Rose’s eyes narrowed. “What are you talkin’ about?”
Jed wasn’t intimidated. “Why did you invite Joe to come live with you?”
She gasped at his bluntness. “What does that have to do with anything?”
“It has everything to do with what’s goin’ on now. Why did you have him move in?” When she didn’t immediately answer, he said, “To protect you from Carmichael and help with Violet, right? The fact is, Carmichael’s currently not a threat, and Violet’s...gone.”
“Jed!” I protested.
Rose’s jaw clenched. “Why don’t you just come out and say you want him to move out?”
“It doesn’t matter what I want,” Jed said, softening his tone. “What matters is what best protects you, and this arrangement isn’t working anymore.”
“Because they’re worried about me,” Joe said.
Their gazes met and held, and some sort of silent understanding seemed to pass between them. “I’ve liked knowing you were here, helping keep them safe,” Jed said, “but the truth is your presence is making people nervous.”
“They think she’ll rat them out?”
“No, they think you won’t be content to let her do what she needs to do. And why would they? You’re the chief deputy sheriff. Your job is to put them away.”
“Where’s he gonna go?” Rose asked, her voice rising. “He gave up his house to move in with me.”
Joe turned to face her, his eyes full of understanding. “That’s not your concern, Rose.”
“Of course it’s my concern!” she insisted. “You’re practically homeless.”
“He can move into Vi’s old house,” I said. “You’re wantin’ to fix it up anyway, so Joe can move in and work on it.”
“We can’t expect him to just work on it,” Rose said, her eyes pleading with me to take her side. “What about askin’ him what he wants?”
I hated that we were adding to her pain. Surely she’d been through enough. “Oh, honey…”
Joe leaned toward her, holding her gaze. “Rose, what I want is irrelevant at the moment.”
“That’s not true,” she protested.
“It is,” Jed countered, sitting straighter and taking a no-nonsense tone, “and Joe’s wise enough to see the big picture.”
“It’s okay, Rose,” Joe said as he got to his feet. His gaze darted around the room as though he wasn’t sure what to do next, then he blurted out, “I need to head into town and clear my head.”
My heart broke for Joe too. He seemed to love living here, yet we were kicking him out with very little notice. “Joe.” My voice broke.
He smiled at me, but it wobbled. “It’s okay, Neely Kate.” He bolted for the back door.
Rose jumped up. “Joe!”
He turned and offered her a sad smile. “I won’t lie—I’m not happy about this. You know I want to be part of everything with this baby, so I need you to wrap up whatever it is you’re doin’ so I can be here when the baby’s born.” He walked out the door, and no one moved to stop him.
Tears filled Rose’s eyes. “I can’t believe I just kicked him out. After everything he’s done for me…and everything he’s gonna do for me.”
“You didn’t kick him out,” Jed said. “And he admitted we were right.”
“But I can’t guarantee this will all be sorted out before the baby’s born.”
“No, you can’t,” Jed said, “and we need to talk about that too.”
Her back stiffened and a new fire filled her eyes. “Which part?”
“What kind of a role he’s gonna play in your baby’s life.”
Her chest puffed out. “That’s not up for debate. I’m namin’ Joe as the father and he’s gonna help raise this baby.”
“Do you really think that’s a good idea, Rose?” he asked.
“You were on board with this plan last week!”
“I was on board with you tellin’ people he’s the father, not bringin’ him on 110%.”
She put a hand on her hip. “It’s a good thing it’s not up you, then, isn’t it?”
“Rose,” Jed said with a sigh.
“Don’t you Rose me,” she snapped. “Joe’s gonna look like a deadbeat dad if we tell the town he’s the daddy and then he doesn’t have a blessed thing to do with the baby.” Her eyes narrowed. “And you know people are gonna talk. It’s a heck of a lot better than people thinkin’ Skeeter Malcolm’s the father. If people find out, tongues won’t just be wagging in the criminal world. I’ll lose customers, and my baby will be an outcast. Do you really want to subject your godchild to that?”
Jed’s eyes widened. “You want me to be the baby’s godfather?”
“Well, of course I want you to be the baby’s godfather,” she said as though explaining it was a ridiculous waste of her time. “I thought that was a given since I asked you and Neely Kate to take care of my baby if I were sent to jail.”
“Rose…”
“And let’s not forget about the fact that I want my baby to be raised by two loving parents. You have no idea what I went through as a child, Jed. My mother…she was a bad mother. And my father never once stopped her. He tried to steer clear of her sharp tongue, which meant abandoning Violet and me to her temper.” Her voice broke. “James made it very clear he doesn’t want this baby.”
“He might change his mind,” Carly said, speaking up for the first time since the newest conversation had begun. Until now, she’d been listening in silence, her mouth gaping at times. “Maybe he had to get over the shock.”
“He tried to pay me twenty thousand dollars to abort it,” Rose said in an ice-cold tone. “And he made arrangements in Little Rock for me to get the procedure done.”
“That is cold,” Carly conceded, “but what if he thought he was doing the right thing? You said he’s pushed both you and Jed away. Maybe he’s still tryin’ to protect you. You yourself said you’d be in danger if word gets out that he’s the father.”
“Yes,” she said. “I believe overall that he’s tryin’ to protect me. But I’m not a child,” she spat, her anger rising again although I knew this time it wasn’t directed at any of us. “We should have discussed it. We should have made a decision together, instead he tried to pull some caveman bull crap and railroad me into doin’ what he wanted.” She shook her head, fury in her eyes. “Until now we’ve been partners—he’s respected my opinion, my feelings. And then the time I needed his support the most, he…”
“But if he…” Carly started to say.
“But nothing. There is no excuse in the world that justifies how he treated me. And if that weren’t enough,” Rose continued, fury in her eyes, “the last time I saw him, he told me I had to choose—him or the baby. I saw that man’s face. I looked into his eyes. He meant it. Every word.”
“I’m sorry,” Carly said. her tone full of sincerity. Smart woman that she was, she left it at that.
“No need to be sorry,” Rose told her, then turned to face Jed. “Trust me, I’m not makin’ this decision lightly.”
“No one said you were, Rose,” Jed said. “I just want—”
She shook her head, her lips pursed in disgust. “You just want me to sit on this and see which way the wind blows.”
“There’s nothin’ wrong with waitin’ a month or four to make up your mind. Besides, you’re perfectly capable of raisin’ this baby on your own.”
“Of course I am,” she said. “But just because I can doesn’t mean I have to. I want my baby to have a father who loves it. Not a father who wants to get rid of it.”
“What if he uses the baby to try to hurt you?” I asked quietly, putting words to my fear.
Tears filled her eyes. “He won’t.”
“You don’t know that,” I protested.
She placed her hand on her belly. “I do. I told him I wanted nothin’ from him other than to leave us be. He’ll abide by that.”
“How can you be sure of that?” I asked.
“Because despite everyt
hing, he loves me. If he wanted to hurt me, he already would have.”
“He already did,” Carly said softly.
Rose turned her gaze to her and gave her a soft smile. “True. So not any more than he already has.”
I was glad she was so sure of that, because I wasn’t.
Chapter 11
We cleaned up the kitchen and Joe didn’t come back, instead texting to say he was sleeping in Violet’s house. (Thankfully, he still had the key from when he’d lived next door to Violet and helped her with the kids.) Rose nearly broke down, but her spine turned to steel and she vowed to have her part in the crime world resolved as soon as possible.
Jed didn’t look like he believed it, but he was wise enough to keep his mouth shut. “Do you want me to spend the night?” he asked.
She narrowed her eyes at him. “You chased Joe away, tellin’ him there’s no threat. Either there is or there isn’t, Jed Carlisle, make up your mind.”
“There’s not,” he said slowly. “But you’re used to—”
“I’m a grown woman about to have a baby of my own. I don’t need anyone to babysit me.”
“No one’s babysitting—” he started to protest.
“I’m fine.” But then her tone softened, and she glanced at Carly. “But if you’re worried about us bein’ out here by ourselves, then I’m perfectly fine with you goin’ home with Jed and Neely Kate.”
“You can both come,” I said. “Our first house guests.”
Carly took a stand next to Rose. “I go where you go. If you stay here, then I’m here with you.”
“You’re sure?” Rose asked.
Carly smiled. “Positive.”
I nearly insisted on staying with them, but for an entirely different reason. Rose’s entire world was imploding, and while Carly was staying with her, she wasn’t me. From a political standpoint, Jed was right, but now that Joe wasn’t staying with them anymore, I was more worried about her than before. “You know what sounds like fun?” I said. “A girls’ weekend. Just the three of us. We can go shopping in Little Rock and maybe even spend the night. Or if you don’t feel up to it, Rose, we could have a marathon binge session of Outlander. I still can’t believe neither of you have seen it yet.” But it was only Wednesday, leaving at least two nights before I could baby her.
Rose made a face. “I’d rather just stay home, but again, if Carly…”
Carly shook her head. “I don’t want to go anywhere. Venturing out to work at the nursery is enough for now.”
“Then it’s settled,” I said. “We’ll hang out all weekend with our two favorite men—Ben and Jerry—” I glanced over at Jed with a mocking grin. “Sorry, Jed.”
He laughed. “I’ve always known where I stand on that hierarchy.”
“And we’ll order pizza, watch Outlander, and do whatever we want to do all weekend.” I gave Rose a smile. “Sound good?”
She closed the distance between us and pulled me into a hug. “I love you, Neely Kate.”
I almost suggested we have a slumber party right then, but I wondered if she needed to be alone tonight. Maybe her self-confidence required it. “I love you too.”
I released her, wishing she’d stay home from the office tomorrow and rest, but I doubted she’d agree to it. I suggested the next best thing. “Why don’t you go work with Bruce Wayne tomorrow? You know he could use help on the Sonder job, and I’ll hang out at the office all day.”
She started to turn me down, then a smile lifted her lips. “I’d like that. But for now, I think I’m going to take a warm bath—but don’t worry. Not too warm. I read about it in What to Expect While Expecting.” She headed up the stairs.
Carly must have realized Jed and I would want to return to our conversation from earlier, because she spun around and followed Rose, hot on her heels. “Hold up,” she said. “I have some bath salts you can try.” She paused halfway up and cast a glance at us. “See you guys later. Thank you for everything.”
She practically ran up the stairs.
Jed gave me a knowing look. “She’ll tell us when she’s ready.”
I hoped she didn’t wait too long.
I didn’t sleep well. Jed had pressed me on the way home for more information about Kate’s call, and I felt guilty for not confessing the true source of my information, even if it had ultimately come from her.
When I did fall asleep, I dreamed of Ronnie and Kate and the man who’d tried to kidnap me. I dreamed of Pearce Manchester beating me and I dreamed of strangling the life out of him. And then I dreamed of a baby crying, and no matter where I looked, I couldn’t find her.
I woke up in a cold sweat, sitting upright in bed.
Jed reached for me. “You okay?”
“Bad dream,” I murmured, still shaken by the crying baby.
“Lay back down and let me hold you.”
I glanced down at him, his face engulfed in shadows. “I’m thirsty. I’m gonna go downstairs and get a glass of water.”
He sat upright next to me. “I’ll get it, NK.”
“That’s okay.” I stretched up to give him a soft kiss. “I need to wake up a bit before I go back to sleep or the dream might come back.”
“Want to tell me about it?”
“No. I just want to try to forget.” Before he could convince me to stay, something he was good at, I slid out of bed and padded down the stairs, but not before grabbing my phone from the nightstand.
I filled a glass with water and sat at the breakfast room table. When I checked the screen on my phone, I wasn’t surprised to see a text from my sister.
Sweet dreams, little sis. I’m coming to see you soon.
I could ignore her message and wait for her next move or take a more offensive stance.
I was feeling confrontational.
Her text had shown up on my phone around midnight and it was now four in the morning, but Kate answered my phone call right away, sounding amazingly chipper.
“Good morning, NK. You’re up early.”
“I’m tryin’ to schedule the rest of my week,” I said. “Just giving you a call to find out when I can expect to see you.”
She laughed. “Who said I’m comin’ this week?”
“Oh, don’t play hard to get,” I said. “We both know you miss me.”
“I do,” she said, “but I’m not quite ready to see you yet. I’m still preparin’ your gift.”
That sent a shiver of fear down my back. “It’s gotta be hard to top your last gift,” I said. I shuddered at the memory of what Kate had done to Branson in Rose’s barn. Despite the horrible things he’d done to me, I hadn’t asked for that. I hadn’t wanted it.
“It’s tough,” she admitted, “but I’m workin’ on it. And you’re gonna love it, I promise.” She paused, then said, “Tell me, little sis. Do you have access to your money or does that strappin’ young man who screws you every night have it hidden away from you?”
“I don’t know what you’re talkin’ about,” I lied.
“Now, Neely Kate, I thought we were past all this.”
“All what?”
“The lyin’. Does he have it hidden from you or can you get to it?”
“I’m not givin’ you the money, Kate,” I said. “Why do you even want it?”
“Don’t you want to know why Hardshaw wants it?” my sister asked.
“If you know, why don’t you just tell me?”
“Where’s the fun in that?”
That was a familiar line from my sister, and I was too tired to play. “When you decide to tell me, let me know. Will that be when you drop in for a visit?”
She laughed. “You’re wising up. The Simmons blood is strong in you.” Then she abruptly hung up.
I stared at my phone, wondering if I’d made the right move calling her, but I decided that I needed to let her know she didn’t intimidate me, even if she did.
Glancing up, I saw Jed watching me, stark naked.
“You got up to call Kate?” he asked without
recrimination.
I stood and moved in front of him. “No. I got up because of my dream. I’ll tell it to you if you like.”
“You don’t have to justify yourself to me,” he said.
“My dream was chock full of my fears,” I said, feeling the need to tell him anyway. “But it ended with a cryin’ baby. I searched our whole house, but I couldn’t find her and she just kept cryin’.”
“Neely Kate.”
“I was scared that crying baby would keep me awake, so I came down to get a glass of water. Then I saw Kate had texted me, and I didn’t want to let her get away with intimidatin’ me.” I pulled up the text to show him.
“I believe you, NK.”
I held it in front of him anyway. “You need to read it.”
He read the message and gave me a grim look. “I guess the fact that she’s comin’ is no surprise.”
“She claims to know something about the money.”
“The money from Ardmore?”
I nodded. “I think she wants it.”
He frowned. “How are you doin’ with all of this?” he asked.
“I don’t like it,” I admitted, “and it makes me nervous, but I’m not scared of her. I think she loves me in her own warped way, but that doesn’t mean you’re safe. Or Rose, or even Joe.”
“You’re right,” he said.
“Even more worryin’ is that she claims she’s bringin’ me a surprise.”
“I’m sure it’s nothin’ good,” he said.
Knowing Kate, that was a given.
Chapter 12
Two days later, I still hadn’t heard back from Kate and nothing had changed on the Hardshaw front. Rose had held another summit, and the attendees had been more cooperative. Not only did they respect each other’s speaking time, but they’d been more forthcoming about what had been going on around them. Soon it came to light that the underworld had been infiltrated by more plants and spies than anyone had realized.
Joe had hit a dead end in the break-in at the attorney’s office too. The surveillance video from next door hadn’t shown the burglars because they’d been smart enough to block the cameras, but Joe was hopeful they’d narrowed down a time for the break-in—early Saturday morning between one and two a.m. He had deputies going door to door on the neighborhood street behind the two businesses to see if anyone had seen or heard anything.
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