Miss Frost Ices The Imp: A Nocturne Falls Mystery (Jayne Frost Book 2) by Kristen Painter Page A

apologetic shrug. “He’s well connected.”
    “So am I,” Cooper said. “When are you going to see Francine?”
    I sliced the tart and served it onto two plates, the bigger slice for Coop. “I don’t know. Apparently, she’s not big on visitors.”
    He was quiet as I came back with the plates and forks, waiting until I’d put them down on the coffee table to say anything else. “What do you think was in the box?”
    “No clue. But there was some faint traces of iridescent green powder inside.”
    That got me a few more seconds of silence while he leaned over the table and prodded his slice of tart with his fork. “Maybe it was a genie.”
    “Juniper said the same thing. But how would I know? It’s not like I’m an expert on genies. Seems farfetched to me, even in this town. Have you ever met one? I haven’t.”
    Cooper put his fork down. “I have, actually. And I’d be happy to introduce you to her.”
    “Really? She lives here? When?”
    “Right now.”
    My eyes widened. “For real?”
    “Well, I’d have to call her first. See if she’s available. But sure.”
    “It’s almost eight thirty.”
    “She’s a night owl.” He glanced at his dessert again, but not so fast that I didn’t see something in his eyes.
    My gaze narrowed. What Cooper had said about us knowing each other was right on. And I knew that look. “How do you know her?”
    “We, uh, we dated. A little.”
    I’d pretty much already figured that out. “I see.” I decided to torture him a little. “Just the once, then?”
    “Three times, actually. But we didn’t have any chemistry.”
    I nodded sagely. “At least you figured that out before you slept together.”
    He winced.
    I had to bite my tongue to keep from laughing. “I take it you couldn’t quite grant her wishes, then?”
    His eyes narrowed. “Hah hah.”
    “You opened the door. I just walked through.” I sliced off the end of my tart triangle and forked it up, ready to pop it into my mouth after my next question. “How did you meet her?”
    “She’s sort of a medical professional. I tweaked my shoulder a while back, and one of the guys at the station recommended her to work on it.”
    I swallowed my mouthful. “She’s a doctor?”
    “Not exactly.” He sighed. “She’s a masseuse.”
    “Oh, yeah,” I said. “That’s totally like a medical professional.” I rolled my eyes. “Cooper, whatever you did— whoever you did—when we weren’t together is your business. You don’t have to dance around your past. Or your present.”
    He took a bite of his dessert and swallowed it down. “Yeah, I know, but after everything that happened between us, I don’t want anything else to get in the way.”
    “Then just be honest. The reason we broke up is because we weren’t completely honest with each other. Sure, Lark started it with her lies, but if there’s any chance for us, we can’t hide stuff from each other.”
    He nodded. “You’re right. And I’m sure you’ve dated lots of guys since we were together. And then there’s the vampire.” He rolled his eyes.
    I snorted. “Please. You think I dated lots of guys in the North Pole? I’m the Winter Princess. Guys willing to date me were either trying to improve their social status or add a notch to their bed post.” I fiddled with my fork. “But mostly, they were just intimidated by me. Not many brave souls want to date the woman who will one day rule them.”
    “I never really thought about that. I suppose that’s why you want to keep seeing me and the vampire. To make up for lost time and all that.”
    “That’s part of it.” I looked at him, enjoying how pretty he was. “And the other part is that I’m in no rush to settle down. I want to have some fun. And right now, that means dating around.”
    He nodded. “I understand. The vampire might not, though. Just saying not every guy is as easygoing as I am.”
    “Greyson’s fine with it.” At least I thought he was. I guess that was a