Arresting Developments (7 page)

“Helping. What do you want me to do? Put some potatoes in the oven to bake? Or cut them up to fry?” He washed his hands under the faucet.

“Either, I guess. Whatever you want.”

“Baked sounds good.” He dried his hands on the kitchen towel. “Point me to the veggies.”

She laughed, both surprised and delighted that he was going to cook with her. “Over there, to the right of the freezer. Pull the door on the third cabinet in the middle.”

When he did, and the entire wall opened up, he arched his brows. “Cool. Are there other surprises like this around here?”

“Everywhere.”

“Tour?” he asked, looking as excited as a little boy.

“After we eat. Absolutely.”

“I’ll eat fast.”

She shook her head at his enthusiasm and set the now defrosted steaks onto a plate to rub seasoning on them. The process of cooking, eating and then cleaning the kitchen, all the while listening to Dex talk about his time as a navy pilot and then later his adventures starting what became a billion-dollar corporation, relaxed her far more than she’d been in ages. He was an engaging speaker and made even the most mundane topics sound interesting. Just watching his eyes light up when he threw around financial investment terms she’d never much paid attention to in the past was pure joy.

She dried her hands on the kitchen towel and tossed it to him to do the same.

“And then you decided to go into business with my friend Faye’s husband and become a private investigator?”

He hung the towel over the faucet to dry. “Jake was more the private investigator, because he was a former police detective when he lived in Saint Augustine.”

“Where you live.”

He nodded. “Faye was the target of our first case actually. She was suspected of murder.”

“You’re kidding.”

“Don’t worry. Things worked out. She was innocent—Jake proved it.”

“With your help.”

“Some. I can’t take much credit. He’s the one with the investigative skills.”

“Somehow I doubt that. Or at least, I can’t imagine you trying something without becoming pretty adept at it. You don’t know how to fail.”

“Trust me. I’ve been known to fail a time or two.” His eyes darkened and it seemed that a shadow passed over his eyes. But then, he smiled again and seemed to shake himself out of whatever memories had bothered him. “I’m pretty sure you mentioned something about a tour earlier.”

“I’m pretty sure you’re right. Come on. I’ll show you the general layout of the house for starters.” She glanced at his socks. “Although, you might want to take those off or you’ll be sliding all over the hardwood floors. The only place with carpeting is the bedrooms.”

He tugged off his socks and shoved them in the pockets of his jeans. “Ready.”

She took him through the west wing first, then the east wing, before finally making it upstairs nearly an hour later. He leaned against the banister, then jumped back when it wobbled.

“Whoa. That needs some tightening,” he said.

She frowned in surprise. “Granddaddy was meticulous about keeping this place well repaired. I don’t know why the banister would be loose like that.”

“It has been two years. Maybe Buddy wasn’t as worried about home maintenance as your grandfather. Do you have any tools around here? I can hammer a few nails into the base to temporarily stabilize it until we can get someone out here to do it the right way.”

“Are you sure?”

He wobbled the banister again. “Positive. This is dangerous. I wouldn’t want you to grab it to save yourself from a fall and have the whole thing come loose.”

“All right. There’s a maintenance shed out back. That’s where Grandpa kept everything when I lived here. I assume the tools are still there, though he didn’t use them much himself in the last few years that he was alive. He’d really slowed down by then.”

“From the cancer or age?”

“Age at first, then cancer.”

They went to the kitchen and he pulled his socks and shoes on before holding the door open for her.

A shadow moved by a stand of trees twenty feet away and hurried around the back of the very building that Amber had been about to take Dex to.

“What the...? Stay here.” Dex shoved her back inside and slammed the door. Then he took off running toward the building.

* * *

D
EX
FLATTENED
HIMSELF
against the side of the building and eased toward the next corner. He’d already searched the inside and made a full circuit around the outside and decided the intruder had gotten away. He was about to head back to the house when he heard a muffled sound and turned back toward the building again.

A few more feet, closer, closer. He turned the corner. Moonlight glinted off a gun. He grabbed for it and tackled the intruder to the ground, twisting the gun away from them then pressing it against their forehead.

Amber’s hazel eyes stared back at him in shock.

He cursed and jerked the gun away from her, pointing down at the ground.

“What the hell are you doing out here? With a gun, no less?”

Her brows lowered. “What were you doing out here without a gun? You could have been hurt.”

“And I could have shot you just now with your own gun.”

She swallowed hard. “Well, yes, there is that.”

He swore again and pulled her to her feet, then shoved the pistol into his waistband. He looked around to make sure that whoever he’d seen wasn’t sneaking up on them, then put his hand on the small of her back because he remembered how she hated him grabbing her hand and pulling her after him.

“Come on,” he urged. “Let’s get inside before whoever was out here decides to come back.”

Once they were inside the kitchen, he turned the lock on the door and yanked out his cell phone.

“What are you doing?” she asked.

“Calling Deputy Holder. Assuming I can get cell coverage.”

She shrank away from him. “If you’re worried about the gun, it belonged to my grandfather. It’s registered.”

“I’m not worried about the gun. I’m worried about whoever we saw skulking around the property. With you and me both outside looking for him, there was no one watching the unlocked kitchen door.”

Her eyes widened and she turned around, looking at the dark opening that led into the next room before backing up against the wall beside Dex. “You think he’s inside?” she whispered.

“I have no idea. But I’m not about to take any chances.” When Holder came on the phone, Dex told him about the shadowy figure he’d seen behind the house. After ending the call, he pulled the gun out of his waistband. “Let’s sit at the kitchen table until Holder gets here with some deputies to help search the house.”

She sat beside him while he aimed the pistol at the doorway.

“Why didn’t you tell Holder about the gun?” she asked.

“Because before he gets here, we’re hiding the gun. He doesn’t need to know it even exists.”

“Why?”

He glanced down at her before looking back at the opening. “Because I’m pretty sure someone out on bond for a murder charge isn’t supposed to have any weapons. They could yank your bail and lock you right back up.”

She shivered beside him. “I hadn’t thought of that. Thank you.”

“It’s my job to think of things like that.”

“Your job?”

“You know...as a deputy and all.” He grinned.

She rolled her eyes.

“Where was the gun hidden anyway?” he asked.

She waved vaguely toward the far wall. “In a hidden panel.”

“How many of these hidden panels are there?”

“Too many to count.”

“Do they all contain guns?”

“Of course not. Just the ones by the front door, the back door here, and in Grandpa’s bedroom upstairs.”

He shook his head.

“What?” she asked. “Why does that seem to worry you?”

“Well, let me see. The house has been vacant for two years. And someone was skulking around the property like they know it really well and managed to slip past me even though I was out there trying to find them. I have to think they know this place, and if they’ve been slipping in and out of the house for the past few years, they might know all of the hiding places, too.”

“Meaning they could have one of Grandpa’s guns.”

“Yep. And Holder’s a good hour outside Mystic Glades. I’m thinking we might want to hunker down somewhere more defensible than this kitchen while we wait for backup.”

“I couldn’t agree more.”

“Is there a room without any windows close by?”

“The pantry, I guess?”

“That works.” They headed toward the wall of cabinets.

A distant squeak sounded from somewhere deep in the house. They both froze.

“Any idea what that was?” Dex asked.

“Yes. It was the stairs,” she whispered. “Someone’s inside the house.”

Dex hurried to the cabinets and yanked the door open. “Get in.”

She went inside but stopped and turned around when he didn’t join her. “What are you doing? Come in here with me.”

He shoved the gun into her hands. “Barricade the door and don’t let anyone in but me or Deputy Holder.”

“Wait,” she whispered harshly. “Dex, you’re not going out there without the gun. And I’m not hiding in here while you’re risking your life.”

He leaned down and tilted her chin up. “Amber, there’s no way in hell you’re going with me. And I’m not leaving you here defenseless. Take the gun, and barricade the door.”

He gently shoved her back and pulled the door closed.

Amber gritted her teeth and yanked the door open.

But Dex was gone, and the lights were off.

Chapter Eight

Dex crouched against the wall, keeping as still as possible as he peered down the second-floor hallway in the east wing. Unless he remembered incorrectly, there were no balconies off this section of the house. Which meant whoever he’d followed up here was trapped. And that made him dangerous.

There. A dull thump, from one of the rooms on the right. He inched his way down the hall and stopped in front of the door that seemed the most likely to be where the intruder was hiding. A second later, another thump.

Dex carefully turned the doorknob, then threw the door open and ran inside. He saw the silhouette of someone by the window, but he knew that silhouette now.

“Damn it, Amber. How did you even get up here?”

The light flicked on overhead. Amber stood a few feet away, the pistol wedged in her waistband. “I wasn’t about to cower in the pantry while you went off after an intruder. Especially since you left the gun with me.”

“Did it occur to you that I’m trying to protect you?”

“Yes. And I appreciate it. But welcome to the modern age. I can protect myself.”

He sighed. “I suppose you can. But that doesn’t mean I’m not going to try to protect you anyway. I’m clinging to my Neanderthal roots.”

She laughed.

He grinned. “You should do that more.” His grin faded and he turned around. “Since I don’t see anyone else up here, I’m guessing the bad guy got away before I made it upstairs. How did you get up here without passing me?”

“I used the back stairs.”

“Back stairs? Where?”

She stepped to the wall and pressed a decal of a flower. A panel slid back to reveal a dark hole. Dex peeked into the opening.

“I should have expected something like that in a house like this. You left this off the tour.”

“Yeah, well, I hadn’t intended to show it to you, to be honest.” At his questioning glance, she added, “But that was before I learned about the exorbitant fortune you put down to bail me out. I guess I can show you the rest of the house and all of its secrets now that I’m not going to run away again.”

He eyed the opening. “If I came up the main stairs, and you came up these back stairs, where did the intruder go?”

“Like you said, he had to have gotten downstairs before you made it from the kitchen to the second floor.”

“I’m not liking this at all. He could be anywhere. This house is way too big to secure. I think we should move back to your aunt’s bar until this is over. At least there I knew where the exits were and there weren’t any hidden panels or staircases to worry about.”

Amber bit her bottom lip and looked away.

Dex blinked at her. “There are hidden panels and staircases at Freddie’s?”

She nodded. “A couple. Honestly, they’re all over this town. My grandfather was a bit...eccentric. And he founded Mystic Glades. He pretty much left his stamp on everything.”

“So, who all knows about these hidden passageways?”

“Everyone, I guess.”

“Even in this house?”

She shrugged. “I suppose not. I mean, people are bound to assume that there are hidden passageways. But unless Grandpa or I took them on a tour, they wouldn’t know where the openings are or what to look for.”

“Can you think of anyone besides you, and his children obviously, who might know?”

Her look turned guarded, and he immediately knew she was hiding something. Again. The only question was why.

“Not really,” she said. “Grandpa wasn’t big on socializing and I certainly never had anyone over.”

He waited, hoping she’d level with him, but when she didn’t say anything else, he swallowed his disappointment. “Okay. Then we’re back to assuming no one knows about the hidden areas. So as long as Holder helps us search the house to insure no one’s still inside hiding somewhere, we should be okay.”

“Agreed.”

He moved toward the door. “We might as well go downstairs and wait for Holder below. We can set up a defensible position in the main living room in the front, with our backs to the fireplace.”

“You’re not going to try to make me hide in a closet?”

He rolled his eyes. “I’ve given up on trying to make you do anything.”

Half an hour later, red-and-blue flashing lights lit up the windows on the front room. Per their agreement, Amber hid the gun in a wall panel before Dex answered the door. Holder stood on the porch with three other deputies. The lines at the corners of his eyes were tense and his right hand hovered near the pistol on his belt.

“Bring me up to speed,” he said.

A few minutes later, two of the deputies were searching the property in the back where Amber and Dex had seen someone skulking by the maintenance building, while the third deputy stayed with Holder inside the house. They made a circuit of the entire house, one with Amber and one with Dex so they could show them through the maze of rooms. By the time they were done, Dex was convinced no one was in the house, and that no one had probably ever been inside, because the only footprints they saw were those of Dex and Amber.

“The noise we heard on the stairs earlier must have been the house settling,” Dex said.

Amber didn’t look convinced, but she nodded anyway.

“Well, everything’s locked up safe and sound now,” Holder said. “We did find footprints in the backyard that don’t match either of your shoes. So there was definitely someone out there. Probably just some neighborhood kid curious about someone being at the Callahan mansion since it’s been vacant for so long. Whoever they were, they’re long gone now.” He arched a brow. “If you’re worried about staying out here alone, I can take you back to Naples with me. You can set up in a hotel.”

Dex looked at Amber. “It’s up to you.”

She immediately shook her head. “I’d rather stay here, if it’s all the same to you.”

“We’ll stay.”

“Suit yourself,” Holder said. “Oh, since I’m out here, I might as well update you about the case, Miss Callahan. Your grandfather’s body has been exhumed and the private coroner that Mr. Lassiter hired will begin the autopsy in the morning.”

“So soon?” she said.

He slanted a glance at Dex. “Money is known for making things happen. I reckon you’ll have results later tomorrow, if not sooner.”

“Thank you,” Amber said, her voice small.

Holder nodded. “Call us if you need us, but remember we’re an hour out. So if something happens again you might want to seriously consider getting someone to bring you back to town.” He cocked a brow at Dex. “Unless you’ve decided to give up your glamorous new role as a cop and want to turn Miss Callahan over to me to take back to jail.”

“And give up my shiny gold star?” He rubbed his shirt as if he really did have a star on it. “I don’t think so.”

Holder shook his head and herded his men out of the house. After the police cars were heading down the driveway, Dex closed and locked the door. Amber stood silently staring at the floor.

“Amber, you okay?”

She looked up and shrugged. “It just seems so...wrong...to dig up my grandfather’s body. We already know how he died.”

He put his hands on her shoulders. “I don’t think he’d mind us disturbing his grave if it means we might find something to help prove your innocence.”

Her gaze didn’t meet his as she nodded, which only reinforced his earlier suspicion that she was hiding something.

“If there was something about your grandfather’s death that you haven’t told anyone, you’d tell now, wouldn’t you? Knowing it could mean the difference between prison and freedom? And remember that Florida is a capital-punishment state. The prosecutor could go for the death penalty.”

She shivered and rubbed her hands up and down her arms. “I know. I’m tired. I think I’ll head on up to bed.” Without another word, she headed up the stairs and disappeared into her room.

Dex sighed, retrieved the gun from the panel in the family room and then headed up to his room.

* * *

A
MBER
LAY
IN
bed staring at the ceiling. She couldn’t sleep, not with so many worries on her mind. Who was the intruder who’d been in the backyard? What did he want? Was it really just a teenager—or someone more sinister?

And what, if anything, should she do about telling the truth about what happened to her grandfather?

Years ago she’d made a decision that she’d wondered many times about later on. But after coming back to Mystic Glades, she’d seen the reason for her lies and felt the same surge of protectiveness that she had before she’d left. What she was doing made sense because she knew it was what her grandfather would want. And it had never hurt before, until she’d met Dex. Now she was feeling things she hadn’t felt since she was in high school: that delicious rush of heat every time she looked at him, the pleasant tightening of her belly when she’d seen him without his shirt, the tingle of anticipation when he held her hand. She had a crush on Dex Lassiter. There was no denying it. Except that this crush was far worse than any she’d ever experienced before. She couldn’t stop thinking about him or seeing his face whenever he wasn’t around. And it was because of these overwhelming feelings that she was in the trouble she was in right now. If she hadn’t been so eager to see him again, and so driven to make sure that he was okay, she’d be home right now, “home” being her place in the Glades instead of this monstrosity that she still thought of as her grandfather’s house.

It wasn’t her home. Not really. It was her sanctuary and refuge when her parents had left her here each summer, a way to escape the constant bickering and fighting and tension in her house between two people who supposedly had loved each other once, a very long time ago. Her grandfather had been very private and pretty much regarded as the town scrooge, but he’d seen through her pain as a teenager and had rather forcefully insisted that her parents go off on an extended vacation in Europe the summer of her junior year. The fact that he’d dumped a boatload of money on them to sweeten the pot had worked and they’d jetted off for a vacation. And Amber had spent that first, awkward summer with her grandfather, feeling abandoned and unloved. Until she got to know him. And then she saw the marshmallow inside him and knew he loved her deeply and that he’d been trying to save her, in his own way.

From then on out they’d become each other’s champions, existing in a usually quiet but comfortable camaraderie with each other. And when her parents ended up staying in Europe after her graduation, she knew her grandfather was behind that, that he must have made it a financial windfall for them to stay away. She’d gone to college and spent all her breaks with her grandfather, and had mostly done the same thing that her parents had done to her—she’d forgotten about them. Until her grandfather’s death, when they’d returned just long enough to find out that they weren’t mentioned in his will. Then they’d done what they were so good at—they’d disappeared, without hanging around long enough to see what had happened to Amber.

She shoved the covers back and slid out of bed. Enough of this. She was making herself miserable thinking about the past, about the only people in her life she should have been able to count on and rely on who’d never, not once, been there for her.

A board creaked in the hallway outside her bedroom. She froze and looked around for some kind of weapon, but Dex had taken her gun. She grabbed a heavy bookend from a bookshelf by the bed and tiptoed to the door. Then she quietly, carefully, turned the knob and yanked the door open.

Dex swore and grabbed the bookend out of her raised hand. “Good grief, Amber. What are you doing with that?”

“I heard a noise.”

He grimaced and stepped to his left, making a board squeak. “Was that what you heard?”

“Yes. What are you doing outside my door?”

“I was pacing the hall. Couldn’t sleep. But as soon as I stepped on that board I was worried you might have heard it and might be scared. I was waiting to see if I’d woken you so I could reassure you that the noise was just me.”

“Oh.” She felt her face flush hot. “I wasn’t scared.”

He set the bookend on a decorative table against the wall. “Of course not.” He winked. “Well, sorry again for waking you. I’ll just...go back to my room.”

“Okay. Night.”

“Night.” He hesitated, his gaze dropping to the nightshirt that barely came to the tops of her thighs before he seemed to wrench his gaze away. He cleared his throat. “See you in the morning.”

She watched in silence as he went into his room across the hall and shut the door. The heat in his gaze was unmistakable and had sparked an answering tug in her belly. And suddenly she was thinking things she shouldn’t be thinking. Because having a crush was one thing. But taking it to the next level, to a level where there was no coming back from, was quite another. She shouldn’t be thinking about holding him close, about running her fingers over his rippling muscles. About seeing if he kissed as good when he was conscious as he had when he’d been burning up with fever back by the spring.

No, it was wrong to think about being with him, even if he wanted her as much as she wanted him. Because there was no future, no possibility of one, while she was wanted for murder and had no way to prove she hadn’t done it without destroying someone else. Lying, even though she hated it, was accomplishing the only good thing she’d ever done in her life. If protecting her grandfather’s best friend from the horrible mistake that he’d made meant sacrificing herself, it was a price she was willing to pay. Because it was the only way she could repay her grandfather for being the only person who’d ever really cared about her. And she never wanted to be the selfish, self-centered type of person that both of her parents had been. Living a life like that was no life and wasn’t a future she was willing to contemplate. She’d rather have no future and die knowing that she’d done the right thing.

She started to step back and close the door, but she stopped and stared longingly at the closed door across the hall. She’d had so little love in her life, and only one disastrous intimate relationship in college with a guy who’d ended up more concerned with notches on his bedpost than the lasting relationship she’d hoped to have. So how could she even consider what amounted to a one-night stand with Dex? She barely knew him.