Page 16 of Will (The Cowboys of Calamity, Texas #3)

Chapter Ten

Will couldn’t remember when he’d enjoyed a meal more. Or maybe it was the woman sitting across from him.

The one he couldn’t wait to kiss again, but it was her turn to make the first move. He’d tried to convey that to her with the supposedly accidental knee bump, but apparently, she was so focused on their investigation she might have missed even that hint.

He turned his attention back to the woman who captured nearly all his thoughts lately. “I will say that I agree with Annie about your order. Those berries are barely a snack, much less a meal.”

“I’ll order more if I’m still hungry. You do seem to be enjoying your pancakes, though. Never seen anyone eat with so much gusto.”

“These pancakes are great.” He held up a forkful, dripping with warm golden maple syrup. “Here, try a bite.”

She hesitated a moment, then leaned forward.

Will slipped the fork into her mouth and watched her brown eyes close as she leaned back and chewed.

His gaze dropped to her mouth, and he watched a tiny drop of maple syrup cling ferociously to her lower lip.

Not that he blamed it. If he could get anywhere near that close, he wouldn’t let go, either.

He sat there, mesmerized by that tiny droplet. Then her tongue darted out, and the drop disappeared.

“That was ecstasy.”

He could only imagine.

“Want some more?” He scooped up another forkful of pancakes and held it out to her. He could watch her eat pancakes all day.

“I’m tempted, but I’d better stop before I regret it.”

Will swallowed his disappointment. He’d never considered pancakes an aphrodisiac before, but Honey changed his mind.

He retracted the fork, then flipped it over and savored the bite of pancake before getting back to business. “I think it’s time to see what’s in that bag.”

Honey’s brown eyes glimmered, and she rubbed her palms together. “I think we’ve waited long enough, don’t you?”

He knew she was referring to the bag, but her words reignited his desire. “I can hardly stand it.”

She reached for the bag and pulled out the first object. “A new pair of athletic socks, with the price tag still on them.”

“Let’s hope it gets better from here.”

He watched her sort through all those items, then her eyes widened.

“This is interesting.” She pulling out a thick notebook. She set it on the table near him. “Do you know what this is?”

Will hesitated. Was this a trick question? “It looks like a fancy notebook.”

“Oh, it’s more than just a notebook. It’s the journal I recommended to my class last fall. The same journalism class that Ronnie attended. If you’re a reporter, this journal has everything you need.”

Will sat back in his chair, finding her enthusiasm infectious. “Hopefully, it has some of Ronnie’s handwritten notes about The Destroyer.”

“I hope so, too.” Honey opened the journal and thumbed through it.

Then she stopped and plucked a yellow sticky note from one of the pages. “I don’t believe it.”

Will leaned forward. “What is it?”

“This has Ronnie’s handwriting on it. He even dated it like I taught him.” She looked up at Will. “He wrote it last Thursday.”

“And what does it say?”

Her gaze dropped to the sticky note, and she read the words aloud. “Mom has a secret boyfriend.”

* * *

Later that afternoon, a flash of lightning illuminated the windows, followed quickly by thunder that rattled the panes.

Honey glanced through her kitchen window at the impending storm. They’d made the right choice to come back home after brunch at the Bumblebee Diner instead of following up on that odd sticky note about Aunt Cynthia.

She still found it difficult to believe that her aunt had a boyfriend, much less a secret one.

Aunt Cynthia had always been focused on two things in her life: her son and her career.

She’d even taken the blame for the divorce from her husband, saying it was her fault for not devoting enough time for him.

Maybe Aunt Cynthia’s secrets were the reason Ronnie disappeared and hadn’t contacted her.

Could this simply be a family feud?

She’d tried calling her mom to find out, but the call had gone to voicemail. So she’d made popcorn instead, eager to join Will to see what he’d discovered in Ronnie’s journal so far.

Honey walked into the living room carrying a bowl of buttered popcorn in one hand and a small notepad in the other. “How’s it going?”

Will sat on the love seat, a bemused expression on his face, leading her to believe he’d found something interesting.

The contents of Ronnie’s journal lay scattered across the coffee table like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. “I can’t decide whether Ronnie is behaving like a journalist to hide the fact that he’s a serial killer or behaving like a serial killer to hide the fact that he’s a journalist.”

“My cousin is no serial killer.” She shook her head in disbelief. Needing a moment to gather herself after that ridiculous statement, she found a space on the coffee table to set the bowl before joining Will on the love seat. “What in the world about him is giving you serial killer vibes?”

Her tone straddled the line between amusement that he would accuse her cousin of such an offense and a challenge to Will to come up with convincing evidence for his suspicion.

He motioned toward the clutter of papers in front of them.

“Let’s start by dividing this mess into two categories.

The first category is notes that Ronnie jotted down, either in his journal or one of the dozens of sticky notes he had plastered on everything.

His penmanship should be considered a crime, too, but I’ve been able to decipher most of them so far. ”

She reached for a handful of popcorn, thoroughly intrigued by the way he approached the matter of breaking down their clues. “And the second category?”

“That’s where it starts to get interesting.” He shuffled through the collection of Ronnie’s belongings and picked up a small plastic pill pouch. But instead of pills, the clear container revealed what looked like a lock of hair. “Is your cousin a hair collector?”

Lightning flashed again. Honey leaned in for a closer look and took it from his hand.

“This hair is a little darker than Ronnie’s, but I can’t say for sure it’s not his.

” She glanced up at Will. “Maybe he planned to take it to a lab for a DNA test.” She threw her hands up in the air. “I have no idea why he’d have this.”

Will nodded. “We could speculate all day and I don’t think we’d figure it out. But that’s not the only curious thing.” He plucked another piece from the coffee table and unrolled the small slip of paper. “ World domination begins with your socks ,” he read aloud. “ Choose wisely .”

She burst out with a laugh at the bizarre fortune cookie message, then shook her head. “Okay, that’s a strange thing to keep in a reporter’s journal, but maybe there’s a good reason for it.”

“Look, I don’t actually think he’s a serial killer.” He handed the fortune to her. “But after going through his journal, nothing would surprise me about Ronnie. Including the possibility that he disappeared of his own volition.”

“You’re right, that is a possibility we should consider.

And the dried blood on his T-shirt could have simply been caused by one of his chronic nosebleeds, not foul play.

I can’t explain the items in his journal, but I did tell my journalism students to keep everything that might apply to a story.

” She stared down at the fortune in her hand.

“Or maybe he just likes the idea of being a world dominator.”

Will grinned. “He did have new socks in his locker.”

She had no response for that, so she reached for some more popcorn. “Maybe we should take a break from Ronnie for a while,” she said. “Let’s talk about you.”

He studied her, his gray eyes pensive.

Yep, he was onto her.

“You’ve been asking questions about my life or my work, but sprinkling them throughout the day, so I don’t always realize I’m being interviewed.” He leaned back on the sofa and ran a thumb over his lip. “Clever.”

Perhaps not clever enough. This guy noticed everything. Next time, she’d have to be more subtle. “That’s part of our deal, remember?”

“Oh, I remember,” he said with a rueful smile. “What do you want to know?”

She tucked one leg up underneath her and turned to face him. In truth, she hadn’t asked him many questions because they’d been so distracted by everything else going on, but just being around Will had told her more about the man than any background check could reveal.

He was forthright, fearless in the face of danger, and always willing to protect others before himself.

A hero in cowboy boots.

But what had made him the man he’d become?

“We’ve been focused on my cousin, and now there are questions about my aunt.” Honey ticked two fingers for those, then added a third. “My brother wanted to fight you when he found you wearing only a towel in my living room.”

As she recited events of the past week, Honey realized her family might sound a little bonkers.

A fourth finger joined the first three. “And last but not least, at the reception last night, you witnessed my parents continue their twenty-nine-year battle about my middle name.”

“And I’m not leaving Calamity until I find out the story about the B in Honey B. Hallgren.” He put on a smile. “After spending some time with your family, I can see where you get your tenacity… and why you all like Calamity so much.”

“I love Calamity, and even when I move to Austin, I’ll always consider this place home.” Then she hesitated, aware that she was about to tread on a painful part of his past, but sensing it played a significant part in the man he’d become.

But before she could phrase the question, Will said, “You want to ask me about the plane crash that killed my parents, don’t you?” His tone was calm, but the color of his eyes matched the storm clouds outside. “Go ahead, Honey.”

“Do you mind telling me the story?” she asked and lowered her voice. “As much or as little as you want.”

He looked up at her. “That’s doesn’t sound like the hard-hitting journalist I’ve come to know and respect.”

“It’s your story. I’m letting you take the lead on this one.”

He considered what she said, then nodded as if in agreement.

“My dad was a rancher, just like his father and grandfather before him. But he went to college to become an engineer because he was fascinated by machinery. Especially planes. He loved experimental planes, which are airplanes built by amateurs, like Dad. They’re even licensed by the FAA if you follow all the proper regulations. ”

“Sounds like a smart man.”

“You’d think so.” His gaze moved to the window where soft rain pattered on the glass.

“He used to fly his planes to check cattle because of the long distance between pastures. His one rule was that no one could ever go up in a plane with him because it was too risky. Dad told us he knew his own limitations. But that day…”

Honey watched the pain flicker across his face. She remained silent, letting him unfurl the events of that day at his own pace.

“Mom was on the plane with him. They both died on impact.”

He cleared his throat and sat up straight, as if girding himself to wrestle once again with the tough questions that had followed him since that fateful day. “I don’t know why she went up in that plane. And I don’t understand why he’d take that kind of risk for a woman he loved so much.”

Honey had seen the protective side of Will and counted it as a quality he’d developed because of years encountering danger in his job as a Texas Ranger. But now she understood that this single event must have been a large part of what had shaped him to become a ranger.

“Maybe she’s the one who accepted the risk.”

Honey wanted to comfort him as he wrestled with the painful memory. Wanted to let him know he didn’t have to suffer alone. Not anymore. She leaned closer, wanting to absorb some of his pain in some way, so he didn't have to carry it alone.

Will suddenly went still, and anticipation filled his eyes. He didn’t move, letting her know this was her risk to take. She was in control of whatever might happen next.

She lingered for a moment with her mouth only a hair’s breadth from his own. Desire swirled deep inside her as she brushed her lips against his mouth.

Once.

Twice.

A tantalizing light touch that drew a low moan from his throat. The sound encouraged her to take it further, but no matter how her body begged for closeness with him, she would not rush it.

Will slipped his arm around her waist and carefully closed the space she had created. Space that she had put there for his benefit, but he let it be known with a gentle pressure against her waist that he wanted her nearer.

She wanted that nearness, too. More than she could describe. When she couldn’t stand the delay any longer, she circled her arms around his neck and pulled him close, deepening the kiss.

His tongue met hers as they delved. Explored. Tasted. Their earlier kiss had been hot. Spicy. A delectable appetizer that had left her wanting more. This kiss was like a perfect soufflé—tender, succulent, uniquely satisfying.

The hunger in Will’s eyes made her blood race. He knew how to make a woman feel desirable. With just a look. A touch. A tender kiss.

“Now what?” Honey asked, her voice almost a whisper.

“Now…” Will’s voice trailed off as his gaze dropped back to her mouth. He inched closer.

The abrupt ring of her cell phone jolted her out of the moment. She sighed. The ringtone was her mother’s.

The phone rang twice more, and Honey pulled back from him. “I should get this.”

Still flush from their kiss, Honey pulled the phone from her jeans pocket.

“Hi, Mom. Thanks for calling me back.” She stood and walked toward window, her heart racing and her mind still whirling from the moment she and Will had just shared. Then she realized her mother was talking—and she’d heard only half of it. “Mom, please say that again.”

“We need you and Will to come to the ranch right away.” Her mother’s tone sent a cold chill through her. “I can’t explain it over the phone. Please, Honey, it’s an emergency.”