LITMIR.BIZ

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rely on him to be any kind of a father.

      Meanwhile, Riley had no idea how many girlfriends had come and gone in Ryan’s life.

      She took a sip of her wine and said, “I don’t think we’ll see much of Ryan. And I think that’s just as well.”

      Riley and Blaine fell silent for a few moments. As they stared out into the night, Riley’s worries about Phoebe and Ryan slipped out of her mind, and again she basked in the wonderful warmth and comfort of Blaine’s simple companionship.

      The quiet was broken by the sounds of footsteps and chattering and giggling as the girls came running out of their room. Then it sounded like they were doing something in the kitchen—getting a late-night snack, Riley guessed.

      Meanwhile, Riley and Blaine started talking quietly about different issues—how their very different careers might or might not mesh, how Riley would have to sell the townhouse she’d bought just a year ago, how they would manage their finances, and similar things.

      As they talked, Riley found herself thinking …

      We started off trying to list reasons why getting married isn’t a good idea.

      Instead, it seemed like a better and better idea with each passing second.

      And the really beautiful thing was—neither of them had to say so aloud.

      I might as well have said yes, she thought.

      She certainly felt as though they were seriously engaged to be married.

      And she really liked that feeling.

      Their conversation was broken when April came rushing out onto the porch with Riley’s cell phone in hand.

      The phone was buzzing.

      Handing the phone to Riley, April said …

      “Hey, Mom—you left your phone in the kitchen. You’ve got a call.”

      Riley stifled a sigh. She couldn’t imagine that the call was from anyone she’d want to hear from right now. Sure enough, she saw that the caller was her boss, Special Agent Brent Meredith.

      Her spirits faded as she realized …

      He wants me back at work.

      CHAPTER FOUR

      When Riley answered the call, she heard Meredith’s familiar gruff voice.

      “How’s your vacation going, Agent Paige?”

      Riley managed to keep from saying …

      “It was going fine until just now.”

      Instead she replied, “It’s lovely. Thanks.”

      She got up from the chair and wandered along the porch a little ways.

      Meredith let out a hesitant growl, then said …

      “Listen, we’ve been getting some peculiar phone calls from a female police officer in Mississippi—a little beachside town called Rushville. She’s working on a murder case. A local man got his head bashed in with a hammer and …”

      Meredith paused again, then said …

      “She’s got some idea that they’re dealing with a serial killer.”

      “Why?” Riley asked.

      “Because something similar happened in Rushville—some ten years ago.”

      Riley’s squinted with surprise.

      She said, “That’s kind of a long time between murders.”

      “Yeah, I know,” Meredith said. “I talked to her chief, and he said there was nothing to it. He said she’s just some bored small-town cop looking for excitement. The thing is, though, she keeps calling and she doesn’t really sound like a crazy person so maybe …”

      Again Meredith fell silent. Riley looked inside the house and saw that Blaine was helping the girls get something to eat in the kitchen. They all looked so happy. Riley’s heart sank at the thought of having to cut things short.

      Then Meredith said, “Look, I guess I was just thinking, if you’re tired of vacationing and feeling homesick for work, maybe you could go down to Mississippi and—”

      Riley was startled to hear her own voice interrupt him sharply.

      “No,” she said.

      Another silence fell, and Riley’s heart jumped up into her throat.

      Oh, my God, she thought.

      I just said no to Brent Meredith.

      She couldn’t remember ever having done that before—and for very good reason. Meredith was known to have a sharp dislike for that word, especially when there was a job to do.

      Riley braced herself for a fierce dressing-down. Instead, she heard a gravelly sigh.

      Meredith said, “Yeah, I should have figured. It’s probably nothing anyway. I’m sorry I bothered you. Keep on enjoying your vacation.”

      Meredith ended the call, and Riley stood on the porch looking at the phone.

      Meredith’s words rattled through her head …

      “I’m sorry I bothered you.”

      That didn’t sound like the chief at all.

      Apologies of any sort just weren’t his style.

      So what was he really thinking?

      Riley had a feeling that Meredith didn’t believe what he’d just said …

      “It’s probably nothing anyway.”

      Riley suspected that something about the female cop’s story had piqued Meredith’s interest, and he more than half believed there really was a serial killer down in Mississippi. But because he didn’t have any tangible evidence to go on, he didn’t feel as though he could just haul off and order Riley to take the case.

      As Riley kept staring at the phone she found herself thinking …

      Should I maybe call him back?

      Should I go to Mississippi and check this out, at least?

      Her thoughts were interrupted by April’s voice.

      “So what’s going on? Is vacation over?”

      Riley looked and saw that her daughter was standing nearby on the porch, looking at her with a sour expression.

      “Why do you think that?” Riley asked.

      April sighed and said, “Come on, Mom. I saw who the call was from. You’ve got to run off on another case, don’t you?”

      Riley looked into the kitchen and saw that Blaine and the other two girls were still putting snacks together. But Jilly was eyeing Riley uneasily.

      Riley suddenly wondered …

      What the hell was I just thinking?

      She smiled at April and said …

      “No, I don’t have to go anywhere. As a matter of fact …”

      Then smiling more broadly she added …

      “I said no.”

      April’s eyes widened. Then she dashed back into the kitchen shouting …

      “Hey, guys! Mom said no to a case!”

      The other two girls started yelling “Yay!” and “Way to go!” while Blaine gazed at Riley happily.

      Then some lighthearted bickering started as Jilly said to her sister …

      “I told you. I told you she’d say no.”

      April retorted, “No, you didn’t. You were even more worried than I was.”

      “Was not,” Jilly said. “You owe me ten dollars.”

      “We never made a bet about it!”

      “Did

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