Wedding Takedown

by Geri Krotow

  “It’s as if she’s worried about something. And I noticed this before she took the call from her husband.”

  “He called on a burner phone, you mentioned.”

  “I think so, from what they said. And you know, I’m not in law enforcement, but why would anyone but a criminal need a burner phone?” She wondered why they even existed.

  Rio shook his head. “Burners are a great thing for a tourist, or if your phone dies and you aren’t up for a new one on your contract. Unfortunately they can also help people get away with a lot of bad behavior. But if it was the mayor and he called their home phone, or her office line if she has one, I’ll be able to get the information I need.”

  “He said she’d given him a lot of them.” She wanted to make sure he’d heard that part of her story.

  Rio speared a fry. “No problem.” There was more he wasn’t sharing with her, she could tell by the way he set his jaw, but she didn’t need to know the details of any of this. She just wanted to prove her brother was innocent, and if helping SVPD on this helped Keith, it was a small price.

  “You can’t tell me what you know, but can you tell me if I’m on the right track thinking that there’s something bigger going on in Silver Valley?”

  His eyes were shielded. “Bigger in what way?”

  “I’m not blind, Rio. I was the one who delivered one of the bouquets from the Female Preacher Killer, remember?” She knew he hadn’t forgotten. She’d unwittingly taken a death threat to the home of her good friend Zora Krasny. Soon-to-be Zora Campbell, since she was marrying SVPD detective Bryce Campbell. “And you and Bryce, you’re close. I saw the two of you shopping together at the last-minute Christmas bazaar.”

  “Zora likes the brooch you helped Bryce pick out.”

  “I didn’t help him—he knew what he wanted. Stop changing the subject. There’s something going on—is it a drug ring? Is what happened with Mayor Donner and the quick election part of it? Is there more than money laundering going on?”

  “Money laundering. That’s a heavy charge.”

  “Spare me. It’s on the SVPD blotter reports and on their Facebook page. The crime rings out of Philadelphia, New York and Baltimore funnel new immigrants up through towns like ours to shop in the big-box stores. They purchase a television at two or three in the morning, with cash, and then when they return it with the receipt they get cash back. This time the cash is, in all probability, legit.”

  “Mmm.” Rio sipped his water and waved down their waitress. “Can I please have a cup of coffee?” He looked at Kayla. “Would you like some?”

  “No thanks, I’m good.” She knew from Rio’s overly calm demeanor that she was hitting pay dirt, but also understood that above all else, Rio was a professional. He wasn’t about to tell her police business. Not unless she absolutely had to know to help them find Meredith’s killer.

  Her phone buzzed on the table and she looked at the ID. “It’s Gloria. I can call her back later.”

  “Answer it.” Rio’s request was swift, sure. She picked up the phone and looked at him as she answered.

  “Hi, Gloria. What can I do for you?”

  “I’m terribly sorry to bother you for the second time in one day, Kayla, but there’s an entire aspect of the wedding I forgot to go over with you.”

  “Oh?” She had six files of what Gloria expected for flowers on the wedding day, from the gazebo to the house to the front entryway. Bouquets for the attendants, a special bouquet for the bride to toss and an entire folder devoted to the bride’s flowers. A full trailing bouquet of rare exotic blooms with an equally stunning floral headpiece. Kayla thought it was all a bit gaudy, but she was there to provide whatever Gloria and Cynthia wanted.

  “Yes, we forgot to discuss the tables at the rehearsal dinner. We’ll have it at the Serenity Inn in Amittstown, the same place as the reception the next day. Do you know the place?”

  “Yes, I decorated for a bridal shower there last year.” The dining room in the old Civil War-era farmhouse was small, but maybe they were keeping the rehearsal dinner more intimate. “Do you want more than a centerpiece?”

  “Of course! There will be eight tables of eight for the rehearsal dinner—a quarter of the size of the wedding dinner. We’ll need a centerpiece at each. I was thinking of a more masculine theme, and I have a great idea for the party favors. I was hoping you’d handle it all for me.”

  “Just let me know what I can do. Is there...?” She was about to ask if the groom’s parents were participating and then remembered that there was a good chance that Judge Charles Blackwell’s parents might not be living. The man had to be at least twenty years Cynthia’s senior. “Is there anything in particular the groom would like? Would you like me to talk to him?”

  “Oh, no. I know that customarily the groom handles the rehearsal dinner but we’ll be doing it all for Charles and Cynthia. Charles’s father is dead and his mother is in a nursing home so she won’t be attending any of the events. Tony won’t have anything less than the best for his daughter. For the favors I thought a tiny gavel with the date on it would be so cute, you know, since Charles is a judge.”

  “I’m sure I can find a miniature gavel on Etsy or perhaps more locally. Gloria, is there a price limit for the decorations for the rehearsal dinner?”

  “Price?” Kayla imagined Gloria blinking her over-the-top false eyelashes, as if the question of price was never an issue. “No, no, of course not. I mean, how much could eight centerpieces cost? And the favors?” Kayla quickly did some numbers in her head and gave the figure to Gloria.

  “That’s fine, Kayla, thank you. Will you be going out to look at the inn?”

  “I’ve already worked there, so no, I don’t see a reason to.”

  “I really think you should meet me out there. I’d feel better about it. Or maybe I can convince Cynthia to delay going back to school and meet with all of us.”

  Kayla was feeling more and more threatened by Gloria’s requests. She wondered if Gloria’s plan all along had been to get Kayla to another remote place not unlike the Weddings and More Barn. Like someone had done with Meredith. She mentally shook her head. This had to be paranoia from witnessing Meredith’s murder. She agreed on a time and ended the conversation.

  “This is insane. Why bother with a rehearsal dinner for a short-notice wedding? And they’re having both the rehearsal dinner and the reception at the Serenity Inn. Do you know it? It’s forty minutes away. I have to drive from the rehearsal at the gazebo to the dinner, then do it again the next day for the wedding and reception.” She spoke without considering her words. Anxiety gnawed at her.

  “She’s got you shaken up, hasn’t she?” Rio’s eyes were watchful and she wondered how he was able to read her mind.

  “Why do I feel like I’m being stalked by her?”

  “She thinks she’s a powerful woman and she has a very strong personality. I doubt anyone’s ever said no to her. Once she gets an idea going, she runs it into the ground.”

  She smiled at him. “That’s the most negative I’ve heard you about anyone. You’re usually more reserved. You certainly have an opinion about the mayor’s wife.”

  Rio reached across the table and grasped her hand. She didn’t pull it away.

  “I have an opinion on most things, Kayla. I just don’t feel a need to express it. It’s not my job to have an opinion. My job is to keep Silver Valley safe and to see to it that anyone who tries to mess with that is brought to justice.” As he spoke his thumb drew circles on her palm and she felt her desire hum to life.

  She pulled her hand back. “It can’t be like that again, Rio.” She couldn’t get intimate with Rio again and expect she’d survive breaking away like she had already done once.

  “It won’t be. It’ll be different.” She couldn’t help the smile that his comment brought to her lips, but she stood up and grabbed her purse.

  “I’ve got to get home. I’ll wait outside while you pay the bill.”

  “You’re not
leaving my side, Kayla. Police procedure.” She wasn’t sure it was, but decided not to push him on it. If he thought she might be in some kind of danger, she’d listen to Rio. Just this once.

  After Rio paid, they exited the diner and Kayla made a point of not looking anywhere in particular. She didn’t want to make eye contact with anyone she might know. Her energy was low and she needed time to regroup.

  Kayla had plenty of acquaintances in Silver Valley, more so since her business had gained traction over the past couple of years. In the main thoroughfare of the sprawling town, there was hardly a business she hadn’t delivered to. From the strip malls to the upscale plazas, she’d taken flowers from one end of town to the other. Or had Jenny do it.

  She really needed to look into hiring a full-time delivery person, or at least two part-time drivers.

  “Ready?” Rio was next to her, his voice low in her ear. If she leaned in just a bit, he might kiss her on her earlobe, like he’d done when they’d made love.

  “Sure. Let’s go.” It wasn’t easy to follow him to the car and keep her mind off of how appealing his ass looked.

  She was in trouble. Shouldn’t she be more worried about getting through the Charbonneau wedding than fantasizing about a man she clearly needed to stay away from?

  Rio killed the engine in her driveway and she was thankful when he sprang out of his seat and walked around to get her door before she had a chance to do it herself. At least, she told herself she was grateful. It wasn’t as if she wanted him to turn to her in the dark confines of the car, reach across his armrest and...

  “I want to make sure your house is clear, Kayla. Let me do this for you. Then I’ll leave, I promise.”

  “You don’t have to promise, Rio. I trust you.”

  “Maybe you shouldn’t.”

  She ignored him and focused on getting her keys out instead. She placed them in Rio’s outstretched hand and he let them both into the house.

  “Stay here.” She waited in the foyer as he disappeared into the kitchen and then upstairs. She heard the floorboards squeak under his feet, heard her closets open and close. She’d never admit it to him that it made her feel more secure to have him here. First witnessing a murder and then having to act as if she had no idea what was going on was wearing on her. She was a horticulturist, not an actor.

  His sneakered feet appeared first on the stairs, followed by his long, lean legs in worn denim, stretched just tight enough across his crotch. His white shirt was next, and all she had to do was close her eyes and remember how flat and hard his abs were under that shirt, how his skin had heated under her fingers.

  Judging from the expression on his face when he stepped onto the foyer floor, he remembered, too.

  They stood no more than three feet apart with their eyes locked on each other. Kayla silently damned Rio’s ability to get her so sexually aroused without a single touch.

  “Rio.” She didn’t say more, couldn’t. Because it would be a lie to say anything denying her attraction to him. The heat that always simmered at the mere thought of him. The embers that ached to be blown into a full blaze again.

  “Kayla, we agreed. We’re friends.” She watched his mouth shape the words and didn’t miss the sardonic gleam in his eye.

  “It’s just like you to put it all back on me.”

  “It is on you. I would never have stopped seeing you.”

  “You had to.”

  “I don’t have to do anything I don’t want to, Kayla. I could have passed the case off to another officer.”

  They’d both taken a step closer and were no farther than a hand’s width apart. Forced to look up at him, Kayla couldn’t shake the memory of how he’d picked her up and carried her to her room. How they’d made love three times through a long Friday night, and after slow Saturday morning sex they’d had a king’s breakfast of eggs, pancakes, bacon, melon and coffee. And then showered together before they’d made love again. In the shower.

  “Stop reliving it in your head. I’m right here.” Rio offered no further warning before he swooped in and kissed her, to which she offered absolutely no resistance. The kiss wasn’t like the one in the flower shop. It had more intent. With this kiss, she was going to be back in Rio’s bed, she knew. Well, her bed for tonight.

  * * *

  Rio would be damned if he’d let his mind take over and ruin this perfect time with Kayla. Their mutual heat was beyond attraction or lust. He wouldn’t let himself call it more, especially that one four-letter word, but he’d call it a need.

  Because he needed Kayla, needed to have her as much as he’d ever needed anything in his life. Her lips were soft but demanding under his. Dreams had been his only break from the long days of knowing there was a woman for him, yet he couldn’t have her. Now the reality of being with Kayla again settled in and Rio knew how she liked it best. Hot and fast.

  “Oh, yes, right here.” She moved his hand under her shirt and over her breast, squeezing it with the amount of pressure she liked. Her hard nipple pressed against his palm and he took it between his fingers, teasing the taut flesh until she groaned again and he felt her sag against him.

  Before he could grin at her sexy swoon, she’d cupped his balls through his jeans and did some squeezing of her own. Her fingers worked over him, undoing the top button on his fly, her skin touching his and making him see red.

  He grasped her hands, his lips still on hers. Before he had a chance to think, he leaned down and kissed her on the curve of her neck, softly adding a nip with his front teeth. “Your bedroom, Kayla. Now.”

  She didn’t answer him but kissed him back with fury, her breasts against his chest and her pelvis pressed against his erection. “Here, Rio. Right now.” Kayla shrugged off her jacket, pulled her shirt over her head and shimmied out of her jeans in three seconds flat. If Rio wanted to make it to her bed with her, he couldn’t. He needed her. Needed Kayla. He needed to be inside her.

  “No fair.” He threaded his fingers into her hair and cradled her head as he kissed her thoroughly, allowing his fingers to first unhook her bra and then meander south to her wetness, where he shoved two fingers inside.

  “Rio!” Her cry drove him so close to climax he swore and withdrew his fingers, rushing to get out of his clothing. As he did, Kayla slipped off her panties and they stood facing each other at the base of the stairs, naked.

  “Do you want me on the stairs, Rio?” Her pupils were dilated, her blond hair wild around her flushed cheeks, and her lips were swollen just like he loved them to be.

  “Wherever you want me, baby.” He watched her climb up two stairs before she turned and hitched a leg on his hip. He gave up on control as he lifted her and entered her in one swift stroke. They both groaned at the sheer pleasure of their joining, as if they’d been apart for decades instead of four months.

  Kayla moved her hips over his erection and Rio helped her as long as he could. When he reached between them and touched her in the exact way he knew was her favorite, she screamed out. As she pulsed around him, he lowered her to the stairs and moved inside her without thinking. Only feeling, a rushing sense of knowing they fit together perfectly on every level, not just physically. He came hard in a crashing climax as Kayla cried out his name.

  CHAPTER 10

  Rio was summoned into Colt’s office on Thursday morning. “Where are we on Keith Paruso’s case?” Colt Todd eased back in his desk chair, his flinty eyes expectant as he looked at Rio.

  “There’s nothing new, and absolutely nothing against him, which is why I want to close the case. But not until I can prove the source of the accusations in the civil suit against him is one of the True Believers.”

  “Careful with that, Rio. We don’t officially have a cult settling in Silver Valley—just some very suspicious people in a trailer park. Once it goes official, we have to call in the other agencies, and we’re trying to avoid that for the moment. We need to let our friends in the background take care of it.”

  Rio knew Colt was ta
lking about the Trail Hikers. The two men stared at each other and Rio’s stomach did a free fall before he clenched his fists at his sides. “And yet the True Believers have managed to sneak into our community, possibly get one mayor kicked out of office, keep the head of the fire department on administrative leave and now they’re potentially tied to the murder of the mayor’s assistant.”

  “You haven’t found any hard links between the cult and Meredith’s murder, have you?”

  Rio shook his head, his exasperation building. “No, but it all makes sense. I just can’t finger any one person. I don’t have a murder weapon and we don’t have any usable evidence. And there’s the puzzle of the side door at the barn.” He pushed away the twinge of guilt that tried to claw at his focus. Kayla didn’t need to know about the possible second suspect, not until he was sure. He didn’t want to worry her any further.

  “It sounds as though the man who went after Kayla could have acted alone. But it’s possible he didn’t. Did Kayla mention any possibility of a third voice?”

  “No.” And Rio knew from experience that when your adrenaline was flowing it was often difficult to know exactly what you were hearing or seeing. If Kayla had heard a second female voice she could have easily mistaken it for Meredith’s, and a second male for the killer’s. “If Meredith had some dirt on the mayor or proof that the election was rigged, would it be enough to murder her? This is Silver Valley after all, not some big city.”

  Colt stretched his arms over and behind his head. “People have killed for less. And when you’re in the political world, no matter what level, it can get myopic. It’s not inconceivable that the mayor of Silver Valley has his eye on higher office. He wouldn’t want anyone or anything to get in his way. Hell, he’s spent more time with the governor and US Representatives to Congress than he has with me or any of the other community leaders in Silver Valley.”

  “He doesn’t see you as a leader—he sees you as someone who works for him.”

  Colt snorted. “Yeah, he thinks I’m an hourly employee. At the first meeting we had, he asked how much I make per hour. He was stunned that I’m salaried. Not a political science whiz, that guy.”