an electric opener and poured the wine.
âYouâre supposed to let it breathe, but I never wait that long,â he said, taking a sip.
âMe, either.â She sipped hers too, and found it was a really good wine.
He studied her as he spoke. âSpeaking of work, did you hear about the case Taylor caught?â
âI donât think so. Why?â
âThe naked floater they found in the river on Monday? She was murdered.â
âReally? What was the cause of death?â
âTheyâre not sure yet. No water in the lungs ruled out drowning. The ME says there were traces of Rohypnol in her system, but the only marks on her body were made by ligatures on her wrists.â
âDate rape gone bad?â Immediately she cursed her stupid tongue. Shaneâs sister had been date raped in high school, and it took years for her to recover emotionally. âIâm so sorry.â
âDonât be,â he said softly. âItâs a valid question. Anyway, the item of note is the rosary found around her neck. The mother claims it wasnât hers or her daughterâs.â
âA signature?â she breathed. âShit.â
âExactly. I hope thereâs not a second body, but something tells me there will be. This wasnât random, a crime of passion or simply of opportunity. My gut says itâs much more.â
âYour gut is usually right. Thatâs why youâre the best at what you do.â
He grinned, shaking his head at the praise. âThanks, but itâs easy to be good when everyone around you is awesome, too.â
She watched, her stomach growling as he dumped the pasta into a colander, drained the water, and poured the noodles into a bowl. The table was already set for two with the other dishes waiting, so they sat down together and he served their plates.
As they sat, he held up his glass. âA toast. To working together and solving this case with flying colors.â
âCheers.â
They clinked glasses and drank. Then came the chicken and pasta, which was excellent. âYouâre a fantastic cook.â
âThanks. I donât get a chance to do much of it and when I do, itâs usually for the guys. So Iâm used to making chili, grilling burgers, that sort of comfort food.â He shrugged. âYou gave me an excuse to do some real cooking.â
âSo thatâs what I am? An excuse?â she teased.
He rolled his eyes good-naturedly. âRight.â
âJust kidding. So, tell me about your week. Howâs Taylor doing with the wrist?â
Shane launched into a rant about his partner that was colored with such affection he mightâve been talking about a brother. The mood between Shane and her was light and easy. She was pleasantly surprised by how well they got along when this was their first time alone. He was excellent company. The woman who finally convinced him to settle down would be one lucky bitch.
âEnough about my kooky partner.â After taking another bite of pasta, he regarded her thoughtfully. âArenât you an only child?â
âI am. Iâm surprised you remember that much about me from school.â
âI wish Iâd taken the time to get to know you back then,â he said sincerely. Before she could respond to that, he went on. âWhat happened to you after high school? You werenât around for a while, then suddenly I spotted you one day as a rookie on the force.â
Swallowing a pang of old hurt, she picked at her chicken. âMy dad moved to Maine a couple of months after graduation and I went with him. I hated it there, especially the fishy smell and the cold weather, but I was stuck for a while. I mean, what else was an eighteen-year-old supposed to do? I couldnât move out until I had a career and saved some money.â
âYou say that as though you were itching to be gone.â
She lifted a shoulder. âEven before