Unlocking Lies

by Kennedy Layne

  “I’ll be there tomorrow. They can give me compassionate leave for a family emergency. My last two weeks will be unpaid.”

  Jace sighed with relief and wasn’t even offended when Mitch disconnected their call. He had shit to do, and little time to do it in. His dance card just got filled.

  “Thank you, Detective.” Shae and Kendrick were both standing by the time Jace reached their table. She had her arms wrapped around her waist, though her chin was tilted upward in confrontation. “As I said, I’m not leaving Blyth Lake. I appreciate your concern, but this is about my family.”

  “You can reach Shae at my residence.” Jace picked up Shae’s cell phone and purse she’d set on the table. “She’ll be well protected, and I’ll make sure she doesn’t go anywhere without armed security.”

  “You don’t get to make that decision, Jace.”

  “I already did. Sue me.”

  “Jace is right on this one, Ms. Irwin,” Detective Kendrick said, warding off an inevitable argument. “An apartment above a bar isn’t exactly the most secure location. You got half the town’s population in and out of here on a regular basis. It’s how this killer was able to gain access to your belongings without anyone being the wiser. I have enough to substantiate putting a cruiser out front, but I think it’s time we face the undisputable facts that have been laid out for us—it’s more than likely that you all personally know the individual responsible for your sister’s disappearance and the murder of Whitney Bell. An officer stationed outside a popular tavern can’t stop something from happening should the threat come from someone you allow into your personal space.”

  Kendrick reached into the inner pocket of his suit jacket, pulling out his cell phone and glancing at the display. From the way his gaze landed on Jace, he pretty much gathered Mitch was giving the good detective a call about the future plans of Blyth Lake and the local sheriff department’s involvement. It would be smart for Jace to let his father know that Mitch was returning sooner rather than later. The mayor would be able to appoint Mitch as the sheriff pro tempore until such time as a midterm election could be arranged or the next official election was scheduled. Special elections cost money and most small towns avoided them, if at all possible. The town council would have to be involved to determine which avenue they wanted to pursue.

  “You’re not my keeper, Jace.” Shae took her cell phone and her purse, standing in front of him to finish their conversation in private as Kendrick answered his call. “Is this about me telling you why I showed up at Nick’s get-together for you? That was twelve years ago, and it was a crush that has long since faded. You know, worn out its mojo. I’m a grown woman who has managed to get this far in my life without having a man make my decisions for me. I appreciate what you—”

  “Faded? Worn out its mojo?” Jace closed the space between them, no longer caring who saw them in a compromising position. If he had his way, she’d be spending the night in his bed. Well, he’d most likely be sleeping on the couch from her most recent reaction, but she would still be under his roof. “Shae, you and I could burn this place down with one kiss. And you have it all wrong. I’m not telling you what to do. I’m stating what I am going to do—and that is to escort you from this unsecure common area to an environment I can control for security reasons.”

  “Did I mention I don’t like people who can rationalize any situation in their minds to suit their own needs?” Shae asked, not backing down as she met his gaze with her overly stubborn one. It took every ounce of strength he had not to reach for her in front of their friends and his family. “You’re edging very close to that category, Jace.”

  He leaned in close so that only she could hear his confession. His lips barely touched her flushed cheek.

  “Now you’re beginning to understand the real me, Doc.”

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  “What time is your flight due in?”

  Shae had awakened to the sound of a morning dove calling out to his mate right after sunrise. All the windows were closed and locked due to the central air and an overzealous security guard, but the dove’s melodic cry was still able to penetrate the single pane of glass.

  Unfortunately, Shae had tossed and turned for hours before falling to sleep, although it was a fitful one. It wasn’t anything she wasn’t used to, but last night’s events had left her mentally exhausted. She was sure it must be the same for Jace, because he’d been talking to someone on the phone for the last five minutes—regardless of the fact that it was six o’clock in the morning.

  “Dad’s holding the meeting with the mayor and the other town council members at lunch today, so it should be official by this afternoon.”

  Shae figured his conversation had to do with Mitch coming home to take over Sheriff Percy’s responsibilities. Detective Kendrick had spoken with the oldest of the Kendall siblings, seemingly surprised by the unexpected phone call. Regardless, he indicated that it would be nice to work with someone who had inside knowledge on the town and most of its residents. She was relatively sure this new development was prompted by a call Jace made in the bar while she was distracted.

  “Brynn said she kept a copy of the security video feed, but there wasn’t a single stranger in the Cavern yesterday. It’s someone we know, Mitch.”

  And that was what Shae was afraid of most of all—that Emma had been killed by someone she knew and trusted. Someone who had helped out on the search parties, maybe even someone who had been in their home eating dinner with their family.

  Shae wasn’t ready to finish where she and Jace had left off last night, so she tiptoed across the dining room floor to the wooden staircase. They first argued on whether or not she would even accompany him to his new house, but Detective Kendrick was the one to help her see reason. It was hard to do with Jace acting more like a possessive lover than an old friend.

  She never should have told him the reason she’d gone to Nick’s in the first place. He had totally lost his mind.

  What’s done was done, and she couldn’t change the past. But she could manage this.

  That didn’t mean Jace got to change the dynamics of their new relationship. It was why he’d slept on the couch last night, and she’d tossed and turned in his bed for the remainder of the evening.

  “Going somewhere, Doc?”

  Damn it.

  Shae had just taken the first step upstairs when his question stopped her from lifting her bare toes off the hardwood floor. The whole Doc thing was getting rather annoying. She resigned herself to having another confrontation before her first sip of tea. With a fortifying breath, she turned around with her hand on the banister to find him standing their holding a cup of pure heaven.

  “Is that tea?”

  “English breakfast tea, to be exact.”

  Okay, maybe she could tone down her irritation just a smidgen.

  Jace was leaning a shoulder against the doorframe of the kitchen, a little more relaxed than she would have expected given the circumstances. It didn’t look like he intended to come to her aid. She found she was analyzing every expression and gesture he made, and it was driving her bonkers.

  Shae pressed her lips together, resigned that he was making her take the first step. The only reason she was giving in was because of what he held in his hands—no other reason.

  “I didn’t want to interrupt your phone conversation.”

  Shae gave a brief explanation of why she had not entered the kitchen earlier. It was clear he’d known she was downstairs the entire time. She slowly crossed the hardwood floor until she was close enough to take the cup of tea from his hand. She permitted herself to take a sip before saying another word. The sweet warmth practically curled her toes.

  “I take it I got the right amount of sugar?”

  Shae studied him over the rim of her cup, but she couldn’t find any evidence that he was making fun of her.

  “Yes, thank you.” Shae took another fortifying drink. She had quite a lot on her to-do list today, and she didn’t wa
nt another confrontation. “I take it that Mitch is coming home today?”

  “Yes, he is.” Jace crossed his arms as if he had all the time in the world. “I thought we could head over to my dad’s house this afternoon. It’s kind of a welcoming home tradition that we all get together for things like this.”

  “I’m actually meeting up with some of Emma’s old friends this afternoon, but please give my best to Mitch. I’m sure I’ll see him around while I’m in town.” Especially if she was staying with Jace, but she didn’t add on that sentiment to her statement. It would only cause another argument. She didn’t intend to be at his house for very long, anyway. “Thank you for my tea. I’m going to—”

  “Faded mojo?”

  Arousal shot through her with the same exact combo of words he’d questioned her about last night. It was more than apparent he wasn’t willing to delay this battle of wills when it would have been the best thing for both of them. She had no choice but to lay out all her cards.

  “Jace, you’re acting like we were intimately involved in high school. We were only friends. Nothing more.” Shae raised her left hand when he attempted to speak. He wanted to talk about this, so he had to hear what she had to say on the matter. “You never would have known about…well, you wouldn’t have known about my change of heart had I not told you the reason I went to Nick’s house that night. I was seventeen years old and wasn’t thinking about anything else but boys back then. That doesn’t negate the fact that I was selfish, which is why I told you. I took the car that night knowing full well that Emma wanted it to go to the bonfire with her friends.”

  Shae left out that getting something of that magnitude off her chest was something she would have told a patient to do as part of his or her therapy. Confronting one’s guilt was important in any patient’s recovery. She’d done exactly what she would have recommended as a psychiatrist, yet his body language told her it was backfiring into something ten times more explosive than had she maintained her silence.

  All the air in her lungs expelled as he closed the distance between them.

  “I know about it now,” Jace murmured, somehow taking the cup of tea from her hand without spilling a drop. He held it to the side with his left hand as he used his other to palm her cheek. Could he hear how hard her heartbeat was pounding against her chest? “And it’s not something I want to ignore any longer.”

  The world ceased to exist for one singular moment.

  The instant that Jace’s warm lips covered hers, all that was faded into nothingness. There was no past or future. There was only the here and now.

  He tilted her head in order to taste more of her, but it was his flavor that blossomed on her tongue. He was a mixture of mint and dark Arabian coffee. His tongue brushed over her lower lip, leaving behind a coolness that turned scorching hot with another swipe. She couldn’t resist the temptation to play.

  Shae took control and stepped forward, wrapping her arms around his neck as she stood on her tiptoes and deepened their kiss. His back hit the wall behind him so that the front of her melded to his chest. She didn’t stop to think about how he had the use of two hands, but his left arm was now tightly bound around her waist.

  It wasn’t nearly enough.

  She needed more of his touch, his taste, and his—

  “Anyone home?”

  Shae was grateful that one of them still had their senses, because Jace managed to stop what they were doing and push her behind him before a stranger peered through the screened door she hadn’t noticed before. Jace had previously opened the inside door and was obviously expecting the man.

  “Yes, we’re home,” Jace answered, stepping forward and hitting the black lever with the palm of his hand. Shae turned so that the visitor couldn’t see that she was still in somewhat shock. What had she been thinking? “I take from the uniform that you’re from the security company. My brothers spoke very highly of your system. I apologize we didn’t hear your knock, but we were discussing our afternoon plans.”

  If that was Jace’s way of saying he thought they’d spend the rest of the day in bed, he was sorely mistaken. Their kiss had been a mistake. Maybe she’d always subconsciously desired to know what he tasted like or how warm and soft his lips would be against hers. Well, she’d just experienced it and her mind was blown.

  That didn’t mean she had lost all rational thought.

  She was in Blyth Lake for one reason only—to find answers about her sister’s disappearance.

  Shae caught sight of her cup of tea on a side table she hadn’t even realized was located to the right of the kitchen’s entrance. She needed the calming beverage now more than ever, so she made sure to grab it before heading for the stairs.

  “If you’ll excuse me a moment,” Jace said to his new guest before Shae had a chance to disappear. He caught hold of her arm right before her foot hit the second step. “Shae, it’s not safe for you to be in town on your own. I’ll go with you wherever you want to go, but please come to my dad’s house this afternoon. If not for your safety, then do it for my sanity.”

  Had Jace called her by some foolish nickname or tried to bring their kiss into the conversation, she would have told him exactly what he could do with his sanity. But all he did was stand there using his thumb to casually stroke her forearm while staring at her way too patiently with those blue eyes that had a way of prying into her soul—a part of her she wasn’t willing to share with anyone.

  “I don’t want you to think I’m unappreciative. I’m not,” Shae replied, slowly moving her arm from underneath his hand. She wasn’t so sure why it was so hard for her to finish what she’d set out to say. “But you and I both know that I was in a bar filled with people I grew up with, and yet someone still managed to leave me the boots my sister had on the night she disappeared.”

  “Which is why you shouldn’t be running around town by yourself.”

  “That’s exactly my point, Jace.” Shae glanced over his shoulder as a reminder to him that his presence was required elsewhere. She didn’t have time to waste, either. “This psychopath can get to me with or without someone around. Why shouldn’t I try and make it easy for him?”

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Jace settled back in the driver’s seat of his Range Rover, enjoying the view as Shae strolled across Main Street with purpose. Well, it was technically a determined march with very wide strides. It was evident that she was irritated, but she was the sole person responsible for that fact. He’d done nothing but waste gas all morning long.

  The first of September had arrived, but the summer heat still remained to swelter off the asphalt. He’d had to keep his engine running with the air conditioning on for the most part due to the sun beating down on him through the windshield. He was uncomfortable, and she was frustrated when they could both be at his dad’s house enjoying a cold beer and grilled steaks.

  “You’re being completely ridiculous,” Shae exclaimed, having fanatically waved her arm around until he took the hint and casually rolled down his window. He wasn’t going to show her that his patience was running thin at all. “I’m trying to have lunch with Julie Brigham. We’re in broad daylight here. I’m as safe as I can possibly be, so go to your father’s house and welcome Mitch home.”

  “Not without you.”

  Jace used his finger to pull back on the small lever to roll up his window. He feigned changing the station, all the while observing her reaction from his peripheral vision. Yeah, she wasn’t very happy. Well, neither was he.

  Shae banged her knuckles on the window twice.

  “Yes?” Jace turned the volume down on the radio once more to hear what she had to say. “Have you changed your mind, Doc?”

  “You know what your problem is?” Shae asked, not waiting for him to respond. She set her fists on either side of her waist to stress what he apparently had wrong with him. “You’re bored and lonely. You don’t know how to adjust to civilian life, so you’re doing anything and everything to avoid the plans you need to
make for the future. I’ve seen it time and time again, and you somehow think latching onto my problems will fill your time until I leave town. I—”

  Jace had heard enough, so he calmly turned the key in the ignition until his engine shut off. He then opened the driver’s side door, all the while leaving the window down and all but forcing her to back up on the sidewalk to avoid being hit. He ignored her incensed glare as he looked both ways before crossing the street and entering the diner.

  “What are you doing?” Shae tried to get in front of him, but he managed to sidestep her when he spotted Julie sitting in the booth. It appeared they were done with their lunch and enjoying dessert. “Jace, you can’t—”

  “Hi, Julie.” Jace reached over the seat where Shae’s purse was located, throwing their old friend a smile. “It’s been a long time. I hear congratulations are in order for you and Billy.”

  “Oh, we’re just dating,” Julie clarified, appearing a bit uncomfortable. Jace figured she and Shae had yet to cover that topic, but they would have to save it for another time. “Listen, I need to borrow Shae for the rest of the afternoon. You don’t mind, do you? She’ll give you a call later on this evening to reschedule. After what happened last night, I don’t feel comfortable leaving her alone here in town. You know, with a serial killer running around on the loose and all.”

  “I totally understand.” Julie tried to wave him off when he set a twenty dollar bill down on the table. “You don’t have to do that. I was going to treat Shae to lunch anyway.”

  “It’s my fault she has to cut this short, so please let me pick up the tab.” Jace was surprised to find that Shae was no longer standing next to him. The bell jingled above the door to indicate her exit. Damn it. “Shae!”

  Jace had done a sweep of the diner before Shae had ever set foot inside the eatery. There were patrons at tables and booths he’d known his entire life, but he was out of time to say hello to any of them. He mumbled his apologies before following in Shae’s footsteps.