Ripple of Secrets: Rose Gardner Mystery Novella #6.5 (Rose Gardner series Book 3) (14 page)

As long as Joe held out hope that Rose would come back to him, he would never marry me. With J.R.’s deadline looming around the corner, I knew I needed to step up my game.

One thing was certain: Rose Gardner needed to go. And it had to be soon.

Mason

I arrived at Merilee’s a few minutes before noon. I had planned to walk over to Rose’s office, but her truck wasn’t out front. Parking around the courthouse and town square was lighter than it was most weekdays, so it wouldn’t have been hard to find. She’d gone somewhere. And that made me nervous.

The nature of her business had her traveling all around the county, of course, so that wasn’t what made me nervous. It was the whole J.R. Simmons mess that had me on edge. Joe’s text had confirmed that my own life was still in danger. It wasn’t a huge stretch to think hers might be as well. Only I wasn’t sure what to do about that. All the more reason to tell her what I could so she’d be more careful, if that were even possible for her. She seemed to land herself in more dangerous situations than any other person I knew. The fact that she always managed to get out of them was the one reassurance that kept me from insisting on putting her under twenty-four-hour protection.

When I walked in the door, Bonnie, one of the waitresses, greeted me from across the emptier-than-usual restaurant. “Hey, Mr. Deveraux. How many?”

I smiled. Moving to Henryetta had been the hardest transition I’d ever made. It was probably the furthest you could get from Little Rock, but I had grown to appreciate that half the people in the downtown area knew who I was and greeted me by name. “Just two today.”

“If you’re looking for a more romantic table—” she gave me a sly grin and winked, “—you can sit in that table for two in the back corner.” She tilted her head in that direction as she served hot plates to a table of customers.

No one would ever call Merilee’s romantic, but it did have its own appeal. Rose and I had eaten lunch here together plenty of times before we started seeing each other. But today I was thankful for the added privacy.

I slipped off my coat and took a seat. Several minutes later the bell on the door jingled and Rose walked in, her cheeks pink and her hair—which was loose today—slightly mussed from the wind. As soon as she spotted me in the corner, a warm loving smile broke loose on her face. I watched her walk toward me and I knew I’d give everything I had for this woman—including my life—as long as she continued looking at me like that.

I stood as she approached and helped her off with her coat, draping it over the back of her chair. But before she could sit, I pulled her into my arms and gave her a lingering kiss. When I lifted my head, surprise flashed in her eyes, quickly replaced with playfulness. “I missed you this morning at breakfast.”

I grinned down at her, my chest filling with happiness. “I missed you too, but I hope we can make up for it now.” I gave her another quick peck and pulled out her chair, then sat down across from her.

She placed her hands on the table, palms flat, and her playfulness faded. “Mason, about this morning—”

Shaking my head, I reached across the table and took her hand in mine. “Rose, if you’re trying to apologize, please don’t. I’m the one who needs to be offering up an apology.”

“I don’t like fightin’ with you, Mason. I felt awful until you called.”

I tightened my grip on her hand. “I don’t like fighting with you either, but we have plenty more fights in our future, I’m sure. If one of us is upset, we need to discuss it rather than let it fester and drive a wedge between us.”

“I know you’re right, but it still makes me feel terrible.”

I leaned closer and gave her a wicked smile. “Think of all the makeup sex we can have.”

Bonnie walked up to the table, trying to hide the smirk that told me she’d overheard, and Rose’s face flushed.

“I told you this spot was more romantic,” Bonnie teased. “I only wish I had some wine to serve with your lunch.”

The red hue of Rose’s face deepened.

I looked up at the waitress and gave Rose’s hand another squeeze. “I’ll take a club sandwich and a water. Rose?” I asked, glancing over at her.

She pushed out a breath and looked up at the waitress. “A house salad with ranch dressing on the side and iced tea.”

As soon as Bonnie walked away with our order, Rose pulled her hand from mine and whacked my arm. “Mason!”

“I’m sorry.” I laughed. “I wouldn’t have said it if I’d known she was right there.”

Her lips pressed into a pout, but the promise of a grin teased the corners of her mouth. “You owe me, big time.”

“Anything you want.”

“Anything?” She lifted her eyebrows and her voice took a husky tone.

Her words stole my breath away. Some days I still found it hard to believe she was mine. “You know I’d give you anything, Rose.”

“Then tell me what you were doin’ in Little Rock.”

I stared deep into her hazel eyes for a moment. Once I crossed this line, there would be no going back. But this directly involved her. She had a right to know. “You already suspect.”

“You’re diggin’ up dirt on Joe’s father.” When I nodded, she pressed on. “And did you find anything?”

I sucked in a deep breath to steady my nerves, suddenly having second thoughts. “Yes and no.”

“What’s that mean?”

I considered telling her about both leads, but I wasn’t sure about Dora Middleton’s involvement in the possible extortion scheme. Rose was just coming to terms with her birth mother’s existence. I didn’t want to tell her that Dora might have been involved in criminal activity without more evidence. “It means I found a potential lead that might help us.”

She leaned closer and lowered her voice. “What is it?”

I leaned closer as well. “I think I found an incident in Columbia County a year and a half ago. It sounds like a construction company might have bribed county officials to win a bid for an addition to a county government office building.”

She shook her head slightly. “What does that have to do with J.R.?”

“He owns the corporation that owns the construction company.”

Realization lit up her face, followed fast by skepticism. “Would he really be that sloppy?”

“No. That’s part of the problem. All I have so far are rumors. I need to do some digging in Magnolia.”

Fear flickered in her eyes. “Is that smart, Mason? Isn’t it going to look suspicious if you’re digging around in another county?”

“I don’t trust anyone else to do this, Rose. They could either botch it up or run to J.R. with the whole story.”

“Bribery charges… I know that’s bad, but is it really enough to bring him down?”

“Honestly, I don’t know. I think it’s only the tip of the iceberg, but I won’t know until I keep digging.”

“Is it really worth the risk? If you go after him and it’s not enough…”

“Rose.” I waited until she looked me in the eyes. “Don’t worry. I intend to be smart about this.”

I considered telling her about J.R.’s possible involvement in Fenton County and his request to Joe to let Mick Gentry kill Skeeter Malcolm, but the information had come directly from Joe. I’d given Joe my word not to let Rose know of his involvement in my special project, and she’d want to know where I’d come by the information. I could lie and tell her I’d heard a rumor while I was in Little Rock, but I didn’t want to do that. I’d rather lie by omission than tell her a flat-out untruth. And besides, when you came right down to it, it was really an official county matter. Which meant that I couldn’t tell her at all.

She was silent for several moments and Bonnie came back with our food. After making sure we had everything we needed, she disappeared back into the kitchen.

Rose picked up her fork and scooped some of her dressing onto her salad. “Did you find out anything else?”

I opened my mouth, suddenly unsure with my choice, but I pressed on. “There are a few other things, but I need more information to know if they are anything of importance.”

Hurt flickered in her eyes. “You promised.”

I sighed. “I’ll tell you if you insist. But I think it will be better if you let me wait to tell you. Will you trust me on this one?”

She glanced to the other side of the room and I questioned my decision. Was I being fair? But she turned back to me and looked into my eyes. “I trust you, Mason. But I hope you’re not keeping this to yourself because you think I’m not strong enough to handle it.”

“Sweetheart, you are one of the strongest people I know. I would never accuse you of being weak.”

She gave a quick nod and looked down at her salad.

Bonnie was talking to another waitress as they bussed a table near ours. The other woman shook her head. “I didn’t even know Deputy Simmons had a sister.”

“She introduced herself as Kate. I have to admit that I saw a resemblance.”

“What’s she doin’ here?”

“I don’t know, but their chat didn’t look so friendly.”

Rose perked up, obviously listening to the women’s conversation. So was I.

“The chief deputy didn’t look so happy to be there with her. He barely finished his breakfast before stomping off.”

“Families.” The older woman tsked and shook her head. “You can’t live with them; you can’t live without them.”

Rose stared at the salt shaker on the table. “I knew Joe had a sister named Kate, but he told me that she took off a couple of years ago,” she said in an undertone. “I wonder what she’s doin’ here.”

Rose’s interest in Joe’s sister seemed more than casual. I shrugged and picked up my water. “Maybe she’s here for the nursery’s grand reopening next week.”

“Maybe…” But she didn’t sound convinced.

I decided it might be best to change the subject. “Have you got all the details of the grand openings worked out?”

She smiled. “Violet and I spent the morning going over some ideas. There’s gonna be an open house at the nursery, and she’s going to market Valentine’s gifts. She’s ordering a bunch of miniature rose bushes and plans to tell the husbands that they’re roses that will last longer than a few days. It’s Henryetta, so she’s pushing the frugal aspect.”

I nodded. “It’s actually a good idea.”

“Violet was never short on ideas. The problem was that she didn’t have enough money to cover them.”

“True. So how’s she paying for the roses?”

She scowled. “Joe.”

I leaned closer, trying to keep my anger in check. I had a feeling this wouldn’t be the last time she’d be facing opposition from Violet and Joe. I hated that they put her in this position. “Don’t let them railroad you into doing anything you don’t want, Rose. You’re the majority owner. You can overrule them both.”

“I know, but it’s a good idea. You said so yourself. I just have to suck up my pride and let it go.”

This was Rose’s business. I’d vowed to let her run it without my interference, and I’d meant it. But I had a hard time letting it go when I could see they were taking advantage of her generous disposition. “And what about the landscaping business?”

“I think we’ll just have a quiet opening. Neely Kate and I are gonna start lining up jobs to work on this spring.” She grimaced, then gave me an apologetic smile. “I don’t see us bringing in any real income until March or April, but I’m payin’ Bruce Wayne and now Neely Kate…I hate to ask…”

I reached across the table and grabbed her hand. “Sweetheart, you don’t have to worry. I’ll cover the utilities and groceries until you’re bringing in money. I don’t mind.”

Her cheeks flushed and she looked down at her plate. “I’m sorry. I promise I’ll pay you back.”

“Don’t be sorry, and I don’t want you to pay me back. If I were out of work, you’d gladly do the same. Hell, you already did that after my condo burned down.” I grinned. “At the risk of sounding misogynistic, I like the idea of taking care of you.”

She stared into my face. “Thank you.”

“I love you, Rose. I said I’d give you anything, and I meant it.”

I suspected she had no idea the lengths I’d go to in order to protect her.