stranger, not even a smooth-talking one like Lucas.
“Give me an hour and I’ll be there,” she told Callie, calculating the time it would take to get changed and drive to the shop.
Maybe she could keep everything together long enough to get Briana back.
“Ella, I need a favor,” she said as she hung up the phone.
Ella beamed, eager to please. “Anything, dear.”
“Lucas took my car. I need you to drive me to the shop.”
Wiping her hands on her apron, she nodded. “Right, I’ll get Albert—”
“No, I’d like Albert to stay here in case something happens—the phone rings, or Lucas comes back. There’s hardly any food left in the house, and if Lucas does reappear before dinner, then I really should have some sort of meal for him.”
“Yes, of course. With his generous offer of help, the least we can do is feed him.”
“Yes,” Juliana said, relieved. “He likes chicken with mole sauce.”
Ella frowned. “I’ve never heard of it.”
“I have a recipe somewhere.” She had no idea if he liked chicken with mole sauce, but he did favor spicy food. She snatched a Mexican cookbook off the shelf and flipped through pages. “Here.”
“Oh dear, it calls for ancho, mulato and pasilla peppers. I don’t know if I can find anything like that around here. I don’t even know what they look like.”
“I have confidence in you, Ella. You can work miracles.”
Ella made a clucking noise. She tottered over to the counter and jotted down ingredients she would need on a list. “I’ll see what I can do.”
“Great.”
Juliana would need a miracle of her own to pull off this charade. I won’t abandon you Briana. I will do everything in my power to get you back and keep you safe.
“One more day,” she whispered, getting ready for work like an automaton. “Tomorrow Briana will be home.”
Twenty minutes later when she closed the front door, heading for Ella’s half of the duplex, her own red car sat in the driveway, blocking the Tiltons’ old Buick.
“Going somewhere?”
Lucas’s beguiling voice tingled down her spine from the wicker rocking chair where he sat, long legs sprawled out in front of him, hands hanging with deceptive ease from the chair’s arms, head cocked to one side in a way that could be taken as either enticement or challenge.
“I thought you’d be longer,” she said, heart pounding in her chest. He’d promised her an afternoon and had given her less than three hours.
“Obviously.”
“How many traffic laws did you test?” she asked, trying to deflect his attention.
He just smiled. The boyishness of it touched her with its frank warmth, yet set the hairs along the back of her neck into alert.
She should have known she couldn’t sidetrack him so easily.
Muffled voices reached her. Juliana fastened her gaze to the Tiltons’ half of the duplex. A lock clicked open. Her mouth became dry.
A knob squealed as it turned. Her palms grew sweaty.
Ella, handbag in hand, maneuvered out her front door. And the first thing Ella spotted when she looked up was Lucas and his irresistible smile.
Juliana’s stomach sank.
God wouldn’t grace her with a miracle today.
Chapter 5
Juliana thought she was going to faint and gripped the porch’s rail to keep herself from falling. She forced an exhale and drew in more oxygen.
Control, stay in control. You have to stop this before it gets started.
She moved forward, blocking Ella’s path.
Ella peeked around Juliana and smiled sweetly at Lucas. “You must be the young man who’s going to help us get our Briana back.” She extended a hand to him.
“I’m going to do my best,” he agreed, shaking Ella’s hand.
Juliana took Ella’s elbow and nudged her toward the steps. “We were just going out to run an errand. We won’t be long.”
Ella resisted Juliana’s prodding. “We were going to get ingredients for chicken with mole sauce. I understand it’s your favorite.”
“Do you now?” Lucas glanced
“Give me an hour and I’ll be there,” she told Callie, calculating the time it would take to get changed and drive to the shop.
Maybe she could keep everything together long enough to get Briana back.
“Ella, I need a favor,” she said as she hung up the phone.
Ella beamed, eager to please. “Anything, dear.”
“Lucas took my car. I need you to drive me to the shop.”
Wiping her hands on her apron, she nodded. “Right, I’ll get Albert—”
“No, I’d like Albert to stay here in case something happens—the phone rings, or Lucas comes back. There’s hardly any food left in the house, and if Lucas does reappear before dinner, then I really should have some sort of meal for him.”
“Yes, of course. With his generous offer of help, the least we can do is feed him.”
“Yes,” Juliana said, relieved. “He likes chicken with mole sauce.”
Ella frowned. “I’ve never heard of it.”
“I have a recipe somewhere.” She had no idea if he liked chicken with mole sauce, but he did favor spicy food. She snatched a Mexican cookbook off the shelf and flipped through pages. “Here.”
“Oh dear, it calls for ancho, mulato and pasilla peppers. I don’t know if I can find anything like that around here. I don’t even know what they look like.”
“I have confidence in you, Ella. You can work miracles.”
Ella made a clucking noise. She tottered over to the counter and jotted down ingredients she would need on a list. “I’ll see what I can do.”
“Great.”
Juliana would need a miracle of her own to pull off this charade. I won’t abandon you Briana. I will do everything in my power to get you back and keep you safe.
“One more day,” she whispered, getting ready for work like an automaton. “Tomorrow Briana will be home.”
Twenty minutes later when she closed the front door, heading for Ella’s half of the duplex, her own red car sat in the driveway, blocking the Tiltons’ old Buick.
“Going somewhere?”
Lucas’s beguiling voice tingled down her spine from the wicker rocking chair where he sat, long legs sprawled out in front of him, hands hanging with deceptive ease from the chair’s arms, head cocked to one side in a way that could be taken as either enticement or challenge.
“I thought you’d be longer,” she said, heart pounding in her chest. He’d promised her an afternoon and had given her less than three hours.
“Obviously.”
“How many traffic laws did you test?” she asked, trying to deflect his attention.
He just smiled. The boyishness of it touched her with its frank warmth, yet set the hairs along the back of her neck into alert.
She should have known she couldn’t sidetrack him so easily.
Muffled voices reached her. Juliana fastened her gaze to the Tiltons’ half of the duplex. A lock clicked open. Her mouth became dry.
A knob squealed as it turned. Her palms grew sweaty.
Ella, handbag in hand, maneuvered out her front door. And the first thing Ella spotted when she looked up was Lucas and his irresistible smile.
Juliana’s stomach sank.
God wouldn’t grace her with a miracle today.
Chapter 5
Juliana thought she was going to faint and gripped the porch’s rail to keep herself from falling. She forced an exhale and drew in more oxygen.
Control, stay in control. You have to stop this before it gets started.
She moved forward, blocking Ella’s path.
Ella peeked around Juliana and smiled sweetly at Lucas. “You must be the young man who’s going to help us get our Briana back.” She extended a hand to him.
“I’m going to do my best,” he agreed, shaking Ella’s hand.
Juliana took Ella’s elbow and nudged her toward the steps. “We were just going out to run an errand. We won’t be long.”
Ella resisted Juliana’s prodding. “We were going to get ingredients for chicken with mole sauce. I understand it’s your favorite.”
“Do you now?” Lucas glanced
Similar Books
