Page 13 of Immortal by Morning (Argeneau #37)

Abril could see the tent the moment they walked back around the corner to the front of the house. It was large and white.

It also appeared to already be fully set up.

“It’s big,” she commented as they approached.

“It needed to cover the excavation site, and that’s big,” Detective Delacort pointed out.

“Yes, I guess.” She eyed the tent walls as they undulated slightly under the influence of the light breeze that had started.

It actually looked more like something that would be used at an outdoor wedding than a shelter for skeletons.

“They were pretty much done putting it up by the time I got over here,” Roberts said, joining them.

Abril and Delacort both grunted in response and then she pointed out, “There are lights on inside the tent. Are they going

to work all night or something?”

Roberts turned to peer at the tent where inner lights were making the walls appear to glow.

“No,” he said finally. “Actually, they’re just using them to see by as they cover the half-buried skeletons inside with canvas.

They are also setting up heaters in the hopes of drying the ground a bit so it will be easier for them to work with tomorrow.

Then they will be heading out. I already sent Officer Peters away. ”

Abril glanced around, noticing only then that the officer’s police car was missing. Despite Roberts’s comment earlier about

talking to her about their guarding the site, she said, “He thought he was going to be guarding the site tonight.”

Roberts shook his head. “Delacort and I will be handling it.”

“Is it normal for detectives to perform that task?” she asked with interest. “I would have thought it more something that

patrolmen would handle.”

“It normally is,” Roberts agreed. “But this is turning into a bigger case than usually comes up, and we are concerned that

someone living on the street may still be friends with whichever of the previous owners are responsible for the bodies here

and mention our presence. They would no doubt realize what it’s about, might worry they left some evidence behind with the

bodies and come around to search the site, remove the bodies themselves, or otherwise disturb it. If so, we want to be here

to prevent that. We might even catch the killer tonight.”

Abril stared at him wide-eyed. “You think the killer will come here ? Tonight?”

“It is possible,” Detective Delacort said gently. “But if so, we will be here. That is, if you do not mind us sitting in our

car in the driveway all night?”

“I don’t mind,” she assured him. “But you’d prob ably be more comfortable inside. In fact, if you lifted the tent flap on the kitchen side, you could actually watch the bones themselves from the house, and keep an eye on the whole yard through the monitor for the security cameras at the same time.”

She was responding to Delacort, but looking at Roberts as she spoke, because she knew she just couldn’t make the offer to

Delacort without blushing wildly when she added, “You’d definitely be more comfortable inside where it’s warm. You can make

yourself coffee, or food if you like, and there are two guest rooms besides the one I’m using. You are welcome to use them.

One of you can nap while the other keeps an eye out, then you could switch.”

Much to her surprise Roberts beamed at her as if she had said something terribly clever. “Well, that sounds just fine. Why

do you two not go inside and start on the chili and chips while I see to lifting the flap on the tent?”

He didn’t wait for a response but left them and walked off toward the tent and the two men coming out of it.

“Shall we?” Delacort gestured back toward the front doors of the house.

“Yes,” Abril whispered and headed that way at once, tugging lightly on the leash to get Lilith to walk with her. She didn’t

have to drag her this time. Apparently, out of sight was out of mind for Lilith. Now that the tent was up, blocking the bones

from view, and possibly trapping any smell attached to them inside, the Labrador was no longer fighting to get to the excavation

site.

That was something, anyway, she thought and wondered what on earth she’d been thinking to invite two gorgeous men to stay overnight in a house she was house-sitting.

One of whom she’d had a passionate exchange with earlier.

Abril had thought it a good idea as she’d issued the invitation, but now she was second-guessing herself and feeling as nervous as a virgin on her wedding night.

The thought made Abril give herself a mental shake as she wondered when she had turned into such a ninny. Good lord! She had

been dating since she was sixteen. Okay, so she hadn’t had a ton of boyfriends, still she wasn’t inexperienced. But now, one

little kiss from the sexy beast walking beside her and she’d become a ball of anxiety.

Idiot. Straighten up and fly right , she told herself as she walked up the steps to the door. It was a phrase Bob had often used on her when she was doing something

silly as a teenager. As it had then, it now made her stop slouching, stand taller, and lift her chin. She was a grown-up woman

and could kiss who she wanted when she wanted. She had done nothing wrong.

Well, Abril tempered with a small frown, she had done nothing wrong if Detective Delacort was single. If he wasn’t... That

thought was too depressing to consider, so she pushed it away unfinished.

Abril wasn’t surprised to find that both the chili and fries were now cold. She’d been outside much longer than she’d expected.

“Take a seat,” she suggested to Delacort as she removed Lilith’s leash and hung it back in the broom closet.

“Is there nothing I can do?” Delacort asked, stand ing by the chair he’d occupied earlier at the island, but hesitating to sit.

“Not really,” she told him. “Everything was done earlier, now I just need to warm up the chili and put in a fresh batch of

French fries.” Even as she said that, Abril was pulling the now cold cookie sheet of dried out French fries from the oven.

She set it on the island and then turned the oven back on to start it warming up again while she retrieved the frozen fries

from the freezer.

Once she had the fries all set up and was just waiting for the oven to warm up, she asked, “Would you like a drink? I’d offer

you a glass of wine or something, but I suppose you can’t drink alcohol, being on the job and all. So, your options are ice

water, orange juice, ginger ale, Coca-Cola, Sprite, and Cherry Coca-Cola,” she listed off everything she knew was in the house

that was nonalcoholic, and then added, “Of course, there is coffee or tea too.”

Delacort hesitated, appearing uncertain for a moment and then simply said, “I shall have whatever you are having, please.”

Abril’s eyebrows rose slightly. “Are you sure? Because I’m having a Cherry Coca-Cola. It’s my favorite at the moment.”

“That sounds fine,” he said. “Can I get the glasses for you?”

“No, I’m good,” she assured him, retrieving the glasses herself from the cupboard beside the refrigerator. Abril used the

ice cube dispenser on the fridge door to half fill one of the glasses, and then almost started to do the same with the second,

but paused and glanced around to ask, “Ice or no ice?”

“Ice is good,” he said agreeably, and then added under his breath, “I think.” Abril heard him, but since she suspected he hadn’t wanted her to hear that part, she pretended not to and simply turned to the refrigerator to fill the second glass half-full of ice as well.

She then snatched two cans of the Cherry Coca-Cola out of the fridge, gathered up everything in her arms and carried it all over to the end of the island where Delacort was now sitting.

As he had earlier, he’d chosen the seat on the side that faced the view of the road, leaving her the end seat, kitty-corner

to his own. He was actually sitting where she usually sat, while she would now be taking Gina’s chair. She didn’t mind really,

but knew from earlier that it was going to feel a little weird taking her boss’s place. Especially to eat. Shrugging inwardly,

she quickly collected silverware and two place mats and returned to the island.

“I can do that,” Delacort said, standing swiftly to take the items from her.

“Thank you.” She almost gasped the words in response to his fingers brushing hers as he took the silverware from her hand.

Knowing she was blushing again, Abril turned and hurried around the island to the range, and turned the burner on under the

chili to start it warming. Once that was done, she didn’t know what to do with herself and stood awkwardly watching the temperature

display on the upper of the two built-in ovens, waiting to be able to put the fries in.

It took forever for the oven to heat up. A good ten minutes at least, during which she stood there twiddling her thumbs and

racking her mind for some way to ease this awkwardness.

Abril was more than a little relieved when the oven dinged, announcing it had reached the needed temperature.

She put the fries in the oven, then stood stirring the chili as it heated while she waited for the timer to announce it was time to turn the fries.

The silence surrounding her and Delacort was uncomfortable enough that she almost turned on the television out of desperation.

But Abril didn’t in the end, so the minutes dragged on, passing like hours.

She actually got excited when it was time to turn the fries.

Mostly because it meant this torture was half over now.

She suspected she wasn’t the only one relieved when the dinger sounded for the second time ten minutes later, announcing that

the fries were done.

Abril pulled the fries out of the oven, piled a bunch of them on his plate, a lot less on her own, then used a large ladle

to pour chili over top of each before sprinkling them with the cheddar cheese she’d shredded earlier.