Page 27 of Fatal Deception

“But you are.”

She was so earnest sometimes. He didn’t know what to do with it. “Then stop telling me not to help out, huh? Let me be Mr. Good Guy.”

Her mouth curved, ever so slightly. “The good men I know aren’t so grumpy.”

“Even when you poke into their personal life?”

She pulled a face. “Not my usual MO. I leave that to Rosalie. But she’s not here. So everything’s out of whack.”

He chuckled a little, imagining Audra being the yin to Rosalie’s obnoxious yang. Maybe they did balance each other out, but Rosalie wasn’t here and someone was harassing Audra and…

“Wait a second.” He whirled around and she nearly stumbled back because she’d been moving with him toward the door. But with everything she’d said, it finally clicked.

“Second family. Death. Estates. Did your dad leave stuff to them? To you guys? A will? Contested? Ugly?”

“I…” She blinked. “Not ugly, I don’t think. Mom was happy to sort of wash her hands of anything. Dad had transferred the ranch over to me before he died because he’d taken a job in agricultural sales. Well, that’s what he’d claimed anyway. He didn’t leave a will for the rest, so it was messy, but not ugly because we didn’t fight for anything.”

But death did funny things to people. Thinking they deserved things made once rational people act really irrationally.

“These other kids were okay with you getting all this?”

“I don’t know what there’s not to be okay about. I grew up here. This is my family’s land. I…run this place and did before my dad died. I tried to reach out to them after I found out about them. I tried…to bridge a gap, but none of them wanted anything to do with me.”

“I want names. And any legal documents about estates, possessions. Any legal document about the end of your father’s life.”

“Copeland, I really doubt some half siblings I’ve never met have some vendetta against me having the ranch. He’s been dead forfouryears.”

“I want names, Audra. It’s the closest we’ve come to a lead, and I’m following the lead.”

She had that stubborn look on her face. “It’s a waste of time.”

“My time to waste, sweetheart.”

But he didn’t think it was a waste at all.

Chapter Nine

Audra ended up having to put off doing her chores so she could list her half siblings who refused to talk to her for Copeland, and then give him the folder full of paperwork on her father’s death. At least the paperwork that had been given to her. She suspected his other wife and kids might have some of their own that Audra had never seen.

She’d been fine with that. Maybe she loved her father, but she’d been happy for whatever he’d given to his other family to stay with them. Happy to wash her hands of whatever he hadn’t giventhem.

Could one of her half siblings really be behind these strange, petty pranks? For what? And why after all this time? It just didn’t make sense, and it frustrated her that Copeland wanted to go down this avenue because she couldn’t see thepoint. Except digging into old, ugly wounds she didn’t want dug up.

And she couldn’t even be snippy about it, because she’d been poking into his divorce wounds, and she didn’t even have a good reason.

Quite the opposite.That meant his wife had cheated on him, right? And that was probably why he was so grumpy and irritating. Or that was just who he’d always been. He said he hadn’t been a good husband, but Audra refused to accept any kind ofexcusefor cheating. It was the most unnecessary way to hurt someone.

And none of this had anything to do withher. Once Copeland had everything he wanted, she went out to start her chores. Shewas behind now, and had to rush through or skip some things she’d have to come back to tomorrow, but if there was one thing she could use to justify rushing through or skipping, it was the prospect of meeting her new…

Well, Audra didn’t know the exact specifics. Vi was her second cousin, but they always just called Magnolia her niece, and the new baby would be her nephew. And she’d be Aunt Audra to the both of them and whoever else came along.

If it made her a little wistful that marriage and her own kids seemed like such an improbability when she never got off the ranch and hadnointerest in anyone in the agricultural club, that was just life. She could throw herself into being an aunt.

She would.

But right now, she threw herself into ranch work. She checked fences, water, feed. It was a sunny day with a hint of spring warmth and that, along with an impending baby, put her in a good mood.

Until she stumbled, twisting her ankle and landing on her side. Surprised, shocked, she looked down at the ground and noted…something had been dug up behind the stables. And consideringshehadn’t been digging anything up…