The Perfect Liar (Last Stand #5)(40)
Author: Brenda Novak

That was goodbye. Telling himself to get the hell out of there, he waved and gave the car some gas. But he felt sure that Ava’s personal weaknesses would be professional strengths. She knew Kalyna and had lost faith in her. She could make a big difference to his case. And he’d never have a better opportunity to enlist her help.

At the edge of the lot, he threw the car into Reverse.

When she heard the whine of the engine, she waited, letting him drive up beside her.

"This has absolutely no reference to our earlier conversation, so please don’t get the wrong idea, but is there any chance you’l have dinner with me?" he asked.

She didn’t take even a second to consider it. "No, thanks."

Slightly offended that his invitation hadn’t tempted her at all, he glanced pointedly around. "You don’t seem to have any better offers. Not for tonight, anyway."

"I don’t need any. I’m fine as I am."

"Doing what?"

She began to walk away, but he kept pace with her. "I brought some work home with me."

"You’re going to work while everyone else is out watching fireworks?

Where’s your patriotism?"

"Were you planning to do any flag-waving tonight?" she countered.

"My life’s a bit upside down right now. Yours, on the other hand, is business as usual."

"People are depending on me."

Here was proof of those professional strengths, he thought.

They reached some gravel along the bank of a canal, and he raised his voice to speak above the crunch of his tires. "It doesn’t mean you’l be letting anyone down if you take time out to have dinner, Ava. You have to eat."

She raked her fingers through her hair, which immediately fell back into place, brushing her chin as she walked. "That’s not what I’m worried about."

"Then what are you worried about?"

She came to an abrupt halt. "Let’s just say I prefer a more direct approach. You want me to go to dinner with you for a reason. What is it?"

"I have to have an ulterior motive?"

"You made it very clear yesterday that you’re not attracted to me, so I know you’re not asking me out."

Embarrassed yet again by his bad behavior, he flinched and stopped trying to charm her. "I was…frustrated when I made that statement."

She resumed walking. "That’s what makes it so refreshingly honest."

It wasn’t exactly honest. In his right mind, he wasn’t attracted to Ava.

But there were those odd moments when she got to him. Why, he couldn’t say. "Can’t we forget about that and all the other stupid things I’ve said and start over?"

"No problem. But the answer’s stil no."

"You don’t even know what I was going to ask."

"Yes, I do. I’m not switching sides."

He steered around a clump of trees as he followed her down a dirt road that branched off the gravel one. "Why?"

"It doesn’t seem ethical."

"How can it be unethical if you believe I’m innocent?" He managed to stay even with her despite several deep ruts.

"I don’t know that you’re innocent."

The road began to narrow. He had to maneuver the car among various obstacles, but she didn’t alter her course. "You think I raped Kalyna?" he called out to her.

She stared straight ahead. "Al I’m saying is that I wasn’t there. I can’t be one hundred percent certain either way."

"You saw what she’s like."

"Doesn’t matter."

A large pothole forced him to slow down but he accelerated the second he got around it. "It should!"

"The charity’s funds are reserved for cases of dire need."

He snapped off the radio. "My need feels pretty dire to me."

"I’m talking life and death." She paused to remove a small rock from her sandal, which drew his attention to her feet. They were slender, just like the rest of her–but unlike her unvarnished, neatly trimmed fingernails her toenails were painted bright pink and there was a line of tiny diamonds sparkling across each big toe.

Somehow that made him wonder if Ava wasn’t quite as she appeared to be. Was she wearing fril y, sexy or practical panties beneath that dress?

Why he’d even ask himself such a question, he had no idea. Except that he was a man. "You just said you thought Kalyna might be dangerous.

You told me to watch my back," he reminded her.

The road was about to end. If she passed through the wooden gate, onto a walking path, their conversation would end with it because he couldn’t drive down there, and he wasn’t about to get out of his car to follow her.

"She hasn’t made any threats, has she?" she asked.

"She said I’d come crawling to her on my hands and knees before this was over. Does that count?"

Stopping again, Ava bent to adjust the strap on her sandal. She held her dress off the ground as she did so, and Luke caught himself hoping she’d raise it a little higher. She had nice legs–lean but shapely. "Robbing you of your pride isn’t fatal," she said.

"For someone as conceited as I am, it could be."

She shot him an amused look. "I think you’re more resilient than you realize."

"What if I pay you?"

"McCreedy wil cost you enough as it is."

"Don’t you ever work for hire?"

"I haven’t yet, but my partners sometimes do. If we need the money badly enough."

"Could be time for you to follow their lead."

"No, thanks."

Maybe he needed to sweeten the pot. Inching forward the last few feet, he yel ed out to her as she opened the gate. "Okay, what if I donated a large sum of money instead?" It was essentially the same thing, but if her switching sides made as big an impact as he thought it could, she’d net a lot more.

The latch of the gate clanged as it swung shut before she passed through. "How large?" she asked, turning to face him.

He scrambled for a figure. "Ten thousand?" Could he even afford that much? His parents had offered to help, but he didn’t really want to go to them, and his defense could cost him as much as seventy or eighty thousand. Definitely more than the fifty thousand dollars he had in savings.

But at least this ten thousand would be tax deductible–unlike the money he’d given McCreedy. That made it more attractive than hiring her.

"A significant amount," she breathed.

So significant he’d probably have to sell his car, but he didn’t complain. Saving his ass came before saving his car. "Can we discuss it over dinner?"

She didn’t respond right away, but she was obviously thinking about it.