by Jaclyn Hardy
“Did you know that Nancy girl he was talking about?”
Carlie and Braden turned from their computers to wait for his answer. He finally sighed and nodded.
“She was my aunt. And he's right. She was beautiful.” He leaned forward. “We knew she died in an accident. We just didn't know it was while she was on a mission.”
Dee sat next to him and put an arm around him. “I'm so sorry.”
“Everything I thought I knew about my life is turning out to be a lie.” He stood and packed his laptop in his bag. “Let's go home.”
Dee stood and grabbed her bag from the overhead compartment. She was finally home, and she couldn't wait for the warmth of the Arizona sun on her skin. Carlie waited for Braden to get out of his seat, then got their bags.
“Ready for normal life?” Dee asked as they walked down the aisle to leave the plane.
“Nope. But I should probably teach a class or two before I go on another adventure so I'm not fired.”
Dee laughed. “Yeah, that's probably a good idea.”
“What about you? Did you decide if you're going to visit your parents for the summer?”
“No. I think I'll see if they'll let me enroll in summer classes. As much as I want the beach, I want to get done with school.”
Carlie raised an eyebrow. “You're voluntarily going to take classes?”
“I'm a little surprised myself. It's just that . . . everyone around me has full-time jobs, and I'm still stuck here as a student. Time to move on.”
They walked into the airport and headed for the baggage claim. Dee didn't have much since most of her stuff was still in storage in New York, but she'd wait with Carlie and Braden.
Dani stood with a sign, a huge grin on her face. “You're back!”
“Finally.” Dee hugged her friend, then moved so Carlie could hug her. “Thanks for picking us up. I didn't think you'd forgive me after I ditched you in New York.”
Dani brushed it away. “You were off saving these two. Besides, now that you found the emerald, we can go back.”
“Oh, right.” Dee turned away. She wasn't sure if she was ready to go back to New York yet.
“Okay, let's get out of here. I'll drive. You guys talk. I want to know everything.” Dani opened the trunk.
Dee let Carlie and Braden do all the talking. Those last moments in the old police stations kept going through her mind. She'd barely slept since then because every time she closed her eyes, she saw Helen drop to the ground.
Ben stood in front of his dad's apartment, emotions warring with each other. He finally lifted his hand to knock.
“You're back.” Dad opened the door wider and allowed him in.
The room was cleaner than the last time Ben was here. Books were in boxes, and papers were no longer piled up.
“Going somewhere?”
“It seems that Mr. Black gave away my location along with a list of supposed crimes. All of them will lead back to him, but I still need to move while I still can.”
Ben nodded. “You realize moving will just make you look guilty, right?”
“To the real police, yes. But it seems that he did a good job of turning many people against me even before London.”
“I suppose I'm also in danger?”
Dad patted him on the shoulder. “Only if you want to be. You can get out right now.”
Ben sat on the old couch in the living room. “To be honest, I don't know. I don't want to leave Carlie in the lurch, but without a team, we can't do anything right now.”
“What about the other girl that was with you? Deirdre?”
“I'll be lucky if she ever talks to me again. I, uh, might have accused her of being the traitor.”
Dad chuckled. “Son, that happens in this profession more than you'll ever know. You can never be too careful. Give her a chance. You never know how she'll react.”
“You're probably right.” Ben stood. “I'd better get ready. I have to report on the exhibit tonight and I need a suit.”
“Good luck, son.”
Ben reached for the door and paused. “Why didn't you ever tell us about Aunt Nancy?”
“I didn't know until you told me. Mr. Black always told me it was an accident.” He shook his head. “It's amazing what jealousy will do to a man.”
“Is that why you gave the business to me?”
Dad smiled, but his eyes were sad. “I trusted no one else with it. And for good reason. But Ben? Don't mess things up with Deirdre like I did with your mother. She saved your life.”
Ben nodded and left. He wanted to make things right with Deirdre, but he had work to do in order to make that happen.
It had only been a few short months since Dee last stood in front of the museum, but here she was. This time Dani was with her, but it still didn't help the nerves bubbling in her stomach.
“It will be fine. He's probably not even here.” Dani checked her makeup in the mirror. “Ready?”
“No.” Dee allowed her friend to pull her up the steps and into the museum.
Dani went straight to Carlie. “Braden finally got his cast off, I see.”
“Last week.” Carlie gave each of them a hug. “Congrats on graduating. How does it feel?”
“Amazing.” Dee sighed. “Now comes the fun part. I have to be a grownup and get a real job.”
Carlie laughed. “What happened to the job at the travel agency?”
Dee made a face. “They decided me going to England once wasn't enough experience. I swear it's a vicious cycle. You need experience to get a job, but you can't get experience without the job.”
“Sounds about right.” Carlie handed her a glass of champagne. “Any news from Ben?”
“Not for a while. We've texted back and forth, but he's been on some mission for the last month or so.” Dee frowned. “What I want to know is why you're not with him.”
Carlie rubbed her stomach and grinned. “I'll be grounded for a while.”
Dee squealed and threw her arms around Carlie. “Congratulations! When are you due?”
“Spring. Late April.”
“Sweet! We might just share a birthday.” Dani hugged her. “Where is Braden? I want to congratulate him too.”
Carlie shrugged. “I'm not sure. Oh, it looks like it's time for the presentation to start.”
They moved over to where the exhibit for the shipwreck stood. Carlie nudged Dee forward, and everyone clapped. One of the curators shoved a microphone in her hand, and Dee tried to hand it to Carlie.
“Nope, this is all you.” Carlie pointed to the sign in front of the emerald.
Dee's eyes widened. Deirdre Carlson was written in bold letters under the inscription. Her heart thumped wildly. That was her name. She searched the crowd, sure that this was a joke. It was true that she'd been the one to grab it, but it was Carlie's job. Dee was just there to help.
Ben stepped forward and took the microphone from her. He grinned at the crowd and put his arm around Dee, which was a good thing. She was just about to collapse.
“It seems as though we caught Deirdre by surprise.” He paused while the crowd laughed. “I had the opportunity to go on this mission with her, and let me tell you, she was amazing in the face of danger.” He leaned down and whispered, “Are you ready to talk yet?”
All Dee could do was shake her head. Carlie stood there with tears in her eyes as she grinned back at Dee, and Dani looked like she was doing everything possible not to jump up and down.
“Since Deirdre is new to this whole treasure finding thing, I decided now would be a good time to prepare her for her next mission. Who agrees with me?”
Dee clapped her hand to her mouth as the crowd went wild. Ben handed her some rope, a tablet, and some hiking shoes. “Thank you.”
“You're welcome.” He turned back to the crowd. “Do you think she needs anything else? Yes? Hmm. I know.”
Ben went down on one knee and pulled out a box. Dee's heart thumped as he pulled out a box. It was larger than a ring
box, so Dee breathed a little easier. Until he opened it. Inside was a small gun that was engraved with her name. A ring sat on the end of the gun—a large emerald in the shape of a heart. A gasp went through the crowd.
“Deirdre Carlson, will you be my partner and my wife?”
No one would have heard her answer anyway with all of the whistles and clapping, so she simply nodded and let him slip the ring onto her finger. He pulled her close and his lips met hers. Everyone disappeared, and she was back in the alley, excitement flooding over her. When they finally broke apart, she grinned.
“Please tell me you know what our next assignment is.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jaclyn is an Idaho farm girl who grew up loving to read. She developed a love for writing at a young age and published her first book in 2013. She met her husband, Steve, at BYU, and they have six happy, crazy children who encourage her to keep writing. After owning a bookstore and running away to have adventures in Australia, they settled back down in their home in Utah. Jaclyn now spends her days herding her kids to various activities and trying to remember what she was supposed to do next. Her books include the Silver Script Series and the upcoming Roping His Heart and Never Say Necklace. When she's not writing romance, she's chasing kids, playing games, and dreaming of running away to Ireland. You can learn more about Jaclyn at www.jaclynhardy.com
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MORE BOOKS BY JACLYN HARDY
Silver Script Novels
Ring of Truth
A Christmas Worth Billions
Fashioned for Love
Change in Harmony
Another Chance for Love
Love in Return
Waves of Hope
Love on the Run
Never Say Necklace
Emeralds are Forever
Cottonwood Ranch
Roping His Heart
Taming His Heart
