Chapter 17

17

Lila juggled the two bags in her hand so she could open the door to the next store. She and Duke had started by Noel’s Cafe and made their way down the sidewalk, stopping into each business.

Shannon, from Tidings and Joy Apparel, wrapped her in a big hug when she ventured to her store first. The greeting had been unexpected but welcome. They chatted a bit, catching up with life, though keeping it casual. They didn’t touch on any heavy subjects.

Before she left, Shannon insisted she take a shirt. Since she had already gotten her free shirt, she was surprised. People who moved to Sleighville always received one free T-shirt from her clothing store. It was a gimmick to get them to come back for more. Which they did, so her way of doing things worked.

So she was baffled why Shannon gave her another free shirt. But she accepted it with a smile and big thanks. It was a tank top with the word festive written on it. Not written with a simple font, but each letter formed from something Christmassy: colorful lights, candy canes, Christmas trees, and snowmen. It wasn’t warm enough to wear it yet—at least in Minnesota—but she couldn’t wait to wear it.

At Mocha’s Merriment, Taylor greeted her jovially and also gave her a Christmas mug with ‘season greetings’ written on it with a voucher for one free coffee.

Farther down at the Jolly Scrooge where they had a wide variety of candy, they gave her a whole box of candy canes and a bag of caramel.

And down the line she went, receiving something free from each establishment and a warm welcome. No one seemed contrite or even full of wrath toward her. Not in their words or their facial expressions. She made sure to keep a close watch on their eyes. The eyes always betrayed a person. She knew Duke was as vigilant of the people and his surroundings as she was. Maybe even more than her.

By the time they made it to the other side of the street, they had one more place to stop, which was Frost’s. She doubted Anson wanted her dead. He’d been nothing but kind to her every time they interacted. But she couldn’t discount anyone. They were all suspects in her eyes.

Duke pulled open the door and let her enter first, something he’d done at every store. Such a gentleman. Not to discount her brother because he had manners too, but Duke was a keeper. Juliet should date him. He’d be more secure than her brother, who never had any intention of maintaining a long relationship. And one out of state? No way!

She was up to four bags now, setting them on the floor near the bar, and took a seat on a stool. Duke joined her.

Anson strolled over, smiling affectionately. “So good to see you returned, Lila.” His expression fell into sadness. “I’m sorry to hear the reason why.”

She wasn’t surprised he’d heard about the latest threat. Most people had, though not all were as forthright about it as him.

“Me too. Although I am enjoying being back. It made me realize how much I missed it here.”

“Can I get you something to drink?” Anson asked, his smile returning with no difficulty.

“You know what? Why not. I’ll have a chocolate martini. The last one you made me was delicious.” She hadn’t ventured into Frost’s often the last time she was here, but the few times she had, she’d ordered different flavored martinis, loving the chocolate one the most. He made it to perfection, and she would know as it was one of her favorite drinks.

He dropped his head slightly to acquiesce, then turned to Duke. “How about you?”

Duke chuckled, pointing at his uniform. “I’m on duty.”

The answered laughter said Anson knew what he’d say. He made her drink with quick precision, and she moaned in delight with the first sip.

“You have magic in your hands.”

He lifted them, grinning. “These old things? Yeah, I’d have to agree.”

She’d loved his confidence and wily remarks from the beginning. She still wasn’t getting any murderous vibes from him. Besides the tasty drink, this had been a wasted stop.

“So on duty, but strolling around town?” Anson questioned Duke, his easygoing smile still displayed. But she felt the slight undercurrent for the first time.

“The department is taking the threat against her seriously.”

Anson nodded. “As you should.”

They were all silent. She assumed their thoughts went the same way as hers had. Imagining Denise’s brutalized corpse.

“I don’t want to throw anyone under the bus. I’m not that kind of person.”

Duke leaned closer, his eyes alert and his entire body tense. She couldn’t help but react the same way. What was Anson about to reference? Or better yet, who?

Anson also leaned closer, though only two other patrons were in the bar, and both sat too far away to hear the conversation.

“While Lila was away, Bryce came here a lot.”

She found it comical how he mentioned her absence as if she had always intended to return. She also knew Bryce had stopped at the bar after work. He’d been honest about himself last night. The behavior he’d fallen into. The actions he wished he could’ve done better.

“If you’re about to suggest Bryce had something to do with Denise’s murder, Anson…” Duke let his voice trail off, the venom in each word. Things would not end pretty if he agreed that was where he was going.

“Absolutely not!” he uttered in a whisper. “That man would give his life before he’d take another one away.”

Duke gave a sharp nod, but his scowl remained.

“I only bring it up because someone else came in here a lot as well. Someone who normally didn’t until Bryce started to.”

That had them both leaning even closer. Could they be on the cusp of revealing the killer?

“Melody. I think she tried to hide that she was coming to see him, but I knew what she was doing.”

Duke straightened, blowing out a breath. “She had a thing for Griffin…” He shook his head. “Denise was her best friend.”

Anson tossed his hands up, shrugging. “I’m telling you something I observed. Something I thought was odd. If she had a thing for Bryce, which I think she does, jealousy and shit like that can take a dangerous turn in the blink of an eye, best friend or not.”

Lila had to agree he made a good point. She’d interacted with Melody a time or two, but nothing to give her a clear picture of her as a person. And definitely not about her feelings toward Bryce.

“I’ll look into it.” Duke stood up, looking at her. “You ready?”

She glanced down at her drink, realizing she’d been sipping the whole time and it was all gone. It sure had been a tasty one. Part of her wanted another, but she knew right now wasn’t the time to keep drinking.

They had a lead.

A small one. Kind of an iffy one too.

“Yep.” She stood up, dug through her purse, and put a twenty on the bar.

“On the house.”

“It’s not,” she insisted, pushing the twenty to his side. “You’ve been very helpful. And you make a mean martini.”

Anson chuckled, accepting the money and giving her change. He grabbed a piece of paper from the opposite counter and a pen, scribbling on it. “For another day then. I won’t be the only place not giving something away.”

She burst out laughing, her signature snort trailing it, and took his makeshift coupon offering one free drink to her. “I still haven’t figured out why everyone did that today, but thank you.”

It also showed how word spread around town with deftness. She and Duke had been venturing around town for about three hours, and Anson had already heard about the freebies given to her.

“One more tidbit,” Anson started, his expression turning serious. “I don’t know how true this is, but I heard Melody has been seeing Gregory. Maybe he’ll have some insight about things.”

Interesting.

Gregory ran the homeless shelter in town. She didn’t know what to make of him. He’d been pleasant to her whenever she ran into him. But he was also the brother of Gerald, Juliet’s ex-husband. The man who beat her to the point she nearly died. According to Juliet, Gregory blamed her for his brother in prison. He was never friendly when Juliet went to the shelter. And she went often since she donated the food that didn’t sell from Noel’s Cafe so it didn’t go to waste.

“I appreciate that information as well,” Duke noted. “That isn’t a rumor I had heard before.”

Anson shrugged. “That’s why I’m not sure how true it is.”

They thanked him for his help—and the drink—and left.

The day hadn’t been a complete waste. She got a ton of free, fun goodies, and a new direction in the case.

But in all likelihood, nothing would come of it. The police had investigated the people closest to Denise in the beginning, as one did in a murder investigation. If Melody had anything to do with it, they would’ve found that out before now.

But it couldn’t hurt to check again.

Maybe Bryce had some insight into Melody as well. He should know her pretty well being best friends with his wife.

Ex-wife.

Dead spouse.

Ugh. Lila didn’t know how to picture Denise anymore and how she related to Bryce. So she wiped the confusion of the matter out of her mind and thought about all the good things that happened today.

Because bad, negative thoughts would bring her down, and she didn’t want to feel that way. Not with a tiny morsel of a lead in their hands.

“Oh, I have one more stop to make. The drug store.”

Duke nodded, but didn’t ask why. And she didn’t want to say it out loud. Buying condoms was already an awkward thing to do, which was asinine. It was human nature to have sex. To join as one and find release.

Except this town had a horrible fascination with talking about each other. Anson proved that by informing them he knew all about their day before they even arrived.

Duke walked into the store with her, the bell jingling merrily. It went perfectly with “Jingle Bells” playing over the loudspeaker.

She hummed along with the song as she headed for the aisle that she needed. When Duke saw where she was going, he stopped following her. His cheeks even turned a bit red. She giggled but didn’t point out his embarrassment. Hell, she was mortified herself. But if she wanted sex tonight—the real kind of sex—condoms were necessary.

She stopped in front of the many varieties of condoms and snorted out loud. All she needed was a normal package full of foils she and Bryce could put to good use. But the options before her… How could one person not lose their shit with laughter at the craziness?

Merry Dickmas. The stockings were HUNG. Well HUNG. HO HO HUNG. Naughty? Nice? Those were some of the festive messages on the boxes of Christmas-filled condoms.

Her head bobbed back and forth between the normal, generic boxes and the fun, ridiculous Christmas-themed ones.

When in Rome…

Merry Dickmas was her favorite, so she grabbed that box, filled with twenty-five condoms, and made her way to the checkout counter.

Duke stood near it but didn’t come any closer. She heard a snicker from him, so she knew he could see quite fine what she’d placed on the counter from where he stood.

Bonnie, the young girl running the register, scanned the box, as if not fazed whatsoever “That’s thirty-two dollars and five cents.”

Talk about a rip-off! Maybe she should go with the plain box.

Hoping it would put a smile on Bryce’s face, she paid the outrageous price.

Bonnie made eye contact with her when she handed her the change. “Oh, Lila. Hi.”

“Hello.”

Everyone she’d chatted with today had never broached the subject about her and Bryce. Would Bonnie be the first? It was quite obvious why she was buying them and for whom.

She took the change and tossed it into her purse instead of messing with her wallet, then snatched the box of condoms and hid those in her purse as well.

Bonnie smiled. “Merry Dickmas!”

Lila burst out laughing. The snort came out extra loud. “You too, Bonnie.”

What did that even mean? You too? She was now going to die of mortification.

She turned around and walked out of the store, hoping Duke would not say a word about what happened in there.

Another snicker echoed in her ear.

She stopped, facing him head on, unable to hold her smile in. “Okay. Say whatever you have to.”

Duke shook his head, holding his lips together with a smirk a mile wide.

“Can’t have sex without condoms!” she blurted, then started speed walking away.

“And definitely not the merry kind of sex without the right kind of condom.”

His unexpected response had her pausing in her long stride. “Admit it. You’ve bought the Christmas kind before too.” She giggled, feeling another loud snort rising up her throat.

He shrugged. “I would love to be a fly on the wall when you show Bryce what you purchased.” He couldn’t hold it in any longer, his laughter ringing around the sidewalk, loud and clear.

She joined him, letting the embarrassment wash away. So she bought condoms. Big deal!

The expedition into the drug store made her forget all about her other worries.

The temperature in the room was rising and it wasn’t because a fire blazed in the fireplace right by him. Lila had returned to City Hall before he had finished his meetings. One went longer than he anticipated, and Duke had brought her to Griffin’s house. He was the last one to arrive. Eve and Juliet were working on supper while he, Griffin, Duke, Aster, and Lila sat in the living room. Well, they all sat while he stood by the fireplace. He was too wired to sit, especially after the news Lila and Duke delivered.

“What do you think, Bryce?” Duke asked, leveling a very intense gaze his way.

Not like he was a suspect, but one that said he was still in cop mode. The uniform still on also helped the severe look he sent his way.

He had no idea what to think. Melody? A killer? He couldn’t picture it. Now Gregory on the other hand. His brother was an abuser. Damn near left Juliet for dead. Violence could run in the family. But why would he kill Denise? That’s what made no sense.

“I don’t know. I don’t know what to say to that.”

“Let’s start with the basics,” Griffin offered. “You frequented Frost’s the last few weeks. Is Anson correct in his assessment? Did Melody approach you more than normal?”

Well, him going to Frost’s as much as he had wasn’t normal to begin with. “She did happen to be there a lot when I was there. Anson even mentioned she would say to tell me hi if she missed me.”

“She was best friends with Denise. You hung out with her a lot. Her saying hi isn’t abnormal,” Griffin said.

“Yeah, but Anson said she didn’t normally come in before Bryce started coming in. That’s abnormal for her,” Duke pointed out.

Bryce, somehow, found a smile when he looked at Lila, who had a notebook out and was jotting things down in it. “What are you doing?”

She met his gaze. “I need a clear picture of things. I’m writing this stuff down.”

“You’re not a detective, Lilac,” Aster drawled, the only one not sitting on the edge of his seat like the other three were. He was the most relaxed in the room, and Bryce wished he would join Juliet and Eve. His mere presence irritated him.

“It doesn’t mean I can’t take notes, Aster.” She enunciated his name with derision, so much so that he sat up a bit. As if realizing he needed to take this conversation more seriously.

Oh, Bryce knew that Aster understood how serious this matter was. But his nonchalance said otherwise.

“Did you ever get the impression she has feelings for you?” Griffin asked, returning to the matter at hand.

Bryce shook his head. “Not like she did with you.”

“Yeah, she was always trying to get you to go out,” Duke said.

“True,” Griffin started, giving Bryce a potent look, “but she never looked at me the way she looked at you. I never understood her infatuation with me.”

“Unless it was to get closer to Bryce, who she knew was taken.” Lila didn’t look up from her notebook as she said that. She winced, jerking her gaze to Griffin. “Not insinuating you were second best or anything. Or that you are.”

Griffin offered her a gentle smile, indicating he knew she meant no harm. “I get your point you’re trying to make. What better way to be around a man you like than to be around his family. She couldn’t go on dates with Bryce and Denise as a third wheel, but as a double date, well, that’s another story.” He swiveled his direction to Bryce. “How many double dates do you think I was forced to go on?”

Bryce scowled at his brother. “Forced? I never forced you.”

Griffin’s brow rose. “Your wife did. On several occasions. Each time it was hard to get through it. Melody knew how I felt. I was clear on my feelings, yet it kept happening.”

He shrugged. “I don’t know what to say. I never noticed anything weird from Melody.”

“You wouldn’t. You were devoted to Denise.” Duke didn’t look at him when he said that. But his tone told him enough. That he hadn’t approved.

“Was it wrong of me to be devoted to my wife?”

Lila’s head shot up from her notebook, and he hated the way she cringed. He had been married before. He had loved Denise once. He couldn’t erase his past. But the way she looked at him right now said she was disgusted at him. That she couldn’t believe he ever loved his wife.

“That’s not what Duke is saying,” Griffin said. “You didn’t notice Melody’s behavior because you loved Denise. You would’ve never cheated on her. So looking at another woman like that, it wouldn’t happen. Maybe you subconsciously ignored the signals coming from her.”

Bryce did not like where this conversion was going. Lila looked upset. The more it went on, it was making him angry as well.

“Okay. So we’re going with Melody has a thing for me. How does that translate into murdering Denise? We were getting a divorce. I would’ve been free for her to make a move.”

“Except a best friend—a true best friend—doesn’t date the ex-husband.” Lila wouldn’t look at him as she spoke. “Based on what I know about Denise, she would’ve made Melody’s life a living hell if she would’ve made a move like that with you.”

“I have to agree with Lila on that,” Griffin said. “Maybe she confessed her feelings to her. Wanted to see if she’d approve. It didn’t go well and…” His words ended because they all knew what ending Denise met with.

“What does Gregory have to do with all of this?” Aster asked, a little more alert than before. As if Aster had noticed Lila getting uncomfortable and refusing to look at him.

Why was he the bad guy again? What had he done or said wrong?

Duke stood up. “That’s what we need to find out. I need to confirm if the rumors are true. I need to question them both.”

Griffin also got up from his position. “Sheriff Carter needs to do those things. You know we can’t be involved in the investigation.”

“Fine. I’ll go share our findings with him.” Duke headed for the front door.

“At least stay and eat with us.” Griffin’s tone sounded demanding, as if he knew why Duke was leaving already.

He didn’t want to be around Juliet and Aster. They could get touchy-feely, not caring who saw their affection. Bryce didn’t blame him for leaving. If he could leave, he would too. He didn’t like the feeling of the atmosphere. He hadn’t since the moment they told him about their day interviewing people.

“I’m good. Thanks for the offer though.” Duke made eye contact with him, a weird laughing twinkle in his eye. “Don’t let this conversation ruin your evening. Have a fun one.”

He left.

What an odd thing to say.

“I’m going to check on Eve.” Griffin left the room.

Now was Aster’s chance to leave too. He wanted to talk to Lila alone. Of course, he wasn’t going to point blank tell the guy to exit the room. Aster would get in his face or even throw a punch because his anger was always just on the surface whenever they spoke.

Lila had no such trouble though. “Why don’t you go check on Juliet.”

Aster rolled his eyes and stared him down as he stood up from the couch. Then he was gone too.

As soon as they were alone, he took the empty spot next to her. “I feel like you’re mad at me. Tell me what I did wrong.”

She reached over and smoothed a hand across his cheek. The tender touch gave him hope that she wasn’t too angry over whatever had upset her.

“I’m sorry. I don’t mean to seem angry. It’s…sometimes when we talk about Denise, it gets weird for me. She doesn’t feel gone all the time. Like she could walk into the room at any moment. When you call her your wife…those weird feelings I have intensify. It’s a me problem, not a you problem.”

She had been his wife only a few weeks ago. He didn’t know how to think of her now either. She’d been a part of his life for a very long time. High school sweethearts, if one wanted to put labels on it. Though the sweetness in the relationship died after college when she realized he didn’t have ambitions for a higher office.

“No, it’s an us problem. You were right last night. Telling me that I have to come to terms with her death, I don’t know how to do that quite yet. Calling her my wife feels weird even to me. Which is also weird because she was just that over a month ago.”

He placed a hand on her waist. She didn’t flinch or move away, so his grip strengthened. “I know we’re jumping headfirst into whatever is happening between us, but I’m not afraid of the fall. Being with you makes me happy. You make me so damn happy I can’t even describe it. So when I mess up like I did, please forgive me. I will come to terms with everything, but it might not be a fast thing. I only ask for some patience.”

Lila cupped both his cheeks, smiling, her eyes shimmering a bit as if tears were on the verge of releasing. “Patience never has to be asked for. I know none of this has been easy on you. That’s why I said it was my problem. I’m not mad at you. I promise. I’m mad…at Denise.”

That made him chuckle and he wasn’t sure why. Perhaps because he was also angry with her. For so many things. Things he still had yet to let go of. That’s what he needed to do. To move on, he had to let go of the anger and pain.

But how?

“I know the feeling well.” He kissed her, feeling better for the first time that evening. “I wish we could leave like Duke did. I want you to myself. I’m sorry we didn’t get our first date tonight. I wanted to take you out.”

“Tomorrow is a new day. Oh, and I have presents.” She giggled, then snorted.

The sound made his chest burst with happiness. He’d never get tired of hearing her adorable laugh.

“Now I’m intrigued. What for?”

The sly smile said he wasn’t going to know yet.

“Are they wrapped? Like, actual Christmas presents?”

“You’ll have to wait and see.” Another captivating laugh-snort erupted. “You’re going to love it.”

It? So one present. If he had known she was going to get him something, he would’ve returned the favor.

The night couldn’t go fast enough.