Page 57 of Fairest of Heart

“Look, Rowdy,” Titus tried again. “You’re not in any trouble. I just need the stones so I can return them to their owners, all right? Can you tell me where they are?”

Rowdy’s face scrunched in concentration like it did whenever he tried to speak. His mouth opened, worked a bit, then finally spit out a word.

“M-Mine.”

Titus bit his tongue to keep his frustration in check. After all their patient cajoling, this is how he wanted to play things?

“No, Rowdy, they aren’t yours. They were stolen, and they need to be returned.” An idea sparked. The fellow liked to trade, right? Titus dug in his pocket and pulled out a half-dozen coins. Some of them were shinier than others, but this was a man who considered buttons a fair trade for rubies. “I’ll give you these. We can swap. All right?”

He set the coins in front of Rowdy, but the old man shook his head and pushed the money back toward Titus.

“Keep . . . Mine.”

“But they’re not yours.” Titus lurched to his feet. “You have to give them back.”

Rowdy shot to his feet as well, his gaze hardening. “I . . . no . . .” He jabbed a finger toward the back door. “G-get . . .”

Was he telling Titus to leave?

“Mine.”

If he said mine one more time, Titus’s head was gonna explode.

He rounded the table, his finger aiming for Rowdy’s chest, but it ended up jabbed against Penelope’s shoulder instead when she whirled between them.

“You know what? It’s been a long day. I’m exhausted. I bet we all are. Why don’t we get a good night’s rest and talk in the morning?” She shot a censoring look at Titus, then wrapped an arm around Rowdy and steered him toward the hall. “I’m so glad to have you home. I’m going to make you a big breakfast tomorrow. A tall stack of flapjacks with strawberry jam, bacon, and eggs. How does that sound?”

Titus scowled. It sounded like a reward for bad behavior. He stalked over to the sink and dumped out the remains of his coffee. They didn’t have time to tiptoe around. Rowdy might be a little confused, but he was a grown man. He shouldn’t be given permission to act like a petulant child just because he didn’t feel like sharing. And he blamed sure shouldn’t have the fatted calf killed for him just because the others dragged his stubborn carcass home.

A quiet footfall alerted him that he was no longer alone. He turned. “You shouldn’t’ve interfered.”

Penelope crossed her arms over her chest. “You shouldn’t’ve interrupted. Things were progressing just fine until you forced your way into the conversation, demanding to know where the stones were.”

He reached behind his back and gripped the counter behind him. “That’s my job, in case you’ve forgotten. To find the stones.”

Her arms unfolded and circled in the air. “Of course I haven’t forgotten. But you can’t treat Rowdy like one of your suspects.”

“So I should treat him like a child instead? Patting his head and buying his cooperation with sweets? You’re too soft on him.”

“And you’re in too much of a hurry. He obviously felt guilty about taking the gems. If you had just given me a little more time, he would have told us what he did with them.”

Titus pushed away from the counter. “Are you sure? Because he didn’t seem too forthcoming to me. Seemed pretty adamant about keeping the rocks for himself.”

Fire flashed in her eyes. “You don’t know that.”

“How many times does the man have to say ‘mine’ before you’ll admit that he’s being uncooperative?” He paced closer, determined to seal his point, but the more the distance between them shrank, the more distracted he became by the effects of her passionate defense. Roses in her cheeks. Animated movements. The way her chest heaved slightly as if she were doing physical battle.

“You know how flustered he gets with his words.” She advanced, closing the distance even further, her eyes sparking fire. “You can’t just demand answers from him like you would a criminal. He needs patience and kindness.”

Penelope Snow in her natural state—sweet and unassuming—was like a meadow of wildflowers. Beautiful and delicate. A site a man could appreciate. One that tempted the setting up of a permanent camp. But Penelope Snow in the midst of a passionate display? That was like encountering a towering waterfall, a vision so stunning, all a man could do was stare.

And apparently lose his mind. What had he been saying?

She sighed and dropped her arms to her sides. “I’ll talk to him in the morning. Ask him to show me where they are. I’ll ask Doc to help. We’ll find the jewels, Titus. One way or another.”

Ah yes. The jewels.

“Unfortunately, I don’t have time to wait for Rowdy to decide to be cooperative.” He rubbed a hand over his jaw. “I got a message from headquarters. Another theft happened in Granbury. I need to interview the victim and see if I can tie him to Madame LaBelle. Even if not, I have to go after the troupe. If Hunt has reported back, she’ll be on her guard. Might even try to run. If I don’t go after her now, I might not get another chance.”