“What else does it say about her?”
“Nothing, really. Just the basics.” I ran my eyes over the article again, but there really wasn’t much.
“Does it say if the police had any suspects or leads?”
I skimmed toward the end, where it talked about the investigation. “The camera footage from the store caught her car leaving, but nothing else.”
Mina tipped her head. “Did they ever find her car?”
“That’s a good question. This article doesn’t mention it, but it’s from just a couple days after her disappearance.” I glanced at the notebook page with the reference numbers. “Let’s look.” Spinning the dial, I advanced the microfiche to the next article. Together, we skimmed it, but it didn’t mention her car. Neither did the next several articles.
A chime sounded overhead as I put the last roll of microfiche into the machine, then an automated voice came over the speaker. “The library is closing in fifteen minutes, thank you.”
With a frown, I hurriedly advanced the film. “Let’s hope we can get through this last one,” I muttered.
“I wish we had more time,” Mina said. “I’d like to look into family and friends for these women. Maybe look up Rich Stevenson. I still haven’t remembered why I know that name.”
“We can go back to my place, if you want, and use my laptop to do some internet searches.”
Mina tipped her head, thinking. “Possibly. I can’t stay too long, though. Five a.m. comes early.”
One side of my mouth tilted up. “That it does.” When she smiled back and my heart thumped, I turned away so I could focus. Her pretty lips and twinkling blue eyes were too damn distracting. Scrolling forward, I found the first article.
We made quick work of reading it and the next few short ones in the paper over the subsequent days, but any new information petered out as the case grew cold.
“They never did find her car,” Mina said as I removed the roll from the machine.
“No. But that’s not all that surprising. There’s so much wilderness around here that no one ever visits, hers probably isn’t the only vehicle that’s been ditched and never found.” Gathering the rolls, I stood. “You ready?”
“Yep.” Scooting back her chair, she got up before returning it to where we found it earlier, then met me at the reference desk, and we walked out.
“So, do you want to come back to my house for research?” I glanced at our vehicles, then at her. I wasn’t sure it was the best idea, considering the way I wanted to reach for her every time I looked at her pretty face, but I couldn’t help but hope she would say yes. Forget the sexual attraction; I just wanted to spend more time in her presence.
“Um…” Her voice trailed off, and she turned her gaze toward the road, a small wrinkle forming between her eyebrows. “Sure. But like I said, I can’t stay long. Maybe we can come up with a few points to dig into separately when we have time? You know, split the workload?”
I nodded. “Sounds good. Do you want to just follow me?”
“Yes.” As soon as the word left her mouth, she took a step toward the curb.
I followed. “I’ll go slow so I don’t lose you.”
A wide smile split her face. “Text me your address. Just in case.”
“Will do.” Crossing the lot, I got into my truck, sending her a quick text as I started the engine. After buckling up and checking to make sure she was ready to go, I pulled onto the street.
Nerves strummed in my gut, twisting my insides. Which, honestly, boggled my mind. Women never made me nervous. I knew I was handsome and charming. My ego was relatively healthy—but not overblown.
But it felt like the stakes were higher with Mina. I didn’t want to misstep and ruin any chance I had with her.
Shifting in my seat, I resolved to be on my best behavior. No crazy, overt innuendo or flirting. But not so little she didn’t think I was interested. Somehow, I had to find the balance.
I glanced in my rearview mirror, seeing her car behind me. My blood heated once more, knowing she was following me home.
Blowing out a breath, I tamped down the need.
Balance, I reminded myself.
