Page 146 of Family Jewels

“He gave me his coat, and his phone was in his jacket pocket. It dinged, so I pulled it out to give it to him, but then I saw Skeeter’s text. It said you’d set up the meeting and you still believed you were giving the necklace to Reynolds. Jed had already given me the necklace, so I dropped his phone in the pigs’ water trough, got in his car, and left him there in the mud.”

“How’d you know where to go?”

“Jed had set up the location. He’d already told me.”

“And Jed?”

She shrugged. “I figured he’d call one of his boys somehow.”

“You know he’s gonna come get his car back at some point.”

“I’m not stopping him. It’s parked out front with the keys in the ignition,” she said with a shrug, then grinned. “You were awesome tonight.”

“I was pissed.”

“Well, it worked in your favor.”

I laughed. “I can’t believe you compared me to Harry Potter.”

“If the analogy fits . . .” She grinned. “But I want to be Hermione. Not Ron.”

“Of course.”

We leaned back against the sofa in silence for several moments before she said, “I’m sorry about Skeeter.”

My throat burned, but I swallowed the lump. “Don’t be. I should have expected it, right?”

“I don’t know, Rose. He’s changed. Anyone can see that, and I know it’s because of you.” She gave me a leery look. “You said there was nothing between you, but lately you two have had major chemistry.”

I closed my eyes, deciding to confess. “We kissed . . . the night after I met Raddy at the fertilizer plant, but James pulled away. He told me he’d never be the man I need. A guy with a steady job, a house, and kids. I told him he had no idea what I needed, but he was probably right. Maybe he did this to drive me away from him. For my own good.”

Neely Kate shook her head. “I think you’re giving him far too much credit. Sure, he cares about you, but he cares about himself a whole lot more. It’s what makes him a ruthless criminal.”

“I suppose.” But I didn’t believe that. Sure, he was ruthless, but he cared about other people. My vision had proved how much he cared aboutme. He just didn’t want to admit it.

A knock on the door scared us both enough to jump. We grinned at each other, and I got up. “I’ll get it in case it’s Jed.”

But Joe was waiting on the other side of the door. I’d expected wrath; the resignation on his face scared me. “Sounds like you two have had a busy night.”

“Hey, Joe. Come in.”

Neely Kate had gotten up, and she ran to him and threw her arms around his neck. “I’ve missed you.” It made my heart twist to see the two of them together.

“I missed you too.”

Neely Kate fixed him a cup of tea, and he took our statements about our run-ins with Homer. He looked grim the entire time, but he kept his questions professional. When we finished, he said, “You should have called me. What was so pressing you couldn’t call immediately after you tied him up?”

Neither of us answered, but we exchanged a look.

Joe leaned back in his chair, pinning me with a glare. “I heard some crazy rumors tonight.”

“Is that so?” I asked.

“I heard that the Lady in Black is back and she took a meeting tonight.”

“What?” I asked, trying to sound like it was the craziest thing I’d ever heard. “That’s impossible.”

“That’s what I thought too. Because I can’t think of a single good reason she would make an appearance now that my father’s no longer a threat.” He continued to watch me. When I didn’t break, he turned to Neely Kate. “You told me you were talkin’ to Rayna on Raddy Dyer’s behalf, but it sounds like you two were actually lookin’ for this necklace. Even after it got the two of them killed.”