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“Trust someone,” Nichols growled, returning with two oversized black molded plastic cases that looked like they were better suited to an underground military installation than a cozy den in Haleswood. Shouldering his way between Eva and the sheriff, Nichols headed into the den. “Come on and I’ll give you the rundown. You’ll thank me later.”
Her lip curled in a dramatic sneer and Carson had the distinct impression she was mentally cursing Nichols in more than a few languages as she followed him. A few seconds later he heard the sound of latches flipping open and a happy little exclamation of surprise from Eva. Apparently the new toys would be worth the tradeoff.
He went the other direction to confer with the sheriff about scheduled check-ins, shift rotations, and radio channels.
***
“Careful what you wish for,” Eva murmured, studying the lake from the safety of the dimly lit den. She didn’t feel comfortable turning on the lights and giving whoever might be watching a better view.
When she’d wished for a new case to challenge her, she didn’t think it would be her own life on the line. It was hard to believe guards were already posted around Ruth’s property. Men the sheriff and Ross trusted to keep Morcos away from her. The temperature was dropping and there was a chance of snow in the forecast. She made a mental note to get the names of everyone on this detail so she could thank them when it was done.
“Fair warning,” she said, feeling Carson hovering in the doorway. “I’m going to go crazy hiding here, rattling around in this antebellum monstrosity.” The house was lovely, but all the space and quiet intimidated her. Even the windows mocked her, waiting to shatter under a bullet’s impact at any moment.
Her skin actually itched with the vulnerable feeling. Once more, she reached for the place where her side arm should be. Her shoulder couldn’t get strong fast enough. Going unarmed annoyed her more every day—and that was before she’d heard about Morcos’s bounty. She was about to ask Carson to hook her up with a weapon when he said something completely unexpected.
“This house isn’t antebellum.”
“Yeah, that was the relevant point.” She’d been inside Ruth’s home once before and the memory wasn’t her favorite. Not bad, just not her favorite. She’d been on surveillance detail when her target—Ross’s high school sweetheart, Allie—took off on an impromptu run through the countryside. They’d ended up here in her aunt’s kitchen, Allie looking none the worse for the effort and Eva gasping for breath and fighting a side stitch.
“Antebellum means pre-Civil War.”
“I know that.” Surely, she’d known that. “But come on. You have to admit the house is ‘Frankly Scarlet’ Southern.”
“True.” He laughed and she took a little too much pleasure in the deep, baritone sound. “Have you ever been to Georgia?”
“No.” Quiet, sedate south wasn’t her thing. Big, noisy cities with a lively urban nightlife were her preference. “You know, I thought Columbia was rural,” she admitted. “Then Ross showed me his house by the lake.”
“Now thatisrural,” Carson agreed. “I wondered who bought the land a few years ago. Allie and Ross used to meet there in high school when it was nothing but a quiet cove.”
“Really? Do tell.” She urged him to join her at the other end of the couch. “Seriously,” she said when he hesitated. “What else is there to do right now?”
The facial recognition software was doing its thing and until she had the Morcos file from the FBI she couldn’t do much more than keep reliving the failed mission. Since it hadn’t done her any good so far, she’d prefer any distraction to get it out of her head.
He’d left his hat somewhere, the kitchen probably, and she noticed the slight curl of his blond hair. Inviting him closer might have been a mistake, but it was too late now.
“I shouldn’t talk about it,” he said, as he settled his lanky frame onto Ruth’s tapestry couch. He sent her a sheepish smile. “They hated gossip back then.”
“Because it was all about them?”
“Often,” he admitted. “They were inseparable from grade school on. Her daddy didn’t like Ross and was always bragging about Allie’s big prospects.”
“You mean prospects like Shannon?”
“No.” He shook his head and something like regret darkened his expression. “Prospects like going away to college and launching a big career.”
“She landed a sweet gig with that company in Virginia.”
“Yeah. Everyone here talked about that for weeks. Ruth and her parents were so proud. But she rarely came home to visit.”
“What about Ross? When we caught that case, I got the impression he’d lost contact with her.”
“He left town right out of high school and never came back. As far as anyone in town knew, he was still in the Army. Until he showed up with you.”
“Me?”
“Yep.” He cleared his throat. “I heard he only sent a picture of himself at some random base on the other side of the world for their tenth high school reunion.”
But she latched on like a dog with a bone to what he hadn’t said. “What do you mean he showed up with me?” She felt fifteen again; when the cute guy at her sister’s wedding reception had asked her to dance. The happy flutter of attraction was dialed up high. The only thing missing was the wedding band doing covers of cheesy love ballads.
