Body Heat by Brenda Novak

about you.”
    â€œBullshit. Milt doesn’t worry about anybody but himself.” Rod finished off the beer sitting on the counter and crushed the can before tossing it into the recycle bin.
    â€œOkay, let me rephrase that. He’s interested in protecting his investment. I’m the one who’s worried.”
    â€œI’m thinking about taking a few days off, that’s all.” He lifted a shoulder to make the statement more nonchalant.
    Silverware clinked as she dropped it into its plastic container. “A few days off.”
    â€œYeah.”
    â€œTo do what? Hang around here with the blinds down and drink yourself into oblivion?”
    â€œNo, smart-ass. To visit Arizona.”
    She hesitated. “Anyone in particular you want to see?”
    He imagined his father and Edna. “Not really.” Although there was Jorge…
    â€œYou must have some reason for wanting to go. You barely got home after being away for three months.”
    He’d never given her any details about his childhood. He kept it vague with everyone, merely saying that he’d come from a hellhole in southern Arizona and was glad to be out of it. But Rachel clued in fast. Holding her dripping hands over the sink, she measured him with her eyes. “Does this have to do with your past?”
    â€œMaybe.”
    After drying her hands on a towel, she shut the dishwasher. “You’re really going to hold out on me?”
    He moved toward the fridge to get another beer, but she intercepted him. “Sit down. I’m making you some dinner.”
    â€œNo, you’re not. With you getting in my way, I can’t go back to drinking.”
    â€œThat’s true. But as long as I’m here, you may as well talk to me.”
    He shoved a hand through his hair. “Shit.”
    â€œThat’s flattering. I’m glad I came over to help.”
    â€œIt’s not that I don’t want you here.” Actually, it was. But not because he didn’t care about her. “It’s just… I’m not sure what to do.”
    â€œAbout…”
    â€œGoing to Arizona.”
    She took two frozen chicken breasts from his freezer. “Something happen down there?”
    â€œSome asshole is shooting illegal aliens as they come across the border, and I’m contemplating putting a stop to it. That’s all.”
    â€œLocal law enforcement can’t manage?”
    â€œBordertown isn’t exactly prosperous. It has a few wealthy ranchers but almost everyone else lives below the poverty line. There isn’t a lot of money in the public coffers.”
    She put the chicken in the microwave to defrost. “The county or the state will help. Maybe even the Feds.”
    â€œProbably. But I wouldn’t charge anything. I know the area. And I’m fluent in Spanish. I could float around, maybe pick up on a few things law enforcement might miss.” He felt he owed it to his mother and her people. That was the most compelling reason, but he didn’t say so.
    â€œIf it’s that important to you, I’m sure you can get the time off from Department 6. You’ve got weeks of vacation coming.”
    â€œThat’s what I figured.”
    â€œSo why are you fighting it?”
    â€œYou think I should go.”
    She laughed. “No. You think you should go. Obviously. That’s why you’re so conflicted. I’m just trying to tell you that drinking won’t change that.”
    â€œMy father lives there,” he finally admitted.
    Her steady gaze met his. “You told me you didn’t have a father.”
    â€œI did?” He couldn’t remember saying that.
    â€œYep.”
    â€œWell, that’s essentially true. He never acknowledged me. He gave my mother money every now and then—as much as he could siphon away without risking the wrath of his wife—but nothing steady and only out of a sense of obligation. He had another