It was a highly polished performance. Jamie put up a parasol and waved to the waiting “passengers” as her father slapped the reins. Gabe knew she’d return in a couple of hours and they’d repeat the routine. In the meantime they were going to the Douglas House, where high tea would be served to guests who’d bought tickets for the event.
It was quite a production, and people seemed to eat it up. Finally he accessed the front staircase to Tessa’s office and walked upstairs to knock on her door.
“Come in,” she called.
Gabe stepped inside. “Hello, darling. I’m so glad to see you.”
Tessa gave him a dark look. “Don’t even think it.”
“Hey, you’re the one who kissed me.”
Her face was pale, as if she hadn’t slept well.
“Actually, I didn’t kiss you,” she said. “I just pretended to kiss you because I thought someone might be watching. You’re the one who took it further. And may I add, the idea that someone was watching wouldn’t have occurred to me if you hadn’t spied on us in the first place.”
He couldn’t deny the spying part; he had spied on Tessa and Liam. True, he’d felt qualms about doing it and intended to return his paychecks at the right opportunity, but he’d done what he thought was necessary.
“Anyway,” Tessa continued, “you gave me the idea about a fake kiss when you brought flowers. I’m just glad you didn’t pick poppies. That’s illegal, you know.”
Gabe turned one of the chairs around by her desk and sat, straddling it. The act was deliberate since Tessa had suggested he was too stiff to fit into the relaxed atmosphere of Glimmer Creek. “I remember a grammar school teacher saying that, but I don’t understand why. Unless it’s because of their opium content.”
“Opium poppies are different from California poppies.” Tessa seemed to reflect on the idea. “Actually, I think picking them is only illegal on state or public property. Maybe because they’re the California state flower.”
“That makes more sense.” Regardless, it was time to get this conversation back on track. He rested his arms on the chair. “Apparently we’re pretending to be lovers during the investigation.”
Tessa had been typing something into her computer. She backspaced and typed something else before looking at him again. “I’ve thought about that, and I don’t think anyone would believe we’re involved.”
“Why not? Opposites attract, and we need a cover story to explain why we’re spending time together. Besides, it fits in with something your great-uncle said.”
Tessa stared. “What?”
“He mentioned that people might wonder if we were involved after seeing us in the park. Not that it seems like a bad idea to have a cover story for meeting together.” A wicked idea to tease Tessa occurred to Gabe. “It’s too bad there isn’t a costume ball coming up at Poppy Gold. We could go as Antony and Cleopatra.”
“You would pick two lovers who came to a tragic end.”
“I suppose you’d prefer going as Prince Charming and Cinderella.”
“I don’t prefer anything when it comes to you,” she snapped. “But if I had a costume suggestion, it would be Ebenezer Scrooge and the Ghost of Christmas Future. Dickens’s description of Ebenezer is perfect for you. Let’s see...hard and sharp as flint. Secret and self-contained. Solitary as an oyster. Sound familiar?”
Gabe shifted uncomfortably, though it was an accurate portrayal. “I guess a costume ball wouldn’t be the best idea, after all.”
“That’s probably the first thing we’ve agreed upon.” She stopped and sighed. “Sorry, I’m not in the best mood. I keep worrying if all my business clients are at risk, not just Rob.”
“It seems unlikely, especially if someone went to so much trouble getting TIP to come here.”
“But there are no guarantees. Luckily we don’t have any business conferences coming here in the next few weeks. It’s mostly weddings and reunions, along with our usual vacationing tourists. So we have to find the answer quickly.”
The urgency Gabe had been feeling swept through him with renewed intensity. It was the best explanation for his lack of restraint with Tessa. The previous night he’d wanted to keep kissing her until it led to something more. It didn’t matter that she would have stopped him before it got that far; he should have kept a better lid on his response.
“Did you check the housekeeping schedules for the other times TIP has visited?” he asked.
“I loaded everything into a database and ran a comparison, but I didn’t find any patterns. If I get a list of the times Rob believes a leak occurred, I’ll check again. I’ve also looked for patterns with other businesses that have had conferences here, but nothing stands out. No employees have consistently worked at a house where clients were staying more than any other.”
“Nothing has happened with TIP’s latest visit, other than the collapsing staircase,” Gabe mused. “If the culprit pinned their hopes on getting back at Rob that way and it failed, they may be afraid to try something else in case suspicions were raised.”
Tessa smiled faintly. “Uncle Milt was at Poppy Gold all day Tuesday after the accident, questioning people. That probably would have scared anyone off. Has Rob observed anything suspicious at the Tofton House?”
“No. I gave him two high-tech video cams to catch anyone going in and out of the room or hanging around the desk—very small and hard to detect—but Rob didn’t see anything unusual in the recordings from yesterday. He brought old documents with him, nothing confidential, and spread them out on the desk in his suite. The housekeeping staff did their thing, but nothing appeared suspicious.”
Tessa looked at him grimly. “You didn’t tell Great-Uncle Milt about the camera, and don’t tell me it slipped your mind. You aren’t the Lone Ranger on this investigation any longer. There’s a much better chance of catching the thief and getting a conviction if all the legalities are observed.”
“Glimmer Creek doesn’t have the resources for a major investigation or for the high-tech gadgetry we might need.”
She made a derisive sound. “Poppy Gold will pay for anything that’s needed, high or low tech. But why don’t you admit the real problem...that you don’t think an aging police chief from a small town can be of any real help? You think you ought to be able to handle it yourself.”
Gabe heaved a deep sigh.
Maybe he was guilty of playing Lone Ranger...of wanting to be the hero for his brother. There were too many things in the world that couldn’t be fixed, but this situation shouldn’t be one of them.
“Were you planning a little primitive justice for the guilty party and can’t now with Uncle Milt involved?” Tessa continued, and he narrowed his eyes.
“I always planned to give any evidence to the authorities,” he said crisply. “Don’t forget we tried to get the FBI to investigate before we ever started this, though I don’t blame them for being skeptical about our claims. For that matter, the only reason Milt Fullerton is taking it seriously is because of your accident on the staircase.”
“Did you tell the FBI that you’d ruled out hacking?”
“Of course. But Rob doubted it could be that from the start. His IT security team would have immediately notified him of any attacks on the company’s firewall. Nevertheless, to rule out an internal breech, he simply disconnected the information from any hackable source.”
“What about the cameras you set up? Are you going to review the recordings yourself?”
“Rob is going to hand them off to me before he leaves tomorrow. He’ll call later tonight if he sees anything from the ones today.”
Tessa shook her head. “Another casual meeting? He’d better give them to me. There’s nothing unusual about the Poppy Gold manager talking to guests, and I can get everything to my great-uncle without it looking suspicious.”
G
abe supposed he’d better get used to things going through Milt Fullerton.
“What about the people who were supposed to stay at the El Dorado Mansion Monday night?”
“I checked, and they made the reservations after the earthquake, specifically asking for the El Dorado. It couldn’t have sounded suspicious at the time. Groups often ask to stay together in a particular house, and since so many of the weekend guests leave on Sunday, the house was available. I already let Uncle Milt know.” Tessa gestured to her computer. “I’ve also been looking at the calendar. I’ll do whatever I can to get enough rooms for TIP to come back in June.”
The phone rang, and Gabe watched Tessa’s face as she dealt with an inquiry from someone wanting to book an autumn class reunion at Poppy Gold. She searched three possible dates before finding enough available rooms.
He wished she wasn’t so determined to get involved in the investigation. It would be best for him to coordinate with Milt Fullerton and keep her on the periphery, but she clearly wasn’t going to cooperate.
Besides, something about Tessa got to him. She was intelligent, beautiful, sexy and her personality was a force of nature. And while it might be misplaced, her loyalty was admirable. Her relatives could easily be taking advantage, but she was more likely to suspect the Easter Bunny than any of them.
“Sorry,” Tessa said after her call ended.
“That’s okay. Shall I come over tonight? We have more to discuss, and we can have Milt conference in.”
“Sorry, there’s a wedding and reception booked for this evening. I need to be on hand for it.”
“Have you ever heard of delegating?”
“Have you ever heard of minding your own business?”
Gabe got up. “While I’d love to stay and debate the question with you, my lunch break is almost over. I need to get back to my weeding and lawn mowing.”
* * *
TESSA CLENCHED HER JAW, wanting to throw something at the door after Gabe had closed it behind him. Her work habits weren’t any of his business.
On the other hand, it might be wise to get extra rest. She also needed to call her grandfather and didn’t want to do it where there was any chance of being overheard or interrupted.
Back at her apartment in the Victorian Cat, she dialed Patrick Connor’s private line.
“Hey, Granddad.”
“Tessa. How wonderful to hear your voice. I just got out of a meeting.”
“Ouch.” Tessa remembered the Connor Enterprises executive meetings. They were deadly dull. “In that case, I wish I was calling for a better reason.”
“Oh?”
Quickly she explained what she’d learned from both Gabe and Rob and that the situation may have escalated into violence.
“Liam told me you fell, but I didn’t realize it was something like this,” Patrick exclaimed.
“Pop doesn’t know, and I don’t want him to know unless absolutely necessary. You know what a worrywart he can be.”
“Yes. I’m glad Milt Fullerton is on the case.”
Tessa made a face. “I’m sure Gabe wishes Uncle Milt was a young, aggressive FBI agent, but apparently the FBI wouldn’t get involved because of the lack of evidence. Uncle Milt will be great, and he’ll be sure to keep the investigation confidential. Oh, and in case Pop says anything to you or Grams, Gabe and I are pretending to date. It’s a cover to explain any time we spend together.”
“I understand. Promise you’ll be careful,” Granddad urged.
“Of course. But Uncle Milt is very protective, and Gabe is a retired navy SEAL, so I’ll be fine. One Connor worrywart is enough, and Pop has dibs.”
“I’m glad this McKinley fellow is capable. What can I do to help?”
Glad about Gabe? Tessa wasn’t so sure, but she had a great deal of faith in the US Navy to train an effective SEAL. According to their reputation, SEALs were able to do anything.
“I wanted to find out if anyone has attempted to pass insider information to Connor Enterprises. At any level. I know it’s SOP to refer anything like that to the security staff.”
“I haven’t received anything myself, but I’ll check with my security chief and let you know.”
“Thanks. How is Grams?”
“Busy as always. She wants a rooftop garden. I refused, so naturally we have landscape architects submitting proposals. We’re leaning toward one with a water feature.”
Tessa smiled. While Granddad was radically different from his son, he and Liam shared at least one trait—unshakable devotion to the women in their lives.
After they talked for another few minutes, Tessa sent her love to her grandmother and got off. She’d hoped Granddad would have more information, but it still had been a relief to tell someone else what was happening.
Gabe would likely go ballistic, but she trusted Patrick Connor and didn’t need permission to enlist his help.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
LANCE DUG IN the ground, trying not to think about what Jamie had said at lunch. College wasn’t something he’d ever considered.
His shovel hit a rock, but as he felt around the edges to lever it out, he realized it was practically a boulder. He began digging around it, the effort making everything else go away in his head for a while.
Finally he used a lever to lift it out of the hole and then rolled it over to the pile of rocks he’d already dug out. He took off the sunglasses Jamie had given him and carefully put them in a pocket before wiping his face with a bandanna. He wasn’t too sure about the bandannas—they seemed kind of folksy—but she was always putting them around his neck to keep him from getting sunburned, so he didn’t object.
“How are you doing?” called Liam as he came up the hill.
“I haven’t gotten much done because of this rock,” Lance said, nudging the boulder with his shoe.
“Digging that out was plenty. It’s bigger than a beach ball.”
Lance nodded. He hadn’t seen many beach balls—on a beach at least—but it was a big rock.
“Here’s something to cool you off,” Liam said, handing him a huge bottle of a sports drink. “I don’t want you getting heatstroke.”
“Thanks.” Lance took off the lid and chugged down a bunch. In the beginning he’d been wary when Liam brought him food or something to drink, thinking it would come out of his paycheck, but Jamie had told him the Connors were nice to everyone.
He liked Liam.
Sometimes the guy was absentminded and didn’t seem to hear stuff, but everybody said it was because he missed his wife.
Lance got it.
If he ever lost Jamie, it would be the worst thing in the world.
“We don’t see much hot spring weather like this,” Liam murmured. “It’s unusual even for summer. I’ve been thinking we should find something else for you to do in the afternoons until the weather breaks.”
“I don’t mind the heat,” Lance said quickly.
“Are you sure? We’ll have to reassign you once the second orchard is planted, anyhow.”
“Will I still be able to take care of the trees?” It felt silly, but Lance was protective of the small apple orchard he’d planted.
“Certainly, but I also want you to learn how to maintain our antique vehicles. At first I thought you could work with my brother-in-law in the greenhouses, but Gabe McKinley mentioned that you seem to be mechanical. That would be better for you because it pays a bit more.”
Pride and relief swelled in Lance, both because Mr. McKinley had spoken up for him and because his job at Poppy Gold seemed safe. As for a pay raise? Except for the gifts he got for Jamie, he lived cheaply and was saving as much money as possible, but anything more would help.
“That’s awesome,” he said, his throat tight. He’d gone to work as a restaurant busboy after high s
chool because nobody else would give him a chance. Now he might get a promotion.
“Excellent. Are you sure you’re all right out here?”
“I’m fine.” It would take a long time to finish clearing the brush and digging out the new orchard, but Lance wanted the Connors to know he’d finish the job.
“All right.” Liam pulled two more bottles of sports drink from his pack. “Bring these back empty,” he ordered.
Lance grinned. “Yes, sir.”
He went back to digging. When there were enough rocks to pick and choose from, he planned to build another stone wall. On the first one he’d used a quick-setting concrete in the center, to be sure it wouldn’t fall down, but nobody could tell—it looked just like the old walls he’d seen on the internet. A wall was sure better than piles of rocks where snakes could hide; he’d already surprised several rattlesnakes.
The apples he’d planted were growing. The Connors planned to install a drip irrigation system, but until then, the trees had to be watered by hand.
Lance looked over at the new orchard. He’d check the trees again before he left. He hoped the weather got cooler; he didn’t mind bringing water out on the little handcart, but the heat seemed hard on the saplings.
He wiped his face again, still wishing he knew what Jamie’s suggestion about them taking classes together meant. If she just wanted them to spend time together, that was cool. But maybe she’d decided she didn’t want to date a guy whose life might not be going anywhere.
The truth was he didn’t know how to be with a girl like Jamie. He needed her a lot more than she needed him, and he worried all the time that she’d decide he wasn’t good enough. And the hardest part was knowing that he really wasn’t.
* * *
AFTER WORK JAMIE changed out of her costume and raced down to the creek. Lance wasn’t there yet, and she hoped he wasn’t unhappy about her taking the time to finish her class.
Surely not, though something had been bugging him lately. She was glad that he’d told her about his grades and the other stuff. In the beginning everything had been dreamy and romantic with Lance, but according to her mom, falling in love was a lot easier than being in love.
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