Her Mother's Killer (3 page)

Facing him, her stomach roiled as the scent of onions and cheap aftershave mixed with sweat drifted over her. She clenched her fists and took a deep breath. She would not lose her temper or back down. She forced herself to smile.

“You know, once again I’m amazed at your quick wit,
 
Dick
.”

His smile faded, his nostrils flared. The familiar unease she’d always felt around him settled in her belly churning the little bit of coffee she’d drank at Gwen’s. It was always like this with Richard. He’d never been anything but a bully. Still, whenever he got within five feet of her, her skin crawled.

Before he could return the jab, someone called his name. She watched the inner struggle between answering the summons and blasting her. After a few seconds, he clenched his jaw, spun around and walked over to the older gentleman who’d called him.

Seeing this might be her only chance to escape, she hurried into Yardley’s. Twenty minutes later, she turned down the pasta aisle and silently bemoaned their selection. For a small-town grocery store, it was well stocked, but she’d known some items would have to be shipped in. And, as she looked over the well organized pasta section, she realized she might need to do quite a bit of shopping online. As she bent to look at the lower shelves, footsteps sounded behind her.

She turned and smiled when she saw Chase Perry, Duncan’s little brother. A couple years younger than Thea, they’d never been really good friends in high school. He’d looked her up when he moved to Georgia to attend the University of Georgia. They struck up a friendship and he’d even been out to her house a few times for dinner.

Just an inch or two shorter than Duncan, Chase had sparkling green eyes and a constant smile. Lean, with the streamlined body of a swimmer, he rarely lacked dates, especially with his expertise at flirting. The four years he lived in Georgia, she’d never seen him with the same woman twice.

“Thea,” he said, his voice filled with genuine surprise and delight. “I had no idea you were here. Are you in town for a visit?”

Without waiting for her answer, he pulled her into his arms for a hug.

“No. I assume you haven’t seen Duncan this evening.”

He released her, but slung his arm over her shoulders in a brotherly fashion.

“I haven’t seen Dunc in a couple of days. I’ve been out of town on business.”

“I’m moving back.”

His eyebrows rose to his hairline. “And?”

“And what?”

He rolled his eyes. “And what about Jason?”

“Do you and Duncan ever talk?”

“Well, not much. Like I said, someone kept me out of town last night.”

She laughed. “I thought it was work.”

“She was. You don’t know how much work she was. Now, tell me that you’ll go out to dinner with me tonight. Or maybe, you could cook for me.” His cheek dimpled.

“Chase, I just got into town tonight. I’m not cooking for you.”

“How about some Frito pie then?

For a second, her mind didn’t adjust. “Frito pie?”

“You know, open a small bag of Frito chips, pour the chili on, cheese on top of that.”

“Oh, the game.” She made a face. “No way. I hate football.”

He leaned back and gave her a look of mock horror. “I don’t think that’s allowed in Texas. I’m sure there is a state law against the hatred of football. Actually, there might some kind of fine for just saying it out loud.”

She laughed again. “Chase, I just got back into town today. I still have some of my cookware in the car. I’m not in the mood to do something I like, let alone go to a Crocker football game.”

Without missing a beat, he suggested, “I could help you unpack.”

“I’m not cooking for you and that’s final.”

He sighed. “Well, a man can dream.”

With any other man, she would have been irritated. Chase had a way of putting people at ease. The teasing wasn’t so much sexual as it was just natural to his character.

“So, what’s a hot commodity like you doing alone on a Friday night?”

“Trying to convince an attractive woman to cook for me.”

She opened her mouth to respond when a deep, rich male voice interrupted her.

“I see you’ve already fallen into the company of unsavory characters.”

*  *  *  *

Duncan’s mind couldn’t function. The red haze of anger still pulsed in front of his eyes as he watched the two of them turn to face him. He couldn’t believe his little brother was putting the moves on Thea less than twenty-four hours after she arrived in town. He understood completely. Wearing a tight red sweater that accentuated the golden undertone of her skin, not to mention the generous curve of her breasts.

“I take offense to that comment,” Chase said, but the smile belied his statement. “How’s tricks tonight, Dunc?”

He rocked back on his heels trying his best to fight the rising tide of jealousy coursing through his blood. It was the only word to describe the emotion that had him contemplating ways to tear off his brother’s arms and beat him over the head with them.

“Not much going on tonight. I got Michael and Richard covering the game.”

“I just saw D— Richard out front,” Thea said.

“Yeah, I sent him on his way.”

“Always the sheriff,” Chase said, though there was no heat in his words.

“More like a den mother,” Duncan said with a wry grin. “Not like there would be much there tonight, but there’s always some fight over a woman.” He turned his attention to Thea and tried to ignore the bolt of lust that sizzled through him. “What are you doing here?”

The narrowing of her eyes was the only indication he’d irritated her. “What do most people do in a grocery store?”

He didn’t miss the sarcasm in her voice. “I thought you just got into town.”

“Which would mean I would need groceries,” she said in a tone he’d heard his sister use with her three year old.

He shrugged off her comment because responding to her would cause him to look like more of an idiot than he already did. When he glanced at his brother, he fought the cringe at Chase’s raised eyebrow. “How did the meeting go in Dallas?”

“Fine. We now have Pendleton Advertising representing us.”

“I’m sure that has nothing to do with Carrie Pendleton?”

“Of course not. I’m trying to get Thea here to cook for me tonight.”

She snorted. “Yeah, and when I told you no, you offered me Frito pie. Not very enticing.”

His brother’s lips curved. “That’s a Texas delicacy, Thea.”

Thea made a face. “Filled with all kinds of preservatives and I am sure nitrates. All horrible for you.”

“But it tastes so good.”

She opened her mouth to argue with Chase but Duncan stopped them with a comment. “I tried getting hold of Jed today.”

She sent him a frown but he would rather she be mad at him than paying attention to Chase. It was juvenile and made him feel like a kindergartener with a crush on his teacher. There was nothing he could do to stop it. Something deep inside of him wanted every bit of her attention, good or bad, on him.

“Why?”

He raised one eyebrow. “Why do you think?”

She shrugged off his brother’s arm and took a step forward. Her body vibrated with irritation. “Because you’re just as nosey as he is. I take it you didn’t talk to him.”

He smiled but said nothing. Mainly because he knew it would aggravate her.

Anger sent an attractive flush to her skin, creeping up her neck and then into her face. Her eyes narrowed, darkened. Duncan wasn’t sure he’d ever seen that particular shade before. They weren’t completely green, nor totally blue. He’d give anything to see what they looked like as passion took over.

That thought had him taking a step back to resist the temptation she presented.

“No, I didn’t talk to him. I left him a message.”

“He hasn’t contacted me in several weeks, so I’m not sure how long it’ll be.”

“I can sometimes get a hold of him faster than you with my contacts in Texas.” He glanced at his brother and inwardly cringed at the considering look he was giving the two of them. “Have you talked to Mom about that new company you signed?”

Before his brother could answer, Thea said, “Listen, it sounds like you two have some things to discuss.”

“Oh, hey, don’t let big brother run you off.” Chase was already reaching for her and Duncan couldn’t quite stop a growl. The smile Chase tossed in his direction told Duncan he’d heard it but Thea gave no indication she had.

“No, really. I’m exhausted from the trip. I just want to get back to Gwen’s and collapse in bed.” She gave Chase the same sisterly peck on the cheek she had given Duncan at the gas station and said, “Tell Jed I do have the same cell number.”

As they watched her leave, Chase said, “She’s too young for you.”

Duncan snorted. “She’s too old for you.”

His brother glanced at him. “I doubt that. Besides, I know her better than you do. And I know this isn’t the time to be hitting on her.”

The steel he heard beneath his brother’s usually affable tone caught his attention. “Just what the hell are you implying?”

“That you have your eye on Thea.”

He snorted. “And just what were you doing?”

“We’re friends.”

“Friends? You barely know each other.”

Chase shook his head. “I got to know her and her husband—”

“Ex-husband.”

Chase acknowledged the correction with a nod. “He was an asshole, but for some reason she stuck with him. I’m assuming she loved him, why I will never know.”

“So you met him?”

“Yeah. Jackass doesn’t cover his personality.”

“I know Jed didn’t like him, but I just assumed because she married him without Jed’s consent. Either way, I gotta get back to the department. I’m manning the phones.”

Something caught his brother’s attention behind Duncan and he turned to see Miss Petrie, the retired science teacher who had taught both of them in high school, studying the selection of pasta sauces. “I have to go now.” He waited for Duncan’s nod and headed down the aisle after the teacher. “Miss Petrie, don’t tell me you’re walking by without saying hello. It’d break my heart.” A little tinkle of a laugh floated toward him and Duncan smiled. The man could charm a woman out of her clothes in a minute.

By the time he returned to the office, Gina was fuming.

“It took you long enough.”

He grunted. “I could make you work every Friday night for the rest of the football season.”

With a toss of her head, she turned to leave. “Just remember I know most of your ex-girlfriends. One of them has to have something incriminating.”

Because it amused him—not to mention was probably true—he said nothing as she slammed the door behind her. He settled down with his sandwich and soda. Before he could take a bite, his cell phone rang. It was Jed.

“What the hell was so important that you bothered my supervisor and got my ass chewed out?”

There wasn’t much bite in his best friend’s voice only the bone-tired wariness of an undercover cop. It was one part of that job Duncan didn’t miss.

“Hi, Jed. How’re you doing?”

“Listen, jackass, I’ve had two hours of sleep—”

He broke off and covered the mouthpiece. Duncan could only hear muffled conversation before Jed got back on the phone.

“Sorry about that. The doc needed to ask a question.”

Worry churned in his gut. Working narcotics undercover wasn’t the safest job. “Doc? Are you at a hospital?”

“Yeah, bad bust.”

“Jesus. Have you spoken to Thea?”

“No, I’ll call her later.” Jed sucked in a quick breath loud enough to hear over the phone. After several seconds of silence, he continued, his voice tight with pain. “She won’t hear about it anytime soon. Not like Atlanta news is going to cover something like this. And the DPS is trying to keep it under wraps so I figure it won’t hit any national news for awhile.”

“Uh, Jed, she’s not in Georgia.”

There was a pause before he asked, “Where the hell is she?”

“She’s here in town.”

Another pause. “Town? Crocker?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, what the hell is she doing there?” He yelled the question so loudly that Duncan had to hold his phone away from his ear.

“She’s your sister, ask her.”

“Damn it to hell! I don’t have time to track her down. Do you know where she’s staying?”

“Apparently with Gwen.”

Another beat of silence. Duncan could just imagine the thoughts going through Jed’s mind.

“Since this bust’s over, I guess I’ll make a trip up there. I should be there by one a.m.”

“Oh, no you won’t,” an unknown person declared in the background. Jed covered the mouthpiece of the phone then returned.

“I’ll be there by Monday at the latest. Apparently they don’t want me driving for a few days, although that might change.” Which meant that Jed would be there by the end of the weekend at the latest. “Do me a favor and keep an eye on her until I get there.”