Lucy and the Valentine Verdict by Rae Davies Read Free Book Online Page B

and mouth in mock shock.
Well, not all that mock. “Do you think she stole it? From the
house? Did you take stolen goods?”
    His lips curved in a deliciously devious
way. “I have no knowledge of such events or reason to suspect such
events.”
    Except there was no grocery store and that
croissant hadn’t come from a gas station...
    He walked over to pick up the empty paper
bag that had held my breakfast. “Unfortunately...” He shook the
bag. “Someone has eaten all the evidence.”
    I smiled. I loved it when he was playful
like this.
    As we sipped our coffee, I studied him and
considered how to find out what he’d been up to that had put him in
such a good mood.
    “So, out?” I prompted.
    He took a drink of coffee and settled into
the over-stuffed recliner across from me.
    Whoever had decorated the main house had
not, it seemed, given the same attention to the cabins, or at least
our cabin. It was much more Black Friday bargain bin than Black
Forest antique.
    Peter thumped the arm of the recliner. “I
used to have a chair like this. I should get another one.”
    Resisting the urge to roll my eyes, I
reached for a creamer. “So, you went into town?”
    “I did.”
    It wasn’t much, but it was an
answer.
    “What exactly is in town, anyway?” Casual...
not prodding at all.
    “Post office, gas station, a bank...”
    “A police station?”
    He took a slug of coffee. “Nope. No police
station here. No police.”
    He was looking a little too smug for my
taste. I twisted my lips. “No police at all? What happens when
someone’s... I don’t know... antique watch is stolen?” I remembered
then that he’d said something about a “deputy sheriff” last night.
“Is there a sheriff’s office maybe?”
    He took another sip. “Missoula covers this
area.”
    That was not a complete answer. He knew it,
and I knew it. I narrowed my eyes. “So if I wanted to report a
crime, I’d call Missoula.”
    “That’s what I’d do.”
    I growled. He grinned and then he
relented.
    “It so happens, I did run into the deputy
sheriff.”
    I was sure that was a big old coincidence.
“And?”
    He shrugged. “Some kids spray-painted a
garage.”
    “And...?”
    “Not much more; he did let me use his laptop
for a few minutes. To check email and such.”
    I bet. “And?”
    “Nothing.”
    Nothing my ass. I grimaced. Looking as
pleased as Kiska with a brand new toy, he took another sip of
coffee. I waited a few seconds, trying to determine if he actually
knew something or was just enjoying making me think he knew
something.
    My annoyance must have shown on my face,
because after a moment, he relented.
    “Really. Nothing. No one called in any
complaint from here.”
    I nodded. That made me feel somewhat better,
but not a lot. “That doesn’t mean they won’t.”
    “And it doesn’t mean they will. And if they
do, there is zero evidence against you.”
    True, but I’d been accused before on not
much more.
    He walked over and sat on the couch beside
me. “People misplace things all the time. A missing watch does not
a grand larceny case make.”
    He was right, as usual. Still, I couldn’t
help but want to avoid the accusing eyes that I knew were waiting
for me in the main house.
    I twisted my finger into a hole on the knee
of my sweats. “Are you having fun? Because if you aren’t... we
could leave. I know this isn’t your kind of thing...”
    His gaze was level and serious. “Is that
what you want?”
    Pressing my lips together, I stared back at
him. It was what I wanted. Being accused of stealing in front of
everyone had been humiliating, and then I’d added to that
embarrassment by stumbling out on my way to passing out. But if I
left, people would think I was guilty.
    I shook my head. “No.”
    “Good.” His eyes glimmered, and I smiled. I
was a liar and he knew it, but I thought maybe that made him
appreciate my decision to stay even more.
    From inside the bedroom came the sound of an
Alaskan malamute