Brynn was tired. “Aunt Beulah, I'm expecting Detective Anders to come by. Is there any way that you can put this off for another day?” she dared to ask even though she knew what her answer would be.
“No, I will not!” Beulah snapped.
“Well, hello Beulah,” Lisa said as she entered the living room. “What do you want?”
“Why are you here?” Beulah shot back. “You don't even live here.”
“Well, I could say the same to you,” Lisa returned.
Brynn knew that if Alec didn't hurry, it could possibly turn ugly really quickly.
“Aunt Beulah, can you please wait until tomorrow for those things?” Brynn almost begged. “I have no idea where to even begin looking and I am worn out as well.”
Beulah walked up to her. “NO! I will not! Now let me have my mother's things!”
Brynn heard the door open without anyone knocking. She spun around to see Alec standing there in all his handsome glory. She was never so glad to see anyone in her whole life.
“Alec, I'm glad you're here.”
“I heard someone yelling and so I just came in without knocking. What's going on?” he questioned as he walked to the center of the room.
Brynn watched as he took control of the situation by placing himself in the middle of it. In her eyes, it signified control. She smiled.
“I've come for some things that belong to me,” Beulah said sternly.
Alec looked at Brynn. “Do you have her things?”
“No, I don't.”
“I want my mother's stuff!” Beulah demanded.
“What stuff is she talking about, Brynn?” Alec asked.
His eyes were gorgeous and she was lost in them already. She held his gaze as she stood staring at him.
“Brynn, what stuff is she talking about?” he repeated.
“Oh, um, I guess Aunt Millie had some things that belonged to their parents.” She felt embarrassed that he had to repeat himself. She wondered if he knew she was staring at him for purposes other than business.
“Mrs. Michaels, do you know where these things are? Can they be retrieved quickly?”
“No, I would have to go through the attic, the garage, and the rooms,” Beulah said.
“Then I'm going to ask you to leave and set up a day that works for Ms. Monroe. I'm here on official police business and we can't be disturbed.”
Brynn felt her stomach flutter as he spoke with authority. She liked his rugged ability to take control of the situation where she couldn't. She caught herself smiling at him again.
“Alright, fine. I'll leave, but I will be back!” Beulah said as she walked out the door.
“Whew! Thank you so much for that,” she said as she moved closer to Alec. “I just don't have the energy to waste on her this evening.”
His eyes were bluer than she'd remembered them to be since yesterday. They seemed to pull her in, keeping her against her will. She smiled at him and he smiled back.
God, he smells so good, too.
“No problem. Now what did you want to tell me?” he asked.
“Hmm?” she returned.
“You called and said to get over here as fast as I could?”
“Oh yeah,” Brynn said, appearing to come back to reality. “I discovered something today that I think will help with your investigation. Come on.”
She led him to the kitchen.
“Hey, Lisa,” Alec greeted.
“Hey yourself, Superman,” Lisa said, then laughed at her own joke.
He looked at her somewhat confused. “Okay, let me have it,” he said to Brynn.
Brynn walked to the counter and presented him the coffee pot and the dog bowl. “Sit down. I need to tell you exactly what happened.”
Alec took a seat and Brynn began to explain everything.
Ten minutes later, she'd told him every detail, including the loud thud on the morning of Millie's death.
“Wow, this is unexpected,” he said.
“So what do you think?” Lisa asked.
“I can't say anything until we have those things tested for fingerprints and traces of ethylene glycol. Until then, we're right where we've always been.”
Brynn looked disappointed. “Okay, well, I think you'll find your killer once you run the tests on them.”
“Let me call the station and get some detectives down here. They're going to want to do a sweep of the entire kitchen at least.”
Alec got up and went to the living room to make the call.
“God, he's gorgeous,” Brynn said.
“Yeah, I know. And the way he looks at you,” Lisa trailed off when she heard him coming back in the room.
“Hey, I have an idea,” he said to Brynn. “Do you want to grab a bite while they go over the house?”
Brynn was shocked. “I – I have Lisa here. I don't want to just leave her.”
Lisa spoke up quickly. “Hey, I have to stay here and let the policemen in. You guys go eat.” She nodded to Brynn.
Brynn looked at her. “Well, if you're sure, then I guess I could.”
“I'm totally sure. I'm going to order a pizza and hit the sack.”
“Okay. Alec, give me a minute to freshen up and I'll be ready.” Brynn smiled at him and almost skipped through the house.
Once inside her room, she wanted to let out a squeal of delight, but she knew Alec and Lisa would hear her.
“A dinner date with Alec Anders!” she said as she hurried to her closet and grabbed a pink blouse with tiny white buttons and a pair of black Capri pants. Brushing her teeth and throwing on some makeup, she was done in fifteen minutes.
“Wow, you look great,” Alec said when she walked into the kitchen.
“Ooh, sexy woman here!” Lisa said, giggling. “Watch out, Alec. She's hot tonight.”
“Oh stop it,” Brynn laughed as she swatted her hand in Lisa's direction. “Alec, don't pay any attention to her.”
“She's right, you are gorgeous,” he said.
Brynn smiled. “Well, let's go.”
Lisa followed them to the door. “I won't wait up,” she whispered to Brynn.
You want to know more about Brynn’s adventure in Chesapeake Pointe? Learn about her here.
Hello fabulous readers!
Thanks so much for reading this story. It was an amazing journey, from start to finish. Sometimes ideas come to you fully formed and you're amazed. Others? Well, they surprise you and you discover them as you write. What starts as an adventure ends as something unforgettable, and that was the case with this book. You're reading my discovery of these characters as I discovered them, and I hope you enjoy the journey as much as I did!
When you write, the characters can become so real and you almost hate to let them go, but I think that they're safe with you! I hope you enjoy spending time with them as much as I did.
Thanks for being a reader. Authors do this whole telling stories thing for you.
Wanted: Big Bad Brother: A Billionaire Bad Boy Stepbrother Romance Page 129