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Chapter One
“We’re sitting in the back of a police car! This isn’t my idea of research!”
“Lighten up!” Dakota knew Mary ignored her words “There isn’t any e’ll be charged with squat You didn’t say we had a bombyou simply said the word bomb”
Mary’s less-than-happy face reminded Dakota of her own mother when she wanted to bury her with a look
“I repeated your words, Dakota”
“Repeated in a not so soft voice Even I know not to yell the word bomb in an airport”
Outside the squad car, unifor theers were let back into the terminal
“I didn’t yell” Mary tossed her head back, a curly lock of blonde hair moved away from her eyes in the process
Dakota let loose a snarky laugh “The ol’ lady next to us did”
Yeah, the blue-haired crone ed to hear one word froer in their direction, and you’d have thought they were both walking through baggage claim with an AK and an Uzi In an effort to cal that happened could be used for research From the moment airport security showed up and put theuard running down their legs, Dakota tried to spin the experience
They were visiting Florida for a writers conference OK, it was more convention than conference Plenty of parties, lots of fansand tons of fun Fun that didn’t normally involve the police Handcuffs, however, were optional
Dakota would have liked to find the arresting officers worthy of a chapter in one of her books Unfortunately, the woman who cuffed her wasn’t amused and her partner wasn’t any kind of hero Dakota would profile for her next novel
Unable to help herself, she looked around the tiny backseat of the squad car, noted the cage separating the front seat from the back, and all the radios and toys the police used
Who’d sat in the car before her? Her shoes stuck to the surface under her feet She couldn’t re in a car without carpet A co that sadly reminded her of vomit filled her nose
Research only went so far The thought of a night in jail—sleeping in the same space the previous occupants of the backseat did—churned her stoer they sat there, the worse her head started to spin
“Oh, God,” Mary said
Dakota rallied “Relax, Maryand for God’s sake, when they open the door again, let ”
Mary, bless her heart, didn’t have the stoay bar full of lesbians No, she’d try to ask said fictional lesbians about their childhood and try to determine if they were truly attracted to wo to piss off their parents Mary spent her days, and sohts, with a private client base that paid her to listen to their problee and faht now poor Mary was probably wondering if she could continue to practice if she ended up in jail
Mary jumped when Dakota’s door opened and one of the officers leaned over and addressed them “Which one of you is Dakota Laurens?”