Page 53

They rode in silence, but Mitch kept glancing at her. She made a face. Yeah, we need a plan. Yeah, I know it’s my turn to think of one.
If it weren’t Saturday, they could go back to the university and track more of Les’s classes. She glanced at her phone. Her brother hadn’t sent a single message yet. Not to her, anyway.
They passed City Park and drove over the bayou, which was nothing more than a placid strip of open water between mowed banks. The white marble tombs of her cemetery rose on the left. Not hers personally. The one where she’d been accosted. The tour buses clustered at the curb there caught her attention and her stomach went into free fall. “Oh no.”
“What’s wrong?” Mitch pulled into a no-parking zone at the curb.
“One of my competitors is over there. Ned Landry.” As soon as she’d suspended her tours, Ned had moved to fill the void. Cath gripped the armrest. “He’s never offered cemetery tours before.”
“The guy in the gold and black jacket? Beside the bus with the boat and alligators painted on the side?”
“That’s him.” Ned helped a customer to the ground from his bus and gave the woman an ingratiating smile. Cath clenched a fist in frustration. “He concentrates on swamp tours. At least he did.”
Mitch cracked his door.
Adrenaline spurted through Cath. “What are you doing?”
“I’m going to check him out.” Mitch patted his aunt’s hand. “Cath will take you home. She’s a good driver.”
“Wait.” Cath grasped the back of his seat.
Aunt Edi turned to look at her. “Mitch knows what he’s doing.”
Not in this case. “Didn’t we see on the news that the police expect to make an arrest soon? There’s no need for you to get involved at this point.”
“That was the television reporter’s question, but the detective had no comment. You know we need to eliminate your competitors.” Mitch’s laser gaze dared her to disagree.
The bruise delivered by her apartment burglar still hadn’t faded. He didn’t need to get hurt again. Cath glared at him. “I can talk to him if I need to.”
“He doesn’t know me. It’ll be safer if I go.” Mitch pushed his door open. “Unbuckle and get out.”
A moving van barreled over the bridge behind them and bore down. “We can’t just get out in the traffic.”
“Wait for the truck to pass. One. Two.” The truck swooshed past, and he opened his door.
Cath stepped into the street. Mitch reached past her to close her door, glanced at another oncoming car and pressed her against the SUV.
“Listen to me.” She rested a hand on his chest and lifted her gaze. Big mistake. His brown eyes this close fuzzed her brain. “Ned Landry wouldn’t bother setting fire to my house or breaking down my office door.”
“You don’t know for sure.” Mitch raised that wicked eyebrow. “Do you?”
Cath swallowed. No, she didn’t.
A compact car hurtled over the bayou and rocketed toward them. Mitch braced his arms on either side of her and bent his head. If she turned hers a fraction of an inch, their lips would meet. “We need to know who’s behind your attack.”
Her throat closed. Two thugs had tried to kidnap her. Right here.
The compact car blew past, and Mitch smoothed a windblown strand off her face. “Sorry. I know you don’t like being touched.”
He didn’t mention pressing his big, fine body against hers in full-frontal contact. She shook her head. “I think we’ve gone way past that, don’t you?”
* * *
“This is lovely.” Aunt Edi dusted purple sugar off her fingers and reached for her teacup. “That was so thoughtful of you to bring us a king cake yesterday.”
Cath pulled her gaze from the kitchen clock. Mitch would have to walk home, but he should be back by now. “I wanted to contribute.”
She would have to cook meals for three months to even the score with Mitch’s family. A little sweetening up in the meantime couldn’t hurt.