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“Whoever shot you wasn’t aiming to kill,” Pegasus observed, squinting at the damaged flesh before meeting Jane’s gaze. “Lucky for you, they only grazed the muscle.”
“Still hurts like hell,” he grumbled, watching as she re-threaded the needle with practiced ease.
“Of course it does,” she replied, not missing a beat as she finished stitching up the gash. “Now hold still, unless you want this to scar worse than it has to.”
“God forbid I ruin my modeling career,” he said dryly, allowing himself a small smile despite the pain.
Pegasus scoffed, though her lips twitched in a ghost of a grin. “I think that ship sailed long ago, North.”
“Are you calling me old?” He laughed, even as he flinched from her ministrations. “You really know how to kick a man when he’s down.”
“Only because I care,” she retorted, tying off the last stitch and snipping the thread. “There. You’ll live.”
“Thank you,” Bridger murmured, genuinely grateful for her skill and efficiency.
“Least I could do,” she shrugged, disposing of the used needle and thread. “Now let’s get you cleaned up and ready to face whatever mess you’ve dragged me into this time.”
9
The warm scentof homemade sourdough bread filled the small kitchen as Jane joined Bridger and his mentor around the table for a simple dinner. She looked better, much to his relief. A shower and a few hours of quiet clearly had a calming effect.
Pegs caught Bridger’s appreciative glance at the steaming loaf and raised an eyebrow. “What, you thought I only knew how to kill people?”
“Hey, it’s just surprising.” He smirked as he cut himself a generous slice. “I never figured you for the domestic type.”
“Ha, well, there’s a lot you don’t know about me,” Pegasus shot back, her eyes twinkling with mischief.
Jane looked from one to the other, obviously wondering about their shared history.
“Alright, let’s focus.” Pegasus set down her fork and turned to Jane. “We need to go over what we know about your ex-husband and his activities.”
Bridger nodded, his mind shifting gears as he took a bite of the bread, the tangy flavor momentarily grounding him in the present.
“Jane, can you walk us through the timeline since you met Pete?” Pegasus asked.
“Of course,” Jane replied, gathering her thoughts. “I met Pete about three years ago. We dated for a few months before getting married. It wasn’t long after that when I found out about the real estate scheme he had going in Los Angeles and...his affairs.”
Bridger clenched his jaw at the mention of her ex’s betrayals. How anyone could throw away a relationship with a woman like Jane… He literally couldn’t imagine.
Pegs dipped her spoon in the soup, somehow managing to make the movement look threatening as all get out. “Probably wasn’t the only one. Con game, I mean,” she added quickly.
Jane smiled sadly. “Affair, either, I’ll bet. Pete left town with his son Kellen shortly after I filed for divorce,” she continued, her voice steady. “I haven’t seen them since.”
“And now he’s deep in a new scheme. We need to figure out what he plans to do with your money,” Pegasus mused, her silver hair catching the dim light of the room. “My guess is he owes some scary people.”
Bridger tamped down his rising anger. What he really wanted to do was tear Pete Sanderson’s head from his shoulders, but anger would only frighten Jane. “Agreed.”
Pegs eyed him. “I’m guessing your team’s already on this.”
He nodded.
“Good.” She wiped her mouth with her napkin. “Not much for us to do on that end, then. Anything you can tell us that might help?” she asked Jane. “Anybody we could start with? Former partners? Enemies?”
Jane pursed her lips, shaking her head. “He wasn’t from Redemption Creek. We didn’t have any mutual friends.”
“Because the guy’s a snake,” Bridger muttered.
Pegs shot him a look. He shrugged.
