Chapter 6
S he’d kissed Joel Dawson. Polly had kissed Joel Freaking Dawson.
Goddamn her and her terrible self-restraint.
Sure, she’d been in the throes of the biggest shock of her life. Jenna was dead. Killed on the same day she’d overheard Polly talking about a missing woman’s phone, which was suspicious as hell.
But that was no excuse for kissing Joel. She should not have done it. He was too…charismatic and cute and smart. And he’d be far too easy to fall for.
The door to Bloom opened and Raven Price, the new manager of the community center, stepped in.
Okay, pull yourself together, Polly.
She plastered a smile on her face as she stepped behind the counter. “Hi. Raven, right?”
The woman pushed a lock of blond hair behind her ear. “Hi. Yes. Have we met?”
“No. But we did go to high school together. I think you were a grade or two below me.”
“Oh, hi. Sorry, I’ve been away from Deep River for so long I’ve forgotten a lot.” Her voice was soft. She fiddled with her purse, almost as if she was nervous.
“You moved to North Dakota, right?” Polly asked, trying to make small talk. “You were engaged to your high school sweetheart?”
Some of the color drained from her face. “Yes. We were engaged. Not anymore.”
Okay, there was definitely a story there. But everything about her body language and tone told Polly it was not a topic she wanted to discuss. Fine with Polly. She didn’t want to talk about a certain guy in her life either. “What can I get you?”
“How much is a small coffee?”
Polly pushed a menu across the counter. “All prices are marked.”
Raven’s gaze ran over the menu, her bottom lip now disappearing between her teeth. She almost looked…disappointed?
Polly’s gaze flicked to her menu, even though she knew all her prices were on par with industry standard. Heck, they were probably cheaper.
Could Raven not afford a coffee? Surely, she was earning enough at the community center?
“I’ll have a small latte, please,” she finally said.
Polly dipped her head and moved to the coffee machine. “How are you settling into town?”
“Okay. My parents are here, which I love. I don’t really have anyone else though.
I’m only just realizing that I spent all my time with my ex in high school, so now I’m back and don’t really have any friends.
” Raven paused then shook her head. “I’m sorry.
I just dumped that on you like you’re my therapist.”
“Baristas are kind of like therapists.” An idea stumbled into her head.
Maybe it was reckless, because she didn’t know this woman.
But, heck, she’d been reckless last night by kissing Joel, and that hadn’t killed her.
“You know, Maggie and I are going to Trap this Saturday evening. You should come.”
Hope lit the woman’s eyes, as if she was even more desperate for friends than Polly had thought. Then she shook her head. “No. I couldn’t intrude.”
“I would never invite someone if I didn’t want them there. Please. Join us.”
“Oh, um…okay. I probably won’t drink, but I’d love to join just for the company.”
“Great. Eight o’clock work?” Polly set down the latte.
“Works great.” She took out a twenty.
Polly shook her head. “First coffee from Bloom is on the house.”
Relief came and went so quickly, Polly almost missed it. “Are you sure?”
“Absolutely.”
“Thank you.” One more smile, then Raven headed out.
Great. Polly was already having a better day than yesterday.
Maureen stepped in and went straight to the flowers.
Polly joined her. “Good morning.”
“Oh, darling.” Maureen pulled Polly into a hug. “How sad is the news about Jenna?”
“It’s devastating.”
Maureen stepped back. “How are you doing?”
“As good as I can be. We weren’t really friends but?—”
“She came in every day. That builds a relationship.”
Polly frowned. “How do you know that? Is it your psychic abilities?”
“Yoga.”
Polly was silent for a moment. “Yoga?”
“Jenna’s in my yoga class at the community center every Sunday morning. Or…was. She raved to the ladies about your coffee.” Maureen shook her head. “And poor Nancy is devastated.”
“Who’s Nancy?”
“Her best friend. Knowing Nancy though, she’ll still go this Sunday. This loss would have killed her. They were the kind of friends who spoke every day. I wouldn’t be surprised if Nancy was the last person to speak to her.”
An idea coiled in her head. A crazy idea. Completely ridiculous. “What time is your yoga session?”
“Nine. Why? You want to join?”
“Maybe.”
Yes. It was crazy. But if Jenna had spoken to this Nancy after leaving Bloom, maybe she’d told her about the conversation she’d overheard, and Nancy might know if her death had anything to do with the missing phone.
She hadn’t made it to work, and Polly needed to know what happened to her between leaving here and being shot.
Maureen squeezed her arm. “Yoga is good for the soul, my darling. I’ll hopefully see you there.”
“Thanks, Maureen. I think you might.”
“Remember, if you ever want a session with me, let me know. A look into what’s to come might help settle some nerves.”
She’d never had a reading from Maureen before, despite the other woman’s persistent offers. Mostly because she didn’t believe in that stuff. Although, she had to admit that some days, Maureen was freakishly aware of things she had no business being aware of.
“I’m okay, but thank you.”
“The offer always stands. And a little advice you didn’t ask for—some truths are buried because they bite when you touch them.”
Polly stiffened. Did she know Polly only wanted to go to yoga so she could question this Nancy?
One squeeze of her arm, and Maureen stepped away to smell the tulips.
Polly’s phone rang, Maggie’s name on the screen. “Hey.”
“Finally! I’ve been trying to call since last night. You left before I could catch you. Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.” A lie. Between Jenna and the phone and her kiss with Joel, she was a mess.
But she had a plan. To talk to Nancy and learn if Jenna overhearing that conversation had changed anything about her morning.
The plan gave her something productive to focus on.
“By the way, we’re going to Trap on Saturday night. ”
“We are?”
“Yep. I need cocktails and music and time with my best friend. And I invited Raven.”
“Raven who works at the community center?”
“That’s the one. Is that okay?”
“Are cocktails, music, and new and old friends okay? Absolutely. What time?”
Joel stopped outside Jenna Hampstead’s small bungalow-style home. He shot a glance in his rearview mirror to see Ryan pulling up behind him.
Scott, Jenna’s adult son, should be home. At twenty-one, he still lived at home. This was their starting point to investigating what happened to his mother.
He and Ryan climbed out of their trucks at the same time.
“You okay?” Ryan asked, as he stood beside him.
He shoved his hands into his pocket. “Do I not look okay?”
“You look distracted.”
Fuck, Ryan was right. “Polly and I kissed last night.”
Ryan lifted a brow. “No shit? I’d ask what this means and if you’re going to date, but I know you don’t do that.”
That was the thing…with Polly, everything felt different, and hell if he wasn’t considering becoming someone who dated. “Come on. Let’s see if this kid will talk to us.”
When they reached the door, Ryan knocked. A few seconds passed before it opened and the tall, scrawny twenty-one-year-old opened the door.
The kid frowned. “You’re those guys who run our search and rescue team.”
Joel dipped his head. “I’m Joel and this is Ryan.”
“We were hoping we could talk to you about your mom,” Ryan added soberly.
“Isn’t that the sheriff’s job? He hasn’t come to speak to me.” Anger cut across Scott’s cheeks in a red hue. He looked at the street as if that could magically summon the sheriff.
“We’re just helping.” Not that Ward knew that.
Scott cleared his throat before stepping back. “Okay. If you think you can find this psychopath. Come in.”
Joel followed Ryan into the house. An old leather couch centered the living room, with used mugs and an iPhone on the coffee table. In the kitchen, dishes were piled up in the sink and an open cereal box sat beside a bowl on the counter.
“Do you have other family?” Ryan asked.
“My aunt stayed last night. She wants me to move in with her. I’m undecided.”
Joel nodded and sat on the couch. Ryan remained on his feet.
Joel waited for Scott to lower into the armchair before he asked, “Do you know why your mother was in the forest yesterday?”
“No.” His teeth visibly ground. “I have no idea. She always has the same morning routine during the week. Grab a coffee from Bloom, go to the pharmacy.”
“You didn’t notice anything was off with her yesterday?” Ryan asked.
“No. Although, she’s seemed distracted these last few months.”
“Distracted how?” Joel asked.
“On her phone a lot. Coming home later than usual. She said work’s been busy.”
Joel frowned. She owned and ran a pharmacy. Was this a busy time at work for some reason?
“Can I ask what happened to your dad?” Ryan asked.
“He died when I was a kid. It’s just been me and Mom ever since.”
“Could the late nights and texts be about a guy?” Joel asked.
Scott shook his head. “No. She doesn’t date. Like, ever.”
Joel was tempted to tell the kid that his mother might have been dating and just not said anything, but he kept the thought to himself.
“Did she have anyone who didn’t like her?” Joel asked. “Anyone who you might have suspected wanted to hurt her?”
Again, Scott shook his head. “Everyone loved her. The only thing was…”
Joel shifted to the edge of his seat. “What?”
“Stuff at work was stressing her out. I don’t know if that’s related?” He dropped his head into his hands. “I don’t know what’s going on!”
“We’re going to do everything we can to figure this out,” Joel told him. “I promise.”
They stayed for another fifteen minutes, asking questions, trying to get any clues into what the hell happened. Scott let them have a walk around the house, but they didn’t find anything useful.
They were outside and halfway across the lawn when a cruiser pulled up in front of the house.
Ryan cursed under his breath as Ward stepped out, cheeks red, chest puffed up.
“What the hell are you two doing here?” Ward closed the distance between them.
Deputy Cox rushed out of the car and stepped in front of Ward just before he reached them. “Easy.”
“We’re just here to get information,” Joel said.
If possible, the red in Ward’s cheeks darkened. “You have no right to any information, because this isn’t your business! It stopped being your business the second that woman was found. I should arrest you both for interfering with an active investigation.”
“Having a conversation with a local isn’t a crime,” Ryan said firmly. “Now if you’ll excuse us?”
Ryan stepped to the side, but Ward mirrored the movement. It was almost comical watching the short, round sheriff block a six-foot-three guy who was easily two hundred pounds of muscle.
“You listen and you listen good, boy,” Ward growled. “You get in the way of this investigation, you so much as breathe on my evidence, and I’ll have you in cuffs before you can blink.”
“You’d need evidence for that to happen.” The words had barely left Ryan’s mouth before he was stepping around the sheriff and moving to his truck.
Joel followed, almost laughing at the seething sheriff they’d left behind.
“I’ll see you at the base,” Joel called before climbing into his truck.
His phone rang. It was his mother.
It had been days since they’d last made contact. It was a nice break. Obviously, the break was over.
He canceled the call and sent a quick text to Polly.
Joel: Hey. How are you doing today?
There were so many damn things he wanted to say to her. But first, he needed to know that she was okay.
When she didn’t immediately respond, he started the truck.
His phone vibrated, making his heart do that thing where it compressed in anticipation of hearing from her.
But it wasn’t Polly.
Mom: Your father and I are out of patience. If you don’t come home, we will be forced to disinherit you and cut you out of the will.
Joel laughed out loud. Because that right there was the perfect example of his parents not knowing him at all. He didn’t care about money, and he sure as hell didn’t care about any inheritance.
Joel: Take it. Spend it. Do whatever you want with it. Just leave me alone.