I grinned back. “We don’t need blood or legal binds to hold us together.” I grabbed her hand, turning serious. “What we have runs deeper than either of those things. No matter who your father is.”

Tears filled her eyes. “He’s a monster, Rose. And look at all of his children.”

“I know Kate is loony tunes, but Joe’s coming around. He’s breaking free of his father’s hold. He’s really trying to be his own man.” I grinned. “And you’re stronger than the two of them put together.”

“Well, of course I am,” she said with attitude, and then her voice softened. “He would have killed my mother. He would have killed us both. That’s why she moved around so much. All these years, she was trying to keep me safe.”

From what little I knew about Jenny Lynn Rivers, she had probably put herself as number one on the list of importance. I only hoped Neely Kate had been number two. But I wasn’t about to point out all the shortcomings of Neely Kate’s mother. Hopefully we’d have years to revisit the topic.

“It’s a lot to take in, Neely Kate. Trust me, I know. Give it some time.”

“I want to talk to my granny. I want to ask her some questions.”

“Now?”

She turned to look at me. “Sure, why not? You need privacy to talk to Joe. Besides, maybe my granny knows something that will help us. I’ll call and see if she’s home.”

“Okay.” I didn’t like the thought of her going off without me, but she was right about me needing privacy when I talked to Joe. She started to call her grandmother, so I sent Joe a text.

Truce?

He sent back a text within seconds. What are you up to?

Can we talk? In person?

The little text bubble kept popping up and disappearing on my phone before he finally sent: Why?

Because we need to clear the air. Hence the “truce.”

Fine. How about in a few days?

No. Tonight. I’m in my office. Can you come now? When he didn’t answer after ten seconds, I added, You need to eat dinner. We can meet at Merilee’s if you’d like, but I’d hoped to talk in private. I can pick something up.

He answered right away. Call something in for both of us—you know what I like. I’ll pick it up and be there in twenty minutes.

Thanks.

“Granny’s got two fortune-telling clients back to back,” Neely Kate said. “She can’t see us until later. What did Joe say?”

I grimaced. “He’ll be here in twenty minutes. I’m calling a dinner order in to Merilee’s, and he’s gonna pick it up.”

A wicked grin lit up her eyes. “So what to do with me, right?”

“Neely Kate—”

Waving her hand, she laughed. “I’m teasing. I’ll have Jed take me to get something. He can’t say no to leaving you alone with the chief deputy sheriff.”

“Are you sure?”

“Totally. You better call in that order if you want it to be ready when Joe gets there.”

I picked up my phone and called the restaurant, ordering a bowl of potato soup for me and meatloaf and mashed potatoes for Joe.

“That’s not what you usually get for Mr. Deveraux,” the waitress taking the order said. “He trying something different tonight?”

“No,” I said, feeling like I was cheating on Mason even though I wasn’t. “It’s for Chief Deputy Simmons. In fact, he’ll be picking it up.”

“Oh,” she said, sounding scandalized. “I see.”

Obviously she didn’t, but pointing that out would only draw more attention to the situation. “Thank you.”

Neely Kate had called Jed, who’d at first balked at the idea of leaving me under Joe’s watch, but she’d successfully convinced him. When she hung up, she sat at the round table we used to make presentations to customers. I was rearranging stacks of gardening magazines and papers to make room for my dinner with Joe.

“Are you nervous?” she asked.

“About tonight with J.R.?” I was terrified, but I wasn’t sure I could let myself admit it.

“No. With Joe.”

I shook my head. “No, I think this talk has been a long time coming.”

“Aren’t you worried Joe will try and put you into protective custody?”

“No. I think he finally respects me enough to take my opinion into consideration.” Or at least I hoped so.

She just nodded, a thoughtful look on her face.

I went into the bathroom to clean up the mess from Merv’s incident the night before. I sure didn’t want Joe to discover my role in last night’s events.

I’d just finished when I heard a knock on the front door and then Neely Kate’s voice. “Hey, Joe.”

“Neely Kate,” Joe said, sounding miffed.

“You’re not gonna have bad feelings, are you?”

“That depends on whether or not you continue to impede official investigations.”

I walked out of the bathroom to find Neely Kate with her hands on her hips.

“It’s a free country, Joe Simmons. I didn’t break any laws,” she said.

“Neely Kate,” I said as I approached them. “Let’s give Joe a break.”

It suddenly hit me that they were constantly bickering. Just like siblings. The thought brought a lump to my throat. How would Joe react when he discovered Neely Kate was his sister?

“Thanks for agreeing to see me,” I said, noticing the bag in his hand. He was wearing his sheriff’s uniform and a leather coat. The dark circles under his eyes were a testament to his exhaustion. “And for picking up dinner.”

“And that’s my cue to leave.” Neely Kate grabbed her coat and her purse and dashed out the front door.

I walked over and locked the door behind her.

“Do you think it’s a good idea for her to be out there alone with my father on the loose?”

I turned around to face him. “You’re worried about her?”

“Well . . . yeah. I am.”

Part of me ached to tell him what I knew. With his wackadoodle sister Kate, his evil father, and his controlling mother, Joe needed family who would actually care about him and support him. But it wasn’t my place to tell.

I motioned to the table. “I thought we could eat at the table.”