest me for assault, I'll file charges of police brutality.” When he smiled, she felt something click. So he wasn't as harmless as she'd thought. “Now, if you'll excuse me—”
    “Forget the charges.” Ben kept his hand on her arm. “If you need a ticket fixed—”
    “Sergeant—”
    “Detective,” he corrected. “Ben.”
    “Detective, I might take you up on that another time, but at the moment I'm running late. If you want to be helpful—”
    “I'm a public servant.”
    “Then you can let go of my arm and tell me where to find Captain Harris.”
    “Captain Harris? Homicide?”
    She saw the surprise, the distrust, and felt her arm released. Intrigued, she tilted her head and removed her hat. Pale blond hair tumbled to her shoulders. “That's right.”
    Ben's gaze skimmed the