“Hello? Is anyone on the line?” he said, making Felicity realize she hadn’t actually said anything.
“Uh, yes, it’s Felicity Miner,” she said. “Is this a bad time?”
His tone softened in recognition, which made her feel both relieved and self-conscious at the same time. “No, it’s fine,” he said. “What can I help you with?”
“I was, um, wondering if it was possible to get the name of the shoplifter and some details about his previous record?” she asked. “I just, well . . .” She exhaled. Why couldn’t she spit it out? “I’m worried that he might retaliate now that he’s out on bail. Today wasn’t the first time he was in the store, like I told you, and I don’t know what it all means. I feel like if I know more about him, then I might feel a little safer, I guess.” She was rambling, but he seemed to be listening. “It’s probably all confidential, I’m sure. Sorry to bother you.”
He didn’t laugh at her, so that was a good sign. “Are you still at the bookshop?” he asked.
This question she hadn’t expected.
“No, I just got home.”
“Would it be possible to speak to you in person about this?” he asked. “I’m off duty in a few minutes, and I could meet you somewhere, or come by your house.”
Her house? Was the information about the shoplifter that confidential? It was nearly dark outside, and she didn’t really like riding her bike around in the dark. “My house is fine.”
“All right, I’ll be there soon.”
He hung up before she could give him her address.
Leo had never been this spontaneous before. He was a planner, down to the minute, and to the detail. Offering to stop by Felicity Miner’s house wasn’t what he’d planned on saying until it came out of his mouth. But he wanted to see her again. As crazy as that sounded.
Maybe it was because he hadn’t been prepared to feel such a strong attraction toward Felicity Miner. It had come out of the blue.
Since the messy breakup with Janna earlier that year, his friends were constantly asking him when he was going to date again, questioning if he was still pining for Janna. No, he was definitely not pining for her. He supposed that he’d been more burned than hurt, but he’d also been mad at himself for getting involved with Janna in the first place, and letting things go so far.
He’d put up with a lot with Janna, and he shouldn’t have. He should have broken things off when he saw the first red flags. During their colossal breakup, Janna had thrown things at him. Screamed at him, calling him a lot of terrible names, including a few he didn’t know.
His mother had been happy when she found out they’d broken up. No matter how much she wanted more grandbabies, she’d never liked Janna, although she’d been mum about any specific reasons. And Leo decided that perhaps his mother had been right all along. Janna was sexy, charming, and could be sweet when she wanted to. But it was only when she wanted to. There had been no give and take in their relationship. He gave, she took. She’d pressured him to quit the police force and to go into business with her dad, who owned a grocery store chain. That would have been a real change—cop turned grocery store manager.
The last straw had been in February—at her birthday party—when she’d opened the gift he’d bought for her. They were with her friends, always her friends, and she’d smiled at the huge pile of presents on the table. She tore through them all, exclaiming at each one. When she got to his, she picked up the large box. “Did you wrap the smaller box in a bigger box?” she’d said, flashing him her perfect smile. “You know how they did it on that YouTube video I showed you last week?”
“Not exactly.”
She laughed, thinking he was teasing, but he wasn’t. He knew what she was hinting at—she’d told him that if he really wanted to make her happy, he’d propose to her on her birthday. Leo had bought her a leather jacket that she’d admired several times when they’d been out shopping for her.
She’d shaken the box. “Feels heavy,” she said, her eyes narrowing and her smile drooping. Then she ripped the paper and lifted the lid. Her eyes widened, and she lifted out the jacket, checked all the pockets. No ring.
In Leo’s defense, he’d never agreed to get her a ring. He hadn’t even told her he wanted to get married. That was all Janna’s idea, and he believed it should be a joint decision. But the look in her eyes made everyone at the party make a quick exit. And that’s when they’d had their big fight.
But that was thankfully in the past, and here he was, driving to Felicity Miner’s house. Because he hadn’t been able to stop wondering about her since that morning at the bookshop.
As he pulled up to the brick house surrounded by a tidy yard, he wondered if he should have just met her in town. He dreaded telling her that the shoplifter was his own cousin. Leo popped a piece of gum into his mouth and climbed out of his car.
Walking up to the front door, he started to feel nervous. Well, not exactly nervous . . . something else. Anticipation? He knocked on the door, and a couple moments later, it cracked open. Felicity stood there, but the dimness from inside the house kept her face in shadow.
“Hi,” he said.
Slowly, she pulled the door open wider. Her hair was the same, her clothing the same, but no red glasses.
“You changed your clothes,” she said, her gaze moving over his body.
Leo glanced down at his jeans and T-shirt, then he looked back to Felicity. “I’m off duty. So, I changed.”
“At the police station?”
She asked a lot of questions, he thought. “We have lockers.”
Her cheeks flushed a pale pink, which only made her eyes look greener and her mouth . . . He cleared his throat.
“Lockers? That makes sense.”
He felt like laughing, but he wasn’t exactly sure why. “Thanks for being willing to let me cut into your Friday night.”
Felicity smiled, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. “No problem. Were my questions out of line?”
“The ones about me changing my clothing, or about the shoplifter?”
Her cheeks were pink again. Had he embarrassed her? Or was he . . . flirting with her?
“Um, the shoplifter.” Her voice was faint.
Leo studied her. Was he making her nervous? Was this all a mistake? He rubbed the back of his neck. “Your questions are fine. I didn’t want you to get the wrong information if you googled the shoplifter’s name.”
She lifted her shoulders. “Fair enough.” She gazed at him for a moment longer, then said, “Come in and sit down. Are you thirsty or hungry?”
“I’m fine, thanks.” He walked into the front room as she held open the door. Passing by her, he smelled vanilla again. It was mild, mellow, and he liked it, even though he probably shouldn’t be thinking about how she smelled.
This time her smile seemed genuine. “I’m glad you’re not hungry, because I just went grocery shopping and discovered I still don’t have any ingredients to make a meal.”
“Sounds like something I’d do.” He sat on an overstuffed chair across from a couch. The pair was mismatched, and the room hadn’t been updated since the seventies—dark wood paneling. Stone fireplace. Macramé pictures on the walls. “Are those your art creations?”
Felicity settled on the couch across from him, and her shoulders seemed less tense. “No, I think they were my mom’s though—probably from sixth grade.”
“So this was your family’s home?” he asked. “I didn’t know you grew up here.”
“My mom did, not me,” she said. “We’d come for holidays, but home’s near San Francisco. I’ve been here about a year.”
Leo nodded. “Strange we haven’t run into each other in that time.” He would have certainly remembered her if he had.
“Well, I haven’t had to call the police before.” Her gaze scanned him, quite openly, in fact. “You look different when you’re not in uniform.”
He wasn’t sure what to make of her scrutiny, but he was curious. “How so?”
“Nice?” he prompted, because it seemed like when he was around her, he couldn’t help bantering.
She blinked a couple of times, as if her comments were completely innocuous, which perhaps they were. “Nice, and patient, with a newbie like me.”
Leo laughed. “Most people are newbies when it comes to dealing with cops and crimes.”
“Right.” Her lips curved into a smile. “So, who’s this mystery shoplifter?”
Leo sobered and leaned forward. “Here’s the thing. When I said I recognized the shoplifter, it’s because his name is Angelo Russo.” It would take her only seconds to connect the dots, so he went ahead and said it. “He’s my cousin.”
Her brows show up. “Oh. That’s . . . wow . . .”
“Yeah. I didn’t even know he was in Pine Valley,” Leo said. “He’s had a troubled life, but as far as I knew the last few years he’s been working full-time and keeping things clean. It’s been a while since I’ve seen him.”
Felicity exhaled. “Is he from here?”
“No, but he’s staying with my parents.”
Felicity stared at him.
“I just found out today,” Leo continued. “I’m not too happy about the circumstances. And you can bet that I’ll be keeping a close eye on him.”
“It’s not your fault,” she said in a slow voice. “But it certainly puts you in a strange situation.”
Leo couldn’t explain it, but he was relieved she felt that way. “I wanted to meet with you so I could answer any of your questions. I went over his record, and there hasn’t been anything for a few years—of course, that could mean he just hasn’t been caught. His priors include a couple of drug paraphernalia charges and one other shoplifting charge. If you look him up, you’ll see those convictions.”
“Nothing violent, or anything like that?” she asked.
Leo shouldn’t have been surprised at the question, but he was. “No.”
She leaned back on the couch, and he realized she’d been more tense than he thought.
“Do you have a roommate?”
Her gaze flickered with something unreadable. “Not right now.”
“Security system?”
“No.” Her brows pulled together. “Should I? It’s Pine Valley.”
“Most people do it for peace of mind.” He rested his forearms on his knees. “Although you’re right, Pine Valley is pretty safe.” She didn’t exactly look convinced. “I could check your locks, if you want.”
She hesitated, then said, “Would that be okay? I mean, I’m not usually a nervous person, and maybe after a couple of days I’ll think differently.”
Leo stood. “I’m happy to do it.”
“Okay, then.” She stood as well and led him into the kitchen. “There’s only the two windows in here.”
Leo tested the locks, and as he suspected, these windows were probably original to the house, and the locks were sturdy. He didn’t want to tell her that if a criminal was motivated enough, they’d find a way in no matter the lock system. Security systems were the only true warning. He turned to scan the rest of the kitchen. On top of the oak kitchen table sat three pairs of glasses. One of them was the red-and-black-striped pair. “Your collection?”
“Oh, that’s only a sample,” she said in an amused tone. “I’ve got dozens more.” She picked up a pair of navy ones and slipped them on. “What do you think? Does it make me look older and more bookish?”
Leo studied her for a second. “I think it does.” He reached out and slipped them off. Her green eyes were beautiful, with or without glasses, but that wasn’t what she’d been asking. “Maybe more bookish, but not really older. How old are you?”
Felicity took the glasses from him, and their hands brushed. Leo told himself that he shouldn’t be noticing those things.
“Twenty-seven,” she said.
“Really? I would have guessed younger.” Twenty-seven was good . . . especially since he was nearly thirty. Not that he’d dwell on that fact.
“People have always told me I look younger than my age,” she said. “I’m treated with more respect when I’m wearing glasses. Kind of weird, huh?”
Leo nodded. “Yeah, people are weird in general. We judge a lot based on first impressions. Comes with my job as well.”
She tilted her head, and Leo wondered if he’d ever been scrutinized as much as he felt he was being analyzed by Felicity. “You sort of have to make quick judgments, though,” she said. “It’s what you’re trained to do.”
“Yeah.”
She merely looked at him, and it was sort of uncanny. He decided she would probably make a good detective.
“I’m sorry about your cousin,” she said.
Leo’s brows show up. “You’re sorry?”
“Well, I’m sorry he felt like he needed to steal a book, and I’m sorry that you have to deal with the aftermath. Both as a cousin and as a cop assigned to the case.”
“I’m being taken off the case—because of the family relationship,” Leo said. “Filing the report was about as involved as I can be. But I’m going to keep a close eye on Angelo.”
Felicity nodded. Then she led him through the rest of the house, and he checked all the window locks, including the back door, which only had a doorknob lock. One thing he noted was that Felicity hadn’t done any of the upgrades or remodeling that so many people in the neighborhood had done to these older houses. But everything was in decent shape and cared for well.
They stepped into the last bedroom, and Leo paused in the doorway. The room was stuffed with bookcases, and the shelves teemed with books, like her own personal library. “Wow. Are all these your books?”
“About half,” Felicity said. “The rest are my grandpa’s. We shared the same passion for reading.”
Leo walked into the room and paused in front of the first shelf. Some of the titles were classics he vaguely remembered from high school. “Do you ever read any of these twice, or is this sort of like a shrine?”
Felicity came to stand next to him and pulled one of the books from the shelf. “I’ve read this one several times.”
He looked at the cover. “The Witch of Blackbird Pond? What’s that about, a witch?”
“It’s about more than a witch,” she said, her eyes gleaming. “It’s about a woman trying to fit into her community. I guess I sort of relate to her.”
She was standing rather close, and Leo gazed down at her, inhaling her vanilla scent. He wondered if it was her lotion, or body spray, or maybe shampoo. Her green eyes held his. “Is that how you’ve felt in Pine Valley?”
She hesitated, and Leo saw the debate in her eyes. “Not Pine Valley, specifically. Growing up as an only child and having parents older than most sort of made me feel isolated from the average family. Luckily I have books.”
“Obviously.”
She offered a soft smile, and he smiled back. “Do you like to read?” she asked.
“Is this a trick question?”
Her smile widened, and her dimple appeared. “How is that a trick question? Either you do or you don’t. Simple answer.”
Leo leaned against the bookcase and folded his arms. “Not so simple. Because I’m talking to a woman who works in a bookshop and has a personal library that rivals that of most college English professors. So if I say I don’t like to read, you’ll think I’m an uneducated hack. And if I say I do like to read, then you’ll be talking my ear off for the next two hours about books you think I have to read on my next day off.”
“Um, no,” she said, her mouth twitching as if she was trying to suppress a laugh. “I wasn’t planning on forming my final opinion about you based on whether you like to read or not.”
“Final opinion?” Leo asked. “Does that mean you have an opinion of me now?”
She shrugged and turned from him to put the book back. Her hair ne
arly brushed his arm, and he reached up to touch the end of her braid. She didn’t react, and maybe hadn’t even noticed his touch, but the action crossed that line between helping a citizen and flirting with a woman.
He lowered his hand and took a step back.
“So, what do you recommend?” she asked, turning to face him.
“To read?”
She smiled, and he had to drag his gaze away from the curve of her lips and dimpled cheek to focus on her eyes.
“No . . . Do you think I need a security system?” she asked.
He blinked. “Uh, I would never discourage anyone from putting in a security system.”
“But . . .?”
“But I think if your doors had better locks, such as dead bolts, you’d have more peace of mind in general, since you live alone and all.”
She bit her lower lip. “That’s probably a good idea.”
Leo forced his gaze back to her eyes. “Are you allergic to dogs?”
“No . . . Are you thinking I should get one of those watchdogs? Is that what you have?”
“Not exactly, although I do like dogs.”
“Oh right, you have a gun,” she said, a faint blush coloring her cheeks, “and you’re a trained police officer, so you’re probably a pretty good shot.”
This time he smiled. “Probably.”
“Well, Officer Russo, I think I will get dead bolts,” she said in a voice that had suddenly become breathless. She pulled out her phone and opened a browser. “Do you know where I can buy any? I’m assuming the hardware store is closed by now. Would they be at the grocery store?”
He tried not to act surprised—she was going to change her locks tonight? That meant she was a lot more nervous than he’d suspected. Leo knew Angelo wasn’t about to track down Felicity and break into her house, yet it seemed that the shoplifting incident had put Felicity on alert when she hadn’t been before.
There was a hardware aisle at the grocery store, but the selection was probably minimal. “If you want them in tonight, I could check with my friend Grant Shelton, who’s in construction. He probably has some lying around.”
Finding Us (Pine Valley Book 5) Page 3