My face flushed. “He flirted with me.”
“Of course he did. He’s not blind. What else happened?”
I decided to make her wait for it. “I had a vision.”
“Of what?”
“One of Dr. Romano’s patients. Actually, the patient’s owner. She only adopted a cat so she’d have an excuse to come see him. Then she started unbuttoning her dress in the exam room.”
“What?” Neely Kate said, her brows shooting up. “What did you blurt out?”
“That a woman was going to show him her crystal-covered bra.”
I realized Bruce Wayne had ended his call, and judging from his red-tipped ears, he’d heard my last words loud and clear.
She put a hand on her chest. “Oh, no.”
“Then the receptionist walked in and told him his next appointment had arrived.”
“So that was it?” she asked, sounding disappointed.
“No,” I said, reaching over to switch on my computer. “He asked me out to dinner tonight.”
“Please tell me you accepted,” she begged.
I looked up at her. “He’s picking me up here at six.”
Neely Kate let out an ear-piercing squeal.
“Neely Kate!”
Bruce Wayne stood and made a beeline for the front door. “You still planning on helping me on the job site tomorrow?”
“Why wouldn’t I?” I asked in confusion.
He muttered something under his breath and then pushed his way out the door so forcefully that the bell attached to it chimed for several seconds.
“Don’t mind him,” Neely Kate said. “You know he hates any touchy-feely stuff. But let me just say how proud I am of you.”
“I didn’t do anything to be proud of,” I said, slightly annoyed. “I agreed to go out to dinner with him.”
“But it was scary, and you said yes.”
I couldn’t help wondering if I’d only agreed to the date because I was trying to prove something to James. Or maybe myself. “But I don’t even know him, Neely Kate,” I said, spinning in my chair to face her. “How can I tell if I’m even interested in him?”
“That’s the whole point of datin’, Rose. You go out, ask each other about your pasts, your jobs and interests, and then you decide if you want to keep goin’ out.”
“I still don’t think I should go,” I said. “Muffy needs me.”
“Muffy will be fine. I’ll make sure she doesn’t move around much. We’ll have a girls’ night in.”
“Maybe I want a girls’ night in.”
“We’ve had four months of girls’ nights. It’s time for one of us to escape, and you’re it. You’re goin’. End of story.”
I was about to get to work but decided to broach the touchy subject of our case. “Neely Kate, you know we need to back off from looking for Raddy’s necklace. It’s part of a murder investigation now. We might mess something up, not to mention it could be dangerous.”
She turned to face her computer and refused to look me in the eye. “Yeah, I know.”
The rest of our day got busy. I had a few jobs to bid on, and I’d arranged to meet a couple at the nursery at three to look at plants for their design. I got back to the office by five forty, and my stomach tied into knots when I realized Levi Romano would be here in twenty minutes to pick me up.
“I’ve changed my mind,” I said as I sat down in my chair and leaned over to rub Muffy’s head.
“Changed your mind about what?” Neely Kate asked.
“My date. I really think I need to stay home with Muffy.”
“Muffy’s gonna be just fine. We’ve covered this multiple times already. You’re gonna go out to dinner, eat a nice meal, and then let him bring you back here. You’re not marrying the man. It’s a date.”
“That’s just it. I’ve hardly dated anyone. I already knew Joe and Mason when I started dating them. Other than that, I only had one blind date with a guy who ditched me.”
“All the more reason to go out. Now why don’t you go to the bathroom and freshen up before he gets here?”
I opened my mouth to protest, but the door opened, and Homer Dyer crossed the threshold.
Neely Kate must have seen the look of surprise on my face because she turned toward the door. “What are you doin’ here, Homer Dyer?” she asked in a short tone.
“We have some unfinished business,” he snarled, moving to the middle of the room.
He looked madder than a wet hen. I reached for my phone, about to call Jed, but then I remembered how adamant Neely Kate had been last night. She’d wanted to handle Homer by herself then; should I trust her to do so now? I hid my phone in my lap . . . just in case.
I expected her to whip out her gun—all the more reason to consider calling Jed for backup—but she stayed in her seat, looking up at him like he was just an annoying bug. “I can’t think of a single thing that needs to be said, so get out.”
“Not until I get some answers.” He took several steps toward her desk. “I wanna know two things: one, where’s my boy, and two, where’s that damned necklace?”
Neely Kate gave him a fierce look. “We don’t know the answer to either one of those questions, so like I said, get on out of here.”
“You thought you were mighty big pulling a gun on me yesterday,” he said, reaching behind him and hauling out a hunting knife. “But I don’t see no gun now.”
Time to text Jed. I hid my phone under my desk and speed-typed a text that sounded like a Clue guess: Homer Dyer in our office with a knife.
“Have you officially lost your mind, Homer Dyer? Or are you just plain drunk?” Neely Kate asked in disbelief, pointing her finger toward the door. “The police headquarters is just down the street.”
I slowly reached into my purse and pulled out my Taser, keeping it out of sight.
Homer moved in front of her desk. “Where’s my boy?”
She got to her feet, rising to her full five-foot-four inches. He towered over her, and she had to tilt back her head to glare up at him. “How in the world would I know?”
“You’ve been talking to him. Where is he? He’s not answering his phone.”
Was Homer worried about his stepson? He didn’t strike me as the worrying sort.
“I don’t know,” Neely Kate said. “Haven’t seen him since yesterday.”
My phone vibrated in my lap with a response from Jed.
Hang tight.
Homer was still staring Neely Kate down with the knife in his hand. “That’s not what I heard,” he snarled. “I heard he was hiding out in your barn.”
“Never saw him.”
Homer's face reddened and he looked ready to pounce.
Hiding the Taser behind my back, I stood upright and said, “I was the one who saw Raddy last night.”
Homer turned his beady eyes on me. “Is that right? Did he have the necklace?”
“What do you think?” I asked, walking to the side of my desk.
“Don’t get smart with me,” he snapped.
“He hired us to find the necklace,” I countered. “We didn’t make any secret of that when we were talkin’ to Miss Mable. If we didn’t have it when we left your house, when would we have found it to give to Raddy?”
“How the hell would I know?” he asked, moving closer.
“Stop right there or I’ll shoot,” Neely Kate shouted, now pointing her gun at him.
Homer turned to face Neely Kate, giving her the scariest grin I’d ever seen. “I think I’ll take my chances.”
“I’ve got this covered, Neely Kate.” I hoped she believed me. Tasing a guy would be a whole lot easier to explain than shooting one, and while I wasn’t convinced he didn’t deserve it, I didn’t want his blood on our hands. Or the floor.
“Raddy said he saw someone running out of his wife’s house after he found her dead,” I said. “Know anything about that?”
“How would I know about that?” Homer asked, but he didn’t come across as one hundred percent c
onvincing.
“Because you knew Rayna was the last person to have seen that necklace.”
“I didn’t have nothing to do with killing her.”
I tilted my head. “No one said anything about her being murdered.”
He lunged for me with the knife, and I pulled my hand out from behind my back, aimed the Taser at his chest, and pressed the button.
Homer was on the floor within seconds, and the smell of urine filled my nose.
“Oh, my stars and garters,” Neely Kate groaned as she walked over to him. “Did he just pee himself?” She glanced up at me with a dark look. “I’m not cleaning up that mess.”
“It’ll be easier to clean up than blood.”
The front door burst open, and we both glanced up at the newcomer—a young man I didn’t recognize.
Neely Kate turned to face him, still holding the gun at her side. “If you’re here for the necklace, you can get on out of here. We don’t know where it is.”
“Jed sent me.”
“Jed?” Neely Kate blinked. “Jed Carlisle? Whatever for?”
“To take care of him.” He pointed to the man lying on the floor.
“Jed sent someone else?” I asked, trying to hide my disappointment.
The man looked at me, although man might have been a generous word for him. He looked to be in his late teens. “He was a half hour south of town, so he asked me to help.”
“Who the heck are you?” Neely Kate asked. “You got any ID?”
I narrowed my eyes at her. “What good is an ID gonna be? He’s not with the police. He’s not gonna have some badge he can whip out.”
“I’m Brett Hollander, ma’am,” he said and nodded toward her.
“Ma’am?” Neely Kate screeched.
I released a loud groan. “Take him to task for callin’ you ma’am later, Neely Kate. Right now we have to deal with the unconscious, pee-soaked man on our office floor before a customer walks in.” I was glancing up at the clock to see how soon we could lock the doors when I realized my date was going to show up sooner than I’d like. “Look what time it is!” I said in a panic. “Dr. Romano’s going to be here in five minutes.”
“What?” she asked in confusion; then her eyes flew open wide. “Oh, no!” She turned to Brett. “What do you propose we do with him?”
Brett looked more than a little lost, but a half second later his jaw locked with determination. “We’ll move him to the alley.”
“Good idea,” Neely Kate said, moving for Homer’s feet. “You get the top half, and I’ll take the bottom.”
She started reaching for his boots, then waved a hand in front of her face and gagged. “Oh my word. I think he’s been walking in cow poo.”
Brett walked around to Homer’s feet and bent down to look at the soles of his boots. “I reckon you’re right.”
Neely Kate put her hands on her hips and steeled her back. “I am not holding that end.”
“I’m not gonna do it,” Brett said.
“Somebody has to do it,” I groaned, sending a panicked look toward the door. “Dr. Romano’s gonna be here any minute.”
Neely Kate gave me a resigned look, then turned toward Brett. “Go look out back. See if the coast is clear for us to haul him outside.”
Brett headed out the back door just as the front door opened. My stomach dropped to the floor when I saw Dr. Romano walk in.
“Oh, my stars and garters,” Neely Kate mumbled as she spun around and tried to stand in front of Homer. “Hello, Dr. Romano!” she said a little too enthusiastically.
He frowned and leaned slightly to the side. “Why is that man lying on the floor?”
“He was tired,” Neely Kate said, then gave my arm a shove. “You better get goin’, Rose.”
“Is he okay?” Dr. Romano asked, moving closer. “And what’s that smell?”
“We were cleanin’,” Neely Kate said, then hastily added as she blocked his path, “With ammonia.”
“Does that man need medical assistance?” he asked, sounding concerned.
“Nope,” Neely Kate said. “He’s just a homeless man we let hang out here from time to time. He likes to nap on our floor.”
“Wow,” Dr. Romano said. “That’s very generous of you.”
Neely Kate shook her head in mock sympathy. “We keep trying to get him to go to the New Living Hope Revival Church, but he always turns us down. Still, we keep hoping.”
Brett came in from the back door. “The alley’s clear, so we can move him out back.” He stopped short when he saw Dr. Romano. “Oh. Hey.”
“The alley?” Dr. Romano asked.
“Well,” Neely Kate drawled, “We’re getting ready to lock up. Sometimes we set him up with a little place out back so he can keep comfortable.”
“I had no idea Henryetta had such a homeless problem,” Dr. Romano said.
Neely Kate shrugged. “I guess no place is perfect. Now you two need to get goin’.”
Dr. Romano looked at me and lifted his eyebrows. “Are you ready?”
I wasn’t, but I couldn’t let him stay here a moment longer than necessary. Still, I hated to leave Homer with Neely Kate. What if he woke up and hurt her?
But she must have read my mind. “Brett and I have everything under control. We’ll make sure Homer gets taken care of. Once we do, I’ll take Muffy home and we’ll see you there later.”
Homer was going to wake up at some point, and when he did, he was going to be good and ticked. It couldn’t be that hard for him to figure out where we lived. Sure, we had guns and an alarm system I mostly forgot to set, but I didn’t like the thought of living on guard.
I squatted in front of the crate, opened the door, and rubbed Muffy’s head. “I’ll be home in a little bit. You be a good girl.” Then I stood and grabbed my purse. “Neely Kate, you call me if you need . . . to chat.”
She gave me a forced grin. “If I need to chat, I have Brett here.”
I quickly hurried out the front door, so fast that Dr. Romano didn’t have a chance to open it for me. He gestured to a pickup truck, and I walked to the passenger door. He grinned as he opened it for me. “I had no idea our date would start out with a foot race.”
I grimaced. “Sorry.”
He shut the door behind me, then got behind the wheel and started the engine. “I made reservations at Jaspers.”
“Oh,” I said, trying not to sound worried. I’d had several bad dates there, but that didn’t mean our date wouldn’t go well. Still, I couldn’t help thinking the odds weren’t in my favor.
As he drove to the restaurant, he told me several incidents from his day, which involved a parrot, a cat, and a dog who’d swallowed a plastic hot dog. It felt nice to listen to stories that had nothing to do with the whole mess involving the necklace, the Wagner brothers, and the Dyer family. Even so, I couldn’t help thinking that I should be back at the office, helping Neely Kate with the Homer situation.
Jarring me out of my thoughts, Dr. Romano asked, “How did you know about the woman with the crystal-covered bra?”
“Lucky guess,” I said, thankful he was pulling into the parking lot at the restaurant.
He let it drop, and I climbed out when he turned off the engine. He met me at the back of the truck and snagged my hand in his. “You look beautiful tonight, Rose.”
“Thank you, Dr. Romano,” I said, resisting the urge to pull my hand free.
He chuckled. “I told you to call me Levi. Do you know how awkward it will be when we’re married and have kids and you’re still calling me Dr. Romano?”
I gaped at him. Married? Kids?
He burst into laughter. “I’m kidding. But I do want you to call me Levi.”
“Okay,” I said, giving in to the urge to pull my hand out of his. “Levi,” I said, testing it out.
He grinned and put his hand on the small of my back, steering me toward the entrance to the restaurant.
Maybe I wasn’t ready for this after all.
But Dr. R
omano—no, Levi—was nice, and he was cute, and he was interested in me. And he had absolutely nothing to do with either criminals or law enforcement. Neely Kate was right. I should at least get to know him.
He’d made reservations, so the hostess led us right to our table, which, ironically enough, was the same one I’d sat at for that failed blind date almost a year ago.
My date with Levi was already off to a better start. He hadn’t been coerced by my brother-in-law, didn’t look scared that I was about to bean him in the head with a rolling pin, and he was charming.
Our waiter came by with menus and took our drinks order. After he left, I cleared my throat. “So, Dr. Romano—I mean, Levi—how did you end up in Henryetta?”
“My grandparents live here, in the Forest Ridge neighborhood. I always loved coming to visit when I was a kid, and when it came time for me to start looking for a practice, my grandmother told me Dr. Ritchie was retiring. It was kismet.”
“You’re not from Arkansas, are you?” I asked.
He laughed. “Does my non-accent give me away?”
I grinned. “That and the fact you don’t say yes, ma’am and yes, sir.”
A grimace crossed his face. “I guess I should work on that.”
“No,” I said. “You just be you. But you still haven’t told me where you’re from.”
“Missouri. I grew up in the Kansas City area.”
The waitress came back with our drinks and took our orders. When she left, Levi’s eyes lit up. “So, Rose Gardner, what about you? Are you originally from Henryetta?”
“Born and raised,” I said. “Never left except the semester and a half I went to Southern Arkansas University.”
“What brought you back?” he asked.
“My father died.”
His smile fell. “I’m sorry.”
I shook my head and picked up my glass of wine. “I came home to take care of my invalid mother. It was seven years ago, and she’s since died, but everything worked out in the end.”
“And now you own a landscaping business.” That reminded me of what he’d said earlier, how he’d asked around about me.
“Indeed, I do. If there’s one thing you need to know about Henryetta, it’s that there’s no such thing as a secret here. Or at least it’s much harder to keep one.” I put my glass down. “So what else did you hear about me?”
Family Jewels: Rose Gardner Investigations #1 Page 14