LITMIR.BIZ

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capacity.”

      “You’re not a trained investigator.”

      Her chin lifted. “No. But I already have an idea of where to start.”

      Jase slid onto his stool. “Don’t keep me in suspense.”

      “I’ll be right back.” Whirling, she raced down the hall to Jordan’s bedroom. Once there, she grabbed the file her twin had prepared for her along with her bag.

      When she returned, Jase was waiting. She placed the file on top of the island and dug in her purse for her appointment book. It was an old-fashioned leather-bound volume with a ribbon she used as a bookmark. Right now it was stuffed with business cards, paper clippings and sticky notes. Next she drew out the neatly printed papers Jordan had given her. They contained her hour-by-hour schedule for the next three weeks.

      Jase regarded them in silence for a moment. “Explain.”

      “They’re appointment calendars. Jordan and I have very different styles. She keeps track of her daily and weekly schedule on some high-tech thing she carries in her purse.” She patted the bursting leather book. “I do it in a less high-tech way. My father used to give me one of these every Christmas. I’m betting Eva would have kept some version of an appointment calendar. If not, her personal assistant must keep one.” She paused to consult her file. “Her name is Michelle Tan. According to Jordan, she started out as an intern and took over the job of Eva’s personal assistant when it opened up. Jordan says she’s been with Eva for nearly a year now.”

      “And you’re interested in Eva’s appointment calendar because…?”

      “If you’re right and Eva had some idea of who was behind the break-in, it makes sense that she would have confronted him at some point. And I’m betting that she wouldn’t have done it at Eva Ware Designs. But she may have made note of the meeting place in her calendar.”

      Jase’s eyes narrowed as he considered. “You may be right. She came to my office when she decided to hire me to investigate further. And she told me not to mention it to Jordan until we had something more concrete to go on.”

      “See? She was being discreet.”

      Too discreet, Jake thought. It might have gotten her killed.

      Jase pointed to the stack of cookies. “You going to finish those?”

      “Help yourself.”

      He took a cookie and bit into it. He was being manipulated. Living with a mother and a sister, he and D.C. had learned early on what that felt like. The thing was, Maddie made sense. Eva’s appointment calendar was a good place to start looking. And Maddie did have a good cover. Plus, she was going to poke her nose into this whether he wanted her to or not. If Jordan were here, he’d be facing the same problem. The two of them were as curious as Alice when she’d decided to follow that rabbit down his hole.

      Maddie leaned forward. “My father was a firm believer in two heads being better than one. Whenever there was a problem at the ranch, he used to talk it over with our neighbor, Jesse Landry. After Jesse died, he’d talk with Cash and me.” She beamed a smile at him. “Admit it. You could use my help.”

      For a moment, the smile and the way she was looking at him had his thoughts scattering. Jase firmly anchored them in place. He was going to have to learn to deal with her effect on him if he was going to keep her safe.

      “I’ll go along with this, but I’m going to be your constant companion.”

      Her brows shot up. “Constant companion?”

      “For the next three weeks—or until we get this sorted out—I’m going to be at your side.”

      “No way. That will spoil everything. You run a security firm. I’ll never be able to get any of them to talk freely with you hanging around.”

      “Jordan has dragged me to Christmas parties and a couple of other events Eva threw at her apartment. So they know me mostly as Jordan’s friend and roommate. When I went to check the security system after the break-in, it was after hours. And as I mentioned, Eva came to my office when she decided to hire me to investigate further.”

      “But that’s not going to explain why you’re tagging along after me.”

      He smiled slowly at her. “Here’s my cover. Even though we just met, it was love at first sight for you and me. And I’m determined to spend as much time as possible with you during the three weeks you’re here.”

      Chapter Six

      “WE’RE SORRY that we cannot complete your call at this time. Please try again later.”

      Maddie frowned at the handset as she replaced it in its cradle. It was the second time she’d tried the number at the ranch since she and Jase had returned to their separate bedrooms. Both times she’d received the metallic, recorded message. Even if there’d been a storm at the ranch last night, it had to be over. The phone lines should be working.

      She needed her sister’s help. Her gaze strayed to the small bookcase the phone was perched on and for the first time she noted the framed photo that sat on the first shelf. Jordan was in her cap and gown, and Eva Ware stood close, her arm around Jordan. Both smiled into the camera.

      A little band of pain tightened around Maddie’s heart. It was immature and not fair to Jordan to be jealous of the fact that Eva hadn’t been at her college graduation, nor had she witnessed all of the other milestones in Maddie’s life. Her father had been present, she reminded herself. And Mike Farrell had missed all of Jordan’s big events.

      Maddie swallowed hard as she studied Eva’s face and noted the braid that fell over one of her shoulders. She fingered her own. It was hard even now to really get her mind around the fact that Eva Ware was her mother. In her own thoughts and even when talking to Jase about her, she was still referring to her as Eva Ware.

      Would she ever get used to the idea? She set the photo carefully back on the shelf. Why? Why had her father and Eva decided to separate? Why had they each cut one daughter out of their lives? She was determined to find an answer to that question before she left New York. Maybe she would discover at least a partial answer as she came to know Eva better.

      The second shelf of the small bookcase was filled with paperback books. Curious, she ran her fingers along the spines. Her lips curved when she realized that Jordan lined her paperbacks up alphabetically according to the last name of the author.

      Didn’t that just figure?

      But what really surprised her was that she had nearly half the same books in the small bookcase in her bedroom at the ranch—starting with the Brontës and Jane Austen. Then there were more modern writers—Linda Howard, Jayne Ann Krentz, Karen Robards, J.D. Robb, Nora Roberts and Robert B. Parker. Maddie’s smile widened as she realized Jordan obviously shared her own weakness for romantic suspense and mysteries.

      Then she glanced at the bottom shelf and simply stared. The books there were alphabetized too, but they were all westerns—Zane Grey, Louis L’Amour, Luke Short, Larry McMurtry. She recognized the authors because they were her father’s favorites. There were two copies of Lonesome Dove—one that was falling apart and another that seemed to be brand new. How many times had she teased her father about rereading that novel? It appeared that her sister might have the same addiction.

      Could a taste in reading run in a family? And what else might she and Jordan have in common? Certainly not their taste in clothes. Striding toward the full-length mirror on the open closet door, Maddie studied the outfit she’d selected. She’d searched high and low for a plain pair of slacks and a blazer—but Jordan didn’t seem to believe in them. Her twin favored clothes that were either a little too frilly or fashion-forward for Maddie’s taste. Her own wardrobe consisted almost entirely of jeans or slacks and jackets and T-shirts.

      Simple, flexible—and you seldom had to worry about color coordination.

      She’d

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