Page 105 of Bliss with a Billionaire

She froze, her features pinching as she stared at the key.

“What is it, Ally?” Julia asked.

“Probably nothing, but…this engraving. It looks like the Victorian house.”

“The one from the fire?” Julia asked.

“Yeah. It had that strange turret. And so does this.”

Julia grabbed the key from her as Grant rose to peer at it over her shoulder. “It does look like that house. I was concentrating on the other engravings, but this one does look like that house.”

Sierra’s voice broke through the mounting tension, a mix of curiosity and unease. “Do you think it’s a clue?”

Her question hung in the air, heavy with the weight of unspoken fears and possibilities.

“There’s only one way to find out,” Sierra said as she climbed off the bed and lifted her chin. “We need to go sleuthing.”

Grant glanced at his daughter before he returned his eyes to the key. Was it really the key to something more? What did it lead to, and would someone really try to kill him over it?

CHAPTER 22

JULIA

Julia's eyes narrowed at the key her sister held as she studied the engravings. She’d barely looked at them beyond an initial cursory glance, but after Alicia had mentioned it, she couldn’t unsee it.

Next to her, Sierra bounced on her toes as she clapped her hands. “Yay! Let’s go sleuthing. This is exactly what I needed.”

“Sierra,” Grant said, “no. You’re not going to run around all over the place searching for clues. This isn’t a Nancy Drew novel.”

“No, it’s way better than that. Nancy Drew was a dud.” She hurried to her closet to find her all-black outfit.

“What are you doing?” Alicia asked.

“Getting my sleuthing clothes.”

“Seriously? That ridiculous outfit you wore the last time we went out?”

“It’s not ridiculous,” Sierra shot back. “And also, it’s lucky.”

Alicia’s features twisted with confusion. “How do you figure that?”

“Simple. We found Kyle, right?” Sierra rolled her eyes as she toted her high-heeled boots to the bathroom. “I mean, if you want to wear that…”

Her nose wrinkled as she stared at Alicia’s outfit before she shrugged. “That’s fine. I just…am not as into L.L. Bean as you are.”

Alicia shot her sister a glance, and Julia patted her arm. “It’s fine. I like your shirt.”

“Thanks. Anyway, this got away from me faster than I expected, uh–“

“No one is going out tracking down clues,” Grant said with a shake of his head. “We are supposed to be watching a movie.”

“The movie stinks, Dad. Face it, we’re going sleuthing.” Kyle clapped him on the shoulder as he climbed off the bed.

“No, we are not,” Grant said, his voice reaching a new level of desperation.

Julia offered him a reassuring smile and a shrug. “At the very least, it got her mind off of the news.”

He let his chin fall to his chest and shook his head.