Chapter Twenty-Six #2
“Yes, but when I’m here, I would much rather be the one lifting the heavy boxes,” he countered, putting his hands in his suede vest. He looked at me. “Excuse me, I have some work to do.”
Carrie came to stand beside me, and we watched Rossy disappear into the back.
Then she grabbed my hand and led me to the small table by the window.
“Now, the best I can do is start a pot of coffee. You good with that?” She wiggled her finger at the beautiful maroon espresso machine on the far wall.
“I’m not allowed to touch that, or Margo will kill me. ”
I smiled. “That’s fine with me. I can’t stay long, though. I have a shift starting soon.”
Once the coffee was brewed, she brought two steaming mugs, cream, and sugar to the table. “All right,” she sighed, sitting down. “What’s going on?”
My eyes lingered on my coffee as I stirred in the cream, watching it change color. “Marg just asked me to be her successor.”
Carrie nearly choked on her first sip. “Whoa. Wh-what? That’s awesome,” she pushed out between coughs. She waved off my look of concern. “Sorry. Went down the wrong pipe.”
I plopped in two cubes of sugar and continued stirring.
“You don’t want it?”
My lips twitched as I thought about Ash’s conversation with me this morning. “No, I do. It’s been a dream of mine since I was a teenager.” I lifted my head, cradling the mug in my hands. “I was on the right path for it, but then…”
“Then your path was blocked by something you didn’t deserve,” she finished for me.
“You sound like you know what you’re talking about,” I noted softly before taking a sip. The coffee was bland, but it reminded me of my parents.
Carrie sat back, scanning the empty street outside. My gaze followed hers, lifting up to the light blue sky, oranges and pinks still lingering from the sunrise. “I never knew what I wanted to be because I didn’t have the freedom to think I could be anything other than a submissive woman.”
I jerked, my gaze snapping back to her. “What?”
She took another sip and stared into her coffee. “So Ash hasn’t told you about Grayson and me, yet?”
Tipping my head to the rock on her finger, I said, “I know you’re engaged. I know Grayson left you to go find Ash when he vanished into Devil’s Den.”
The movement was subtle, but I didn’t miss the way her shoulders straightened as the memory floated between us. “Grayson was hired to hunt me.”
My lips parted, my eyes widened. “What?”
“My father wasn’t a good man. In fact, he was evil. He did horrible things to horrible people. Eventually, his trouble caught up with him, and as a result, my ex-husband, may he burn in hell, was murdered in our home.”
“Jesus, Carrie,” I breathed, leaning forward.
She gave me a warm look. “My past is dark. Like yours. If you want me to stop, say the word.”
“Why are you telling me this?”
She set down her mug. “Because,” she set her hand on top of mine, “I don’t want you to miss out on something you’ve always wanted due to the voice inside your head telling you otherwise.”
“I just think I’ve lost too much time,” I said. “When I was in Canada, I had to lay low. Basically put my dreams on the shelf, and the days never slowed down.” Swallowing the lump in my throat, I pulled my hands back. “I’m thirty-four years old and I feel like I’ve lost so much time.”
“You’re still young. You have an entire life ahead of you, and once the guys take care of—” Carrie’s mouth snapped shut as her skin paled.
I didn’t like it. “Take care of what?”
She shook her head. “I’m sorry, I said too much.”
“No,” I countered firmly, “you didn’t say enough.”
Ash told me he had to go to the office today, but I assumed it was because he was getting back to work. There had been no update on Felix’s murder, according to Marg, who’d been calling Sheriff Humbly almost daily.
“What’s going on?” I asked, leaning back in my seat.
Carrie sighed and looked around the empty bookstore.
“This cannot get back to Michael. Seriously, if the sheriff finds out, it could put our boys into a bad position.” When she was satisfied that Rossy had gone into hiding, she moved her chair closer to me.
“Promise me you’ll keep this under wraps. ”
“Of course,” I murmured, trying to ignore the way my pulse skittered underneath my skin.
“Red Snake is going after Felix’s murderer head on.”
“You mean they're taking over the case?”
Carrie chewed on the inside of her cheek, reluctantly nodding. “Something like that.”
“I don’t understand. What are they hoping to gain from overstepping law enforcement?”
“It’s to ensure your safety.”
A chill swept through the room. “My safety?”
Carrie nodded, her eyes drifting toward the street. “Grayson thinks Felix’s murder was a calculated move against you.”
“Carrie, I’m not in any danger,” I told her. It was the truth. “My past—the people from it—are gone.”
She nodded. “I know that, but you need to let Red Snake finish this. It will give everyone peace of mind.”
“Felix’s death had nothing to do with me, and I—”
Her soft hand landed on mine. “I thought I was safe,” she said.
“I thought my happy ending was finally starting. Grayson and I had found each other. He’d come back here to be with me.
We were ready to start our life together, but someone from my past, a person I didn’t even know existed, came for me. ”
Goose bumps spread across my arms. “What? When?”
“About four years ago.” She turned her head, staring down the street toward the end of town.
“Rossy had sent me down to the General Store for some more office supplies. It was supposed to be a quick run. Grayson had my phone tracker on, and I even spent the walk down there on the phone with him.” Her eyes closed.
“I was attacked in the store. I tried to fight back, and for a moment there, I thought I could actually win. But he pulled a gun, shot the owners, smashed my phone, and dragged me away.”
“Carrie,” I rasped.
“According to Hayes, Grayson was a mess. It took them a few weeks to find me. I escaped and hid out at a friend’s ranch in Colorado.
” She cleared her throat and returned her attention to me.
“I know you may be confused, but the guys don’t want to risk it.
Once the murderer is behind bars, I’m sure we will all be able to breathe a little easier. ”
“Does Margo know?”
“Yeah, Hayes brought her along.”
My phone chimed, breaking our stare.
“Excuse me,” I muttered before answering the phone. “Hello.”
“Hey, baby,” Ash greeted, the low rumble of his truck in the background. “How’d the meeting go?”
Pressing my lips together, I held up a finger to Carrie and walked over to the bookshelves. “Marg wants me to be her successor.”
He was quiet for a second. “And what do you want?”
“I don’t know.” I sighed, my shoulders sagging. “I told her I needed time.”
“Whatever you decide, I’m here.”
I let my head fall back against the shelf, my eyes on a row of vampire romances. “How did your meeting go?”
“We have a few leads on Felix’s case,” he said. “Where are you? At home?”
“No, I stopped by Rossy’s to have a coffee with Carrie.”
“I see.”
I pushed my hand through my hair. “Do you think going over Sheriff Humbly’s head is wise?”
“Dammit, Care,” he muttered.
“If you’re going to be mad at anyone, direct your anger at me. I pushed her to spill,” I confessed, glancing over to her. She was lost in thought, staring out the window, the capped sleeves of her pink dress shifting lightly underneath the air vent, a few of her curls doing the same.
“Not mad at her or you. I just wish I was the one who told you.” He paused. “I was going to when I got back. The team just had information for me.”
A wave of relief hit me then. “Oh.”
“Just wanted to have all the information before giving it to you, baby. That’s all.”
“I appreciate it.”
He grunted. “You want me to pick you up? I’ll be there in an hour.”
Twisting my neck, my eyes landed on the clock above the checkout counter. “Actually, today is Wednesday.”
His warm chuckle filled my ear. “Yeah, it is.”
“It’s my hiking day.”
“Yeah? That what you want to do?”
The thought of hiking with him, showing him all my favorite places among the trees, sounded like a dream. It was something we both could use. When I didn’t reply, he tacked on, “We have everything we need in my truck if that’s what you want to do today.”
A smile spread across my face. “I’ll send you the location and I’ll meet you there.”
“Baby, I can come get you first. It’s not a problem.”
“No, no,” I assured, walking back to Carrie. “Just meet me at the coordinates I send, okay? I want to show you something.”
“You sure?”
“Yeah, I’ll bring some lunch. Sound good?”
“Sounds perfect,” he murmured, his voice gruff.