Walking on Her Grave (Rogue River Novella, Book 4) (6 page)

“I have something for you,” he said.

Carly’s whole body warmed at the sound of his voice. He and Patsy walked into the kitchen. Seth was carrying a cardboard box.

“What’s inside?” Brianna leaped off her chair.

Lowering the box to Brianna’s eye level, Seth kissed his daughter on the head.

“Kittens!” she squealed.

“Where did you get those?” Carly peeked into the box. Curled on what looked like Seth’s workout clothes, two black-and-white kittens looked up at her. “They look really young.”

Patsy washed her hands at the sink. “Let’s see.” She lifted a kitten in each hand. “Eyes open. Still wobbly. They’re only two or three weeks old. Where did you find them, Seth?”

“Abandoned behind a woodpile,” he said.

Patsy set the babies back in the box. “Where’s their mother?”

“Um. They’re orphans.” His vague answer and his nod at Brianna told Carly he knew but didn’t want to say in front of their daughter.

“Well, I guess we’d better get the kitten formula out.” Patsy disappeared into the laundry room. She emerged in a few minutes with a can of formula and two eyedroppers. “Is it true about Mike Bell being missing?”

Carly turned to Seth. “What?”

“That has not been confirmed.” Seth sighed. “We’re looking for anyone who might have seen him Thursday night.”

“Why don’t you ask Katelyn O’Rourke?” Patsy filled an eyedropper and handed it to Brianna, who had helped her grandmother bottle-feed many orphaned animals in the past six months. The Taylor farm held the spillover from the underfunded and overcrowded animal shelter.

Seth’s eyes brightened. “Why would I ask her?”

Patsy spread a towel on her lap and lifted one of the kittens out of the box. “Do you know Everett? He works for the sanitation department.”

Looking confused, Seth shook his head.

“Everett drives a recycling collection truck. He spotted Katelyn coming out of Mike’s house before dawn last week. He also said Mike recycled a couple of wine bottles, when everyone knows he’s a beer drinker.”

Small Town Rule #8: Your recycling says a lot about your personal habits, so it’s important to be discreet.

“Do you have any other details about Mike’s personal life?” Seth asked.

“No. But if I think of anything, I’ll let you know.” Patsy put the tip of the dropper into the kitten’s mouth. “Oh, thank goodness. He’s drinking.”

“Mine is too, Grandma.” Brianna cradled the other kitten.

“I need to make a call.” Seth headed for the back door.

With Brianna distracted by feeding the kittens, Carly followed Seth onto the back porch. The sunlight hit her face, hot and dry and soothing. She waited while he called Zane and told him about Katelyn.

“Okay. Let me know when you’re free. I’ll stop at O’Rourke Properties and let you know what I find out.” Seth ended his call. He turned to Carly. “There’s an accident on the interstate. Car hit a combine.”

“Oh no.”

“Zane said there were no fatalities, but the Solitude PD is going to be tied up for the afternoon.” Seth loosened his tie and flipped open the top button of his dress shirt. The tanned skin of his throat shouldn’t have been such a turn-on. But with the rest of Seth’s skin so fresh in Carly’s mind . . .

“Damn, it’s hot,” he said.

“Yes, definitely hot.” She fanned her face and stepped into the shade of the roof overhang.

“Do you know what else is hot?” Seth leaned close and whispered in her ear, “You.”

She could smell the fresh scent of his body wash. The same soap she’d used last night in his shower. She put a hand in the center of his chest. “Don’t.”

He drew back, hurt shining in his eyes.

“Brianna might see,” Carly explained.

He lifted a hand. “So? We’re still married, Carly. There’s nothing wrong with a man kissing his wife.”

“We’re separated, Seth, remember?”

“I thought going fishing yesterday was all about us trying to spend time together. I want to work this out, Carly. You know I love you. I’ll do whatever it takes to get you back.”

“I know you’re trying, Seth, but we’ve just started down this road. I don’t want her to get excited about us getting back together unless we’re one hundred percent sure it’s going to work out.”

His mouth tightened. He stepped back.

Carly’s chest ached at the disappointment in his eyes—and in her heart. There was nothing she wanted more than to save her marriage. “I’m sorry. I just don’t want her to get hurt again. Last winter was hard on her. She’s just now starting to act normal.”

As much as she loved him, she wouldn’t risk hurting her daughter again.

“You’re right.” Seth nodded. His shoulders squared. “But I haven’t given up on us. Last night was the best night I’ve had in a long time.”

Me too
. But Carly had to protect herself as well as her daughter. “We need to take it slow.”

“Okay. We can crawl as long as we keep moving in the right direction. Just promise me you won’t write us off just yet.” Typical Seth, keeping his eye on the prize. Hard work never scared him off. In fact, the more difficult a task, the more he applied himself. If he said he wasn’t giving up on her, he’d dog her forever.

Stubborn, stubborn man
, Carly thought with affection. She really did love him. “I can’t make any promises, but I’ll try.”

“That’s all I’m asking.” Satisfaction and determination tightened his jaw. “What’s the rest of your day look like?”

“I was thinking about taking Brianna and my mom to Dairy Queen,” Carly said. “But I doubt she’ll want to leave those kittens, not even for ice cream.”

“I hope they make it.” Worry drew Seth’s brows together.

“You’re sure the mama cat isn’t around?”

“I’m sure.” Close-lipped, he crossed his arms over his chest, obviously sparing her the sad details.

“I’m not Brianna, Seth. You don’t have to protect me from the facts.”

He reached out to touch her arm, then curled his fingers into a fist and lowered his hand to his side. “I know. But just because you can handle the truth doesn’t mean you need to know every sad detail.”

“You can’t protect me from everything.”

“I know that too,” he said. “But in this case, telling you really doesn’t serve any purpose. Even you can’t fix this one. But if you must know, I saw the mama cat dead on the side of the road.”

Sadness filled her, and for a moment she wished she hadn’t forced him to tell her. Maybe he was right. She’d cried a lifetime’s worth of tears in the past six months, between her separation from Seth and her father’s death. Was it so awful for him to try to spare her some more tears?

“If anyone can save them, it’ll be my mom. This isn’t her first batch of kittens.” People had been leaving abandoned animals on the front porch for as long as Carly could remember. “Usually if their appetite is good, they’ll be all right.”

“I hope so. Brianna fell in love at first sight.” His gaze lingered on hers, bittersweet. It had been love at first sight for them too, back on campus at Oregon State. “Come on. I’ll go to Dairy Queen with you.”

“That’ll get tongues wagging.” Carly hesitated. Did she really want everyone in town to know she and Seth were trying again? Everywhere she went people would ask her about it. Wait . . . they did that anyway.

“Let ’em wag.”

“You hate Dairy Queen.”

“But I have a new appreciation for small-town gossip.” Seth opened the door for her. “Besides, I need to go into town and talk with Katelyn O’Rourke, and I need a witness. Or at least someone to make sure I come out alive. Zane and Stevie will be tied up for a while.”

“Scared?”

“Damned straight. Katelyn scares the crap out of every man with a brain.”

“So you wouldn’t have slept with her if you were Mike?”

“I don’t want to sleep with anyone except you,” Seth said in his no-bullshit voice.

Carly warmed at the sexy glint in his eye.

“And I’d be afraid she’d eat me after we mated,” he deadpanned.

The unexpected giggle bubbled out of her throat as they stepped into the kitchen.

“Shh.” Brianna put a finger to her lips. “They’re sleeping.”

The kitchen smelled like baking cookies and browning butter. Patsy flipped a grilled cheese sandwich on the griddle. She slid the sandwiches onto plates and handed them out. The knowing smile on her face told Carly her mother had seen the exchange between her and Seth on the porch. Patsy would never push either of them to reconcile but she’d been gently nudging them in that direction the whole summer. Her mother would never give up on love.

They sat at the table and finished off sandwiches and iced tea. Carly carried their plates to the sink.

“I have to go back to work.” She kissed her daughter on the top of the head.

“Bye.” Brianna abandoned her lunch half-eaten to check on the kittens for the third time.

“Thanks for lunch, Patsy, and for taking care of the kittens.” Seth hugged Brianna goodbye.

Patsy waved away his thanks. “Brianna is going to look after those little babies. I’m just supervising.”

Seth followed Carly outside. “Your mother is amazing.”

“I know. She’s been a huge help.” Carly walked to her Jeep.

“You can ride with me.” Seth gestured toward his county-owned sedan.

“I’d better have my own car. I have other stops to make today.”

Irritation flashed in Seth’s eyes but he blinked it away. “Okay. I need to talk to Alex and Peter Rollins today too. I know Peter is one of your cases now. Do you want in on that?”

“I do. Why do you need to see him?”

“Alex and Peter both had a beef with the O’Rourkes, and the fire marshal suspects arson.”

“Peter was supposed to have counseling, then community service yesterday.”

“In that case he should be in the clear,” Seth said. He hadn’t argued with her, and he’d included her in his investigation, as it pertained to one of her clients. Progress, she supposed. “What’s the plan?”

Seth opened his car door. “We’ll stop at the Dairy Queen for ice cream. Maybe we take a walk while we eat.”

Carly opened the door to her Jeep and let the heat escape. “The offices of O’Rourke Properties just happen to be down the street. Katelyn usually runs down to Nell’s at lunchtime. We’ll probably
bump into
her.” Nell’s small general store sold everything from bait to fresh fried chicken.

“Convenient.” Seth leaned into his vehicle.

Carly heard the sedan’s air conditioner kick on. “I can’t picture Katelyn with Mike.” The perfect blonde usually set her sights on alpha-type men, not mild-mannered township inspectors. “If she slept with him, she had a reason.”

Seth caught her gaze. The green of his eyes brightened. “Exactly, and it doesn’t take a genius to figure out her motivation.”

“The only reason Katelyn would sleep with Mike is to get inspections passed.”

And now Mike was missing.

Dairy Queen was full of teenagers enjoying their last weekend of freedom before the new school year. A high school girl dug her spoon into her Blizzard and licked the frozen treat in slow motion. Watching her, the teenage boy across the table from her looked like he swallowed his tongue.

“Brianna is never dating.” Seth steered Carly toward the counter. He knew what she wanted. “Small?”

“Medium,” Carly said. “It’s been a rough week.”

“No kidding.” Seth ordered two chocolate-dipped cones. A few minutes later, they took their ice cream outside to walk. She bit off the chocolate coating and dipped her tongue into the vanilla underneath. Mesmerized, Seth watched. Visions from the night before flooded his mind. Carly naked. Tongues. Skin.

“You’re dripping.” Carly pointed at his hand.

Melted ice cream dripped from his fingers onto the sidewalk. “Shit.”

He ate the ice cream in a few bites and wiped his hands with a napkin. Carly popped the last piece of cone into her mouth. Under his dress shirt, sweat pooled at the base of his spine.

Carly squinted at him. “Are you all right?”

“Fine.” He loosened his tie.

“Seth!”

He glanced up. Katelyn O’Rourke was heading straight for him. She focused like a raptor with a rabbit in its sights. Her dress was tight and sleeveless, her heels take-me-home high.

“Hi, Katelyn.” Carly waggled her fingers in a hello-I’m-here-too gesture.

“Carly.” Katelyn’s gaze shifted between Carly and Seth. Irritation crossed her face. “I didn’t know you two were back together.”

Seth wasn’t fooled by his wife’s sweet country-girl smile. She was no pushover.

“Katelyn,” Seth said. “I was just going to call you.”

“Were you?” Katelyn dialed her enthusiasm to bright.

“I have a few questions for you and your mom,” he said.

Suspicion dimmed the wattage of her smile. She recovered, turning and giving him a sultry glance over her shoulder as they neared the office door. “Then let’s go inside.”

In the corner of his eye, Seth caught Carly’s eye roll.

“Do you mind?” he asked her.

“Not at all.” Carly shook her head. “I’ll walk down to Nell’s and pick up some aspirin for my mom, but I’ll be right back.”

“Meet you back at the car in twenty.” Seth followed Katelyn into the building.

The offices of O’Rourke Properties hadn’t been redecorated since the 1970s. Floors were industrial gray-speckled linoleum. Wood paneling covered the walls.

“Let’s go into my office.” Katelyn led him down a narrow hall.

“Is your mother in?” Seth asked.

“No. Mama is out at the site.” Katelyn turned into a doorway. “I worry about her. I don’t know how much more stress she can take. Everything seems to be going wrong on the project.”

“You have had a run of bad luck.”

Faye O’Rourke was tough. Since her husband had died ten years before, Faye had struggled to keep the business in operation. Ironically, her three sons were no help. They’d run out of town at the first opportunity. It was Katelyn who’d stayed in Solitude to help run the construction firm.

The guest chairs were metal and plastic. Seth eased into one. Instead of sitting behind her desk, Katelyn perched on the corner and crossed her legs. Her dress slid precariously high on her taut thigh.