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CHAPTER 31
Sutton
“My mother’s papers are gone, everything that we dug up in that time capsule.” My hands were shaking as I told Candice and Knox what Mark and I found that morning. “When I noticed that the door to her room was open, I looked inside and—well, you can see she left in a hurry.”
“How did she get into the safe?” Candice asked.
She had pulled on some pajamas and was blowing on her hot coffee. She looked tired and well loved. I couldn’t wait to get the full story about her night with Knox, but for now, this was critical that we resolve. I just had a hard time believing that Maggie had played us, even now.
“We don’t know,” Mark said grimly. “There aren’t signs of a forced entry. The front door was still locked when we got up; I can only imagine that she locked the door on the way out.”
“Those locks need to be changed immediately,” Knox instructed.
“Already on it,” Mark replied. “The locksmith should be here any minute. We are waiting to hear from Brian if he was able to locate Forrest or Father Montgomery. She’s got to be with one or the other. Natalie and another agent are watching the house.”
“Do you want to formally report a theft?” Knox looked around. “I don’t see a whole lot that we could track, but it would be in the system.”
“No,” I said decisively just as Mark said ‘yes’ just as firmly. “We will talk about it.”
Mark nodded. “That’s fair, we will let you know.”
Knox sighed. “Never a dull moment in Otterville Falls, is it?”
**
AFTER THE LOCKSMITHleft, Mark and I sat down for some lunch. I fixed some sandwiches and he grabbed the fruit and drinks.
“Why don’t you want to report it?” Mark asked, taking a big bite.
I played with the crust, not feeling terribly hungry.
Shrugging, I replied, “It’s not like we need the money or that we know for sure if my mother should have had it. I wish that we had more information to go off of. But honestly, in my gut? Why would Maggie steal the papers and leave, making her look one hundred percent guilty? If I was in the same situation, I would take the papers and hide them, then pretend that I didn’t know what happened. I wouldn’t want to implicate myself.”
A smile played on Mark’s face. “If you were to rob someone of millions—, perhaps billions—, of dollars, that is what you would do? Have you thought about it much?”
I scowled at him. “Yes, for my first crime I intended to take out my new husband. What do you think?”
Mark’s brows rose. “Aren’t you afraid that he will find out? Smart, good-looking guy like him, I can’t say that he wouldn’t see it coming.”
I rolled my eyes. “You’ve never met him. He is totally enamored with me, can’t keep his hands to himself. He would never suspect a thing.”
“You are pretty sexy.” Mark moved closer to me. “Where is this husband of yours?”
My lips twitched. “Yes, this pregnant belly really brings the boys around.”
His brows clapped together. “What boys? Is someone bothering you?”
I laughed at his murderous expression. “You are adorable. Did you know that?”
Mark made a face. “Men aren’t adorable, Sutton. They can be sexy, smart, hung like a horse, fuck like a champ, but no—never adorable.”
I leaned forward and took his face in my hands, loving the way his whiskers tickled my palms. “You are amazingly sexy, smart, hung like a horse, and damn do you ever fuck like a champ. But sweetheart, you are adorable.”
He shook his head, but the smile playing about his mouth led me to believe that he liked being adorable—just a little bit.