Caught in the Frame (Ponderosa Pines Cozy Mystery Series Book 3) by ReGina Welling (novel24 .TXT) 📕

EV let her lashes veil her eyes while she watched his reaction to the mention of their child. It took him a few seconds to go there, and when he did, a chuffed out breath and an eyeroll presented eloquent evidence that he cared nothing for his lost son, but was annoyed with her for bringing it up in connection with the death of his parents.

“Let it go, EV. I’m not going to get into a discussion of the miscarriage with you. Now or ever.” The veneer of charm peeled back to show the cheap, shallow base below his surface. Under the table, the hand that wasn’t clasped in his clenched to drive nails into palm with brutal force. EV dropped her eyes before he saw the raw fury she struggled to control. In her ear, Dalton whispered soothing words of encouragement that helped her pull it together, as did the smiling face of the waitress who served her lunch.

As though nothing of note had passed between them, Remy changed the subject to the one he most preferred discussing: himself.

Well, that takes revenge against me for losing the baby off the table.

While he prattled on, EV ran through her mental list of possible motives. Most crimes were committed over love or money. Whether he was even capable of the first, she had no idea, so she decided to move on to the second. Nate’s research hadn’t turned up a solid connection between Remy and Gilmore. Remy’s net worth far exceeded the assets of Gilmore and Ponderosa Pines combined. Yet, the line had to be tugged. The trouble was, she had no idea where to begin pulling at those particular threads. Stalling for time, she picked at her meal.

“I’m sorry; I’m talking your ear off.” The candy coating was back on him; too bad EV knew the chewy center was made of something that looked similar to a Tootsie Roll, but was definitely not flavored with chocolate. “Can I confess something to you, EV?”

Nope. Nope. Nope.

“Of course,” EV forced a smile that could have passed for genuine to anyone who didn’t know her well; Remy included.

“I’m as nervous around you as a teenager trying to get to first base. The new hair, the new clothes--”

That happened before you even got here. EV’s blood ran cold. You’ve been watching me. For how long?

“Seeing you here like this, touching you, knowing we’re going to …” his thumb brushed over the back of her hand. He mistook her shiver of disgust for interest, “I think I’m falling for you all over again.”

Dalton muttered several uncomplimentary things about Remy into EV’s ear before Nate’s voice commanded silence. Her delighted smile at hearing them worked in her favor when Remy took it to mean she felt the same.

Now what? She thought.

As though answering her mental question, Nate instructed, “Humor him.”

“This is all very flattering, but we lead such different lives.”

“It doesn’t have to be that way, you could come with me. You know things were better when we were alone together,” scorn made his next words sound like an epithet, “away from that…hole of a town.”

And there it was again, the contempt he always shown for Ponderosa Pines. Could it be that it was the entire town he hated, and not any one member specifically? The town wouldn’t fold without her, if that’s what he thought. Was it?

Might as well ask. “Why do you hate Ponderosa Pines so much?”

“That place killed my parents.”

“It was an accident, it could have happened at any time. How is that the town’s fault?

“If they hadn’t been heading off to try and convert more people to backwoods living, they would still be alive and my grandmother wouldn’t have…” He swallowed twice. Hard.

Her ear piece erupted, “They’ve found Baylee—safe and sound and on her way back here. The locals will be here soon, and we need him out of the way before that happens. It’s time to move this operation upstairs,” Nate’s message was a welcome one; both because Baylee was safe, and that it meant this whole ordeal was coming to a close. Dalton, dropping into a stooped, limping gait, circled toward the exit with his face averted. He meant to be in place before Remy put a single foot in EV’s suite.

“Wouldn’t have what? Tell me what happened.” EV pulled her attention back from the external goings-on and seized on Remy’s unfinished sentence. He’d let something important slip.

“Remy’s grandmother passed peacefully in her sleep according to what I can find online.” Nate caught on quickly that they’d finally hit on something. Busy fingers flew over his keyboard, and as they appeared, he whispered his findings into her ear. “I’ll pull up the coroner’s report, see if there’s more to the story. Either way, you’ve hit a nerve, poke it harder.”

“It killed her.”

Sympathy painted EV’s eyes with compassion while her mind spun like a top. Several possible outcomes played through her mind, each one giving him motive for revenge. This was it, maybe not the whole story, but the beginning of it, anyway. A wild elation bubbled up inside her.

She tamped it down, thinking hard on how to draw the rest from him.

“I only met her that one time, but your grandmother seemed like a lovely person. I’m sorry for you, and for your grandfather.”

A muscle twitched at the side of Remy’s mouth, signaling a rush of negative emotion. To EV, it looked like annoyance, which seemed an odd reaction given the conversation. Her head tilted left while she let him see her assessing his state of mind. Now was not the time to hammer at him, she decided; instead, she needed to force impatience back and become his confidant.

“Would you feel better if you talked about it? Not here, though, up in my room.”

Anticipation flared in his eyes. “Lead the way.”

The minute the door closed, he turned to and bracketed her against it, leaning in to capture her lips with his. She just managed to slip her hand between