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She sucks in a slow breath like she’s striving for patience. “You had me so angry I simply forgot.”
“Sorry.” Unbalancing people is one of my talents. Comes in handy in what I do, interrogations especially.
She continues to clutch the door like a shield. She does know it’s not much of a barrier for my type? When I’m on the job, that is. I do behave in real life.
Still, I guess it’s good she has a sense of danger. Women should be careful like that.
Me? Danger?
Her head tilts, and a mane of gorgeous hair sweeps along her shoulder. She scoops the bundle up and somehow rigs the tantalizing mess back up behind her head. “How did you find me?”
“Went by the diner. Asked around. Flashed my badge. Your boss couldn’t wait to help me out. Oh, but, he’ll probably have some questions for you in the morning.”
Hollie’s color skyrockets into the danger zone. “You didn’t…”
I flash one of my sort-of smiles. “No. I did not. It was that older woman I see you talking to. Charlene, maybe? I caught her as she was leaving, and she was more than happy to give me your address. She seemed to know what was going on.”
“It’s Marlene.”
I shrug. My guess is that somebody namedMarlenewill be the one getting an earful in the morning. “Do I get to come in?”
Hollie’s blue eyes, bright with emotion, flit all over the place. She sighs. “I suppose.” Stepping aside, she lets me enter.
Despite the diminutive size of the place, the impression I’m struck with is hominess. It’s well-maintained and smells good, too. Even I can appreciate the warm touches of a woman on a home.
I make a visual sweep of the room. A ragged-looking Bible on the coffee table. Baby pictures and school pictures on the wall. A professional shot of Hollie and the delinquent…uh, her son. Plus, one framed print of a mountain vista that makes me mentally calculate my accumulated vacation days—about sixty, by my count. It’s been a while.
Hmm. Trout fishing in Montana sounds nice…
A throat clears.
Right. On it. I rock onto the balls of my feet. “Where’s the kid?”
Her eyebrows vee sharply. “You mean Jacob? Myson.”
She doesn’t have to be rude. I’m the one doing the favor here. I click my tongue. “That’s the one.”
Wow. Those blue eyes are spectacular, even when they’re looping like a roller coaster. “He’s at football practice. He should be here soon.”
I take a peek at my watch.
She fists her hands on her tiny little waist. “I hope that doesn’t inconvenience you?”
I shrug. “No more than the rest of it.”
Her finger soars through the air. “Out!”
“Hey, calm down now.”
Steam puffs out of her ears.
Oh. That’s a woman no-no, isn’t it?
“Don’t you dare act like I’m the one overreacting here. You have the social acumen of a—”
I brandish a finger. “Think now…”
“Ughhh! You are the worst!” The heels of her hands press into her forehead.
