Read Online Ripple of Secrets: Rose Gardner Mystery Novella #6.5 (Rose Gardner series Book 3) by Denise Grover Swank - Free Book Online
Authors: Denise Grover Swank
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talk you into spendin’ a ton of money on it. There isn’t much left to spare.”
I glanced over at Bruce Wayne, who was grinning like the cat that got the cream. Okay, so he’d been right. I grabbed my coat and slipped my arms into the sleeves. “Don’t worry. I won’t. I don’t see the point of putting too much effort into it either, but we have to do something.”
My gaze moved over to Muffy, who was asleep in her dog bed. “Do y’all mind if I leave Muffy here? I’m meeting Mason for lunch at Merilee’s at noon.”
Neely Kate waggled her eyebrows. “A lunch date? And we’re not invited?”
My shoulders tensed. “Not this time.”
“I was teasing,” she said. “But now you have me worried about what’s goin’ on.”
Bruce Wayne’s eyes narrowed with suspicion.
“Nothin’.” I waved my hand in dismissal. “We’re just gonna talk about…things.” That was not gonna appease my friends, but it was the best I could come up with at the moment. And I sure couldn’t tell them about J.R. Simmons.
“Is Mason upset about what happened in New Orleans?” Neely Kate asked.
“He was upset, but not in the way you think. I think he was more upset that we got into trouble and he wasn’t there to help.”
“Then what’s goin’ on?”
I rolled my eyes. This was definitely gonna be one of the perils of working so close to Neely Kate. I would have to tell her about my indentured service to Skeeter, but not today. Especially since it had nothing to do with this situation. “Did it ever occur to you that we were separated all last week and had lots of family and friends around over Christmas and maybe we just want a chance to spend some time alone?”
Neely Kate studied me for a moment. “No. If you were lookin’ for that kind of alone time, you would be eatin’ lunch— ” she used air quotes, “—in Mason’s office.”
Bruce Wayne blushed.
I shook my head and laughed. “I think I’ll leave you to your imagination because it’s way more exciting than what’s really goin’ on.” I opened the front door and walked out into the late December day, hoping I hadn’t just told a big fat lie.
Chapter Seven
Joe
After Mason left, I sat behind the old Sinclair gas station for a good five minutes, replaying the conversation in my head and debating whether to call him and tell him that he was still in danger. I decided to sit on the decision for the moment. Mason likely knew, anyway, and I didn’t feel up to dealing with him after the way our talk had ended.
I drove away from the gas station without knowing where I was headed. I was moving into the farmhouse out by Rose this week, but there wasn’t much to pack. Most of my things were still in my old apartment in Little Rock, not because I planned to move back there, but because that life felt like a million years ago. I wasn’t ready to face the specter of my old self yet.
I’d made this move to Henryetta mostly to win Rose back, but I also felt something here that I hadn’t found anywhere else—a sense of belonging. There was the potential for me to make a real difference here, and my father was going to ruin it, just like everything else in my life. There had to be a way out of this situation that would allow me to do my job without endangering Rose, but I’d be damned if I’d figured it out yet.
Suddenly I knew where I needed to go, though I didn’t question the irony of my destination until I parked at the curb in front of her house. After I got a couple of parts and my toolbox out of the trunk, I headed up to the front porch to ring the bell.
Maeve Deveraux opened the door wearing a ruffly apron and a warm smile. The house smelled inviting—like sugar and spice and something warm baking in the oven. Then again, it always seemed to smell that way. “Good morning, Joe! Happy Day after Christmas.”
“I hope I’m not here too early.”
She stepped back and opened the door wider. “Don’t be
I glanced over at Bruce Wayne, who was grinning like the cat that got the cream. Okay, so he’d been right. I grabbed my coat and slipped my arms into the sleeves. “Don’t worry. I won’t. I don’t see the point of putting too much effort into it either, but we have to do something.”
My gaze moved over to Muffy, who was asleep in her dog bed. “Do y’all mind if I leave Muffy here? I’m meeting Mason for lunch at Merilee’s at noon.”
Neely Kate waggled her eyebrows. “A lunch date? And we’re not invited?”
My shoulders tensed. “Not this time.”
“I was teasing,” she said. “But now you have me worried about what’s goin’ on.”
Bruce Wayne’s eyes narrowed with suspicion.
“Nothin’.” I waved my hand in dismissal. “We’re just gonna talk about…things.” That was not gonna appease my friends, but it was the best I could come up with at the moment. And I sure couldn’t tell them about J.R. Simmons.
“Is Mason upset about what happened in New Orleans?” Neely Kate asked.
“He was upset, but not in the way you think. I think he was more upset that we got into trouble and he wasn’t there to help.”
“Then what’s goin’ on?”
I rolled my eyes. This was definitely gonna be one of the perils of working so close to Neely Kate. I would have to tell her about my indentured service to Skeeter, but not today. Especially since it had nothing to do with this situation. “Did it ever occur to you that we were separated all last week and had lots of family and friends around over Christmas and maybe we just want a chance to spend some time alone?”
Neely Kate studied me for a moment. “No. If you were lookin’ for that kind of alone time, you would be eatin’ lunch— ” she used air quotes, “—in Mason’s office.”
Bruce Wayne blushed.
I shook my head and laughed. “I think I’ll leave you to your imagination because it’s way more exciting than what’s really goin’ on.” I opened the front door and walked out into the late December day, hoping I hadn’t just told a big fat lie.
Chapter Seven
Joe
After Mason left, I sat behind the old Sinclair gas station for a good five minutes, replaying the conversation in my head and debating whether to call him and tell him that he was still in danger. I decided to sit on the decision for the moment. Mason likely knew, anyway, and I didn’t feel up to dealing with him after the way our talk had ended.
I drove away from the gas station without knowing where I was headed. I was moving into the farmhouse out by Rose this week, but there wasn’t much to pack. Most of my things were still in my old apartment in Little Rock, not because I planned to move back there, but because that life felt like a million years ago. I wasn’t ready to face the specter of my old self yet.
I’d made this move to Henryetta mostly to win Rose back, but I also felt something here that I hadn’t found anywhere else—a sense of belonging. There was the potential for me to make a real difference here, and my father was going to ruin it, just like everything else in my life. There had to be a way out of this situation that would allow me to do my job without endangering Rose, but I’d be damned if I’d figured it out yet.
Suddenly I knew where I needed to go, though I didn’t question the irony of my destination until I parked at the curb in front of her house. After I got a couple of parts and my toolbox out of the trunk, I headed up to the front porch to ring the bell.
Maeve Deveraux opened the door wearing a ruffly apron and a warm smile. The house smelled inviting—like sugar and spice and something warm baking in the oven. Then again, it always seemed to smell that way. “Good morning, Joe! Happy Day after Christmas.”
“I hope I’m not here too early.”
She stepped back and opened the door wider. “Don’t be
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