I followed him into the restaurant, working out what I should say, but as soon as I saw a flash of red hair, I knew that wasn’t in the cards. But it could wait, because Ari’s whole face lit up with a smile when she saw me before she could school her expression.

Yeah, this is happening.

12

Ariel

I didn’t expect to see Rhett again so soon. Even more than that, I didn’t anticipate that his eyes would soften when he saw me like I was a welcome sight. This morning, part of me wondered if he was trying to get away from me as quickly as possible after our . . . um . . . run-in. Yet only hours later, his expression said he wouldn’t mind if I were on the menu.

To every guy who has cursed women for giving off mixed signals, screw you. Guys are worse than women on every level. Just when I decided I was well and truly over Rhett Hennessy, he sucked me back in with a single look. And some groping. And rolling around on the floor of the gym. But how was I supposed to act now?

Too bad there wasn’t facial-recognition software out there to interpret mixed signals. I pulled out my phone to make a quick note to check into the concept and brainstorm commercial applications.

All through lunch, I forced myself to keep up with the flow of conversation instead of disappearing into my own head like I would have done under other circumstances. Being fully engaged instead of distracted, I noticed two things. First, my dad’s forgetfulness was worse than I’d realized. I’d flown him out to California to see me three times in the last year, and it had never been as apparent as it was now.

He’d asked the waitress twice where his order was, and that was after he’d devoured a plate of fried oysters. I was glad he was staying with Heath, because I was concerned about his ability to function by himself. I added another note to my list to research doctors for blood work and cognitive testing as soon as possible. Dad would bitch, but we needed to know if this was the gateway to dementia. I wasn’t leaving Louisiana until we had answers, which meant I needed to get Esme and Erik on the phone to sort things out for an extended absence.

The second thing I noticed was that my brother had taken a turn for Crazyville. He asked Rhett about his plans for staying in town, and when Rhett said he didn’t know yet, Heath shocked the crap out of us both.

“Flounder has that rental place for at least a week. You should just crash with her. I’m sure she wouldn’t care.”

I choked on a sip of water, and all the noise in the restaurant seemed to go silent as my heart pounded while I waited for Rhett’s response. Using only my peripheral vision, I studied him as subtly as possible. He seemed as stunned by the suggestion as I was.

“Where’s my dinner? I ordered an hour ago,” my dad said.

This time, I didn’t try to explain, but continued holding my breath, waiting for Rhett to speak. I counted the seconds as they passed, all twenty-seven of them.

“I’ve got a hotel.”

“But she’s got tons of room, and you could hit that kick-ass pool. Might as well make your trip back a little better by enjoying it.”

Rhett didn’t have a chance to give a definitive answer because my father stood up and yelled across the restaurant.

“Where’s my damned dinner?”

Heath and I shot to our feet to calm Dad down, and the conversation was over.

13

Rhett

Stay with Ari? What was Heath thinking?

I still had no answer when I left the restaurant and headed out to deal with the less pleasant part of my day.

The image of Ari’s wide gray eyes and sleek curtain of red hair stayed firmly fixed in my mind as I pointed my Jeep in the direction of my parents’ house, hoping I could get a better look at the scene in the daylight.

When I arrived, I found the street had been cleared of debris, but crime scene tape still wrapped around the lot that used to hold my childhood home. Three black-and-whites were parked along the curb, and members of the crime-scene unit were crawling all over the rubble. I ducked under the tape, but a uniformed officer I didn’t recognize stopped me before I made it six feet.

“Sorry, sir. You can’t be here.”

“This is my parents’ house. I’m not going anywhere.”

Knowledge flashed across his face. I might not have known who he was, but he sure as hell knew me.

“Mr. Hennessy, you need to step back.”

Mr. Hennessy. It sounded so foreign even now. I’d been Detective Hennessy for enough years that it was strange to be addressed as anything else.

Arguing with him wouldn’t gain me any ground. I didn’t have a badge, and the law wasn’t on my side, so I tried a different tack.

“How long before you clear the scene? I need to start figuring out cleanup and disposal.” I had no idea if my parents’ insurance would cover it or if I’d be looking at massive debts to split with my brothers, but it needed to be done.

“I couldn’t say, sir. The department will let you know as soon as you’re able to have access. In the meantime, I would suggest that you leave this to the professionals.”

The last part was a dig, and it burned just the way he’d intended.

“Thanks for nothing.” I turned away from the uniformed punk, wondering if I’d ever been that big of a prick. Probably.

Instead of giving him the satisfaction of watching me get in my car and drive away, I headed to the house across the street. I might not have a badge anymore, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t canvass the neighborhood for information. Eyewitness statements might be notoriously unreliable, but skipping out on taking them wasn’t an option. Occasionally there was a single nugget of information that could change the trajectory of an entire investigation.

“Oh my goodness, Rhett Hennessy, is that really you?” Mrs. Thurman greeted me at the door with a warm smile. “It’s been an age since I’ve seen you around. Do you have any idea when all those police officers are going to let Minnie back into her house?”

Minnie Myers had lived on the other side of my folks for as long as I could remember.

“I’m not sure, Mrs. Thurman. They wouldn’t give me any information either.”

“I swear, there aren’t any good cops left anymore . . .” She trailed off, probably because she assumed it was a sore subject with me. She was right.