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“We really don’t want anyone else involved now that there are actual threats to us. I certainly don’t want your family members more deeply committed to this case.” Tanner would do anything he could to protect the family, includingnotasking questions if he believed it would keep everyone safe.
They all sat quietly for a few minutes. Such a conundrum. “So, we’re sharing this information with you both so you know what’s going on, but please don’t tell anyone, including family, what’s happening. There’s a leak someplace and we’re trying to keep the circle who know about all this as small as possible, so when we do decide to make a move, no one will get a jump on our plans ahead of time.” Tanner had to let them know not to say a word.
“You can trust us, of course. You wouldn’t have said anything if you thought you couldn’t, but we get that you had to say it.” Leah smiled. “Now that we know about it, let us help where we can. Don’t hesitate to call on us if you need partners ininvestigating. I won’t say partners in crime because we can’t have Jake doing sketchy stuff. He has his medical license to think of.”
“Exactly.” Carly nodded at her sister. “No sketchy stuff for either of y’all, got it?”
Leah rolled her eyes.
*
Carly
Last night, afterLeah and Jake had gone, Tanner and I sat together on the dock. Not for a long time, but long enough that something shifted between us. We’d been relaxed, finally, after the day we’d shared, and the moon was big and bright over the water. A fish, or something, splashed nearby, breaking the sounds of crickets and frogs that echoed through the nighttime.
I was comfortable with Tanner; safe and secure in way that I’d never felt with any other man. I could be myself and I knew he wouldn’t judge me. When I compared my childhood crush with the utterly crushy feelings I was currently having, I really couldn’t tell where one ended and the other began. I reached over and put my hand in his. The urge had been almost overwhelming to touch his warm skin.
He responded by curling his fingers around mine. We didn’t speak. It wasn’t necessary in that moment. I’d sighed, so content. With everything happening in our lives, I was relaxed and happy to sit beside Tanner on a moonlit night by the water and hold his hand. The thrill—the romance of it—ran through my fingers and straight into my soul.
We sat like that for half an hour before I stifled a huge yawn, which made Tanner laugh. “We’ve got an early morning. You’d better get some sleep.”
“Yeah. I guess I’d better get going. Thanks for inviting me over. It’s been a nice evening.”
He nodded and smiled. “It has.”
He and I walked up the dock together and I got in my car while he cleaned up the bottles and battened down his hatches for the night. I’d only had one beer, so driving wasn’t an issue.
The house was dark when I arrived at Nana’s. I assumed she was already asleep since it was well past her bedtime. I set my alarm and fell into bed exhausted but somehow excited about the connection Tanner and I had made. It was subtle, but somehow it seemed important, like the ground had shifted between us.
I’d barely closed my eyes when my alarm went off…or so it seemed. I was still in the same position as when I’d gone to sleep.
This morning we were headed to meet with Dr. Miller. Well,ambushhim really. Instead of calling him ahead of time, we’d decided not to give him the opportunity to slip away without talking to us. If we were going to get information on Marie’s situation, this guy could hold the key.
I showered and dressed quickly for the day. When I got downstairs, Nana was already in the kitchen in her robe. “Egg sandwich?”
“Sure.” Since she already had it made and on a plate for me, I wasn’t going to refuse the delicious sustenance. I grabbed a mug and poured a cup of fresh-brewed Community Coffee. The dark roast chicory blend was a staple in the state for so many folks. I’d gotten hooked on it when I lived in South Louisiana while I was in law school.
“What’s happening with Lisa and Marie? Anything new?” Nana’s tone was conversational.
I hadn’t filled her in on the latest and thought better of going into it now. “We’re working on a couple things now. I’ll let you know how it goes.” I also didn’t want to worry her.
Nana nodded. She wouldn’t pry into my professional life beyond asking. “Y’all stay safe out there. Something about this is crawling up my spine, darlin’.”
Nana had a wicked sixth sense. Call it gris-gris or juju, or whatever. Nana had a touch of it in her soul. She’d learned about herbs and some of the healing arts as a young woman, but I didn’t know much about that. Only that when Nana said she had a funny feeling about something, I listened.
“I’ll be careful.” I took a second to lay my head on her shoulder and give her a quick squeeze. “Thanks for making breakfast.”
“I like to send you out there ready for the day. I miss the days when you girls were little and I could spoil you.” She kissed the top of my head.
“I miss those days too. I like being spoiled.” Momma wasn’t much for spoiling us as kids, but I was so grateful we’d had Nana in our lives to take up the slack.
I wrapped the other half of my sandwich in a napkin and took it with me as I hurried out the door. Being late wasn’t an option this morning—well, any morning. But especially this morning. I was excited to find out what Dr. Miller knew about Marie. Excited and a little anxious. Was it wrong to thrive on this kind of excitement? It was kind of like watching a thriller on TV. I guess it was a little depraved, but my heart was beating fast, and I couldn’t wait to find out what happened next. Also, there was last night’s hand-holding thing. That might be part of this morning’s anticipation. Maybe.
When I arrived at the office, Tanner’s truck was already parked outside, along with Lisa’s BMW. I didn’t see any sign of Imogene’s car yet. I hoped Lisa was an early riser since we would be bursting in every morning around seven thirty to start the day. It seemed to be the time both Tanner and I had adjusted to naturally over the past couple weeks since we’d begun our venture together.
Lisa was up and dressed, which had me breathing a sigh of relief. She and Tanner were having a cup of coffee together in the conference room when I came in. “Good morning.” I greeted them both, but my eyes darted immediately to Tanner without hesitation. He was smiling at me.Whew. Good.I didn’t want to see regret about our handholding in his gaze because I had none.
“What do you think about Lisa’s going in to speak to Dr. Miller alone at first while we wait in the car and listen in?” Tanner spoke as soon as I’d put down my bag and sat down at the table. “We could be ready to come inside at a moment’s notice.” It was legal by law if one party gave consent to listen or record conversations.
