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Maybe he ought to forget her.
He picked up his napkin and wiped the scone residue off his fingers, but the sticky caramel drizzle was hard to expunge.
As thoughts of Bri would be.
Yet short of some new, significant development, their work together on this case had come to an end.
SIX
“EARTH TO BRI.Come in, Bri.”
At the playful elbow nudge in her ribs, Bri shifted toward her sister, seated on the picnic bench beside her. “Sorry. What did I miss?”
Cara motioned toward their brother, who was manning the barbecue pit on the patio behind his house. “I said I hope Jack doesn’t char the steaks, like he did on the Fourth of July.”
“I heard that.” He waved his tongs at them. “Those steaks were not charred. They were seared, my dear Cara, which gives them excellent visual appeal and enhances the flavor of my secret rub. If you ever learned to cook more than soup and omelets, you’d appreciate my masterful grilling technique.”
She dismissed his comment with a flip of her hand. “You make grilling sound like rocket science. I’m sure if I studied the technique, I could produce a delicious meal. Research, as you know, is my forté. In fact, when it’s my turn to host the family meal next month, maybe I’ll barbecue and—”
“No!” Bri and Jack spoke at the same time.
“It’s not that we don’t appreciate the offer, Cara.” Bri sent Jack a sidelong glance. “But I have a craving for one of your cheese and mushroom omelets. They’re always delicious.”
“And they won’t break our teeth.” Her brother grinned and adjusted the flames.
“Jack!” Bri rolled her eyes.
“What? It’s true. I was afraid I was going to have to visitmy dentist after Cara’s one and only grilling attempt last spring.” He directed the next comment to their sister. “How the heck did you manage to produce ribs that were dry as jerky, anyway?”
“Thanks a lot, Bro.” Cara stuck out her tongue at him.
He chuckled. “Just giving you a hard time, kiddo. My teeth survived. Besides, you have many other talents, and we love you even if you can’t cook. Right, Bri?”
“Goes without saying.”
“If you ladies want to get the side dishes from the kitchen, we’re about set.”
“We’re on it. I’m starving.” Bri rose and tugged Cara up. “What else did you prepare for this feast?”
“Baked potatoes with all the fixings and Mom’s green bean casserole—for old time’s sake. She gave me the recipe a couple of years ago.”
Pressure built in Bri’s throat during the silence that followed. The green bean casserole had been a staple at family holiday dinners for as long as she could remember, until Mom had finally succumbed to her worsening heart issues eight months ago.
“It will almost be like Mom is with us.” Cara sniffed and pulled a tissue from her pocket.
“Sheiswith us. We just can’t see her anymore.” Bri gave her sister a hug.
“It’s not the same.”
No, it wasn’t. With both Mom and Dad gone now, there was a hole in their lives that would never be filled.
“She’d be happy we kept up the tradition of monthly family dinners, though.” Jack averted his face and fiddled with the grill settings. Cleared his throat. “Even if some are less palatable than others.”
Leave it to Jack to wisecrack when emotions started to run high.
But if that coping mechanism helped keep their detective brother sane on the stomach-churning cases he often dealt with, he could wisecrack all he wanted.
“Come on, Cara. Let’s get the rest of the food.” Bri towed her sister toward the house. “And if Jack keeps yanking your chain, we can gang up on him about the leaky faucet repair he botched last summer that you helped him sort out.”
