Were not kids, he said quietly.
He didnt say anything more until the attendant had brought his car down from the garage nestled in the next block, and then it was only to thank the man and give him a tip. They were parked in front of her apartment before he finally said something else to her.
She moved to get out of the car, but he stopped her.
Kieran, I dont know what you told Declan, and I dont intend to say another word. But I think theres more to the story of why you were in that store. Something to do with Danny. I dont even want you to tell meunless there comes a point when you need to for some reason. Danny is my baby brother, too, and Julies also my friend. But dont go getting yourself into trouble because the two of them have concocted some wild scheme. Youre a therapist nowtalk them out of it.
She leaned over and hugged him tightly. Best twin in the world, she told him. But I swear with my whole heart, I will not get into any trouble with those two, and Ill make sure they dont get into trouble, either. Id like to believe that...
She hesitated.
That they learned something from what happened to you today? Kevin asked her drily. Never mindI meant it when I said I wont make you say anything. You always keep my confidences, so I dont expect you to break anyone elses trust. But if you run into a problem again, keep me in the loop.
I swear, she promised.
He nodded and smiled, then watched until she was safely inside her building.
Upstairs, she threw off her jacket and tossed down her bag, then headed into the bathroom to give her face a good scrubbing. When she saw herself in the mirror, she realized stronger action was called for, so she stripped and jumped into the shower.
It wasnt that late when she dried off, feeling like a new woman, but she didnt want to see more of herself on the news, and she was exhausted. She lay down to sleep, but her heart kept pounding. She couldnt deny it. She was worried.
Hiding what she, Danny and Julie had been up to from Declan and Kevin had proved easier than she had thought it would.
But she was dreading the next day and her time with the FBI agent with the dark hair and deep smoky voice and those light eyes that seemed to look into her with the power of an X-ray machine.
* * *
Craig Frasier sat in the office in the near dark, alone except for the skeleton night staff. Hed made Mike go home, knowing that he was being obsessive and not wanting to drag his partner into the pit after him.
He simply didnt believe that they had caught the thieves they most needed to catch: the ones who killed.
The thieves themselves denied it, and their guns had been fake.
But he understood the desire in law enforcement to believe a case was closed, and a lot of people simply didnt want to accept the idea that there could be copycats out therecopycats whose MO was so perfect in every detail...except that the guns they carried were real. The prevailing belief was that there was only one set of thieves who, having established that they were willing to kill to get what they wanted, no longer felt the need to carry real guns and had switched to fakes in order to create confusion and make a case for a lighter sentence if they were caught.
The NYPD had made the arrest. The charges would be up to the district attorneys office. Somewhere the powers that be, whose influence went far beyond his own, were arguing about that right now.
They wouldnt ask his opinion.
But that didnt matter. What did matter was whether there were still killers out thereand he was willing to bet cash money that there were.
He leaned back, rubbing his eyes. He thought about the way things might have endedand how that too-attractive-for-his-own-good redhead had actually had the sense to do something other than scream and expect the world to save her.
Shed saved his assor would have, had the gun been real.
He drummed his fingers on the table, thinking about her. She hadnt wanted any attention from the press; in fact, she had paled at the very mention of it. Strange. Most beautiful womenno, she wasnt just beautiful; she was stunningwelcomed attention. As gorgeous as she was, she could have been hitting the stage or a runway somewhere, a tall, blue-eyed redhead with legs that stretched forever. But instead...
He reached into his pocket for the card she had given him. Fuller and Miro. He knew the names; they and their employees were often called in as consultants. The Behavioral Science Unit of the bureau was in Virginia, and they were called in on the most puzzling or unusual cases, especially when local police asked for help. Otherwise, the New York office often looked to local talent to untangle the psychology of a captured killer or profile one who was still at large.
Therapist. And bartender.
Quite an intriguing combination.
For someone who had such talentsand had saved both his ass and her ownshe had acted very strangely.
Almost as if she were...guilty herself.
He mulled over the thought. Then, standing up, he stretched and walked to the coffee machine in the break room. He needed to go home and go to sleep, but he could use a cup to get that far. The coffee here was wretched; they kept a regular pot instead of investing in pods. But that was all right. Wretched coffee was still better than no coffee.
He lifted the cup to his lips and realized that in the midst of the fray, shed reminded him of someone.
Of Caroline.
He smiled at the thought.
Caroline had been blessed with that same ability to think on the spot, to behave rationally and, most important, to know when to holdand when to fight back like blue blazes.
He hadnt really thought about her in years now. And truthfully, she had been nothing like Kieran Finnegan. Caroline had been a petite blonde with hazel eyes and a smile as big as the world.
He felt a dull ache and shook off the thought. He hadnt allowed himself to get morose in years. It had all been so long ago. And yet he knew that when Caroline had died, something in him had died, too. Hed lost the ability to get close to a woman. No matter who he met, no matter how sure he was that he wanted to find something close to what theyd had somewhere along the line, hed just never met anyone with her fire and humor, charm and...heart.
He drained the coffee, returned to his office and turned off the computer. It was time to go home.
And if he thought about it, he was intrigued.
He forced his mind back to the case. Maybe she could help by watching the video surveillance of the deadly robberies and spotting something one of the men she had encountered had done that was different from what was on the tapes.
And maybe he could find out just what she was hiding.
No one writes suspense like Heather Graham! Read this brand-new romantic thriller by one of todays most popular authors
Theres a pub in New York City thats been in the Finnegan family for generations. Now Kieran and her three brothers own it. Kieran Finnegan is also, as it happens, a criminal psychologista fitting reaction, perhaps, to her less-than-lawful teenage past.
Meanwhile, New Yorks Diamond District has been hit by a rash of thefts. No ones been killeduntil now. FBI agent Craig Frasier is brought in to investigate; he and Kieran meet at a jewelry store in the middle of a heist. Shes there to unsteal a flawless stone taken by her light-fingered youngest brother as an act of vengeance. Craigs there to stop the gang.
But the police and FBI begin to wonder if there are two gangs of diamond thieves, the original and a copycat group of killerswho seem to think their scheme is as flawless as the stones they steal.
Thrown together by circumstance, drawn together by attraction, Kieran and Craig are both assigned to the case. But to Kierans horror, theres more and more evidence that, somehow, the pub is involved. Because everyone goes to Finnegans
Flawless
Heather Graham
www.mirabooks.co.uk
Dedicated to NYCovercrowded, crazy,
wonderful, diverse,
filled with history, theater,
music, art, architecture
and wonders that can be seen nowhere else.
To the resiliency of
those who live and work
in this great American city.
And to Mr. Korbin Pozzessere,
whose parents,
Derek Pozzessere and Yevgeniya Yeretskaya,
somehow met and fell in love in this
massive sea of people!
Contents
Cover
Back Cover Text
Title Page
Dedication
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Extract
Copyright
CHAPTER ONE
IM OKAY. REALLY. But I have to tell you what I did. Well, he deserved it, of course, Julie Benton said over the phone.
What did you do? Kieran Finnegan asked. So far, shed only been half listening; Julies tale of woe had been going on for quite a while now.
Kieran wiped the bar, one eye on her task, the other on the patrons in the pub.
Thankfully, at the moment she could easily work and listen, despite the fact that the object of Julies venomher almost ex, Gary Bentonwas one of the few other people at Finnegans on Broadway, the family downtown pub, one of the oldest in the city.
Julie giggled. He deserved it, she repeated.
Kieran didnt doubt that. She just wished she couldnt see Gary as she was talking to Julie.
She never minded cleaning Finnegans since it was practically her family home. It was a beautiful old place with finely carved wood, a range of tables and booths, and this classic bar with its array of beer taps and collection of Irish whiskeys. Photographs of the pub through the years hung behind the bar. Beyond was a comfortable dining room, equally rich in wood decor and handsome carving.
They werent particularly busy at this off-hour of the day, between lunch and happy hour.
Bobby OLeary was at one end of the bar; although he was an alcoholic long in recovery, Finnegans was the center of his social life. He was still one of their favorite customers.
Shed given Bobby his standard soda with lime, and he was reading the Times.
Two groups of business executives on extended lunch hours remained. Three were at one table, and fourincluding Garywere at another. Finnegans wasnt even officially open. They closed between 3:00 p.m. and 4:30 p.m., according to the sign on the front door, but their clientele consisted mainly of friends and regulars who knew they could come in and receive service with a smile. Both tables had paid their bills and were lingering over coffee. Kieran had served them all their final refillsmanaging not to spill any scalding coffee on Garybefore shed started cleaning.
And before Julie had called. She refrained from mentioning to Julie that Gary was at the pub; frankly, she was stunned hed come in at all. He wasnt wanted here. But he was with Jimmy McManusa longtime customer and entrepreneur whod made a fortune in everything from magic mops to designer dog food and Wall Street trading. Jimmy was a great guy with a headful of white hair and a quick smile, taut and fit despite his fondness for a good Irish stout. They were joined by two men who seemed to be friends of Jimmys. Kieran hadnt allowed herself to run over, grab Gary by the lapels and throw him out on the street. But until the coffee refill, she hadnt gone near the table. Mary Kathleen, a recent recruit from the old country and the love of Kierans brother Declans life, had been working the floor. Shed waited on the table, but shed left at three. Which meant Kieran had no choice except to take over.
The other two at Jimmys table were men Kieran had seen in the pub before but didnt really know. One was dark and one was pale. They were friendly, polite and dressed in handsome business suits, like many of the pubs clientele, who walked down from the Wall Street banks and firms where they worked.