Chapter Four #3
She frowned. “Maybe since the killer stole the client book, us asking for donations of books hits too close to home for him. That’s possible, isn’t it?” Her gaze held his intently, as if she needed to know his most inner thoughts.
“Hell, Monique. At this point anything is possible.” He released a sigh of deep frustration.
Something like this was the last thing he’d expected and exactly what he was worried about.
“I still think it’s time we stop what we’re doing.
You aren’t getting the full results anyway with all the two-story houses. ”
She flushed once again. “But I’m getting some houses cleared. For the next week, why don’t we just focus on the people who live in one-story homes? At least in them I can check out all the drawers in the main bedroom.”
“Are you not hearing me?” He could admire her determination but not in this case.
His frustration with her was nearly overwhelming.
“You are a stubborn little…uh…woman.” This time he leaned forward in his chair, his voice brusque.
“You are now on notice that you could be in real danger. You would be a damned fool to follow on the same path.”
“Then call me a damned fool,” she replied tersely.
“What you need to do is take this note to Daniel and confess to him what we’ve been doing. Let the police handle it from here.”
“Maybe that’s what I should do, but I’m not going to do it,” she replied, her chin lifted with defiance. Her dark eyes sparkled with a sharp boldness. “I’m going to continue this, and hopefully the nervous killer will make a mistake that will get him arrested.”
“Or you dead,” he muttered.
“I’m not about to let anyone get close enough to kill me,” she said.
“And I’m not about to do what some anonymous note tells me to do, either.
Jacque, I intend to go forward with or without your help, and if you go to Daniel with all this, I’ll never, ever forgive you and even that won’t stop me from continuing. ”
He sighed and raked a hand through his hair in frustration. “There’s no way in hell I’m going to let you do this on your own, so I guess count me in.” He wasn’t happy about this. He wasn’t happy about it at all.
She smiled then…that beautiful smile that lit him up inside. “Thank you, Jacque.”
“Don’t thank me,” he half growled. “And don’t smile at me. I’m making my decision under extreme duress. I don’t want you out there all alone with no backup. Things need to be different from now on. Do you own a gun?”
“No.” The smile quickly fell from her face.
“Monique, if you really intend to follow through with all this, then you need to watch your surroundings. I would prefer that you not be out alone, and when you are out you need to carry a weapon.”
“I have a wicked knife I could start carrying,” she said soberly. Her eyes widened slightly. “Do you really think the killer would go so far as to come after me?”
“Absolutely, especially if he feels threatened by you. He’s already a cold-blooded murderer. What’s one more dead woman if that keeps him safe from discovery? He obviously already feels threatened enough to leave you an ominous note. Monique, this is nothing to take lightly.”
“I’ll just have to be more aware of who gets close to me and make sure when I am out that it’s in a public place.
” she said. “Trust me, Jacque, I’m no fool.
” A steely strength shone from her long-lashed eyes.
She suddenly stood. “Now, I’ve bothered you long enough for one night. I think it’s time for me to head home.”
He rose from the recliner. “I’ll walk you home.”
“Do you really think that’s necessary? I don’t want to be a bother.”
“We can’t know from what direction the danger might come. Just wait there for one minute.” He hurried into his bedroom and grabbed his gun and holster. Once they were on, he returned to the living room.
She obviously saw his gun and gazed up at him. “But I thought we’d figured out that the killer is somebody in town.”
“We might be wrong about that. Besides anybody from town could easily walk into the swamp to come after you.” He walked with her to the front door, and together they stepped outside.
Twilight had fallen, painting the surroundings in a deep purple light. Thick shadows danced around the base of the trees, along with a humid mist that swirled in the air.
As they walked, he stayed close to her side, his gaze shooting all around. They didn’t speak, so the only sounds were bullfrogs croaking and occasional rustling in the bushes they passed.
He walked with her up the bridge to her front door. She unlocked it and then turned back to him. She wore the colors of twilight well, and he thought he’d never seen her look prettier.
“I work until three tomorrow, so I can be ready to go by around three thirty,” she said.
She surprised him by reaching out and taking his hand in hers.
She smiled up at him. “I guess we had our first fight tonight. I know you aren’t happy with the outcome, but I appreciate you.
” She squeezed his hand and then released it.
He was filled with a sudden sharp desire to take her into his arms and kiss her lush lips. An electricity snapped in the air…sizzling all through his veins. He leaned slightly toward her.
Her eyes widened a bit, and her lips parted as if in open invitation.
What the hell was he doing? He snapped himself upright and took a step back from her. “Then I’ll just see you tomorrow. Good night, Monique.”
“Good night, Jacque.”
He waited until she was safely in the shanty, and only then did he turn to head back to his.
He was still trying to process everything that had happened.
The note scared him for her. Who had left it?
How on earth had anyone found out what they were doing?
One thing was for sure, he definitely found her stubbornness absolutely maddening.
It had been one thing to indulge her in her desire to find her mother’s book, but now the note brought a new layer of danger to the whole thing.
He reached his shanty and went inside. He collapsed back in his recliner.
He couldn’t believe how badly he’d wanted to kiss her. She had full, luscious lips that appeared to beg for a kiss. But kissing her would only make his situation worse.
The last thing he wanted to do was deepen how much he cared for Monique. It was bad enough that he cared about her at all. One thing he had learned in life was the absolute hell that occurred when you lost somebody you loved.
He might not love Monique, but he’d definitely grown to care about her, and that scared him. Because of her desire to ignore danger and continue on her path, he would do everything in his power to keep her safe.
Then, when this was all over, he’d go back to being the loner he intended to be.