Caught in the Act by Jill Sorenson

obviously aroused and hadn’t recovered enough to turn around yet.
    Maria frowned. “Are you okay?”
    “Of course,” Kari said, her cheeks hot. “There was a lot of blood to wash up.”
    “Washing up,” Adam muttered, slamming the bathroom door.
    Kari hobbled toward Maria, lowering her voice to a whisper. “Why are you here?”
    “I took a lunch break,” she said. “What happened?”
    “My store got vandalized last night.”
    Maria’s eyes widened with dismay. “Was it bad?”
    “Not too bad. We just painted over the graffiti.”
    When Adam came out of the bathroom a moment later, Kari didn’t know what to say. It was incrediblyawkward, juggling her would-be lovers. Maria draped her arm around Kari in a possessive manner, glaring at Adam. “I’m so sorry, mi amor ,” she said, stroking her damp hair. “I will kiss it better.”
    Kari almost died from embarrassment. Maria’s breath fanned her cheek and their bodies were plastered together, full length. But she couldn’t tear her gaze away from Adam. He stared back at her, looking somewhere between jealous and intrigued. Like he didn’t know if he wanted to pull them apart or watch them go at it.
    “I have to leave,” he said, shaking his head in regret.
    “Thanks for helping me,” Kari said.
    “Yeah.” He rubbed a hand over his mouth, as if trying to recapture their almost-kiss. “See you later.”
    Maria stopped petting her as soon as he was gone. “Was that okay? I didn’t know how much gay to be.”
    Kari sank into a chair and buried her head in her arms.
    “I don’t think this is working. He still likes you. What were you doing with him in the bathroom?”
    “We were this close to kissing,” she said, her thumb and forefinger an inch apart.
    “You are not a good lesbian,” Maria informed her.
    “I know,” Kari groaned.
    “Are you mad at me for interrupting?”
    “No,” she said, smoothing her disheveled hair. “I’m glad you came. For all I know, he’s investigating me, or snooping for Moreno. And even if he’s not, I can’t get involved with a police officer right now.” She glanced at Maria, feeling dazed. “This is madness.”
    “He will not give up,” Maria said.
    “What makes you say that?”
    “The way he looked at you. At us. He wanted me to disappear!”
    Kari flushed, picturing the scene they’d made. She wasn’t sure that Adam wanted Maria to disappear. He probably would have been amenable to letting her stay. “I’ll have to do a better job at discouraging him.”
    Maria took the seat across from her. “Something happened at the hotel.”
    Her stomach tightened with unease. She’d been too wrapped up in her own drama to notice that Maria appeared shaken. Her baseball cap was missing, her long black hair hanging down her back. “What?”
    “Chuy warned me,” she said. “If you talk to your sister again, they will do bad things. To your store, your house … you.”
    Kari swallowed dryly, feeling ill. After seeing the vandalism she’d known they meant business, but she hadn’t stopped to consider Maria’s welfare. “Did he hurt you?”
    “No,” she said, looking away.
    “Where’s your hat?”
    She lifted her hand to her head. “I don’t know. I will try to find for you.”
    “I don’t care about the hat, Maria. You shouldn’t go back there.”
    “Today is payday,” she said, stubborn.
    “If he touched you—”
    “He didn’t get the chance. The man from la migra was there, and he started a fight with Armando. I got away.”
    “Who’s Armando?”
    “Chuy’s partner.”
    “What about next time?”
    “Next time I will not get caught. Chuy was angry with me for …  como se dice? Trying to listen to them.”
    Kari gaped at her, incredulous. “You were eavesdropping?”
    “Yes. I heard them say something about Tuesday. New drugs coming in.”
    “That’s the day I go to Mexico,” she murmured, her eyes filling with tears. “What am I going to do?”
    Maria’s expression