Chapter 12
Alex
How could you have Christmas without a Christmas tree?
Shannon’s home is warm and slightly messy in a lived-in, well-loved way. We’re having a holiday cookie baking day. I’m the first one here. According to Shannon, Duke took his motorcycle out for a mid-morning ride down the roads on the outskirts of town.
“He was supposed to be back already,” Shannon says. “But he tends to lose himself in the feel of the road under his tires. He’ll be here any minute, nose red, eyes watering, and a big dopey smile on his handsome face.”
That familiar pang lodges in my chest. The one I’ve only felt since moving here, watching all these couples live life together—imperfect, simple life, but one that’s shared with someone who chooses you not just once, but every ordinary day.
“Riding a motorcycle in thirty-degree weather sounds like self-inflicted torture,” I say, shivering at the thought. “And I’ve lived through New York winters my whole life.”
“Duke loves his bike. But I’m with you. You won’t see me on a motorcycle after October. I’m a fair-weather rider.”
“Wise woman.” I try to picture Shannon on a motorcycle. She’s lithe and graceful, even when she walks through a room—the telltale posture of someone who has devoted her life to ballet.
I steal a glance at my cell. Again.
“You’ve checked your phone at least ten times since you got here,” Shannon says. She’s not annoyed. More like friendly and curious.
“I think you’re being gracious,” I tell Shannon. “It’s been at least twenty.”
She smiles. “Expecting a call?”
“Not exactly.”
Would I like a call? Yes. And I don’t want to talk about my crazy thoughts where Jesse is concerned. Shannon’s sweet, but we’re just getting to know one another.
Jesse’s obviously going about his day off without being plagued by thoughts of what nearly happened between us.
Or, knowing him, he could be overthinking it on his end, but not letting me see how deeply he’s affected.
Meanwhile, I’m so distracted I don’t even notice the door open when Rob and Laura enter.
I look up and almost blurt, When did you two get here?
“Hey, Alex,” Laura says, taking a seat on the couch next to me.
Rob says hi, sticking his hands in his pockets and looking around the living room. He asks Shannon, “Where are Duke and the kids?”
“Duke’s out riding. Sorry he’s a little late. You know how he gets when he’s on his bike. The kids are at my parents’. No way we could get a full day of baking done with them underfoot.”
Duke and the other guys are heading to Columbus around lunchtime to Christmas shop for their wives. It’s sweet, and foreign. I didn’t grow up around a group of guys who treated one another like extended family.
Rob chuckles. “Yeah. Having the kids here would have made things interesting.”
“How’s work?” Laura asks me.
I tell her a bit about work, neatly evading saying anything about Jesse specifically.
She’s filling me in on her suspicions about Kate Shaller when the door opens again and Duke makes his entry, bringing a gust of cold rushing in with him.
The man doesn’t know the meaning of the word subtle.
He’s loud and funny and all heart. There’s a redness to his face, but he’s beaming like he just got off a roller coaster.
Shannon walks over to him and they kiss.
“There’s hot coffee in the kitchen,” she tells him softly. “Go shower so you can get out of here.”
“So quick to get rid of me?” Duke jokes, wrapping his cold arm around Shannon and tugging her into his side.
She squeals. “You’re freezing!”
“And you’re warm.” He nuzzles his face into Shannon’s hair, and despite her protests, she smiles and snuggles closer to him.
“Hey.” Duke looks at Rob. “You know that woman, Donna? The one who lives way off Watkins-Lewis Road?”
“Yeah?” Rob answers. “I know who she is. She’s a few years older than my parents. Didn’t her husband pass earlier this year? Battled cancer or a kidney disease, I think.”
“Yeah. I had heard that too,” Duke says.
“Anyway, her place is decked out. Most of the homes out that way don’t do a thing for the holidays.
It made hers stand out.” He pauses, keeping one arm looped around Shannon, running the other down his jawline.
“You know … Come to think of it, those elves in her yard looked an awful lot like the ones missing from the town square.”
He looks straight at me. “I could be wrong.”
“You think Widow Simms is the one stealing the town decorations?” Rob asks. “That doesn’t add up.”
“I only know what I saw. I was blowing by there …” Duke looks down at Shannon and adds, “Under the speed limit … But I was going too fast to notice the baby Jesus.”
“There’s a metaphor in there,” Rob chuckles. “But I’m not touching it.”
Duke laughs. I’m already on my feet, pulling up Jesse’s number.
I glance around the room. “Sorry guys ... I have to go.”
“You’re going?” Shannon asks with a note of confusion. “But it’s your day off. We were going to make cookies.”
“I have to check this house out. Duke, can you send me the address … or send it to Jesse?”
“Sure thing,” Duke says. “I don’t know the exact address. Jesse will know the place. I’ll text him.”
I glance between Laura and Shannon. “I’ll check this out and be right back afterward. I promise. I was really looking forward to a day together.”
“It’s fine,” Laura assures me. “I’d be dragging Rob out there to check it out myself if you hadn’t jumped up to get to it.”
Duke pulls out his cell and starts typing. I say goodbye, grab my coat and step out onto the front porch with my phone to my ear.
“Jesse, we’ve got a lead,” I say without even saying hello.
“I just got Duke’s text,” he says, matching my level of urgency and excitement. “I’m already grabbing my boots and coat. I’ll pick you up. Where are you?’
“I’m at Duke and Shannon’s—getting in my car now. I’ll just circle by and pick you up.”
“Sounds good. See you in a few.”
I hang up, nerves buzzing, mind spinning with possibilities as to why the town décor ended up on the lawn of a woman who just lost her husband this year. It doesn’t add up. We’re definitely missing a piece of the puzzle.
Mingled with those thoughts, like chunks of chocolate in batter, is the keen awareness that I’m about to see Jesse—for work, but also we’re going to spend time together on our day off.
He didn’t call, but circumstances still tilted in my favor.
I try not to analyze why I need to see him so badly—why he’s become someone I miss when we’re apart, and why thoughts of seeing him instantly put a smile on my face.
I shouldn’t be focused on Jesse when we’re closer than ever to solving this string of crimes, or at least one of the crimes.
We’ve assumed they’re related. Maybe they aren’t.
Either way, I can’t help myself. I’m going to focus on the job once we’re there.
In the meantime, my heart is doing a little pep rally in my chest over the idea of seeing Jesse in less than five minutes.
I pull up outside Jesse’s house and he’s already stepping onto the porch, smiling in my direction.
I watch him as he strides toward my car, purposeful, and so handsome my heart starts beating irregularly.
Get it together, Alex. You’re on a case.
“Good morning,” Jesse says, settling into my passenger seat. “Well, almost afternoon, right?”
“Yes. Good morning,” I say, smiling shyly at him. I don’t know why this shyness has overtaken me ever since we almost kissed. My hands tighten slightly on the steering wheel. I’m not usually shy around Jesse. If anything, he makes me the most comfortable I’ve ever been.
“You look nice,” he says, and then he shakes his head. “I mean … for following up on a lead.” He shakes his head more emphatically.
“Thanks. I stood in front of my closet this morning and asked myself what outfit might say, I’m here to bake, but also ready to question a suspect.” I wave my hand from my shoulders, down my coat and over my jeans to my boots. “This seemed to do the trick.”
“Definitely,” Jesse says with an appreciative look in his eyes.
It’s the same expression he had under the glow of the headlights in the alley. Longing, heat, and a note of apprehension—not merely fondness or friendship.
I pull away from the curb and Jesse directs me where to go. Along the drive we parse out the clues, trying to make sense of why the town square elves would land in this yard. Jesse agrees that we’re missing something key.
We ride for about fifteen minutes down roads lined with nothing but dormant cornfields and properties with barns and houses.
Watkins-Lewis Road is lined with woods, the houses are mostly set back from the main road—older properties that aren’t as kept up as most of the farms and neighborhoods closer to the heart of Bordeaux.
The Simms home is easy to identify. The yard is filled with various holiday decorations.
The narrow porch stretches the whole front of the house.
The eaves are covered in string lights, though they’re turned off.
“Wow,” Jesse says as I roll to a stop in front of the property. Then he turns to me. “You carrying?”
“My piece is in the glove box. You think I’ll need it? We’re just following up on some missing decorations with a widow.”
“You always need to be prepared for any possibility,” he says, patting his chest where he must have strapped on a shoulder holster under his coat.
“I’ve got my badge,” I say, as if that’s the same as being armed.
“Good,” he says, nodding seriously. Then his smile broadens and those dimples come out. “You can deflect bullets with it if it comes to that. Kind of like Wonder Woman.”
I roll my eyes, but my smile is already giving me away. “Her shield was a little larger than mine.”
“I believe in you, Keller.” He’s still teasing, but there’s something in his voice that says he truly does have confidence in me. I have to breathe through a wave of emotions before I exit the car.