Her Best Friend's Keeper (Finley Creek Book 1)

by Calle J. Brookes

  “I should go. Downstairs. Get started. I can’t keep you too long. I’m sure you—”

  “Gab, honey…take a breath.” Had she always just kept going whenever she had a conversation? Or was it something he’d done? She’d just been his baby sister’s little friend, and he’d barely paid two teenage girls any attention. But he definitely knew she’d never chattered at him like this. Or was it something else? Was Gabby aware of him not as Sara’s brother anymore, but as a man? The way, heaven help him, he was aware of her as a woman now?

  He took a quick moment to study her. She didn’t dress flashy, but the pale green sweater and light slacks made it clear that she was an attractive female. The eyes were gorgeous. Too bad she hid them behind the plastic-frame glasses. Her hair was long and pale and she’d left it down today. It fell almost to her waist in golden waves that shown in the light. Made his fingers itch to touch.

  She was a beautiful woman, wasn’t she? Not a little girl anymore. His body stirred in a way it hadn’t in a very long time. “Thank you, Gabby.”

  “Well, I should let you go. Let me know if you want copies of your mom’s cookbook. I’ve had the original since…well…My stepfather—he brought it to me. Sara and I…well…we were helping your mom with it. She was writing one for young women just out on their own. She wanted us to test the recipes for her. She taught me how to cook; did you know that?”

  “I hadn’t realized.”

  “My mom was working a lot, and I spent a lot of time with yours. She was always happy to have Sara and me around when she was cooking.”

  There was something in her eyes, a shared moment of grief perhaps, that had him setting the pizza aside and wrapping his hand around her much smaller one. Small, warm, soft. His hand nearly swallowed hers. He’d always been partial to soft, feminine skin just like hers. Partial to delicate blondes, with large blue eyes and soft, pretty mouths.

  Elliot clamped down on the urge to pull her closer and see if the lips were as soft as he imagined. He stepped back before he did just that.

  “She loved having people there. Loved kids running in and out. I had quite a few friends who’d show up even when I wasn’t home. Most of the time I found her in the kitchen with them, making cookies or brownies.”

  “She made absolutely perfect brownies. I still use that recipe, but I’ve never managed them exactly the same way she did.” Big blue eyes turned serious. Fearful and sad. “Do you think they’ll ever find the killers? Honestly? Ever learn the truth?”

  He let go of her hand and before he thought it through, he was running his fingers up her arm to the edge of her sweater. Her skin was the softest thing he’d ever touched. “I’ll never stop looking. And Chance…”

  “He calls sometimes. Asks me a bunch of questions that do nothing but confuse me for days and then he hangs up. I wish I could help him more.”

  “My brother has let the search consume his entire life. I was almost that way. But when I was injured a few months ago I had time to think. I will still look, but I can’t let it consume the rest of my life. Not anymore.” For the first time he put into words what he’d been feeling for a while.

  “No. Your mom and dad would not have wanted that at all. They loved you all so much. And each other. I’ve never seen two people who loved each other more.” She shook her head, sending blonde hair floating on the air around him. He got just a small hint of her shampoo. Flowers. Woman. Gabby. His gut tightened, over something so simple.

  Attraction; it was there, wasn’t it? Undeniable. But did she feel it, too? Something about her drew him, and it wasn’t just her connection to his past that did it. It was her.

  Whenever he’d met a woman that he could be interested in he’d wondered if she would be the one he’d love just the way his father had loved his mother. Until ten years ago, and he’d made the decision that he’d never be with a woman that way. That deeply.

  He’d watched the video from the night his family was murdered.

  This woman had recorded it. Had watched it in real time, knowing she would never be able to help them. He’d watched it after it was already done. He’d known the opportunity to help would never have been there, anyway.

  Elliot would never forget how his father had looked in the moment his mother had been killed in front of him. The devastation on his father’s face haunted him in his dreams still. He’d never looked at a woman with that much love or pain in his entire life.

  Never would.

  “No. Me, either. I don’t think I ever will.”

  ***

  WHY did she find that so sad? He suddenly seemed so alone…She’d heard through the rumor mill that he’d spent some time in the Gulf area, working for one of the TSP posts there. She’d thought it was the Garrity post, one of the smaller ones in the system. Did he have friends there? People who cared about him? Did he still have friends in Finley Creek?

  Why did the idea of him being so alone bother her so much? “You’re welcome to come over tonight and take a look at the others I have. Or I can make copies. I’d be happy to cook dinner or something.”

  What was she doing?

  She really hadn’t just invited her new boss over to her apartment, had she? Gabby had a very short list of people she’d let in her personal space. Brynna, Jarrod, Mel. Her mother and Art and the kids, plus her step-sister whenever Lizzy was in town.

  But Elliot Marshall. That was just crazy.

  Wasn’t it?

  “I mean…since we’ve known each other for years, and such. As a welcome back dinner or something. It’s ok if you say no.” Please say no, please say no, please say no…She didn’t want Elliot in her home, big and male and overwhelming like he was. But once the words were out there it wasn’t like she could take them back, was it?

  He stared at her for a long time, then smiled at her. A real smile, one that reached his eyes. “I…I would like that. I’ve not had some of my mother’s brownies in too damn long.”

  Oh, crud. “Well…I work until five. Would seven work for you?”

  “That would be perfect.”

  She settled more details, like the code needed to get past the security guard in the lobby of her building, then practically ran from his office.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN.

  ***

  BRYNNA was just getting settled in when Gabby flew through the door. “You’re bright pink, Gabby. What did you do?”

  “I think I asked the new chief on a date. I think. I’m not sure. It might not be. I don’t even remember the last time I went on a date. What is a date, anyway?” Gabby practically squeaked as she paced around the small area that housed the main computers they worked with daily.

  Brynna sat her pen down carefully and pushed her notebook away, before turning to face her more fully. “A date? A romantic event between two interested people? That kind of date? Or the ‘let’s set the time to remind us to get together for a specific purpose’ kind of date?”

  Gabby stopped pacing and looked at Brynna for a long moment. Brynna just looked back. Her friend still had her sunglasses on her face. She remained calm and relaxed as she waited for Gabby’s answer. Did anything make her friend lose her cool? “A date date. The kind I am too embarrassed to think about. But it wasn’t like that. I swear.”

  “Well, then how was it?”

  Gabby checked the clock quickly. They had maybe five minutes before they had to clock in and get assignments from Benny. Their supervisor was already visible in the open door of his office.

  “It was ‘I found pictures of your family, would you like to come over and look at them?’ followed by ‘I can cook you some of your mother’s brownies if you’d like to come for dinner.’ Come to think of it, that doesn’t sound so bad, does it?” Maybe it wasn’t. Maybe they could just laugh, talk about the people they’d both loved, then that would be the end of it? Nothing more complicated than what she’d shared with Brynna and Mel the night before. Then she could stay in the annex with her computer and he could go around ruling the F
inley Creek TSP empire. No more thoughts of how beautiful he’d looked in his dress greens this morning.

  Yeah, that would work. One dinner and then she’d stay far, far away from him.

  As soon as that stray idea hit her she felt like a complete jerk. Like a hard-hearted, uncaring bitch. Not like the woman her mother—and Elliot’s—had raised her to be.

  Sara’s face flashed in her mind and Gabby remembered how the other girl had idolized her two oldest brothers. How she would have wanted Gabby to…to…to make a little effort where her big brother was concerned.

  Yeah. Sara would have been the first one to jump in and make someone feel welcome. As would Sara’s mother. They’d always had room in their hearts and lives for Gabby.

  She owed it to them. They definitely wouldn’t want Elliot to be so alone. And he’d been gone from Finley Creek for more than ten years; how close of connections could the guy have?

  Still, it was a big air-gulping moment, wasn’t it?

  Then again, maybe—like always—she was freaking out over nothing? Maybe this was just an opportunity to make another connection, another friend in the world? Why was she making such a big deal over it?

  She somehow doubted he was going to gobble her up whole, or anything like that. It would be dinner and talking and memories and that was it. Perfectly normal and not freak-out-able. Seriously.

  One day Gabby would have to get a grip on herself, wouldn’t she?

  “That doesn’t sound too crazy to me. Who knows, maybe the guy would like a friend? He’s been away from here for a really, really long time, hasn’t he? And his brother is out there somewhere, right? I remember them. We stayed with Chief Marshall and his wife when my mom was having one of her surgeries. And lots of other times. They were nice to us.”

  Gabby understood. Brynna’s mother had died from cancer several years ago and had been sick off and on for years before that; her father had been TSP for thirty years. He’d retired just as Gabby had hired in. He was another who’d made room for her in his family, somehow. Just because of her connection to Brynna and Mel.

  She impulsively hugged her friend. “I love you. I don’t say it enough because it feels weird, but I do. You and Mel and Jarrod and all of your family, too. I’d be completely nuts without you all.”

  “And we love you. But we should probably get to work. The Quincy case is pressing.” A strict schedule, that was Brynna’s way. Gabby, not so much, but she adapted because it mattered to her friend. “And it’s 9:31.”

  “Yes, it is.” A triple homicide that had started as a home invasion. She’d gotten ill just looking at the images stored on the suspect’s smartphone.

  Home invasions scared her more than any other case they dealt with. Benny was good about keeping her off those kinds of cases, but sometimes it was unavoidable.

  Still, Gabby gave them the best she possibly could. She was a professional and she prided herself on that. No matter how raw some of their cases left her feeling.

  She was finally learning to just deal with things. Finally.

  Just possibly, she’d be able to deal with Elliot Marshall, Junior, somehow, too.

  CHAPTER TWELVE.

  ***

  ANY day that started off with homemade pizza couldn’t be a bad one, could it? At least, that’s what Benny thought when he found the little note and container from one of his favorite girls in the middle of his desk.

  Gabby was a real sweetheart and he loved working with her and Brynna every single day. The two of them were good girls, just like his own three daughters, just as pretty, just as sweet, smart and kind. Benny’s daughters were slightly younger than the two techs currently going through their pre-shift routine. No one messed with Gabby and Brynna’s routine—at least not without consequences.

  Benny had learned to adjust. They were talking about something, overanalyzing like they always did. He smiled. How many times had he sat in the living room of his house listening to his own trio of girls jabbering in much the same way?

  His sons were older and if he had his way, they’d be meeting Gabby and Brynna as soon as he could get the two girls out of the lab and into the real world somehow. His wife wanted grandchildren. These two would suit his boys nicely.

  But Brynna and Gabby were remarkably unsocial at times.

  He opened his office door to listen to them. He always got a kick out of their conversations. Between the two of them, their discussions went in some extremely unique directions.

  Today’s topic was the chief.

  Benny’s good mood evaporated almost immediately.

  Marshall being back certainly complicated things for him. Made him feel on edge in a way he hadn’t for years.

  He listened to the girls, trying to figure out what was going on.

  Benny didn’t like the idea of Gabby getting with Marshall. Talking. Discussing the past.

  Bringing up things that should be left alone and buried.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN.

  ***

  THE day went quickly and he wondered if it was the fact that once he got the lay of the land, so to speak, every TSP post was similar or if it had more to do with Gabby. He couldn’t get her out of his head.

  He hadn’t been able to help himself; once he’d taken a peek in the plastic container and realized it was his mother’s specialty pizza inside he’d had to head down to the breakroom and warm it up. The pizza had been perfect and it had brought back good memories as well as the painful ones. Good ones that made him look forward to going through that final project of his mother’s with the one person besides his brother who would understand what it meant.

  It took him only a few moments to realize that it would most likely be just the two of them alone in her apartment. Laughing, looking at the good parts of the past. Sitting side by side. Close enough to touch. To watch her eyes darken when she looked up at him. When he leaned closer, brushed his lips against hers. He could lower her to the couch and…

  He wasn’t entirely certain how he felt about that. On one hand he found her beautiful and intriguing, sexy in a lot of ways. On the other he found her far too alluring for his own comfort. Nothing would ever come of it and it was probably best to just stay as far from her as he could.

  A woman like Gabby Kendall could confuse a man faster than anything. Could make him want things Elliot knew he couldn’t have.

  One dinner, then he’d stay far away from her. And he would make sure to keep his hands to himself.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN.

  ***

  BENNY knew the threat the past meant to him. And he’d always been afraid something like this would come. It was why he had convinced the head of the IT department to transfer him the youngest, most inexperienced technician to Benny’s department four years ago. Why he’d wanted Gabby where he could watch over her. Why he’d pulled her to day shift ahead of several other computer forensic technicians who had more seniority. He’d wanted her close.

  He’d just gotten too complacent over the last four years where she was concerned. He’d brooded about the Marshall Murders and Gabby’s place in that crime all day. Worked himself up into a state of confusion and resignation.

  If Gabby and Elliot Marshall started digging into the past, one of the mole holes they’d end up in would be his. He had no doubt about that. Benny had too much going on with his life to lose now. He couldn’t let Gabby ruin what he’d built. But how was he to protect himself, his family, and her.

  He cared about the two young women in his department—probably more than he did quite a few people with the TSP. But that didn’t mean Benny didn’t know the threat Gabby posed toward him.

  All it took was her making a few simple connections, and everything he had would be lost. He didn’t ever want to see a look of horror or disappointment in Nora and his children’s eyes like had been there when his half-brother had been arrested all those years ago.

  He wanted to be the hero for them that they had always thought that he was. Not some murdering bastard wh
o killed little girls.

  Little girls he’d known from the day they were born.

  He’d never forgotten Sara or Slade Marshall. Those two kids sat on his shoulders and squeezed his heart almost every night. But he’d had no choice, and he’d accepted that long ago.

  He had made his peace with what had happened and moved on. Learned from it.

  Learned to watch his back better than he had.

  He should have stayed away that night.

  Gabby looked over and smiled at him. Such a beautiful, sweet-souled girl.

  He’d been the one to look through Sara Marshall’s webcam ten years ago and see her best friend. He’d recognized the girl. He and Elliot, Sr. had taken Sara and her best friend Gabby fishing six months before the murders. He’d found her charming, if a bit flighty back then. Harmless.

  It had been Benny who had convinced the others to leave Gabby alone, that she probably wouldn’t ever be able to identify them through the grainy webcam video anyway.

  Because computers were his life—and because his own ass was just as much on the line as theirs, they had believed him.

  When she’d applied to the TSP as a file clerk, he’d acted as a reference. When she’d wanted to transfer to his department, he’d welcomed her. Made it a cozy little haven for her. She was highly skilled at what she did, and the department benefited from having her, he couldn’t deny that.

  And what’s more, he genuinely liked her.

  He’d known Brynna her whole life, too. He’d been aggressive in getting her to his department three years earlier. Someone with her talent and skill was an asset any department would gladly possess.