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Dinner at Mom’s is a much more relaxed affair this time around. And despite our concerns over Stu’s involvement, neither of us show any sign of an issue. Although things get a little strained when Mom asks where Jackson is.
“He’s away for a few days,” Stu says, and he’s either a really good liar or honestly doesn’t know because he doesn’t so much as flinch.
After that the conversation turns to Mom’s trip and all the things her and my aunt plan to do while she’s there. Stu got her an open ticket, so she can stay as long as she wants.
Ash leaves around eleven, but I stay much to his disappointment.
“Such as shame. I was looking forward to dessert. You laid out bare, legs spread wide and pussy dripping with need before I fill it with my cum,” he whispers, his rough stubble brushing against my ear.
So, when I get into my bed alone, I start to wish I’d gone with him so he could ease this damn ache his dirty words have left me with.
* * *
The next coupleof days pass quickly but are worryingly quiet. After saying goodbye to my mom at the airport on Wednesday morning, I’ve spent the last three days working at Morning Kick with Lily and avoiding Stu as much as possible.
There’s been no sign of Aria or Owen since our run in with them on Monday, and Ash still hasn’t heard anything from Jackson other than a short message to let us know he’s still alive. He’s ignored all of Ash’s messages and calls.
Even Deputy Peters has been elusive, which is most definitely a red flag. Everly has been coming into Morning Kick every day to spend her lunch with me. Yesterday Darryl joined us, and what an experience that was—one I really don’t wish to repeat. Although it will hurt Everly, I can’t wait for him to fuck up so she can show him the door.
Drake called me this morning to say that he’s been checking out a lead on Calvin Carmichael and the whereabouts of his son, Liam. So, when my phone chimes with a message from him just as I’m closing Morning Kick, I’m eager to check it out but decide to wait till I get home. This not hearing anything has made me nervous for what Drake is going to tell me.
Ash left after lunch with some excuse about needing to drive into Virginia Beach to pick something up. He had said he’d be back by the time I finished, but as he’s not here, I send a message to let him know I’ll be at his.
He’s taking me to dinner at The Wheelhouse before we head to Aria’s beach party, which despite not seeing her anywhere is the talk of the town. It seems it’s open invitation and anyone who’s anyone will be there.
I cross the street, passing the firehouse and police station and head toward the lake when there’s a noise behind me. Twisting my head and looking over my shoulder, I spot Deputy Peters exiting the station and disappearing round the corner of the building towards the church.
Curiosity might have killed the cat, but it’s done me well so far. It was curiosity that had me listening in on my dad’s conversation with someone at Titan Industries, and it was curiosity that pushed me to keep digging after my dad and Nolan died. Now it’s curiosity that has me crossing back over the street and following Deputy Peters as he strides down the street.
I watch as he enters the church gate then veers left toward the cemetery. Before I can step out to go after him something flashes in the corner of my eye as a figure—a female figure— exits from a side door of the Town Hall and heads off in the same direction as Deputy Peters.
My curiosity is piqued even more now as I watch Aria enter the cemetery. Hurrying after her, I arrive just as she reaches Deputy Peters beneath a large tree and almost hidden from view.
Neither of them look happy to see the other as Aria waves her arms around exaggeratedly, pointing back towards town before pointing at him.
I’m too far away to hear what they’re saying and look for a way to get closer, but there’s nowhere for me to hide here.
After a few more minutes, she spins on her heels and heads back this way. With no time to move, I duck down behind a large headstone, holding my breath, pushing myself into the hard stone and praying she can’t see me.
Her heels crunch on the gravel getting louder as she nears, and I squeeze my eyes tightly shut as her shadow appears on the ground, growing by the second.
She passes me by without so much as a glance this way, and I let out the breath I was holding but remain where I am for a couple of minutes before I even think about moving.
Risking a look over the top of the headstone, I see Deputy Peters pacing as he talks on the phone. Not wanting to push my luck and get caught spying, I slowly back away to the safety of the church, then quickly jog back down to town. Once I reach the cover of the trees, my breathing slows, and my mind turns to Aria and Deputy Peters.
Given their interaction, as they clearly know each other on a personable level, it has me questioning how. Even if Deputy Peters is connected in some way to Titan, it wouldn’t explain how they would know one another. Unless… a horn beeping causes me to miss my step, and I almost land on my ass. Cursing follows from me and whoever the dick is that beeped at me. A car door slams a second before Ash is in front of me.
“Shit, Kenz. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“Yeah, well, it’s my own fault for being lost in thought. But wait till you hear what I was thinking,” I tell him.
Back at Ash’s, I tell him all about Aria and Deputy Peters. As I talk his face morphs into one not overly impressed with my sleuthing. But his disapproval is soon forgotten when I tell him my theory. A theory that is only confirmed when I check Drake’s message. It’s a picture of a guy in his late teens with another guy and a girl, a little younger.
“Is that who I think it is?” Ash asks, as I hand him the phone.
“According to Drake, Liam Carmichael didn’t just disappear eight years ago, he reinvented himself as Robert Peters and became a cop.”
ChapterTwenty-Eight
