by Lyndsey Cole
Jason gently held Annie’s arm. “You didn’t do this in a fit of rage? Apparently, I stupidly jumped to the wrong conclusion.”
Annie shook her head. “No.”
“Who? Why?” Jason asked as he stared at Annie, searching her face.
Someone was looking for something, she thought to herself, but didn’t want to say to this person she’d just met. Max’s words echoed in her brain, don’t trust anyone. Instead of answering, she stared back trying to hide her true feelings of fear and anger and willed the tears welling in her eyes not to spill over.
Jason nodded. “Okay then, you can tell me when you’re ready.” He leaned over and picked up Smokey. “Who’s this guy? I never told Leona you could have a roommate.” His eyes twinkled again, replacing the stare piercing into her thoughts.
“This is Smokey. He’s a bit shy, but once you’re gone he’ll tell me all about who came in and destroyed my work.” She hoped he got the hint that she wanted him to leave, but in case he didn’t, she made a big show of checking the time on her watch. “I guess Smokey’s story will have to wait, since it’s time for me to get back to the café.”
“Great. I’ll give you a ride. I was heading in that direction anyway.”
Annie didn’t want to be rude to her landlord, and she was running late, so she reluctantly agreed to take the ride.
Jason held the door open for Annie but after they walked out she made an excuse to go back in for a forgotten item. She preferred to walk behind Jason and get a better view of him instead of the other way around.
What was it about this guy, she wondered. He exuded confidence in a casual kind of style. He was taller than Annie, but not over six feet she estimated. His dark hair was a little too neat for her liking. His clothes appeared to be custom made for his perfectly proportioned muscular body. He had a slight limp that she wouldn’t have noticed if she wasn’t studying him so carefully. “So, Jason, what brings you to Catfish Cove?”
He turned around as he opened the passenger door of his SUV, waiting for Annie to climb in. “I like to be here for the beginning of fishing season.” He winked at Annie. “And I thought it would be a smart idea to meet the person living in my apartment. I trust Leona only so far, since she has been known to make some poor choices. I wanted to make sure for myself that she didn’t install a serial killer or decide to hide a terrorist right here under my nose.”
Annie decided to play his game. “How can you be sure I’m not hiding some secret identity from you?”
“I’ll just need to get to know you better to be sure. After all, you do have keys to my house. And you have a cat that appears to be a spy, which does make me suspicious of your background.”
He turned in and parked in the last open spot at the Cove’s Corner lot. “This is a busy weekend.”
Annie hopped out. “Thanks for the ride.” She wasn’t completely disappointed to see Jason get out too.
“I’m fine walking in by myself.”
“One can never be too careful.” He took Annie by the arm and guided her through the doorway. “Something smells good in here. Leona certainly knows how to cook up a storm.”
Martha peered out of her shop as Annie and Jason walked by. “Annie, can I talk to you for a minute?”
Pulling away from Jason, she walked into The Fabric Stash and Jason continued to the café. “Thanks for rescuing me from that guy.”
“Are you kidding? He doesn’t look like someone you need to be rescued from. Just the opposite. I’d let him to do all the rescuing possible. Who is he?”
“My landlord, Jason Hunter.”
“That’s Jason Hunter? I haven’t seen him around town for, well, I can’t even remember when he was here last,” Martha said as she raised her eyebrows suggestively. “What’s he doing here?”
“He said he likes to come for fishing season.” Glancing around to be sure they were alone, Annie asked, “Is everything safe?”
“Safe and sound, but someone interesting came in and poked around.”
“Who?”
“That varmint, Vincent. That has a nice ring, doesn’t it? Vinny the varmint; fits his personality too. He certainly wasn’t looking for any quilting fabric, but don’t worry, there’s no way he’d find your item here.”
“When I went home, all my other photographs were torn apart and scattered around. That’s when Jason walked in. I’m glad I found this one before anyone else did.”
“Were there more?”
“I don’t know. I found the one you’re hiding by accident. My guess is, whoever is after it won’t leave until they find everything they’re looking for.”
“Looking for what?” a deep voice asked.
Martha’s eyes moved behind Annie and smiled at Detective Jaffrey, who appeared from thin air. “Just some special fabric with cats on it. I’m making aprons for the café like this one.” She handed the apron back to Annie. “I didn’t want anyone to buy it out from under me. Ya know, if you have a special someone in your life, I could help you find a unique gift for her. Or even make something if you’re going to be in town for a few more days.”
Annie chuckled. She loved how Martha could get information in such a casual manner. Martha certainly was an asset, along with Leona and Mia, in figuring out what happened to Max.
Who was Max referring to when he left that cryptic note about not trusting anyone, she wondered. Vincent was at the top of Annie’s mental list but there were others too—Jake, Danny, Detective Jaffrey, and now Jason.
A crash from across the hallway drowned out the thoughts in her head. The detective was the first out the door, entering the café in just a few strides of his long legs. Annie was hot on his heels.
Mia was staring at the floor near the freebrary, staring at something shiny on the floor.
Chapter 15
“Don’t touch anything,” Detective Jaffrey commanded as he carefully pulled on plastic gloves and picked up a knife. The blade was broken off about an inch or so from the tip. “How did this get here?” He looked at Mia and Leona. Jason was standing off to one side watching the ordeal.
Mia shrugged. “I was straightening the books and it slid off the shelf.”
Annie inched closer to inspect it better. “That is just like the knife I saw Jake using when he was packing his pottery.”
Detective Jaffrey dropped the knife into an evidence bag. “I’ll get it checked to find out if this is the murder weapon. Can I grab a coffee for the road?”
Leona, all starry eyed, walked to the coffee cart. “I’ll fix it for you. Cream and sugar, right?” she asked, fluttering her eyelids.
Mia headed back to the ice cream window where a family of five was lined up. The three young kids were hopping up and down, chanting, “Ice cream please, ice cream please!”
Detective Jaffrey left with his coffee and a wink for Leona. What a flirt he is, thought Annie. He knows how to play the women.
The timer on the oven got Leona hustling to take out five trays of blueberry muffins and she slid in five more trays of raspberry scones. “Annie, can you make more chili and your Chubby Chickpea Salad mixture? I got all the ingredients for a double batch of each. Roy wants me to stay open tomorrow afternoon with the ice cream window and for customers to come in for the drink cart and pastries, so I’m not expecting much sleep tonight.”
“Is he going to help serve?” Annie asked with disgust dripping from her voice.
“Ha! Would you want him to?”
Jason, who had been sitting quietly in a booth by himself, stood up. “I’ll help. I like to see all the tourists coming through town.”
Annie tensed, and at the same time felt her face flush. “What’s your specialty in the kitchen? Making a mess?”
He rewarded her insult with a charming shine in his eye. “You pegged me accurately; I’m pretty incompetent in the kitchen but I think I can keep the coffee pots going. Of course, if you don’t need an extra set of hands . . .”
“Of course we’ll take your he
lp,” Leona shouted from behind the counter as she gave a look to Annie that said, are you crazy? “I want to make a big splash this weekend and I’m sure I can find something for even the most incompetent person to do.”
“Are you calling me incompetent, Leona?” Jason said with his arms crossed over his chest and his lips squished together in a fake frown.
“Of course not. You know what I mean. Now, make yourself useful and push the coffee cart to the sink and wash everything. That’ll be your job interview.”
Jason laughed out loud. “The real Leona finally emerges. All business and bossiness. I’m surprised you can get anyone to stay working for you. You even make the volunteers do a job interview,” he teased, glancing at Annie, hoping she would back him up.
Annie was chopping and stirring and pretended to ignore their interaction. She wasn’t sure what to make of this Jason guy. He showed up after she found all of her framed photographs strewn around the apartment. Did he do it? Who was he, anyway? Don’t trust anyone repeated over and over in her head. But she snuck a peak at him working and her body reacted to his maleness even if her brain tried to ignore the rush of feelings.
They all fell into an easy rhythm working on different projects in the café; Leona mixing up another batch of sweetness, Annie finishing the chili and starting the chickpea salad; and Mia manning the ice cream window.
Finally, as Jason pushed the cleaned and organized coffee cart back to its position, he asked Annie, “What’s the deal with the knife that was found earlier?”
“You didn’t hear about the murder?”
“Yes, I did, and you think the knife is connected?”
“Maybe. I was told Max was stabbed.”
“What about Tyler Johnson, the police chief? Who is this other guy taking away possible evidence?”
“He’s a detective and he’s been investigating the art gallery where Max, the victim, was an owner. He followed Max here to Catfish Cove. He’s working with Tyler,” Annie explained.
Jason nodded. “What are you mixing up there? Do you need a guinea pig to taste test it?”
“It’s Chubby Chickpea Salad. Are you brave enough to try it?” Annie challenged him.
“Definitely. It sounds delicious to a vegetarian.”
Annie’s eyes popped open wide. “You’re a vegetarian?”
“Guilty as charged. Why are you so surprised?” His lips curved into a smile.
“Usually, you big strong macho men are carnivores.” Annie’s face heated up again. She lost count of how many times Jason got her flustered. For some reason, he managed to keep her off balance and she didn’t like it. She needed to have a chat with her body to quit reacting like she was a teenager with a crush.
She put a scoop of the chick pea salad in a bowl and slid it in front of Jason. “Tell me what you think.”
“Don’t worry, I’m known for my brutal honesty. And the vegetarian thing? That’s only one of the many surprises about me.” He sampled a big bite, chewing slowly and deliberately as if he was a famous food critic. “Very good. It could use a bit more lemon, or serve a lemon wedge on the side.”
“That’s actually a good idea. Thanks,” she said grudgingly.
“I like the name too. You made that up?”
“I can’t take credit for the name. Max’s son liked to name my creations when I was living with him.”
“Ahh. Another piece of the puzzle revealed.”
After Jason devoured the chickpea salad sample and Annie was busy cleaning up some dirty bowls, he whispered something to Leona before leaving the café.
Tyler, JC and Dylan stopped at the ice cream window. “Can we still get a cone?” JC asked Mia.
“Sure. What flavor do you want?”
Dylan asked for mint chocolate chip with hot fudge sauce in a cup with the cone on top. “How about you JC?”
“I’ll pass.” She laughed. “Dylan will need help finishing this.”
Tyler caught Annie’s attention and glanced at the door. She nodded and waited for Tyler to walk inside.
“Do you have a few minutes to show me those photos you took of the chili mess?”
“Come on back to Leona’s office.” Annie got her camera and scrolled to the photos she’d taken the day before and handed her camera to Tyler. “Here they are.”
“Wow. That’s a big mess! Any idea who would do this?”
Annie shrugged. “I think it’s connected to whoever killed Max. Are you making any progress on that?”
“Not really. Every lead ends in a dead end. We haven’t even found the murder weapon yet.” Tyler put the camera down on Leona’s desk.
“What about the knife Detective Jaffrey took a few hours ago?”
Tyler’s head jerked around to stare at Annie. “What knife?”
“Mom found a knife with the tip of the blade broken off. It fell off the book shelves when she was straightening them up. Detective Jaffrey put it in an evidence bag and said he was getting it checked to see if it was the murder weapon.”
Tyler clenched his jaw. “I hate it when outsiders come in. They think they can ignore the local police and leave us out of the loop. Next time there’s something important, please call me, okay?”
“Definitely. I thought you were working together on this.”
“I’m going to check into this right now. I wonder if that’s why everything I’ve followed up on has gone nowhere.”
Annie took hold of Tyler’s arm and whispered, “Listen, Tyler. I know I can trust you and there’s a couple other things I want to share with you, but not here. Can you stop by my apartment later? Bring JC too if you want. I don’t want her to think I’m up to something behind her back. You know, because of our history and all.”
“I don’t like the sound of this and I’d prefer not to wait, but maybe you’re right. This is too public. We’ll swing by your apartment later.” Tyler turned to leave but stopped and asked, “I noticed Jason Hunter hanging around the cafe, what’s up with that?”
“Beats me. He even volunteered to keep the coffee pots filled tomorrow. What’s the deal with him anyway? He’s a big question mark for me.”
“I heard he used to work for the FBI. To tell you the truth, I don’t have a clue what he does. He hardly ever comes around Catfish Cove anymore. Leona could probably fill you in better than I can. She’s been friends with him for quite a while. I think his father had something to do with her getting out of jail way back when we were still toddlers.”
“That’s something I can never get her to talk to me about,” Annie said wistfully.
Chapter 16
Leona insisted on dropping Annie at her apartment instead of letting her walk home. With all the craziness of the last couple days she said it seemed safer that way.
“See you tomorrow morning, early, so we can whip up a few more batches of goodies before the customers start flooding in,” Annie told Leona as she got out of the mustang. “Thanks for the ride. It’s been a long day, and as much as I love to walk, the ride was a treat.”
Leona gunned her car after she turned the car around, laughing and waving.
Annie hoped she wouldn’t find any drama inside as she unlocked the front door. She didn’t think she’d be able to deal with one more problem today. She was stunned when her door opened and she found a vase filled with fresh red and yellow tulips sitting smack in the middle of her table. Her hand covered her chest. Her favorite flowers. Who had done this? A smiling face turned from the counter holding a steaming pizza.
“I’m speechless.”
“That’s fine. Sit down while I pour you a glass of wine. I’m not much of a cook but I can figure out how to stick a premade pizza in the oven.”
Annie sat after she picked up Smokey to cuddle. “How did you know I would be walking in exactly when the pizza was ready to come out of the oven?”
“You caught me. I had a little help from Leona.” Jason handed Annie a glass of wine. “You prefer red, right?” He clinked his glass against hers. �
��Look around on your walls.”
Annie tore her eyes from the tulips to see her photographs were all rematted and back in their frames. “You did all this? For me?”
“Good tenants are hard to find and I’d like to keep you here.”
“I’m glad you think I’m a good tenant. One disaster after another has followed me ever since I arrived.”
“Well, forget about that for the rest of the night and try to relax.” He expertly sliced the pizza, sliding a piece onto a plate for Annie.
“Vegetarian I see. My favorite—peppers, onions and mushrooms. I’m touched by your generosity, Mr. Hunter.”
Jason sat down across from Annie and held up his glass. “Cheers.”
A comfortable silence filled the room as they ate the pizza and sipped their wine.
Annie finished her wine and set her glass down. “I’ve been wondering, Mr. Hunter, what is it that you do?”
“Besides making dinner for my tenant?” he answered with his lips turned up in a teasing smile.
“Besides the pizza, flowers and repairing my photographs. Yes. You’re not getting off the hook that easily.”
His gaze moved to the view out the window. Lights twinkled in the homes around the lake. “I find things.”
Annie laughed, nearly choking on the bite of pizza she just put in her mouth. “You find things? What kind of things?”
“Anything really. Whatever someone needs help finding.”
Annie rested her chin on her hand and scrunched up her mouth. “Are you any good?”
With eyebrows raised, Jason brought his eyes back to stare into Annie’s. “Yes. I always find what I’m looking for, but that doesn’t guarantee my customer is happy in the end.”
“Why not?”
“Uncovering one thing quite often leads to discovering more secrets that people aren’t always ready for.” Jason shifted in his seat. “Why the interest? Is there something you need to find?”
“Yes, but I’m not positive I want to find it.”
Jason nodded. “It’s good to know what you want before you start the search.”