Read The Wages of Cin (Cin Fin-Lathen Mysteries Book 4) for Free Online Page A

Hell, I’d better ask.  “I don’t understand.”
    “I heard you went to dinner with Elijah,” he said.  “I wouldn’t have poached on him, but I had already called you when I found out.”
    “That was just business, Sidney.  I had a good time, but no chemistry.”
    Sidney brightened up.  “Most girls go for the rocker.”
    “I’m not most girls.”
    Sidney picked up his beer.  “Here’s to Cin, a woman with interesting tastes.”
    I raised my glass and giggled.
    “Tell me about Harry.”
    “I guess he’s my partner in our fly-by-night consultant business.”  I went on to give Sidney a brief explanation of our meeting and the serial killer case.  He asked questions and seemed to really be interested in what I was saying.  “You’re a great listener, Sidney.”
    “Part of my job, darlin’.  Good ears.”
    The dinner went too quickly.  Soon I was refusing dessert, and Sidney was escorting me to the door.  I stopped to thank Vicki.  She seemed pleased that we enjoyed our time at the Crab Shack.
    I handed my keys to Sidney.  He smiled and took them from me.  He drove to a small outdoor mall.  There we walked, hand in hand, while window shopping.  We stopped at an outdoor café and ordered coffees and sat down.
    “How did you get involved with Elijah Broadhurst?” I asked, suddenly remembering why I was with Sidney in the first place.
    “I did a few concerts for him in the old days.  He wanted to independently produce his comeback record, so we worked out a deal.  Hopefully, it will be a success.”
    I noticed that this wasn’t the information he had given me yesterday, but I decided to let it go.  “Will you follow him on tour?”
    “I’d like to.  Most of the larger venues have their own sound engineers, and I haven’t really thought that far ahead.  You see, Ely’s Coming is an unlucky band.”
    “You don’t seem like the superstitious kind.”
    “Oh, I am a little.  Most people in the music business are.”
    “I guess I’ll admit to being influenced a bit by superstition, but I believe we make our own luck,” I told him.
    “Are you religious?”
    “Not a churchgoer, but I have a pretty good regard for the man upstairs.  He’s saved my neck too many times to ignore.”
    “Amen to that,” Sidney said, smiling.
    We finished our coffees and walked back to the car.  Before we got in, Sidney drew me close to him.
    “I’d like to kiss you, Cin.”
    “Please,” I said, melting.
    He kissed me softly, eliciting a response with his soft lips.  I felt his hands move to my back and pull me closer to him.  I kissed him back, and for a few minutes, we enjoyed being caught up in something very special.  Sidney’s watch beeped.  He lifted his arm and looked at the time.
    “I guess we better start back.  Thank you, Cin.”
    “My pleasure, believe me.”
    “Your eyes are dancing.  I like that,” he said, helping me into the car.
    As he walked around the car, I rued that I wasn’t sitting in the large cargo van right now.  It wasn’t the drink that was making me dizzy; it was how my body responded to Sidney.  Was it Sidney or was it the unanswered lust of the last few years?  Whatever it was, my body was calling the shots right now.
    Sidney sat down, and after he backed out, I leaned over and he put his arm around me.  He kept the top up on the convertible.  I leaned over the console and enjoyed being in the circle of his arm as we traveled back.  As we approached the guard, we split apart and frantically searched for our lanyards to show our IDs.
    The guard, recognizing the BMW, just waved us through.
    “I’m going to be busy in the booth for a while.  Why don’t you hang with the band?  I think you’ll enjoy seeing those goofs go through their preconcert jitters.  I’ll send a bouncer to come and get you and escort you through the crowd to the booth about five minutes before start time.”
    “I can’t wait.”
    “See you soon,” he said, drawing