Grayson (14 page)

“Sebastian,” Claude managed to say. A split second before he clamped his hands to the sides of his head and dropped to the floor.

Chapter Fourteen

Eve got out of Grayson’s car and made her way up the steps of the ranch house. Despite the fact that someone had tried to kill them twice today, her nerves were no longer firing on all cylinders.

Thank God.

The bone-weary fatigue was no doubt responsible for that. The Christmas lights helped, too. Hard to think of murders and attacks when there were hundreds of multicolored lights twinkling around her. And then she stepped inside and knew this was the main source of her calmer nerves.

For reasons she didn’t want to explore, the Ryland ranch always had and always would feel like home to her. So many memories, and they flooded through her, easing away the rest of the tension.

Grayson walked in right behind her. He had his phone sandwiched between his ear and shoulder, a place it’d been during most of their drive from San Antonio back to the ranch. Along the way, he’d gotten several updates on the investigation.

And Claude.

Judging from the part of this particular conversation, Grayson was talking with Claude’s doctor.

When the man had first collapsed at the SAPD precinct, Eve had thought he was faking it so he could put a quick end to the interview. But after he’d been rushed to the hospital in an ambulance, the doctors had informed Grayson that Claude’s condition was critical. So, no more interviews until the man was stable. Whenever that would be.

“Claude is still touch and go,” Grayson relayed to her when he ended the call. “He might not make it through the night.” He slapped his phone shut and pulled in a long, weary breath.

Eve understood that weariness. She wasn’t fond of Claude, but if he died, he might take his secrets to the grave. Especially one secret.

Had he been the one responsible for Nina’s death?

Or did that guilt lie with Sebastian, Annabel or even Cicely?

“What about the DNA results?” Eve wanted to know because she’d heard Grayson’s phone conversation with Nate about that, as well.

Grayson shook his head. “Nothing yet, but we should have preliminary results in an hour or two.” He used the keypad on the wall to arm the security system. “Nate’s also checking to see if anyone else, including Cicely, ran a DNA test on Nina.”

She thought about that for a moment. “But Cicely said she’d done the test. Why would she lie about something like that?”

“Who knows? I’m still working that out, but I’m not ready to believe anything a Collier says.”

Eve agreed. All of them seemed to have something to hide, but the DNA results might be a start toward learning the truth. If Nina was indeed Sophia, then that only strengthened Sebastian and Annabel’s motives for murder. They might not have wanted to split Claude’s estate three ways.

Still, there were some things Eve hadn’t been able to grasp. “I understand why Claude might have had Nina killed,” she commented. “With his elitist attitude, he would never admit to having a drug addict daughter. But what about Cicely? She seems more than willing to admit that Nina was hers. So, why would she kill her?”

“Seems,”
Grayson emphasized. “That’s why I want to see when and if Cicely ran the DNA test.”

Ah, Eve got it then. Because the test could have been a cover-up. Nina could have confronted or even attempted to blackmail Cicely, and Cicely could have refused to believe this was her long-lost daughter. Cicely could have had Nina killed out of anger. However, the woman wouldn’t look like a major murder suspect if she told everyone that she knew Nina was truly Sophia.

If Cicely had done that, it was a smart move.

“Anyone home?” Grayson called out. When no one answered, he headed for the kitchen, and Eve followed.

She immediately spotted the note from Bessie on the double-door stainless-steel fridge. “Mason called. He and Dade are staying in town to work on the case,” Grayson read aloud. “Nate and the baby won’t be home, either. Haven’t heard a peep from Kade. Dinner’s in the fridge and I’m headed out for girls’ night at my sister’s place in Saddle Springs. Give Eve a good-night kiss for me.” Bessie had added a smiley face.

The woman’s attempt at humor didn’t cause either Grayson or Eve to smile. But it did give Eve an uneasy feeling because she realized that Grayson and she were alone in the house. She glanced at Grayson, and his quick look away convinced her that he was aware of it, as well.

“You’ll need to eat,” he reminded her.

“You, too,” she reminded him right back.

But neither of them moved. They both stood there, staring at Bessie’s note, while the air zinged around them. For a moment Eve wondered if Grayson might act on that good-night kiss after all, but he mumbled something about being hungry and pulled open the fridge door.

There was a large baking dish with lasagna on the center shelf. She was suddenly starving. She knew from experience that Bessie was an amazing cook, but Eve decided both Grayson and she could use a little space to clear their heads. After all, in the past twenty-four hours, they’d nearly been killed and had then gotten embroiled in a murder investigation.

They’d also had sex.

Even the fatigue couldn’t erase the too-familiar tingling she still felt. And that was another huge reason for a little head-clearing space.

“I think I’ll take a shower before I eat,” Eve told him.

Grayson didn’t have time to respond because his cell phone rang. Eve waited just a few seconds to make sure it wasn’t critical, but when she realized it was the youngest Ryland, Kade, calling for an update about the investigation, she excused herself and went to the guest suite.

Eve intended to head straight for the shower, but she saw the photo album on the guest bed. The leather cover had probably once been white but had aged to a rich cream color, and it was thick, at least three inches.

“Here’s your Christmas present. Thought you’d like copies of some old memories,” was written on the sticky note attached. “Love, Bessie.”

She was reasonably sure she didn’t need any more memories or copies of memories, but Eve sat on the edge of the bed and opened it. The first picture was of Boone and Marcie Ryland, Grayson’s parents, on their wedding day. They were both smiling, and there were no hints of the troubles to come nineteen years later when Boone would walk out on Marcie and his six sons. A few months after that, Marcie would take her own life.

What a waste. So many lives had been changed because of Boone’s departure. Especially Grayson’s. If he hadn’t had to raise his brothers, he might have wanted a family of his own. But it hurt Eve too much to dwell on that particular
if.

Eve turned the page to Grayson’s baby picture—probably taken when he was no more than a day or two old. She smiled. If she was indeed pregnant, then this was a glimpse of how her baby could look.

She flipped through the pages, each of them snapshots of time. Grayson’s first horseback ride—barely a toddler in the saddle. His first day of school.

And then Eve was in the picture—literally.

Nearly all the subsequent pages had photos of her with the Ryland family. Christmas. Easter. Birthdays. She’d been a part of them. Always engulfed in those strong arms that had always given her so much love.

She ached to be part of that again but knew it was lost forever. The ultimatum she’d given Grayson all those years ago had sealed her fate and separated her from him, and his family, forever.

Or had it?

Her mind began to spin with the possibility of her baby being part of this. Not permanently part of the family but maybe visits so the baby would know his or her bloodline.

But she forced herself to stop.

She’d made the deal with Grayson—if he got her pregnant, that would be it. No strings attached. So, her fate was sealed. Her baby’s fate, too. One way or another, she would leave as soon as it was safe.

Eve blinked back tears, but more followed. She was still swiping them away when the house phone rang. She glanced at the caller ID screen and saw that it was Annabel Collier. Since this could be important, she lay the album aside and hurried downstairs.

Grayson was in the kitchen where he was already talking to Annabel, and he had put the call on speaker. “I’m listening,” he said to Annabel.

Annabel didn’t say anything for several seconds. “I’m not sure how to say this.”

Grayson huffed. “Try,” he insisted. He looked at Eve then, and his right eyebrow slid up, questioning her about something. When she shook her head, Grayson went to her and touched her cheek. Or so she thought. But not a real touch. He wiped away a stray tear.

“You okay?” he mouthed.

Eve moved away from him, and thankfully didn’t have to explain anything because Annabel continued.

“I lied to you,” the woman confessed.

Grayson didn’t huff this time, but he looked as if he wanted to do just that. “Which lie would that be?”

“About the diamond bracelet. It was mine. I figured you would discover that when you had it tested so I decided to come clean. I gave it to Nina, hoping it would convince her to leave.”

Now Eve was the one to huff. The Colliers were certainly free with their lies, and she didn’t think it was a coincidence that the lies seemed to be attempts to prevent them from being charged with murder.

“Then Cicely was right.” Grayson took out a plate of heated lasagna from the microwave and handed it to Eve.

“Cicely was trying to make me sound guilty. That’s the only reason she had the bracelet. She wants to incriminate me.”

Eve got them both out some silverware and paper napkins and sat at the counter. Grayson got out two longneck beers and his plate. He looked at her. Studied her. Maybe trying to figure out what had caused those tears.

“The question you should be asking yourself is how Cicely got that bracelet in the first place,” Annabel went on. “Because I seriously doubt Nina freely gave it to her. That bracelet was worth thousands, and a druggie like Nina wouldn’t have handed it over without a fight.”

“Are you saying Cicely killed Nina and took the bracelet?” Grayson didn’t wait. He sat and started to eat.

“Yes, that’s exactly what I’m saying.” But then Annabel paused. “Or maybe Sebastian killed her and gave the bracelet to his mother. He could have done it to try to incriminate me, too.”

“Sebastian,” Grayson repeated. “I wondered when this conversation would turn to him.”

“What do you mean?” Annabel accused.

He had a gulp of beer first. And another look at Eve. “I mean your husband is dying. By tomorrow morning, you could be a wealthy widow—thanks to your huge inheritance. If Sebastian were out of the picture, you’d have double the wealth and no pesky stepchildren around to cash in on their daddy’s will.”

Annabel made a sound of outrage. “I didn’t kill anyone!” she practically shouted.

“Maybe. Can you say the same for your husband?” Grayson challenged.

Silence. The moments crawled by, and Grayson continued to sip his beer. The glances at her continued, too. What didn’t happen was a denial from Annabel about her husband’s innocence.

“If Claude recovers, you’ll have to ask him that.” Annabel’s voice was no longer hot with anger. It was ice-cold and impatient.

“I will,” Grayson assured her. “Now, tell me why you gave me the memory card with the photos.”

She paused again. “Because I knew something wasn’t right when Nina showed up. Claude and Sebastian were having secret conversations. And Cicely kept calling. I didn’t know Nina was going to die, but I thought I might need proof.”

“Proof of what?” Grayson pressed.

“That I didn’t have anything to do with her, her life or her death.”

“Well, the pictures don’t prove that.” Of course, they did prove that all their suspects had had close contact with a woman who was murdered. Even if Annabel hadn’t taken the pictures herself, she had certainly been aware of them.

“I didn’t kill her,” Annabel insisted. “Now that I’ve told you about the bracelet, we have nothing further to discuss.” And she hung up.

Without taking his attention off Eve, he leaned over and pressed the end button on the phone. Since his stare was making her uncomfortable, Eve focused on the square of lasagna in front of her.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” she finally asked.

Grayson opened his mouth. Closed it. And the staring continued.

Eve decided she’d just spill it. “I was crying because I’d been looking at a photo album that Bessie gave me for Christmas. Old memories,” she settled for saying.

“Oh.” And judging from his tone, that was not the answer he’d expected. “I thought maybe…well, I thought you’d learned you weren’t pregnant.”

Now, it was her turn to say “Oh.” He’d seen the tears and assumed the worst. Or maybe in his case, the best—that maybe she’d gotten her period. However, that wouldn’t be just bad news. It would break her heart.

“No.” Since the lasagna suddenly wasn’t settling well in her stomach, Eve got up so she could put it back in the fridge. “I won’t know until next week.”

“Okay.” He nodded, repeated it.

She could feel his regret. His doubts. And Eve was just too tired to go there. She whirled back around to remind him that from here on out he wasn’t part of her life.

But Grayson stood and whirled around at the same time, and they practically smacked right into each other. Eve started to move back, way back, but Grayson caught on to her arm, anchoring her in place. She could have shaken off his grip, of course, but she didn’t.

“I can’t do this,” she managed to say.

His eyebrow came up again, and he was obviously waiting for an explanation of what specifically she couldn’t do, but Eve hesitated one second too long, and in that second she got caught up in Grayson’s eyes. His scent.

His touch.

She’d never been able to resist him, never, and apparently tonight was no different.

“I can’t, either,” he answered. Though she had no idea what he meant by that.

She soon learned though.