Pay the Price (Harmony Grove Book 3) by Carol Post (which ebook reader txt) 📕

as bold as perfume, more like body wash or shampoo. An unexpected longing filled his chest, something he’d kept at bay for three long years.

He drew in a deep breath and pulled his mind back to the task at hand. He would be more likely to notice subtle clues if he focused on what he was doing instead of on Jess.

He scrolled through photo after photo, each of them unremarkable, then stopped. Three men stood in a semi-circle. A fourth barely made it into the picture, with only a potbelly and chin visible at the right-hand edge.

Jess pointed at the phone. “That’s Hammy and Spike.”

“What about the third man?”

She stared at the screen. He stood in profile, occupying the left side of the picture. “I don’t recognize him.”

“Can you tell where they are?”

She shook her head. “Not with the photo this size.”

“If you email it to yourself, have you got a computer you can view it on?”

“I left my laptop in Miami, and the computer here is minus a hard drive.”

“We can pull it up on mine.” He would save the photo and have Ross try to get an ID on the third man. With nothing more than a belly and chin, ID’ing the fourth was probably impossible.

“That sounds good. But I’ve got to get ready for Prissy’s funeral.” She rose from the couch and cast a glance at the Tandy Hardware bag sitting on the end table. “I also need to change the locks.”

“That’s not a bad idea.” He should have suggested it himself, just in case. “I’ll be glad to change them for you.”

“Thanks, but I’ve got it.”

He wasn’t surprised. She had independent written all over her.

He walked to the door, then turned, hand on the knob. “What do you say we do that movie tonight? I’ll even treat you to Pappy’s.”

She pressed her lips together. The indecision was back.

“Hey, it’s just a friendly dinner. Nothing your boyfriend back home would object to.”

She responded with a sarcastic grunt. “I dumped the boyfriend eight months ago. You know that crooked business partner I was telling you about?”

“Yeah?”

“One and the same.”

“Ouch.” The creep hit her personal and her professional life all in one blow.

“He’s not the first lowlife I’ve had the misfortune of knowing. That’s why I’m still single. And I don’t plan to change that status anytime in the foreseeable future.”

“Me, neither.” For an entirely different reason. He hadn’t had a string of bad relationships that had soured him on love. He’d only had one—a match made in heaven. He’d thought it would last forever. But he’d made an arrest, a vengeful brother had taken action, and a lifetime of happiness had been shattered in a single moment.

He stepped onto the porch. “Is the pizza and movie a go?”

One side of her mouth lifted in a half smile. “If you insist.”

“I do.”

She stepped outside to stand next to him. “You can give me your email address then and we can look at that picture.”

“Absolutely.” His gaze drifted down Oak to the red brick building on the opposite side of the road. He nodded toward the inviting facade. “What do you think of Hope Community Church?”

She shrugged. “Don’t know. It’s new since I left.”

“I’m thinking of trying it out tomorrow. I was hoping I wouldn’t have to go alone.”

“Pappy’s I’ll do. When it comes to church, you’re on your own.”

“You sound pretty adamant.”

“Let’s just say God and I don’t have a whole lot to do with each other.”

“That’s a shame.”

He crossed the street, a sense of heaviness weighing him down. She hadn’t just closed herself off from people. She’d shut God out of her life, too.

He climbed the steps and let himself into the apartment. The steeple of the church sat framed in the large side window, its cross promising hope and healing. If only he could introduce Jess to the God he knew.

That wasn’t likely to happen. They weren’t going to be together long enough for him to break through her barriers or have any kind of impact on her life. Once Priscilla’s killers were found and brought to justice, she would head back to Miami. And when his case was solved, the Bureau would send him somewhere else.

That now-familiar longing stabbed through him, tinged with regret.

And for the first time in three years, he wished things could be different.

Chapter Six

Jessica strolled down the sidewalk, purse slung over one shoulder and a plastic bag containing lunch swinging at her other side. The weather was perfect for walking. The cold snap had passed, and daytime temperatures had once again returned to their typical mid to upper seventies.

The fabric store was less than a half mile from home. Having left her gym membership and her dojo in Miami, she could use the exercise. Walking also kept her from taking up one of the premium parking spaces in front of the store. Conserving the gas wasn’t a bad idea, either.

She glanced to her right, where large picture windows lined the front of the Hometown Cafe. The long building housed three businesses—the cafe and Harvey’s New and Used books at the ends, with BethAnn’s sandwiched between. At 8:45 in the morning, half of the tables and all the barstools in the cafe were occupied. Pleasant aromas wafted out, and Jessica drew in a deep breath. Someday she’d treat herself to breakfast she didn’t have to make herself.

Today was her second day as BethAnn’s helper. Yesterday she’d driven to work, then hurried home at lunchtime to grab a sandwich and take care of Buttons. Today she didn’t even have to do that. Shane had seen her rushing around in the middle of the day and offered to come over and walk and feed Buttons so she wouldn’t have to leave work. The next thing she knew, she was giving him a key. Ever since, she’d alternated between trying to convince herself she hadn’t made a big mistake and suspecting she’d lost her mind.

Working with him to find Prissy’s killer was one thing. Giving