by Karen Kelley
“Then I won’t get caught.”
Something in the way his words came out made her pause. It was almost as if he was talking about something else. She closed her eyes and took a calming breath. Of course he didn’t rob the bank. The idea was preposterous.
“So what happened last night?” he asked.
She’d lost the thread of his conversation and had no idea what he was talking about. “Nothing happened. Why?”
“Right before I came outside you said something about not wanting to talk about last night.” He glanced around. “Was Dillon here?”
“Yes.”
He smiled.
“I mean no,” she quickly amended.
He frowned. “Well, which is it, girl? Either he was here or he wasn’t.”
She was so bad at lying. “He was here,” she finally admitted.
“We’re trying to find the men who robbed the bank.”
“Good, then he’s watching over you.”
She silently pleaded for him not to ask any more questions.
“I have breakfast on the table,” Tilly said as she stepped to the screen door, wiping her hands on the red apron tied to her ample waist. “Come eat before it gets cold.”
Did neither one of them realize she and Grandpa were suspects in a bank robbery? They acted like today was just another day. Raine’s head was starting to pound as she walked back inside.
An aspirin would be nice. Did she have any downstairs?
“By the way, there’s leftover roasted hen in the refrigerator,” Tilly said as they took a seat at the table. “I hope you don’t mind but I stole a tiny bite.” She closed her eyes for a moment as though she savored the taste again. “Absolutely heavenly. I know you don’t cook any better than Sock, no offense, and there’s not a restaurant nearby that has a cook who could have roasted a hen that would taste that good. Where did you get it, dear?”
Raine looked at Tilly, then Grandpa, then back at Tilly. She was right. Dillon created more problems than he solved. Now what was she supposed to say?
“It was Dillon,” Grandpa finally spoke for her.
Tilly’s eyebrows drew together and her eyes turned sad. “Your angel?” She reached over and patted his hand as though she could take away his fanciful ideas.
Grandpa nodded. “The one I prayed for.”
Tilly sniffed.
Grandpa shook his head. “I promise I’m not losing my mind, woman.”
“Of course you’re not, dear.”
Raine silently watched the exchange between them. Everything was tumbling down around her and there wasn’t anything she could do to stop it.
Grandpa finally turned toward her and said, “You tell her I’m as sane as you are.”
Maybe they would have cells next to each other. They could play cards all day long. Go Fish or Old Maid. Something simple.
Dillon suddenly appeared, sitting at the opposite end of the table from Raine.
“About time you showed yourself,” Grandpa scolded.
Raine didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “Tilly can’t see him, Grandpa.”
“That’s the craziest thing I’ve ever heard. Of course she can see him. He’s sitting right there. You need your eyes checked?”
“Excuse me,” Tilly said. “Who are you?”
Raine drew in a sharp breath and choked. Her eyes watered and everything blurred, but she could still see Dillon at the end of the table. What was he doing here? And why could Tilly see him?
“That’s the angel I’ve been telling you about,” Grandpa explained.
Tilly chuckled. “Of course he’s not an angel. Stop ribbing an old woman.”
Dillon closed his eyes and disappeared. A second later he reappeared in the chair beside Tilly. “I’m Dillon. The angel.”
He smiled.
Tilly looked at the end of the table where Dillon had been sitting, then where he was sitting now. “Oh, you weren’t lying,” she mumbled right before her eyes rolled to the back of her head.
Dillon caught her before she tumbled out of her chair.
“Great, you’ve killed her,” Raine said as she hurried to
Tilly’s side.
“Tilly!” Grandpa pushed out of his chair.
“She’s not dead. I just startled her,” Dillon said.
“Carry her to the sofa.” Good Lord, what else was going to happen? No, she didn’t want to know. As Dillon laid Tilly on the sofa, her eyes fluttered open. Raine breathed a sigh of relief. Tilly had been awfully still, and she didn’t know if she trusted Dillon’s medical savvy. She supposed he would know if someone died or not, though. He might see their soul rise or something.
Tilly’s eyes narrowed as she studied Dillon. “Are you really an angel?”
Dillon’s smile was kind. “Yes.”
She squeezed his arm. “You feel like a real man.”
Grandpa cleared his throat a little too loudly. Tilly frowned when she looked his way. “I wanted to be sure.” Her gaze returned to Dillon.
“I’m a nephilim, to be exact,” he started to explain.
“I told you about that already,” Grandpa interrupted. “He’s part angel ’cause that’s what his daddy was, but his momma was mortal so the other half is man.”
“Yes, I remember now.” She smiled like an infatuated teenager.
Raine looked between Grandpa and Tilly. He was in love with her. Did he realize it? The pieces of the puzzle began to fall in place. She remembered the salesman that rented one of Tilly’s rooms. Grandpa had been really ticked about that and left the B&B and returned to the ranch. The next morning Dillon was there to warn Raine about the bank robbery.
“Isn’t breakfast getting cold?” Grandpa snarled and stomped back to the kitchen.
Tilly winked at Raine. “I love it when he’s jealous. Makes me feel young again.” She quickly sat up. “But he’s right. My casserole is getting cold.”
Tilly acted as though she met angels every day. Raine’s world was crumbling around her and no one seemed overly concerned.
“You brought the roasted hen.” Tilly took the hand Dillon offered and let him assist her to stand. Before he could answer, she continued. “I knew it wasn’t prepared around here. No one can cook that wonderfully. I took a small bite. Absolutely divine. Was it made by angels?”
“Mama Paula’s. A little place in the middle of nowhere. Best home cooking you’ll ever eat.”
Raine followed behind them, shaking her head. Anyone would think Tilly and Dillon had known each other forever, the way they acted.
“You’re not even going to question that he’s an angel?” Raine asked as they sat back down at the table.
“Not when I can see him with my own eyes, dear.”
“But we could all be lying.”
“You forget I saw him move from the end of the table to the chair beside me.”
“I thought you were supposed to be helping my granddaughter, not making more problems.” Grandpa set his elbows on the table and glared at Dillon. For the first time since he spoke about the angel, Grandpa didn’t look quite as happy to have him in their lives.
“Sock, mind your manners. We’re entertaining an angel.”
“Half angel,” he groused. “And he’s the reason we’re in this fix. They think we robbed the bank.”
“Well of course you didn’t,” Tilly scoffed. “Soon everyone will see the truth.” Tilly must’ve seen Raine cringe. “Is something the matter?”
“They might think you were involved, too.”
Tilly chuckled. “That’s priceless.” Her voice tinkled like tiny wind chimes moving in the breeze. As suddenly as her humor appeared, it disappeared. “You’re serious.”
“We’ll find the real bank robbers,” Dillon reassured her.
Tilly turned slightly in her chair to cast a doubtful eye in his direction. Raine watched as her anger slowly rose to the surface.
“You’re damn right you’ll find them. I do not plan to spend my golden years in a jail
cell.” She sat a little straighter. “Those orange jumpsuits do nothing for my figure.”
“I like your figure,” Grandpa said with a wink.
“Hush, Sock!” she whispered, then dabbed at the corner of her mouth with her linen napkin, her cheeks turning rosy. “Here, eat some of my casserole before it does get cold. I don’t like that you haven’t been eating as well since this whole mess began.”
“I’ve gained five pounds,” he said.
“You could stand to gain a little more.”
“See how bossy she is?” Grandpa was smiling when he looked across the table. Just as quickly, he cleared his throat. “Now, what are we going to do about catching these bank robbers?”
“Nothing,” Raine quickly told him. “You’re going to let me
handle this.” The last thing she needed was Grandpa’s help.
“Well, I can certainly assist in some way. I have friends who will help, too.” Raine groaned.
Tilly frowned. “I wouldn’t tell them how they’d be helping me, and I’m just offering. It’s not as though I’d actually be chasing down the bank robbers. Goodness me, I’m not sure I would even be able to fire a gun.”
“Gun!” Raine exploded. “I don’t want you to go near any guns.”
Tilly jumped. Grandpa’s chair wobbled, then righted itself.
Dillon gave her a warning look. What the hell was she supposed to do? Tell Tilly she could borrow one of hers? She raised her hands in supplication.
“I was trying to help,” Tilly said in a small voice.
“We know,” Dillon quickly reassured her. “You frightened Raine when you mentioned guns.”
“I merely pointed out the fact I’m not familiar with the workings of a firearm, not that I have any intention of using one.” Tilly raised her chin and pursed her lips.
Raine wanted to crawl beneath the table. “I’m sorry,” she apologized. She would never do anything to offend the older woman.
Tilly had always been a friend and she didn’t mean to hurt her feelings. “You scared me. I’d feel responsible if you were hurt.”
“I spoke up because I thought you might need assistance in some other way. Looking up records or some such thing. I’m certainly not in law enforcement and never claimed to be.”
“I know, Tilly.” Raine finally looked to Dillon for help as much as she hated having him step in and fix everything. It seemed she was depending on him to do that a lot lately.
“Of course Raine meant nothing by her words except to express her concern for your safety,” Dillon said.
“She has a funny way of showing it.” Tilly spoke to Dillon as though Raine and Grandpa weren’t in the room. “It’s not good to scare an old woman. Our bodies don’t function as well as they used to.”
“I understand,” Dillon said.
“I understand more.” Grandpa frowned.
Tilly preened, enjoying the attention from both men. “All is forgiven. Now, everyone dig in, then we’ll all put our heads together and decide how to catch these hoodlums.”
“Good idea,” Dillon agreed.
“Who’s at the top on your list of suspects?” Grandpa asked.
“No one— ”
“Ethan and Leo,” Dillon supplied. Throughout the meal, the three carried on a lively conversation about how the men could be caught.
This was his idea of smoothing things over? He hadn’t helped.
Dillon made things worse. Now Tilly and Grandpa were going to be pulled into the thick of everything. The last thing she wanted was to involve them. Apparently it wasn’t up to her. She was the only one in the room that had any idea how to catch the bank robbers and no one seemed to care.
Half an hour later the casserole dish was scraped clean. Dillon ate as though he hadn’t had a decent meal in… eons, and insisted on carrying some of the dishes to the kitchen. Raine grabbed hers and Grandpa’s plates and silverware, following right behind him.
As soon as she had him alone, she dropped the dishes on the counter with a loud clatter.
“Why are you encouraging them?”
“What do you mean?” he asked, looking completely dumbfounded.
“You’re joking, right? You really want Grandpa and Tilly helping us find the bank robbers?”
“It will keep their minds occupied. This is the most excitement they’ve had since they dog-napped Lady.”
She drew in a deep breath as she took a step backward. “He did steal the dog and now he’s dragging Tilly into a life of crime.”
His forehead wrinkled. “I thought you knew about the dog.”
“Not positively, and not that Tilly helped. Dammit, Grandpa said he wouldn’t kidnap another animal. But getting Tilly involved is irresponsible.”
“I think he calls it rescuing them. She’s the one who encouraged him.” He was thoughtful for a moment. “He’s right, you know. About it being more a rescue mission than actually stealing the animal. Sock has a good heart. He doesn’t like to see an animal abused. If he hadn’t helped, Lady’s paw would’ve got infected.
She might have lost her leg.”
“Okay, okay.” She held up her hands. “I get the picture.” She didn’t want the dog to suffer, but Grandpa needed to go through the proper authorities. He was breaking the law. “I don’t like the idea that they’re both criminals.” She didn’t think he could handle going to court again. What if it caused him to have a heart attack? Like being accused of robbing a bank wouldn’t.
Dillon came up to her and wrapped her in his arms. She immediately felt safe and secure, as though no harm would come to her as long as he was nearby. She indulged in this feeling for a moment before stepping out of his arms.
“I don’t want either one of them getting hurt, Dillon,” she warned.
“I’ll watch over them.”
“That’s what I’m afraid of,” she mumbled.
Raine went into the other room. She wanted to explain to Grandpa he couldn’t go around stealing animals. As soon as she walked inside the dining room, Grandpa and Tilly looked up, guilty expressions on both their faces. What had they been plotting?
Grandpa cleared his throat. “You never did tell me what you were doing last night.”
Raine stumbled. “What?”
“When I was about to step out to the back porch this morning, you said that you didn’t want to talk about last night. What happened?”
Dillon came in behind her. He was grinning. Grinning? Really? Her mouth turned down. The man half of him would be no help whatsoever. Typical.
“Go ahead and tell them,” Dillon said.
He not only wouldn’t be any help, he was going to throw her under the train as well. She was so going to kill him. Except she couldn’t. He was going to be in a world of hurt when she got through with him, though.
“Yes, tell us.” Tilly smiled. “It would be nice to have a bit of fun news for a change.”
“I…I…I…” Raine implored Dillon with her eyes to please stop helping her.
Chapter 18
Dillon knew he better let Raine off the hook or she would make him pay dearly. It was kind of nice she turned to him for help. He glanced between Tilly and Sock. They made a nice couple.
“I took Raine out. I thought she could use a night away,” he told them.
Raine made a gurgling noise.
“A date with an angel?” Sock’s expression was skeptical.
“I didn’t know angels dated,” Tilly said, smiling. “How interesting.”
“It wasn’t a date,” Raine interjected. “We went…uh…”
“To a friend’s house,” Dillon finished.
“They were friendly,” Raine blurted.
Sock’s eyebrows veed. “Then why didn’t you want to talk about it?”
“It’s not that I didn’t want to talk about meeting them.”
Raine stumbled over her words. “I wanted to work on finding the bank robbers.”
“I thought she needed to get away from the ranch for a whil
e,” Dillon said. “Take a breather. Then she might be able to concentrate better.”
“It looks as though your plan worked.” Tilly’s gaze meandered over Raine. “At least you’re not wearing those grungy pants that are way too big. What you’re wearing now will turn a man’s head.”
Raine’s shoulders relaxed.
“Or an angel’s,” Tilly added with a mischievous smile.
Raine cast a look in Dillon’s direction that had him quickly looking the other way. Yeah, she was probably going to make him pay, but she needed to loosen up. She took life way too seriously. And another thing that bothered him: he didn’t see the problem in involving Tilly and Sock. Elderly people needed adventure in their lives, and this was a big one for them. He liked the couple. Raine didn’t look too happy by the time they left, though.
“Don’t worry,” he told her. “They won’t get hurt, and they might surprise you with the information they dig up.”
“You showed yourself to Tilly and now she’s investigating the robbery.” She closed the door a little harder than necessary and marched past him. “What part of I don’t want them involved did you not understand?”
She jumped when she entered the kitchen and he was leaning against the counter. He probably shouldn’t pop in and out like that. It always seemed to bother people, especially mortals. She didn’t say anything but her expression turned grim.
“She’s only going to ask a couple of people she knows if Ethan and Leo might have increased their income. She said she has a friend who works at the bank.”
“Do you really think they’ll redeposit money they stole? They’re not that stupid.”
“All at once?” He shook his head. “No, I don’t think so, but checking on Ethan and Leo will make Tilly and Sock feel as though they haven’t been put out to pasture, and your grandfather will keep Tilly safe.”
“I don’t know.” She nibbled her bottom lip.
Dillon could see she wavered. “What will it hurt?”
“I still owe you for bringing up last night.”
He closed the distance between them. “Last night was my pleasure. I’m glad you enjoyed yourself.”
