by Marta Perry
Cathy nodded, as if that actually made sense. The heavy rifle sagged a little. He reached toward the desk, groping with his good hand for anything he could throw.
“You must have been shocked when Adams said there was a second will,” Cathy said.
“I had the first one. But I couldn’t pretend to find it if there was a second one, so I had to stop you until I could get it and destroy it.” She raised the rifle again. “Now give it to me.”
“Fine, take it.” Cathy thrust the envelope toward her, then let it drop. It fluttered toward the floor.
Cathy bent as if to pick it up. His hand closed over the brass lamp and he threw with all his strength. Flora stumbled backward, tripping on the threshold, and he lunged at her, knocking the rifle away.
It fired, and he looked toward Cathy, his heart clutching, but she came toward them, shaking but in one piece. “I think you just shot Aunt Henny’s dartboard,” she said, and dropped to her knees next to him.
* * *
CATHY HURRIED BACK to the workroom after seeing Adams and Clayton off, with Clayton clutching the box Aunt Henny had left him in her will. Evidence of some malfeasance on his part? Well, if so, he was safe now. Bobby Jon hadn’t shown up for the reading of the will. In fact, no one had seen him on St. James since his mother’s arrest.
Nathan stood in front of the print, straightening it. He turned as she entered, giving her a smile that made her knees turn to water. “You know, I was never too crazy about this picture, but it’s growing on me. What do you think? Should we leave it here for good?”
She walked toward him slowly, not sure how to put what she wanted to say. “Just because Aunt Henny left the property to both of us, you don’t have to consult me about everything. It came from your family, so rightfully—”
“If you tell me that it belongs to me, I might just have to chase you up a tree again.”
“Well, I just meant that I might not be here to make decisions,” she said. “I’m out of a job, remember?”
“That makes two of us, but there’s no rush. Turning the land into a nature preserve, like Henny asked, is going to take some time. After that—well, we both know his law practice is getting beyond Adams. I’ll bet he’d be happy to have a bright young woman come on board as a partner.”
“Are you saying you want me to stay?” She’d made so many mistakes about people, including her own father, that she had to be sure she did it right this time.
As an answer, Nathan reached out and pulled her close against him. She went willingly, her doubts evaporating in the strength of his embrace. He kissed her until she had to cling to him to keep from falling, and then he leaned just far enough away to see her face.
“You know what’s the only thing that bothers me about this?” He grinned, all the marks of grief and pain gone from his face. “It’s exactly what Henny expected would happen. We’ve just proved her right again.”
* * * * *
ISBN-13: 9781488029356
Shattered Silence
Copyright © 2018 by Martha P. Johnson
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House of Secrets
Copyright © 2006 by Harlequin Books S.A.
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