Poker Face Read online

  Her breasts were a bit fuller than they had been in high school, but she still had the same dusky pink nipples that Liv had loved.

  Liv opened her mouth, as if to speak, and Ryan shook her head. “Not yet.”

  Liv balled her hands in her lap. She was so turned on it was insane. Lust pumped through her veins, and all she could think of was kissing Ryan’s naked body until she cried out in pleasure.

  But nooooo Ryan had decided that tonight was strip tease night. And she was doing a damn good job of it.

  Ryan tossed the bra to the side, then hooked her fingers in her underwear. These she slid down less ceremoniously, kicking them to the side. She stood in front of Liv, beautifully naked.

  Liv stared, she couldn’t help it. A decade hadn’t changed her much at all. Police work obviously kept her fit.

  “Can I touch you now?” Liv asked, her rapid breathing making her voice huskier than she had expected.

  “Nope.” Ryan grinned wickedly. The music was still thumping in the background.

  “What?” That was half screech, half frustration.

  “Your turn.” Completely-naked-Ryan walked over to the bed and sat down, her arms at her sides and her breasts bared for Liv to see. “To the music,” she clarified.

  Liv scowled. She would have much rather just ripped everything off and gone at it. She reached over to turn the lamp down.

  “Leave it on.” Ryan’s voice was gentle.

  Liv stared at her, then closed her eyes.

  “I want to see you.”

  The words sent shivers down Liv’s spine, and she felt the heat pulse between her legs. It wouldn’t take her long to come at least once, she knew that already. But Ryan had never been a woman to stop at one.

  Liv moved to where Ryan had been standing, feeling awkward in her movements and her posture. The hunger in Ryan’s eyes was distracting, the way her gaze raked over Liv’s body like she was about to eat her for dinner.

  Maybe she was.

  “Start with the shirt,” Ryan said, pointing to the buttons.

  Feeling a touch ridiculous, Liv started teasing the bottom of her shirt. She didn’t like undoing the buttons, instead preferring to pull the shirt over her head. Was that sexy enough? She wasn’t sure. Instead she slid the shirt up her body, then pulled it over her head, barring her plain purple bra.

  “That color suits you,” Ryan murmured, her gaze on Liv’s chest. Liv wasn’t huge, more of a C cup than a D, but they were ample enough to have fun with. Ryan’s were slightly bigger. Double the fun.

  Liv smiled, feeling a boost of confidence from the hunger in Ryan’s eyes. The obvious desire there made her feel more confident. She could tell Ryan loved how she looked, wanted her both because of who she was and because of how she looked.

  The word “love” surprised her, and she sidetracked the thought by focusing on taking off her jeans. She wasn’t nearly as sultry about it as Ryan had been. The jeans were tight-fitting, which meant she had to do a shimmy to get them off. Her underwear was plain, too. But functional. That was her priority.

  “Can I?” Ryan’s voice caught her off guard. Liv looked at her, swallowed thickly, feeling pleasure pulse throughout her body.

  “Yeah.” Liv let her arms dangle at her sides, leaving her body bare for Ryan to see. She wasn’t going to hide herself, not any more. They were in it together.

  Ryan stood and came closer. She pressed her body against Liv’s, which made Liv shiver. She wanted to be naked against her, to feel Ryan’s body against hers with nothing in between.

  Then Ryan’s hands went behind her and unhooked her bra, before she gingerly pulled it off of Liv’s arms. Her gaze shot down, her eyes on Liv’s breasts.

  Liv moved closer, letting her nipples graze Ryan’s and enjoying the sensation that their touch sent through her body. She was already wet, she knew that. What would Ryan do next?

  “Sit down and spread your legs.” Ryan’s grin was wicked.

  Liv’s hands went to her underwear.

  “Leave them on.”

  Liv stared at her. Then she did what Ryan said, sitting on the edge of the bed and spreading her legs. The crotch of her underwear was bared to Ryan’s eyes.

  Liv took a deep breath, reminding herself to trust. Ryan wasn’t going to do anything she didn’t want. And god, she knew it was going to feel great.

  Ryan sank to her knees and gently pushed Liv until she was lying down on the bed, her bottom half within easy access to Ryan.

  “Give me your hands?”

  There was a question in Ryan’s words. Liv laid them down by her sides, palms open so Ryan could take them. How exactly was it going to work with —

  Ryan’s hot, wet tongue teased her slit through her underwear, sending pulses of pleasure through Liv’s body.

  Oh. It was going to work like that.

  Liv squirmed, her nipples rock hard and her clit begging for something, anything. Ryan was so good at that, making her want and need without actually letting her go off the edge.

  “Please,” Liv whispered without even meaning to. Her body was as taut as a bowstring, as if even the smallest thing could send her flying off a cliff she wanted to go off.

  Ryan chuckled between her legs, the vibrations making Liv shiver. There was her answer, then.

  Liv closed her eyes, gripping Ryan’s hands tighter as she continued teasing her through her panties. “Are these expensive?” Ryan asked, drawing Liv out of her closed-eye state.

  “Just tear them off,” Liv said, exasperated. “Anything.”

  Ryan laughed and kissed her inner thigh. “Demanding.”

  “You know it.” Liv lifted her head, meeting Ryan’s eyes for a moment. There was an intimacy, a caring there that made Liv shiver.

  Then there was a ripping sound as Ryan tore her underwear off. Good thing Liv was just wearing generic. Not that she would have really hesitated if had been more expensive underwear, not at the moment.

  Ryan kissed featherlike kisses up Liv’s thigh, closer and closer to the apex of her thighs. Liv felt one of her hands lifted and moved to Ryan’s head. Ryan was offering up control.

  Liv felt like she was on fire, like all of her was going to be consumed by flames at any moment. Gently, or what mostly felt like gently, she moved Ryan’s mouth to where she wanted it.

  She felt Ryan’s hand come up and squeeze her breast, teasing the nipple, as Ryan finally, fucking finally, slid her tongue into her slit and found Liv’s clit. Liv cried out loud enough that she was more than thankful Gram wasn’t home, because it would have been near impossible to hide what they were doing.

  Ryan’s other hand disappeared out of Liv’s, and Liv lifted her head long enough to see it slide down Ryan’s body. Wetness pulsed out of her. Was Ryan fingering herself at the same time she was licking Liv?

  A soft moan echoed against Liv’s clit. There was her answer.

  “Ryan,” Liv breathed, wishing she could touch her, that they could come together. But Ryan was just too damn good with her tongue, licking and teasing and driving Liv crazy.

  With a cry Liv came, clenching her hand in Ryan’s hair and holding her close, letting out soft whimpers as the aftershocks of her orgasm raced through her. Ryan licked softly until she quieted, then pressed her forehead to Liv’s inner thigh.

  Liv struggled up on her elbows. “Let me help,” she said. She wanted to touch Ryan. She wanted to feel her.

  Ryan slid her fingers out of herself and looked at Liv. She straightened up on her knees, and motioned Liv to come down to the ground.

  Liv did. Ryan drew her closer to her, angling her knees slightly apart so that Liv could slide her hand down there. Then Ryan kissed her, hard and deep, using one hand to guide Liv’s hand down between her thighs.

  Half-lost in the kiss, Liv slid her fingers inside on instinct. Ryan was wet already, so wet, and her clit was a hard little nub. Desire pulsed inside her, a need to take Ryan, have her, and make her feel just as good as Ryan had made her feel.


  She started sliding her fingers in and out, using her thumb to rub against Ryan’s clit. She broke the kiss, shifting so that she was licking at Ryan’s nipples instead, enjoying the feeling of the hard peaks in her mouth. They had plenty of time to explore other things later, and she knew it.

  Ryan was silent when she came, biting her lip and letting out little gasps of air. Liv kissed her through it, letting Ryan grind on her as she came through the last of the shocks.

  “You’re so damn good at that,” Liv murmured, a bit dazed from everything that had happened.

  Ryan let out a shocked laugh. “Thanks.” She looked at Liv, and their soft gazes met. Liv could have stayed there for hours, just looking at her.

  “We should get some sleep,” Liv said reluctantly.

  Ryan looked at the bed, a gleam of wickedness in her eyes. “We should definitely use the bed for something.” She reached and grabbed Liv’s hand, and pulled her, giggling, onto the bed.

  The sun was peeking through Liv’s curtains by the time Ryan woke up. They were both naked, curled up under the covers with Liv’s back against Ryan’s chest. She liked that position, curled up against Liv. For all that Liv had gone through, she sometimes needed that protection. No matter what had happened in the past or would happen in the future.

  “I’ve got to get to work,” Ryan murmured to Liv.

  “Kay,” Liv murmured back, obviously not completely awake. “Bye.”

  Ryan chuckled softly and kissed her on the cheek before she got out from underneath the covers, heading to where their clothes had been tossed around the night before. She was probably late for work, but she didn’t really mind. There were worse reasons to be late.

  She slid on her underwear, then her slacks. Then she went searching for her shirt. She found it underneath Liv’s pants, and lifted it up. Something small and shiny fell out of Liv’s pants.

  Ryan sat the shirt down, uncertainty flooding through her. It was a small flash drive. But what caught her attention was the poker card on the side. She sat back on her heels. Was Liv involved in Cairo’s murder? Was that why she had been so interested?

  No. Ryan forced herself to put her shirt and blazer on. She needed to go home to shower, but first she stood there, looking at the sleeping Liv. Liv couldn’t be involved. That was ridiculous.

  But Ryan pocketed the flash drive as she left.

  26

  Wednesday 26th October; 7:30am

  Ryan locked the small flash drive in her desk drawer, her mind still spinning.

  “You okay?” Dane’s voice caught her off guard. Ryan jumped. “You’re antsy this morning.”

  “Didn’t sleep much last night.” She winked, drawing his attention to something else.

  Dane laughed. “Good,” he said. “You needed that.”

  Ryan smiled, but her mind was miles away. She could worry about the flash drive later. One of Ashley’s friends had agreed to talk - for money, that was, but talking was talking.

  “I’ll be back later.” Ryan waved to him and headed out of the department. She didn’t take her patrol car. With how nervous the kid had been on the phone, she didn’t want to freak him out any more by looking more official than she had to.

  He wanted to meet at the train tracks that Ashley’s mom had mentioned, the one where Ashley had hung out with her friends. He refused to give his name, but Ryan was certain she could find it later. All it took was a license plate or something else to hunt him down.

  The train tracks were creepier than she had thought they would be in the early hours of the morning. Maybe it was because they had been long since been abandoned, grass growing through the rails and slats. It gave the impression of a place that had been gorgeous once, but had slowly faded into disrepair.

  She parked maybe twenty feet away, then got out of the car. She kept her gun and Taser on her, just in case. Just because the kid had agreed to meet her didn’t mean he was trustworthy.

  “You’re Ryan?” The rough, masculine voice caught her off guard. A tall, late-teens boy appeared out of a brush of trees, as if he had melded out of it.

  “Yeah. You are?” Ryan extended a hand to shake.

  He shook his head once, the bangs that swept across his forehead shaking once. “Call me T.”

  Ryan nodded, but mentally she guessed this was Tanner, one of Ashley’s friends that Mel’s mom had mentioned. “You called to say you had some information for me?”

  “Ashley was involved in a drug ring,” T said bluntly. “She was a mule.”

  Ryan studied him without her face changing. That matched what the ME had told her. “How do you know that?”

  T shrugged. “I’m here and there,” he said. “You can only hide so much in a small town.”

  Was he talking about here? Or the neighboring town that was already demonstrating a bad drug problem?

  “Is she the only one?” Ryan kept her voice level.

  He snorted. “Are you slow?” His words were bitter. “It’s a whole system, lady.”

  Suddenly Ryan felt old. But it wasn’t important. “What can you tell me?”

  “Both Ashley and Jasmine were mules,” T started. “They’ve been used before, but something’s happening.” His gaze was shifting. “They’re cleaning up shop.”

  “That’s why they were killed?” If they knew something about whoever was pushing the drugs and they were mules, then that would explain why Ashley had been found dead. But where was Jasmine?

  T nodded. “He used a lot of women,” he said. “Old and young.”

  That caught Ryan’s attention. “Cairo was late twenties.”

  “That didn’t mean she didn’t need a job.” His face was inscrutable.

  “How do you know all of this?”

  T shrugged. “It doesn’t matter.”Ryan took out her business card and handed it over to T. “If you think of anything else let me know”.

  There was a loud popping sound, and Ryan half-turned back towards her car. When she turned around, T was gone and Ryan was all alone on the tracks. The sun was shining brightly, casting a warm glow over the foliage.

  Uneasy, she made her way back to the car and stopped. Someone had punctured a hole in two of her tires. That was what had made the popping noise. Chills went down her spine. There was no way T had been able to do that. Who else was out there?

  She got in the car and locked it, and then radioed Dane to come get her. Her car could be towed later.

  “Thanks.” Ryan got in Dane’s patrol car, her eyes still scanning the area.

  “What happened?” Dane looked at her, concerned. He had radioed in Ryan’s car position and a tow truck was en route.

  “I was meeting a link to my missings case and someone popped two of my tires.” Ryan grimaced.

  “Was it your informant?” Dane asked. He backed out of the wooded area, turning onto the road that would take them back into town.

  Ryan shook her head. “He was standing in front of me when it happened.”

  Dane frowned. Ryan couldn’t blame him. It didn’t make sense, and it worried her, too.

  “Dane?” Ryan turned to look at him. If there was anyone she trusted in the department, it was him. “Have you heard anything about a drug ring?”

  Dane blinked, looking at her only briefly as he focused on the car. “No. Where’d you hear that?”

  “The kid had stories about drug mules and a drug ring.” Ryan looked out the window, drumming her fingers on her knee. “It matches what the ME told us.”

  Dane looked as surprised as she felt. “Do you think it’s tied to Cairo’s case?”

  Ryan hesitated, but nodded. “I just don’t know how.” She felt so frustrated, her hands balling into fists. She had pieces of the puzzle, but she didn’t know how they all fitted together yet. There was so much she didn’t know.

  “Do you think Liv is involved?” Dane’s voice was cautious.

  Thinking of the flash drive Ryan had in her desk, she swiveled to look at him. “Why would you ask that?”

/>   “She’s been really interested in that case,” Dane said pragmatically. “If she was part of the ring, wouldn’t it make sense to have someone monitoring it?”

  Ryan’s heart fell into her stomach, especially when she thought of the things that had happened the night before. “She’s not,” Ryan said, more firmly than she felt. She couldn’t be.

  “You hesitated.” Dane’s voice was gentle.

  “She’s not.” Ryan made herself sound more confident than she felt. But inside her gut was churning. Could that explain the break-ins that Liv hadn’t been particularly concerned about investigating? Was that why Liv had the flash drive?

  Three hours later, Ryan was sitting at her desk, mentally turning the flash drive over in her mind. She couldn’t get Dane’s words out of her head. Her phone rang. Grateful for the distraction, she tucked it to her ear. “Detective Olsen.”

  “We found a DOA teenage boy with your business card?” It was one of the operators.

  Ryan froze. “Description, please?”

  The operator then described the boy she had met with earlier that day, Tanner. Ryan’s blood went cold. Had the killer been lurking when she was there? Had they burst her tires? Had he been the intended victim?

  Why was this case bringing more questions than answers?

  27

  Thursday 27th October; 11pm

  He looked at Teep, who was drinking a scotch, then at the ice-goddess Veronica, who had her legs crossed as she glared at him. He didn’t care. She would get what was coming to her soon enough, and they would deal with it then. There was a lot she had to pay for.

  “Where are we at?” He asked, his voice languid.

  “The donkeys are gone, except for one.” Teep smiled. His teeth were slightly crooked, almost hidden behind his bushy beard, but there was no mistaking his pleasure at the thought.

  Less for him to do to get his hands dirty. It worked.

  “Here’s your new identity.” Veronica’s voice was more restrained as she handed him an envelope. “Passport, plane ticket, the works.”