“Anything else?”

“You said you weren’t going to let anyone leave until you figured out who’d tipped him off. And I think it was night time.”

“Did you recognize anyone else who was there?”

I closed my eyes, trying to recall more details. “Jed and Merv were with you. I didn’t recognize anyone else.”

He was silent for a moment. “Okay, we’re done here.” He led me out to the living room with Jed following behind us. Skeeter picked up the handkerchief and lifted it, but I stopped him before he could put it around my eyes.

“Wait. I need to ask you something.”

A grin teased his lips. “Okay.”

“Do you know the strippers at the Bunny Ranch?”

Skeeter burst out laughing. “What?”

I’d been thinking about it all afternoon. Mud wanted to put the Bunny Ranch out of business because of who owned it. Skeeter already admitted there were unsavory characters determined to bring him down. Skeeter had his hands in all kinds of endeavors, and he seemed like the kind of guy who wouldn’t bat an eye about associating himself with a strip club. In fact, he probably found his dates there. “You own it, don’t you?”

He looked amused. “I do.”

“There was a girl who worked there. Dolly Parton. Do you remember her?”

He shook his head. “Was that her stage name?”

“No. But she goes by Sapphire at Gems.”

His eyes narrowed. “Gems? They’re trying to put me out of business.”

That squared with what Sparkle had told me. “What are they doin’?”

“They didn’t need to do much more than open their doors. There’s not enough business to support two clubs. There’s hardly enough to cover one.”

“So why would they have opened up in the first place?”

“Good question.” He looked like he knew something he wasn’t sharing. Not that it was any of my business. He grinned. “You lookin’ for a job? I’ve got another way to put you on the payroll without you resorting to dancing on men’s laps.”

I shuddered. “Gross. No. I’m not lookin’ for a job. I have my own business, thank you very much.”

He chuckled. “Then why are you asking about a girl from my club?”

“She’s my friend’s cousin.”

He leaned his shoulder into the wall and crossed his arms. “You don’t say.”

“She’s missing. She worked a shift on Friday night, and no one has seen her or the bartender since then.”

“Tell your ex-boyfriend and have him look into it.”

“He won’t do anything. She’s taken off before, and he thinks that’s what’s goin’ on this time.”

“But you don’t?”

“Well . . . at first I didn’t. I was just helping out because my friend insisted. But then we went to Gems—”

He held up his hands, his eyebrows shooting up. “You went to Gems?”

“We had to ask around to see if anyone knew what had happened to Dolly Parton.”

“And?”

“And I walked away with a job offer and the information that she and the bartender disappeared after they closed together on Friday night. Oh, and that Mud sent men to Nikko’s house to look for him.”

He stood up. “Mud sent guys after the bartender?”

“Yeah, I thought it sounded suspicious too. Someone from your club told me that Mud’s up to no good. I think Dolly and Nikko saw something they shouldn’t have and took off. Mud knows they saw it, and that’s why he sent guys after them . . . unless it’s all a front and he did something to them.”

Skeeter rubbed his stubbly chin. “This is good, Lady. Given how much he’s hurt my business, I’ve been trying to get some intel on him for weeks. This is my first real lead.”

I shot him a condescending look. “You’re welcome.”

He laughed and moved closer to me. “So this job offer . . . did you dance for Mud?”

I took a step back. “No! And that wasn’t the offer.”

“Then what was?”

“Bartending.”

He laughed again. “The gateway job to dancing.”

“I didn’t take it.”

“Good.” His voice was hard. “If you need a job, you’ll come work for me.”

“So you can’t help me with Dolly?”

“I didn’t say that. I’m just as curious about where she is as you are.”

“Only because of what she might have seen?”

His eyes pierced mine. “I’m not a charity, Rose, so don’t sound so surprised. But let’s just say that tracking her down could be mutually beneficial.”

I steeled my shoulders. “Like our arrangement.”

“They’re your terms, Lady.”

He was right. I couldn’t let myself forget it.

Chapter Fifteen

I was back at Maeve’s house before Mason showed up, but I’d chewed up too much time with Skeeter to stop home and get Muffy. I was thankful Maeve didn’t ask any questions about where I’d been. When Mason showed up about fifteen minutes after me, he was subdued, but he loosened up as we ate.

The three of us sat at Maeve’s kitchen table, and I couldn’t stop thinking about how blessed I was to finally have the family I’d always wanted. I insisted on staying and helping clean up the kitchen, and I gave Maeve a long hug before we left.