Chapter 9
Chapter Nine
“What?” I asked, trying in vain to bring down my heart rate.
“There’s. . .been questions about him.”
“What kind of questions?”
“Who is he? Where did he come from? We can’t ask Pippa for—reasons, of course.”
“What reasons?”
“She’s—she’s usually such a sensible woman. But she just doesn’t think logically about him.”
Right. Because Granger didn’t show her any part of his real self.
“Why are you telling me?”
“Because it seemed like you were—close to him. Back in the day.”
My stomach twisted with anxiety.
“Well, that was a long time ago,” I said tightly. “I’m not close with him now.”
“He’s—taken a real interest in the property. Always seems to be out there doing something. He says he’s building a fountain and a decorative pond for her. . .but I don’t see much evidence of that.”
“Maybe he’s just lazy,” I put in.
“Maybe. I think he likes to let on that he’s lazy. I don’t think he actually is.”
Bingo, I thought.
“Well, what else could be the explanation?”
“There’s only one thing I can imagine him searching for. . . but it’s a total urban legend. And if it was ever found on our property. . .it would belong to us. Not him.”
“What’s an urban legend? What are you talking about?”
“Never mind. Just, please, be careful around him. And if you see him doing anything suspicious, please tell me.”
“If you’re so suspicious, why don’t you just ban him from the property?”
“I can’t do that.”
“Why?”
“Pippa is too in love with him.”
Another unfair stab to my heart.
“I’m sorry, I don’t see what this has to do with me,” I said.
Hayden smiled, cradled my hand gently in his. “I’m really glad to hear that. I confess I was—somewhat jealous of him at some point.”
“Why?”
“Oh—the two of you always seemed to be together. Swear you were joined at the hip sometimes.”
“Appearances can be deceiving,” I said, hoping the break in my voice didn’t give me away.
“I’m very happy to hear that,” he said. “You see, I’ve always had a thing for you, Sosie.”
He began to tell me how he felt, but my mind was still buzzing with uncertainty.
What the hell kind of urban legend was Granger chasing?
And why was I being dragged into Hollingsworth family business?
I didn’t even realized my hand was still in his when someone slid into the seat beside me.
“Isn’t this cozy,” Granger said, his voice deceptively pleasant. “Scoot over, Sosie.”
He didn’t give me a chance to object, giving me a shove with his hip and forcing me to break the contact with Hayden.
“What are you doing here?” Hayden asked.
“A cup of coffee sounds great,” Granger said, ignoring his question. “Thanks for inviting me over.”
“I didn’t—” Hayden protested.
“Hey,” I put in. “How’s my car doing in the shop? Every time I call them, they won’t tell me what’s wrong with it or when it’ll be done. You wouldn’t know anything about that, would you?”
“That’s strange,” Granger said, taking my cup of coffee, his big finger deliberately brushing mine.
There was the faintest trace of my lipstick on the cup, and he licked the edge, then took a long drink.
“A bit of cream on the edge of that cup,” he said. “Delicious.”
Hayden stilled.
“You think my sister would appreciate you licking where another woman’s damn lips were?”
Granger only leaned back against the seat, a small smile playing over his face.
“I don’t know, why don’t you tell her.”
What kind of game was he playing at?
“I need to go,” I said. “I’m not feeling very well.”
Ugh, this was making me so stressed out I was feeling sick to my stomach.
And then I really did feel sick to my stomach, rushing to the coffee shop bathroom to hurl into the toilet.
It must be food poisoning. That was all, absolutely all it could be. . .