Tracy Kelleher - It's All About Eve

But now that it was the beginning of June, the heat had turned up a notch, and the start of the summer’s humidity produced a certain lassitude in the air. Big Daddy would have felt right at home.

“It’s highly unusual, to say the least, to have cases being reported of, of—what do you call these things again that you said were missing?” Detective Moran nodded toward the mannequin, then looked at Eve.

“Hmmm?” she said absentmindedly. Eve noticed that his wet hair was a dark, reddish-brown. She had always had this thing for men with dark red hair. And his was finger-combed, pushed straight back from a broad, intelligent forehead. Actually, maybe it was the intelligence rather than the hair color that really got her. That—and his eyes. They were an exotic, hunter green. Talk about a jolt straight to the heart.

“I’m sorry, what do you call those?” He pointed—this time keeping his extended index finger at a discreet distance.

Eve focused. “They’re called tap pants, or at least they were called tap pants until a few minutes ago.” She looked in the direction of his extended left hand. She couldn’t help but notice that he wasn’t wearing a wedding band.

He followed the direction of her gaze with his own eyes—those Emerald Isle babies. “Yes, well.” He nervously wiggled his fingers, then lowered his arm to his side. “That’s when you noticed they were gone?”

“Actually, my assistant Melodie noticed they were gone and let me know. I was with a customer, a young woman. She was buying an item for her honeymoon. A thong, to be exact.” She folded her arms across the front of her black top.

The policeman frowned. “A thong?”

“Underpants. They’re the little small ones.”

He blinked. “Oh?”

“Yes, they don’t leave any visible panty-line.”

“Hey, I’m all for practicality, especially in a woman.”

“Really?” Eve asked.

“Really.” They studied each other in silence.

Eve slanted her head. “Would you like to know the color, practically speaking, of course?”

“Of course—practically speaking.”

“This particular thong was midnight-blue.”

“Midnight-blue?” He left his mouth slightly open.

“Almost black.”

“Almost?”

“Yes, it’s very popular with new brides.”

“Really?”

“Yes, and their husbands as well.” She raised her chin and did her best to look down at him, virtually impossible, since he had almost a foot on her five-foot-two frame. As it was, she had a prime view of stubble. The kind that would abrade the soft skin of a woman’s breast. “For all the practical reasons, of course,” she added.

The detective breathed deliberately. “Of course. I mean, I can imagine.”

Eve tilted her head. “Can you now?”

He paused before replying, concentrating his full attention on her face—and an interesting face it was. From her thick, shoulder-length black hair and her strong Roman nose, to her peaches-and-cream skin and raspberry-pink lips. When he finished his thorough examination above the neck, he said slowly, “You’d be surprised what I can imagine.”

Eve gulped. Enough was enough. This wasn’t a social call. Which didn’t explain at all why she was wondering if the lipstick she’d applied early in the morning was still on or not. Eek. Sometimes she amazed even herself.

She yanked her hair behind her ear. “Yes, well, I’m sure in your line of work, you’ve had the opportunity to witness all sorts of goings-on and as a result, can imagine all sorts of things.” She was all business now.

The detective looked at her closely and waited a beat before replying. “So why don’t you tell me more about the missing garment?”

“The garment we’re talking about is a pair of tap pants—you know, loose-fitting panties,” she explained. He frowned. “Detective Moran—”

“Carter,” he interrupted with a smile, a dimple appearing low on his cheek. “It’s a relatively small town. We like to think it’s possible for everybody to all know each other.”

She held up her hand in acknowledgement. “Carter. Anyway, we get occasional shoplifting, and granted one pair isn’t such a big deal. But this is now the third time we’ve had this particular item disappear from the window.”

He nodded. “They must be pretty hot.”

“Maybe you’d like to see for yourself?” Without waiting, she marched from the front of the shop with its collection of nightgowns and robes to a small room housing undergarments. Three small, brushed aluminum tables held artful arrangements of intimate ensembles. Along the outer wall, an almost industrial-looking rod with giant hooks displayed colorful bras and bustiers. Shelves and drawers with high-tech handles lined the inner walls. The remaining surfaces were painted a discreet shell pink, and the wood floors were stained a rosy blond. The total effect was understatedly feminine without being cutesy-wutesy. Eve didn’t go for frou-frou.

She went behind one of the display tables—the variety of garter belts, including one pair with fur straps, was really quite amazing—and bent over to slide open a drawer. “Here’s a pair just like the ones that were in the window.” Eve turned around.

The policeman’s eyes quickly shifted from her backside. He raised his hand to his mouth and coughed.

She straightened up, running one hand down the black material of her slacks, and held out the garment. “Keep it—for reference.”

Carter lowered his hand and reached for the tap pants—a naturalist getting his first glimpse of a rare species. “So these are tap pants.” He inspected the price tag dangling from a string. “I can see that there’s a profit to be made. And I take it this size eight would also fit—” he looked around the garment and studied Eve’s hips “—someone of your size?”

Eve frowned.

“Just think of all this as purely information gathering.”

“You don’t say?”

He gave her an exasperated smile. “You know, sometimes an observation is merely an observation. Well, maybe not all the time, but some of the time, at least. At least, I think some of the time it is. Like now, for instance.” He rubbed his forehead, that very nice, intelligent forehead. “Actually, the truth is I’m not sure of anything at the moment.”

Aw, thought Eve. She wanted to take his hand, tell him not to worry. Offer him a cappuccino. No, maybe her shoulder. Maybe more than her shoulder. Maybe say something like, “I don’t usually do things like this, but would you like to spend a weekend at a little B&B in Bucks County, the kind of place with floral wallpaper, tasseled throw pillows and bowls of potpourri?”

Did people really say things like that?

Carter held up a hand. He looked like he was about to speak.

Maybe they did.

“You know, one thing I am sure of, I’m here on official duty. Right?” He looked like he was asking for confirmation.

Eve swallowed hard. “Right. Absolutely.” Where were her thoughts wandering at a time like this? Tasseled pillows, my God. She hated tassels. “Actually, for the record, those tap pants happen to fit the mannequin in the window.”

Carter slowly walked back to the front of the shop and stared at the display window. “Was the mannequin disturbed in any way?” There were three mannequins on view: one had on a slinky negligee, a second wore flannel pajamas with ducks swimming in what looked like bathtubs, and the third—in the middle—featured a strapless, red lace bustier and a decidedly naked bottom. Carter Moran didn’t appear to be staring at the ducks.

Eve paused midstride. The way a man walked could definitely be attractive in a way that had never occurred to her before. “What was that?”