The Awakening (8 page)

Tanner nodded. “He told me he doesn’t trust Vernon. Men like Ray don’t say those kinds of things lightly, especially to a stranger.”

She blew out a breath. “No, I suppose not. So, what do we do?”

“You go about your business as usual. I’m going to fish around into Vernon’s business a bit and see if anything surfaces.”

“This is all just so distressing. The man was like an uncle to me, and all of a sudden, it’s like I don’t know him at all.”

“We’ll figure it out. Vernon may have reasons for his behavior that have nothing to do with this situation. He’s not exactly the kind of man who would lay his problems out at your feet.”

“No, I guess he’s not.”

“There’s something else,” he said.

One look at his face had her back tightening again. “Why do I get the feeling I’m
really
not going to like this?”

“Because I don’t like it, either.” He blew out a breath. “I saw what you saw. I chased it through the swamp, but lost it in the bayou. I couldn’t find the place where he climbed back up the bank.”

She stared for a couple of seconds, not even breathing. “You saw it?”

“Only a little, but it was exactly as you described.”

“Do you still think it’s a man in a suit?”

“That makes the most sense. Someone familiar with the swamp would have known how to ditch me.”

“And that’s why you want to observe the locals.”

“Yeah.”

He stared down at the counter again, and her antenna went up.

“You’re not leaving anything out, are you?” she asked.

He blew out a breath and looked back up at her. “Thing is, I saw it over a section of brush.”

“Okay?” She wasn’t quite getting the problem.

“That brush was a good six feet high.”

She sucked in a breath and looked out the windows and into the swamp. It looked so peaceful, but something lurked out there. What was it?

The even bigger question—what did it want?

* * *

T
ANNER STEPPED OUT OF
the shower and dried off with one of the huge fluffy towels. The towels in his apartment were thin, scratchy and covered with bare spots. He supposed that was one of the advantages to having women around, they knew how to make things comfortable and paid attention to details.

Still, buying new towels was a lot cheaper and held far less irritation than a relationship, so he supposed a trip to the store was on his list of things to do when he was done with the case. Maybe he’d spring for new sheets and blankets, too. The current ones almost matched his towels.

He pulled on jeans, a shirt and boots, and ran a brush through his damp hair. He considered putting on cologne, but then remembered he hadn’t brought any with him. It was just as well, as cologne might make it look too much like a date. The last thing he wanted was to make things personal. Seeing Josie every day, especially so worried, was harder than he’d imagined, and he’d imagined damned hard. This was worse.

Every time he looked at her, he wanted to pull her into his arms and tell her it would all work out fine. Then his thoughts drifted to less honorable actions.

He shook his head, trying to clear his mind of thoughts of Josie in his arms. It wasn’t going to happen now any more than it had happened when they were teens. He was just as out of his depth as before. She was the world-traveled high-fashion model who’d inherited a family fortune and owned expensive horses. He was just the local boy with a cheating father and drunken mother who spent all his time staring at mud.

Those two planes would never meet. She had no reason to lower herself to live on his, and he could never get himself high enough to match hers.

His cell phone rang and he answered Holt’s call.

“I got that information you requested,” his brother said. “Everyone’s clean except Mack Prevet. He was arrested on an assault charge about eight years ago when he was running a bar in New Orleans.”

“You get any details on that?”

“Yeah, I talked to the arresting officer. He says Prevet got into a fight with his live-in girlfriend at the bar and clocked her in the face. She refused to press charges, but there were a dozen witnesses in the bar.”

“Sounds like a nice guy.”

“Oh, yeah, and apparently one that has no problem terrorizing women. He’s also in the red with his bar in Miel. Has it hocked to the gills. Rumor has it, he has a bit of a gambling problem.”

“Thanks for the information. I’m going to get an up-close and personal look at him tonight.” He told Holt about his plans for dinner and drinks in Miel, hoping to pick up some information on the locals and perhaps flush out the vandal.

“Be careful,” Holt said. “If you spook him, he may escalate. Is Josie okay with this plan?”

“Yes. We discussed it earlier and she knows the risks involved.”

“Well, in that case, enjoy your dinner with a beautiful woman.”

Tanner could practically see his brother smiling as he delivered that last comment, but Tanner wasn’t about to take the bait. “I will,” he said, and disconnected.

He stepped out of his room at the same time as Josie walked out of hers. One look at her and he felt his chest tighten. He’d seen her on the cover of magazines, wearing clothes that probably cost more than he made in a year, but standing in the hallway in jeans, a blue top and black heels, she looked more gorgeous than ever.

Critics had been fond of saying that her auburn hair was her downfall to greatness, that if she’d been a blonde, she could have hit the big time. Tanner didn’t know anything about the modeling big time, nor did he normally go around describing hair as “auburn,” but he knew they were wrong. Her hair fell in waves across her shoulders, gently framing her face and making her green eyes stand out even more.

“Is something wrong?” she asked.

Yanking himself out of his stupor, he said, “Not at all. Actually, I was just thinking about how going to dinner might not be the best idea.”

Her face fell and she tugged at the hem of her blouse. “Oh, okay.”

“Because I might have to fight off every man who sees you.” He smiled. “You look great.”

She broke out in a smile that almost blinded him. “Thank you. That’s the best compliment I’ve heard in a while.”

“I find that hard to believe.”

She waved a hand in dismissal. “Stop or you’re going to make my head swell. I’m starving. Shall we?”

He gestured to the stairs. “My pickup truck awaits your pleasure.”

She started down the stairwell. “Aside from my horses, you’re likely to be the best company I’ve had in years.”

He laughed and followed her outside. “That’s some good company, putting me up against the horses.” He opened the passenger door of his truck and she climbed inside.

“I meant to ask you about the horses last night,” he said after he climbed in the driver’s seat and started up the road to town. “Things were kind of crazy and I forgot. They’re Arabians, right?”

“Yes. I met a breeder on a shoot in France. His horses were magnificent. I’d never seen anything so majestic. We stayed at his ranch several weeks and I spent every spare moment shadowing him and watching him work with the horses. I’d helped my dad break and train quarter horses before, but this was different.”

“You were already planning on getting some?”

“Not then. I mean, I wanted one more than anything, but it wouldn’t have been possible at the time. My job was too demanding, and I was rarely in one place long enough to keep a cactus alive, much less care for and train a horse.”

“So you got them when you came home?”

She nodded. “I got really lucky. The breeder I’d met in France had a friend in the States who was retiring from the business. He’d had a heart attack and wanted to spend his remaining years on a beach and not in a barn.”

“Not a bad plan.”

“If you can afford it, it’s a great plan.”

Tanner glanced over at her, confused by her tone. Franklin Bettencourt had been king of Miel, and Josie was his only child. Between her inheritance and what she must have made modeling, she should be able to buy a small island.

“Probably not in my future, then,” he said. For whatever reason, Josie wanted to pretend she wasn’t wealthy. Maybe it embarrassed her, or maybe she thought he’d jack up the price if he knew what she was worth. He looked out the dashboard down the narrow road. None of it was his business. He needed to stick with the case and stop running off down rabbit trails.

“So I guess you got some horses from the guy who retired?” he asked.

“Yes. The breeder in France called and spoke to him. He gave me a really good deal because he knew Raul would help me with the training.”

Tanner frowned. So it was Raul now. He wondered just how close Josie and the French horse breeder had become. He’d seen no pictures of Josie with a man in the house, but he hadn’t been in her bedroom, either. And being in a different country, she was likely calling him at a time when he wasn’t around to overhear.

None of it’s your business.

The repeating thought flashed through his mind again, then another came—
to hell with it.

“So are you and Raul...”

“What? Oh...no!” She laughed. “Raul lives with a very nice man named Jacques.”

“Ahhhh,” he said, not able to form a coherent reply to such an unexpected answer.

“I vowed off relationships a long time ago,” she said. “Besides, I have more than enough to keep me busy. No time for much else. What about you?”

“Me?”

“Yeah, you. You must have your share of admirers.”

“I spend most of my time in the swamp. It’s not exactly the best place to find a date, and I prefer it that way.”

“Well, then I guess both of us are outside our comfort zone tonight.”

“I guess so,” he said, not sure what to make of her comment. He’d been clear that tonight was about business, not personal. Likely, he was overthinking it. Thank goodness his brothers couldn’t read his mind. He probably wouldn’t look near as good a bet for a business partner as they thought. Certainly he didn’t have his life together like the two of them.

He held in a sigh as he pulled into town and parked in front of the only restaurant open for dinner. All his life, he’d been running to catch up to his older brothers. He’d hoped once they reached adulthood that things would change, but here he was, still comparing himself to Holt and Max and coming up short.

He looked over at Josie, who hadn’t moved from the passenger’s seat, and was staring at the restaurant with an apprehensive look. “So, is the food any good here?” he asked.

“It used to be,” she said. “I’ve only eaten here once since I’ve returned home, but it was good then. Not much for variety, but if you’re a burger, ribs or steak guy, then I think you’ll be fine.”

“Add a beer and that’s the four food groups,” he joked.

She smiled and he saw her shoulders relax a bit, which was what he’d been hoping to accomplish. If she looked nervous, people might clue in to the fact that it wasn’t just a friendly dinner. If people thought ulterior motives were at play, they might not talk.

“Let’s get inside and get some dinner,” he said. “I’m starving.”

They climbed out of the truck and made their way into the restaurant. Tanner was surprised to see most of the tables were full, but they were quickly escorted to a table in the back of the room.

“It’s busy,” Tanner said as he took a seat. “I guess that’s a good sign that the food is edible.”

“Or that people are too busy or too lazy to cook.”

He laughed. “Yeah, there is that.”

As the hostess took their drink orders, Tanner took the opportunity to scan the room. The general volume had decreased when he’d walked in with Josie. He’d expected as much. He was a stranger and he was with the local town princess. People were bound to be curious. In fact, he was counting on that curiosity to loosen lips.

When the hostess left, he leaned in toward Josie. “So, give me a rundown of some of the people here.”

She nodded. “Anyone in particular you want to start with?”

“The guy at the table up front with the red shirt on hasn’t stopped staring at you since we walked in. What’s his story?”

She took a sip of water, glanced at the front of the restaurant, then frowned. “That’s Sam Walker. Local real estate agent, huge gossip and general pest.”

He held in a smile. “So I take it you like him?”

“I went to school with him, as I did with most every adult in Miel under the age of forty. He didn’t know how to shut up then and he still doesn’t.”

Tanner nodded. Although he hadn’t spent much time attending school, he had a vague recollection of overhearing Sam’s verbal tirades more than once. Josie had nailed this one.

Josie studied Tanner for a moment, then grinned. “He called the house this afternoon and asked me out.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah. I told him I wasn’t interested in dating. He probably had a coronary when I walked in with you. He would never believe he’s not the best catch in town.”

Tanner gave Sam a sideways glance. He couldn’t blame the man for trying but had to admit, he liked him even less than before when he was just some dude with a rude staring problem. “Don’t look now, but I think he’s coming over to clarify your policy on dating.”

Her look of dismay left no doubt of her feelings about the Realtor, and he felt a smug sense of satisfaction.

“Josie,” Sam said as he stepped up to the table. “I’m surprised to see you out. I thought you were too busy for socializing.”

Josie looked up at him, her face the perfection of politeness. “Hi, Sam.” She waved a hand at Tanner. “This is Tanner LeDoux. He’s helping me with a situation concerning the construction.”

Sam looked over at Tanner and gave him a fake smile as he extended his hand. “Sam Walker. Nice to meet you.”

Tanner shook his hand, squeezing it just a bit harder than necessary, and feeling an inordinate amount of satisfaction when the man flinched before releasing his hand.

“So you’re in construction? So am I, of sorts. I own the real estate agency in town.”

Tanner shook his head. “I’m not in construction.”

Sam looked expectantly at him, clearly waiting for an explanation, but Tanner just stared back at him. Finally, it got the best of the man and he asked, “So, what is it you do, then?”