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Griff moved over.
Rachel sat beside him. “There. Isn’t this cozy, sweetheart?”
He grinned. “Yes, it is, honey.”
The waitress returned with a smile. “Hi, Rachel. Who have you got with you today?”
“Candy, this is my fiancé, Griff.” She smiled up at Griff. “Griff, this is Candy. Though we’ve only known each other a few weeks, we’re on a first-name basis because, sadly, I eat most of my meals here.”
“She does,” Candy said, nodding.
“Maddie, the owner, is such a good cook I can’t begin to make anything quite as tasty. And it’s no fun cooking for one.”
Candy wrinkled her nose. “I eat most of my meals here, too. Maddie is the best cook in the state of Colorado.” She smiled at Griff. “So, Rachel, you have a fiancé. Why did I not know this?”
Rachel’s cheeks heated. “It’s all so new. Griff got in town last night.”
“He popped the question last night?” Candy sighed. “How romantic.” Her eyes widened. “Show me the ring.”
Her cheeks burning now, Rachel had forgotten that most engagements came with a ring. She opened her mouth but couldn’t think of an excuse.
“It didn’t fit,” Griff said. “We’re having it sized.”
“I’m so happy for you. I was worried you weren’t happy being alone in Fool’s Gold. And here you had a boyfriend all along.” She sighed again. “Seems so mundane now for me to ask what you’d like to eat. We should be celebrating.”
“Wearecelebrating,” Rachel said. “We’re hungry and came to the best restaurant in the whole state. What better way to celebrate than with food we love?”
“Right?” Candy grinned. “Then what is it you’d like to have?”
Griff and Rachel placed orders for a hearty breakfast with eggs, bacon, hashbrowns and toast.
“And please bring coffee,” Rachel added.
After Candy left to fill their orders, Rachel shot a glance toward Griff. “I still want to take you to the coffee shop where my sister worked.”
“And I want to go there,” he said.
“I keep hoping that by going to the places she frequented that somehow a clue will come to me.” Rachel gave him a crooked grin. “My sister was the free spirit who believed in fate, Karma and signs. I was the older child…the grounded one. Do you believe in fate?”
“I didn’t. But when my entire team was killed in a helicopter crash, I had to believe I was spared for a reason. It’s been the only way I can reconcile my survival with their deaths.”
“I’m so sorry,” Rachel said. “Maybe you were spared to help find my sister’s killer.”
“I hope that’s the case. It pains me greatly to know a man capable of strangling a woman is still free and could strike again.”
“Exactly. And he could be a member of this community, someone everyone trusts.” She stared across the room at the few customers eating a late breakfast, and a shiver rippled down her spine. “Everywhere I go, I always wonder if he’s sitting in the same room as I am. If he’s at the gas station when I’m stopping for fuel. Hell, we could be passing each other in the grocery store.”
CHAPTER6
Griff reachedfor Rachel’s hand. “Do you know the people who are in this room now?”
Rachel shrugged. “Some.” She tipped her chin toward a table where two men sat in business suits. “I’m not on a first-name basis with those two men, but they have some kind of management positions at the casino. They meet for breakfast quite often or for coffee at the coffee shop. I’ve also seen them out at the Watering Hole Tavern after work.”
“What about the man sitting with the woman in the far corner?” Griff asked.
“I’ve seen them once before, but not enough to learn anything about them.” Rachel tipped her head toward a nice-looking man with salt and pepper hair, seated at the bar. “That’s Alan Smith. He’s a package delivery driver. I see him all over town. I think he’s got a thing for Candy.”
“The woman sitting by herself?” Griff asked.
