Lost & Broken (LIttlemoon Investigations Book 2) Page 17

  Kane wanted to pounce on her. She looked so adorable all rumpled and disheveled from sex. Her hair was a tousled mess, and she had whisker burn on her cheek.

  “Yeah, you probably shouldn’t, since it may be my other baby momma,” he teased.

  Oh, she knew how to wipe the smug right off his face. “Yeah, well that’s why I don’t want you in my phone. My other Native sex bunny might be texting for a booty call. I might decide to be like Elizabeth Blackhawk, collecting more than one.”

  He growled and jumped on the bed, pinning her beneath his much larger frame.

  Christina started giggling as he playfully bit her neck. “Seriously, who was it?” he asked.

  She shook her head. “I told you. I didn't check it.”

  “Chrissy, you and I don’t have boundaries. We’re getting married and there shouldn’t be any secrets. You won’t ever find anything that is questionable in my life. I only have one love, and she’s right here with me.”

  She was touched. “I think you misunderstood me. I trust you, but I didn't get your phone because it’s across the room and I’m too worn out from sex to get it.”

  He started laughing, amused that he just gave her a speech that wasn’t needed. Kane should have known better.

  Christina snickered as he got off the bed, and she yanked his towel off his body. As he walked away, she could already feel her blood pressure rising.

  Good heavens!

  Her Native was one incredibly sexy man. It was hard not to stare at the cut muscles moving across his back and ribs to his incredibly delicious behind. Oh, then there was the hair. It hung all the way down his back, teasing and begging her to play in it.

  WOW! She was pretty amped up on baby hormones today!

  When he turned, after reading the message, Kane could feel her watching him still. Glancing up, it was obvious what his fiancée was thinking. Whenever she was dwelling on sex, she chewed on her bottom lip.

  It turned him right on.

  “Who was it?” she asked, trying to stay focused on the message and not the naked man in front of her. She deserved one hell of a medal, because it wasn’t easy.

  Strolling over to the bed, he laid back beside her to whisper in her ear. “It was Julian. He wants to meet outside tonight. He doesn’t trust the house. He’s going to scale the tree with Tori and meet us out there.”

  “Can I do that too?” she asked, teasing him.

  When her hand roamed up his bare hip, his brain nearly went blank until he pictured his pregnant woman dangling from a tree limb. “No!”

  She giggled.

  “Want to take an evening stroll with me?” he asked out loud, just in case they had eyes watching them.

  “Mmmm hmmmm,” she mumbled, as her hand found him coming back to life. “I’d stay and play, but now I need a shower,” she said, as his lips ran across the scars on her shoulder. Before Kane, she never believed that she would be able to be naked and completely comfortable with a man again. When she met him, he put her fears at ease, and never ignored the scars or made a big deal about them. They were simply part of her, and he loved them along with her and the tattoos.

  “I’ll miss you,” he said, watching her adorable ass sway as she walked away.

  When the bathroom door closed, he wondered what he did to deserve her. As the door opened and she peeked out, Christina had his full attention.

  “Cuddle cakes, I have a few spots I can’t reach. Care to come help me get them? Besides, the bathroom is a dangerous place, I might fall and impale myself on something.”

  He stared at her.

  “Repeatedly.”

  That was all it took.

  Out of the bed he hopped, racing toward the bathroom.

  “Anything for you, Chrissy. Absolutely anything.”

  * * *

  At the knock on the door, she glanced up from her work. Jamie and the head house keeper, Sharla Wheaton, were busy at the large desk.

  “Can I help you?” she asked.

  “We need to discuss something, Jamie. It involves Fredrick.” Julian figured that would be the most likely reason that they would be coming to see her. They really didn't want to give anything away to the woman sitting beside Jamie.

  “Sharla, can you excuse us?” she asked, putting down her pen. No one spoke until there was a click from the closing door.

  When the woman was gone, Jamie sighed. “What did he do now?”

  “Nothing,” stated Tori. “He was our excuse to get you alone. We have a big problem.”

  The woman began looking nervous. “What?”

  “I went to go see William today and unfortunately, a large bookshelf landed on him.”

  “Oh no! Is he okay?”

  Julian picked up the tale. “No, he’s dead.” Without missing a beat, he stared at her. “Did you tell anyone that we were here or investigating anything?” he asked, staring at her.

  “No! I swear, I didn't tell anyone but him. I couldn’t ask him to help you and not let little bit of information out. I knew he’d keep it quiet, or I had hoped he would.”

  Yeah, that was looking less and less likely.

  She thought about it. “Maybe he said something to someone. How am I supposed to know? Oh God, I feel sick over all of this! Please tell me that I didn't have something to do with his death,” she pleaded, nearly in tears. “I don’t think I could live with myself if I thought I caused it.”

  Julian didn't know what to tell her. “We can’t tell if it was an accident or done intentionally. The shelf may have just fallen on him,” he offered, trying to keep the woman from breaking down and weeping.

  It seemed to offer her some reassurance.

  “I called the police,” stated Tori. “They may come here and want to talk to us.”

  “What did you tell them?” she asked panicking. Gone was the sadness, and in its place was sheer terror. “Do they know that I was digging around in the Hesser past? If I lose my job…”

  Tori shook her head and interjected. “Client confidentiality prevents us from saying anything. We stuck to our undercover roles and the sheriff didn't suspect anything.”

  Now, she was relieved once more. “If I get busted, I can’t pay your fee, so we need to keep my family history out of this,” she whispered. “At least until I can get the proof I need to come out of the closet on this one.”

  “We understand,” Julian said. “We’ve an excellent track record with things like this.”

  “I hope William was able to help you both before he died,” she said, still looking shocked that the poor old man was gone. “I’ll miss him. He had a way about him,” she said sadly. “He was like the grandfather you always wanted, know what I mean?”

  “Yeah, we understand,” Tori offered sympathetically. As much as she and Jamie disliked each other from their first meeting, this one thing they could agree on. William Macavoy was a sweet old man.

  Julian added, “He wasn’t able to help us at all. It’s too bad that he couldn’t give us anything to help us.”

  Tori glanced over at her husband, unsure why he was keeping the book in her bag a secret. Then again, if Julian had a reason, it had to be good.

  “We’re going to go get dressed for dinner,” he said. “We just wanted to give you a heads up.”

  The woman leaned back in her chair, looking distraught. “Please be careful. This worries me.”

  Yeah, it bothered him too, but now they were on alert. Julian was expecting the worst, and he would be prepared for it.

  Out in the hall, Tori leaned into his ear. “Why didn't you tell her about the journal?” she asked.

  Pretending to nuzzle her neck as they climbed the stairs, he whispered back. “I don’t know if I trust her to keep her mouth shut. Maybe William told someone, but with Christina getting shoved over the balcony and the local expert on the Hessers getting crushed to death, I’m a little wary that we’re wearing targets.”

  She understood now and come to think of it, she didn't blame him in the le
ast.

  “Then, we should hide the journal until we can read it,” she added. Since the walls literally had eyes, they needed to be far more cautious.

  He was already focused on that little mission. “When we get back to the room, meet me in the bathroom. Bring your purse,” he said.

  Once inside, Julian dug around in his suitcase and found what he was looking for. Shoving it in his pocket, he headed into the bathroom with his wife. Closing the door behind them, he pulled the plastic storage bag from his pocket.

  “What are you going to do with that?” she asked, enthralled by her husband’s stealthy attempt at being tricky.

  “I’m going to hide this journal where no one will look for it,” he stated, lifting the back of the toilet off.

  “Holy shit,” she muttered. “Really? You’re going to put our only possible link in a toilet?”

  He started laughing. “This is a little Rez trick that I learned growing up.”

  She stared at him. “What the hell could you be hiding in the back of a toilet, Jules?” Tori was almost afraid to ask, but figured that she probably should.

  “Peyote.”

  She stared at him, waiting for him to tell her the real reason. He had to be kidding.

  When he only grinned, she shook her head in disbelief.

  “Oh my God! You were a law breaking bad boy,” she teased.

  He grinned wickedly at his wife. “It wasn’t just mine. You can scold Justin later. He was equally to blame.”

  “Why doesn’t that shock me?”

  “Does it help to know that it was for communing with the spirit world and not to get high?”

  Tori wasn’t buying what he was selling.

  Not in the least.

  “Hey, it was the Rez. Don’t judge. You saw the poverty and hot mess that we lived through. Until you walk a mile in my moccasins....”

  She stopped him from continuing.

  “I’m going home to check our toilets.”

  He started laughing. “Honey, I was sixteen. I have a much better drug now.”

  Tori waited for him to place the book in the bag, and then into the toilet. “What would that be, Jules?” she asked.

  Staring deep into her eyes, he shared his heart.

  “My wife, of course.”

  * * *

  Julian and Tori were the last to arrive at dinner. Once in the room, they were already picking up snippets to the ongoing discussion. To their dismay, it was all about William Macavoy.

  Well hell!

  When they entered, everyone stopped speaking and stared over at them.

  “Are you okay?” Lorelei asked, standing. “We came out after our drinks and saw you sitting in front of that man’s shop. I tried to get your attention, but the sheriff’s deputies wouldn’t let us close enough.”

  Once more, Tori feigned the horror that they were expecting to see. “It was horrible. I was walking down the street toward the jewelers to meet my husband, and I wanted to stop in and see the man. He had given us some amazing information the other day about the town, and I wanted to thank him.”

  Julian glanced over at Stephen Snyder. He was staring at Tori suspiciously. His wife was playing this exactly right, since the couple had seen them coming out of the building earlier in the week.

  “When I pulled on the door, it was open. I assumed that he was there, and I headed in. The poor man was buried under a pile of books. I called the police, but that’s all I could do for him.”

  Kane glanced over at his bosses. Now, he understood why they wanted to get together outside the house. They weren’t the only ones to have a rough afternoon.

  Christina joined in the act. “Oh, you had to be terrified, Victoria! You poor thing! If I was you, I’d grab a bottle of wine and go to bed early. You need to forget about this horrid day!”

  Tori was grateful that Christina just set them up to get out of everyone’s sight. As food was put in front of them, she practically chugged her wine. “I plan on doing just that. I don’t think I can handle another experience like this. I’ll need medication!”

  “It must have been horrifying to be interrogated like a common criminal in the street,” Candy said smugly. If anything, it was the perfect way to make their hostess want to stay away from her. So much for being the rich mogul’s little pet.

  “I wasn’t interrogated. I was questioned, and I just felt horrible for that poor man. I can handle a few stares if it means helping figure out what happened to him. I’m far from shallow.”

  The barb hit its mark.

  Julian wanted to laugh. His feisty babe had a wicked tongue when pushed too far.

  Lorelei agreed with Christina. “I’ll have Bruce bring you one of our best bottles of wine. You can take it to your room and relax. Maybe a really long steep in the tub will work out the terror you have to be feeling.”

  Candy seethed that her plan backfired.

  “Oh, that would be perfect,” Tori said, gratefully.

  As they began eating their food, the topic was still on the man’s murder, and Tori wanted to switch the focus. “I heard the ghost last night,” she admitted.

  They all stared at her, including Lorelei and Fredrick.

  “Did you really?” Bev asked, getting excited. “I’ve been dying to hear or see the ‘Singing Woman’, but I haven’t picked up anything.”

  Sipping her wine, Candy glared at her. The woman was nothing but an attention whore.

  Lorelei put down her napkin. “What did you hear specifically? Many people claim to have heard the woman, but she sings a very specific song.”

  Tori closed her eyes. “It was a lullaby,” she began.

  “We all knew that,” stated Katy Snyder.

  She ignored the woman as she tried to recall the words. “I think it was something like this,” she began.

  “Rest my love. I’ll be right here. In my arms you’ll have nothing to fear. Your heart is mine and we’re one, no matter how far you go, I’ll come.”

  Lorelei began clapping. “You have indeed heard the ‘Singing Woman’. That’s the lullaby that she sang to her child. It’s said those were the last words which she ever spoke to her babe.”

  Tori leaned against her husband.

  “It’s a pretty exclusive club,” stated Fredrick. “She only appears to those she wants to see her. I don’t think there have been more than five people outside the family or employees here, that she has made herself known to. You’re rather fortunate.”

  Yeah, lucky, if you like being possessed and assaulting the man you love.

  “Imagine that. You heard a ghost and found a body all in one twenty four hour period. You’re either lucky or cursed,” stated Candy West. “I’m leaning toward the latter,” she mumbled, chugging from her wine glass.

  Julian could tell by Tori’s demeanor and body language that she was pretty much done with discussing the dead body and the ghost. The blonde woman across from them was on her last nerve.

  “If you will excuse us, Ms. Hesser, I’d love to take my wife back to the room and retire early.” Julian stood, not really caring what the woman’s response would be.

  “Absolutely. I’ll have Bruce bring you the wine. Riding tomorrow, Victoria?” she asked hopefully. Lorelei enjoyed the woman’s company very much, unlike the other guests, who seemed to be vying for her attention. Victoria was just being herself.

  Plus, the family ghost appeared to her.

  That had to mean something, and she was curious to know what else she had heard or seen.

  “I would love that, Lorelei. I’ll see you at nine,” she said, taking her husband’s hand and allowing him to lead her upstairs.

  Out in the hall, Julian kissed her on the cheek. “You were amazing, honey. Your nerves were almost real.”

  Tori wanted to tell him the truth, but she couldn’t. The truth was that she was scared to go to sleep tonight in fear of what would happen.

  “Thanks, Jules. After we get the wine, we’ll escape off the balcony.”

/>   “I’m ready for tonight.”

  It was good that one of them was.

  Chapter Eleven

  Tori and Julian scaled the tree to get to the bottom. It wasn’t easy because night was already starting to fall around them. They couldn’t take flashlights, or it would be too suspicious. Once Julian was down, he reached up to protectively brace his hand on his wife’s lower back. When her feet also were firmly on the ground, he took her hand in his.

  “They’re meeting us over at the duck pond. Kane sent a text that they’re already there waiting for us.”

  Tori let him lead. She was too lost in her thoughts about going to sleep that night. For now, she was more than happy to let her husband sweat the details, so she could focus on more upsetting things.

  As he directed them though the shadows, he tried the best he could to avoid anyone who was out and about on the property. It would be naïve to assume that the people in the house would be sleeping already.

  If their strategy was to work, they needed to remain unseen.

  Finally, at the duck pond, he was more relaxed. When he could make out the shape of his employee up ahead, he saw how close Kane and Christina were to the brush.

  Somehow, he doubted that was accidental.

  Way to go team.

  They had set this up to work as perfect cover for them.

  Sneaking around the long way, he and Tori moved soundlessly into the cover of shrubbery and bramble. When they finally spoke, they realized how good they were at sneaking, because Christina actually jumped.

  “Hey,” Julian said. Where Kane was sitting, they were within reaching distance if the brush wasn’t there. This was perfect. Anyone watching the two love birds sitting by the water would think that they simply were sharing a moment.

  “I hope this location works, Julian,” stated Kane.

  “It’s perfect. How about you go first and tell us what you found in your search of the Snyder’s room?” he suggested.

  From the tension in the big man’s body, Julian somehow doubted that he was this riled up because of having to be sneaky and tucked away beside a duck pond.