SCREWED DOWN MURDER (Mrs. Fix It Mysteries Book 2) (7 page)

“Hi.”

“Did you put a tracker on me? Or do you have spies telling you where I am?”

He chuckled and wiggled his eyebrows. “Maybe both.”

She punched him lightly on the arm. “No need to give the rumor mill anything to talk about.”

“Well, I wanted to see if you had lunch yet. I got caught up in paperwork and forgot.”

“I got caught up at Jessica’s house. She’s going to put it on the market,” Kate said.

“Then it’s settled. We’ll go grab a bite,” Scott said.

He motioned for her to walk beside him. They were only a block off Main Street, so they could find something there.

“I wanted to make sure you were okay. I know the revelations about Greg’s passport rattled you.”

Kate looked up at the blue sky. She could see the haze and couldn’t wait for fall again. She didn’t like summer. She should have moved to a colder climate years ago, but then she’d married Greg. She guessed he could have taught anywhere, but she’d never thought about moving at that point.

“I went and talked to Carly. She helped me put it into perspective. A little bit, at least.”

“That’s good. At this point, I have no idea what he’d been doing in those places. I have some contacts in federal law enforcement I can tap to go a little further with the investigation.”

He’d only do that with her permission. He may not respect her boundaries when it came to dating, but he would when it came to Greg. She knew this.

“You want my permission?”

“Yes.”

“Go ahead. I have nothing to lose. I think I’m already questioning a big portion of my adult life. I didn’t know Greg at all. To me he was this professor who spoke at conferences all over the country. Not some guy who made quick trips to the Middle East on a regular basis,” Kate said.

“I wouldn’t question it yet.”

He held the door open for her to Daisy’s Luncheonette. Only a handful of tables were occupied. Daisy didn’t stay open for dinner, so it would be closing in the next hour.

It wasn’t a diner, but it wasn’t a full restaurant either. Kate could easily find something here to eat to make up for those cookies. A salad would do.

They sat at a table in the window then read the menus. A waitress came by, then took their drink orders. Kate was in the mood for a soda and it had caffeine in it. Scott chose iced tea.

“How can I not question it? He spent a lot of time lying to me.”

He looked over his menu at her. “But we don’t know why yet. It might have been for a good cause.”

Kate sighed. She didn’t have that feeling in her gut. She was sure this was bad. “That’s what Carly said.”

“Hold on to that until we know differently. This was your husband.”

Scott was right. She should give the man the benefit of the doubt. As far as she knew, he never cheated. She couldn’t imagine him going halfway around the world just for sex. “I know and I’m the last to know that he had a double life.”

“I’ll go talk to his colleagues at some point,” Scott said.

Kate ordered a salad while Scott insisted on a burger. She tucked the menus back into their holder. “I understand this isn’t your biggest priority. You do have a police department to run.”

He smiled. “Yes, they are paying me to do that. On the other hand, I have a personal stake in finding out what happened to Greg. I have no desire to taint him in your eyes. I just want to give you closure. So you can move on.”

“With you?”

Scott laughed, leaning back in his chair. “Of course with me. I’m not working this hard for some other guy to benefit.”

She looked at him, her head cocked. This was all too much. She needed to get some answers from him. “Why are you working this hard?”

The waitress put down their drinks. Kate took a sip, enjoying the bubbles dancing across her tongue.

“Why not? You’re smart and sexy and loyal.”

“You make me sound like a sexy puppy.”

He leaned closer to her. “I’d make you out to be a sexy kitten.”

Kate blushed, not liking where this conversation was headed. “Stop.”

“Seriously? Maybe you remind me of a simpler time.”

“But I’m not that teenage girl who was dazzled that the star quarterback was interested in her.”

She’d had stars in her eyes. The quarterback had wanted her. It sounded so lame now, but she’d been young then. Stupid, in a way. He’d been good to her up until he had left.

“I’m not the star quarterback anymore, Kate. And I don’t miss that. I’m a grown man who knows what he likes. I knew what I liked then. You were so different from the crowd I ran with. Bookish, and you didn’t seem to care what other people thought. I was intrigued by that.”

She wasn’t sure how she felt about this revelation. That wasn’t how she saw herself. “I was awkward. Maybe a little high maintenance.”

“If you were high maintenance then, you have no idea the meaning of that word. The girls I dated other than you made me wear certain clothes. I had to look a certain way for them to be seen with them. You didn’t care.”

He really did have a different view of her than she had of herself. “The point is, I’m not that girl anymore.”

“I wouldn’t want you to be. I’m not that boy anymore.”

He was closer to that boy than she was to that girl. “You haven’t lost any of your swagger.”

He puffed out his chest. “I’m still confident.”

“Yes, sometimes too much.”

He laughed. “I’m not obnoxious, am I?”

She laughed also. She enjoyed his company. “No. Annoying sometimes.”

“Only because you won’t give in to my charms,” he said. His eyes went dark. “I would take good care of you, Kate.”

“I’m not sure I need taking care of.”

“Sure you do. A little bit. Everyone does.”

“Even you?”

“Especially me, but that’s only one place.”

She didn’t utter the words, but she knew what place he needed to be taken care of. He’d had a voracious sexual appetite in high school. And he always found places that they wouldn’t be disturbed. She sighed. Those were heady times. He’d brought out a woman in her that she hadn’t known she could be. Her confidence had soared during their relationship.

Not so much after he left. As much as that was a long time ago, it still hurt some part of her.

“Yes, I remember.”

Scott chuckled as the waitress brought their food. She shouldn’t like him this much. She was having thoughts that a married woman shouldn’t have. Having lived day to day for so long, she was thinking of what the future could hold. That was dangerous.

This man was dangerous. What would her boys think?

Did they miss having a male role model in their lives? Maybe that wasn’t necessary anymore. They were nineteen now. They were finding their own way in life.

Even if it was without a father.

“Where did you go?” Scott asked.

She frowned. “Just thinking about my boys.”

“Young men now.”

“I know. It all happens so fast. They’ll be out on their own before I know it.”

He reached across the table then put his hand on hers. “All the more reason to look after your own happiness.”

***

Scott walked Kate back to Bob’s Garage. He kissed her on the cheek then left her there. She paid Bob for the oil change then headed to Grayson’s Hardware Store for supplies. She could figure out what she needed for Jessica’s list of repairs then give her an estimate.

She walked in to find Larry Stadt all by himself. That didn’t often happen in this store. She’d noticed that some of the regulars didn’t hang out there anymore since Larry’s father had been convicted of murder. The big box store was an hour’s drive away.

If they wanted to, they could go there, but Kate had relied on Larry’s father for advice. She wasn’t sure Larry could give her any, but she’d stop and chat anyway. She always preferred patronizing local businesses, especially since she ran one.

He’d been leaving her alone. Maybe he was just busy with the store, but she’d missed his friendship. They used to have lunch once a week and catch up. She knew his feelings for her, so the lunches were bittersweet. She didn’t want to encourage him, but in her mind he was safely ensconced in the friend zone.

The store smelled like fertilizer today. Guess Larry was stocking it for the avid gardeners. Kate liked the idea of a garden, but not the execution. She worked with her hands all week. She would rather spend her free time relaxing with a book.

If she wanted fresh vegetables, she could go to the local farm.

Larry was behind the counter looking at paperwork. Hunched over the counter, he hadn’t heard her come in. She didn’t want to startle him, so she cleared her throat. Larry looked up.

He was a tall, lanky man with brown hair and brown eyes. His eyes held you as if you were the only woman in the room. Others had said that about him, so Kate knew it wasn’t just her.

He smiled at Kate. “Hello, there.”

She smiled back. He was a good guy in a bad situation with his father. “Hi, Larry. Haven’t seen you around.”

He glanced around the shop. “I have less free time since I’m running the hardware store. We’ll have to grab lunch someday soon.”

“I guess it is more time-consuming than being the fire chief.”

He put down the pencil in his hand, then leaned against the counter. His sleeves were rolled up to reveal sinewy muscles on his forearms. “Yes, it is. I miss the school visits, but other than that I’ve settled into this.”

“Are you happy?”

He rubbed the back of his neck. “I actually am. This is more of a challenge, and I was due to retire from the fire service two years ago. I didn’t because I didn’t know what I was going to do. This opportunity fell in my lap.”

“The place looks good. I see you’ve rearranged.”

“Yes, I’ve also stocked some items that Dad wasn’t willing to. He’d been doing this for several years, but you’d have thought he was doing it forever. He was stubborn.”

“Nice to see some changes. You should give me a tour, so I know where things are.”

“You are one of my best customers.”

“I’ll be even better since I’m fixing a number of things at Jessica’s house.”

“Sad about Dudley.”

“Yes, it is. I don’t think the cops have any idea who did it. Would be nice to have closure about it,” Kate said.

“You found him?”

“Seems to be my lot in life lately.”

He gave her a sardonic smile. “I walked past his office not long before the power went out.”

“Oh?”

Did he know something? She stepped closer to him, eager to hear what he had to say. “Did you hear anything?”

“I heard arguing. He had a woman in his office. I didn’t think much of it until he turned up dead.”

“A woman?”

“Yes, but I didn’t stop to listen. I thought it odd that he was there so late.”

“What were you doing there so late?”

“I was cleaning out my locker at the fire house. I didn’t want to see anyone and knew they’d be asleep, so I could do it without talking to anyone. I’ve already given my key back, so I don’t have a way in the front door. I had to go through the police department on my second trip out. That’s why I went past Dudley’s office.”

“So you heard a female. Were they arguing?”

“I sounded contentious, yes, but I didn’t see any reason to stop or look in. I was minding my own business.”

“Right. I understand. Did you talk to the cops?”

“Yes and that’s why they thought it was Jessica.”

“Did you see any strange cars around?”

Jessica’s car was a bright, red Mercedes with a vanity plate. Hard to miss. Dean didn’t have the same kind of money that Dudley had. Would Jessica be able to keep her car?

“I wasn’t paying attention. I’m not a car person, so I wouldn’t have noticed,” Larry said.

He frowned, clearly having wanted to do more. Kate patted his hand. “Not your fault. Not your problem either.”

“Shouldn’t be yours.”

“I know, but Jessica wanted me to snoop. Since the police were so quick to arrest her, she thinks that they won’t do a good job. You know how people are in a small town. We are judged on what we did in the past, not who we actually are.”

“That’s true. And sometimes we’re judged on who we’re related to.”

Kate saw the pain in his eyes. “Has business gone down since you’re father left?”

“At first it did, but I still had my core. The ones who didn’t want to drive to the big box store,” Larry said.

“I’m so sorry. What your father did is not your fault.”

He looked up at her with widened eyes. “You aren’t mad at me?”

“You had no control over your father’s behavior. You were just as surprised as the rest of us when he confessed. You can’t be held responsible for what he did.”

“You don’t think I could be a murderer?”

“No, Larry, never.”

Then again, she’d never have thought his father could be one.

“Good. I’m glad. It would be too much to bear if you thought badly of me, Kate. Now what can I get you?”

“I don’t have an actual purchase today. I have to create an estimate for Jessica first, so I need to know the cost of materials. You’ll benefit from this, I promise.”

“Eventually. That’s good enough, Kate. I’m just happy that you don’t hold a grudge.”

He was a sweet man, one that any woman would be lucky to have. “I couldn’t think that way of you, Larry. You’ve been a good friend.”

He grimaced. “A friend. I had hoped for more, but I see with Scott back in town I don’t have a chance.”

What could she say to him? She wasn’t one to kick a man when he was down, but in reality, Larry never had a chance.

“I’m sorry, Larry. You would treat me like a queen, I know, but I’m not sure I want to be treated like a queen.”

“Why not?”

“Because I don’t see myself that way. I’m just Kate. I don’t dress like a queen.”

“There’s nothing wrong with how you dress, Kate.”

She sighed. He didn’t get it. “That’s not the point. You have to love someone the way they want to be loved. And I don’t want to be a queen.”

“Oh, I think I understand. I’m sorry, too, Kate.”

“There’s someone out there for you. You need to forget about me and look for someone who will appreciate you.”

Carly came to mind. She’d love to be treated like a queen, but Kate didn’t think that Larry was ready for that suggestion.