Cat wore an expression of pure astonishment as she watched Marian work. Jay’s smile stretched to a grin. He knew exactly what she was thinking—how was it possible for someone to move their hands so fast they actually blurred?
“Meet Marian Cohen née Ball,” he whispered against her ear.
Cat’s smile faltered. “She looks like the mother every kid dreams of.”
Jay frowned. She sounded so wistful. The impression he got of the adult Cat was all work and very little play but the hunger in her gaze as she watched Marian had nothing to do with work. She looked envious. No. Sad. Wanting.
“Hey, you okay?”
“I’m fine.” The skin at her throat shifted. “She looks friendly enough.”
“She is. Sometimes.” He shifted his gaze from the top of Cat’s head to Marian. “I suppose seeing Marian is a shock for someone who has the mother all the Templeton teenage boys grew up fantasizing about...even if, personally, I was more into the daughter.”
“Yeah, well, that was then, this is now. Things change but Marian looks like the type who would stay...I don’t know, constant.”
He had expected a quick comeback to his teasing, looked forward to the normal, sharp-tongued Cat Forrester response. This reaction was new. Something wasn’t right and he was sure that something was connected to Marian’s motherly appearance.
She met his eyes. “Did Marian know Sarah, too?”
Jay studied her for a moment longer before facing Marian. “Not like George did, but Sarah came in here as much as everyone else in the Cove.”
“They liked each other?”
“Sure.”
Her jaw tightened as her stare remained fixed on Marian. Jay followed her gaze. Cat was right. Marian epitomized motherhood. With her steel-gray hair caught up in a net, her ample bosom encased in a floral blouse, flour and vanilla frosting spattered across a once-white apron, she could be every kid’s favorite cartoon mum. He glanced at Cat. Why would that put such a look of longing on Cat’s face? Julia Forrester idolized her kids, always had.
“Well, good morning, Jay.”
Marian’s voice broke through the raucous noise of the happy customers. Jay turned. Marian’s miss-nothing gaze shot from him to Cat—and lingered. After a long...long moment, she tipped Cat a wink before turning back to the ovens.
Jay smiled. “See? She likes you already.”
“Yeah, and she just managed to make me feel more noticed than my mother has in years. Now, what about that coffee and muffin you promised me?”
She walked across the white tiled floor and slipped into a booth by the window, turning her face away from him and Marian to look outside. Jay frowned. What just happened? He remembered Julia openly saying to anyone who would listen that Cat and Chris were the center of her universe—well, after Cat’s father, of course.
Now Paul Forrester was dead....
Was it grief for her father putting that look on Cat’s face? Jay berated himself for going on about his dad and not once acknowledging and commiserating with Cat for the horrific way she lost hers the autumn after her last holiday at the Cove. Julia never accepted any of the ensuing invites to come back to the Cove the following three summers. By year four, Jay was missing in action and the families drifted apart.
“I am such a selfish bastard,” he muttered.
“Yep, that’s simply the way some people are born.”
He snapped his head round. Marian grinned at him from behind the counter, her brown eyes shining with undisguised mischief.
“Do you mind?” He closed the few feet between them in four easy strides. “I was having a private conversation with myself.”
She gave an inelegant sniff. “Well, I suppose it’s better than being lonely.” Her gaze left his and moved to Cat. “Who’s the girl? She’s a looker.”
Jay’s heart kicked. He couldn’t agree more. But he wouldn’t give Marian the satisfaction of telling her that—at least, not until he knew what Cat had going on with Julia. He still loved her, but it was based on so much more than a burning attraction. It was based on experience, trust and the simple companionship between them.
He just hoped to God she trusted him as he trusted her and would tell him what was going on back home. He thought his confession about his drug addiction and estrangement from Sarah had slammed the door on any hope of Cat still wanting him, yet every now and then her eyes betrayed something deeper. Something that brought joy to his heart and gave him hope.
“Hey, dreamy-eyed boy. I asked you a question.”
Jay started and dipped his head to meet Marian’s unwavering gaze. At five foot two, it went against human nature just how intimidating Marian could be. Her deep brown eyes should reflect the softness of her homely figure, but when she wanted answers, Marian’s stare belonged in a prison cell eyeing up her roommate.
“She’s a friend.” Jay folded his arms.
“Friend, my backside. Complete rubbish.” She walked around the counter, wiping her floury hands on her apron. Once she stood in front of him, she opened her arms and Jay wrapped his around her. “Do you know something?”
Jay pulled back and held her hands at arm’s length. “What?”
She stared at Cat. “I predict that girl’s going to knock you right into shape, Jay Garrett.”
He darted an anxious glance toward Cat who was now busy pretending to read the menu as if it was the spiritual guide to eternal peace rather than a list of buns, brownies and beverages.
“Look, do me a favor and let her get settled in before you start with any matchmaking. She only arrived a couple of days ago.”
“So? Love is love. Sex is sex. You’re a fool if you wait around and let someone else swoop in to take that beautiful girl away.”
She might as well have punched him in the gut. The wind left his lungs in a rush. “No one is going to swoop in—”
She grinned. “Got you worried now, haven’t I? So this is the girl George hasn’t stopped talking about?”
Jay smiled. “Yep.”
“George loves the bones of her. Says she’s everything to him.” She cocked her eyebrow. “Maybe you should stop working 24/7 and concentrate on things a bit more personal.”
“I couldn’t agree more. I have stopped. Sarah’s death woke me up.”
Her smile slipped and her eyes turned glassy. “Well, that’s good to hear. Life’s too short. No one could have predicted that poor girl was in so much trouble. If only I’d known...” Her voice cracked and she quickly tilted her head in Cat’s direction. “You going to introduce me to this young lady, or not?”
“If you promise to behave.” He took Marian’s hand and squeezed. “I wasn’t lying when I said she’s not my girlfriend. Cat’s here in a professional capacity so don’t be surprised if she has a few questions for you.”
“What sort of professional capacity?”
“She’s a detective. She’s going to help me find Sarah’s killer.”
Marian stared at him, her brown eyes wide. “A detective? From out of Templeton? This murder must be messier than we thought if the police are bringing in outside help.”
Jay sighed. “They didn’t. I did.”
“You? Why?”
“Because I had to do something to prove my innocence, that’s why.”
She frowned. “They still think you’ve got something to do with this? Even after they questioned you?”
Jay shrugged and exhaled a long breath. “I don’t know. I haven�
��t heard anything from them since, but there was something about the way one of the cops looked at me...like he didn’t believe a word I said.”
She rubbed her hand up and down his arm. “Hey, I believe you. You’d never hurt that girl, not ever.”
Jay gave a halfhearted smile. “Maybe you do, but I went through this town on a mission for drugs and little else. Lots of people wouldn’t put murder past a guy like that. You know it, the police know it and—” he looked at Cat “—others are most likely thinking it. I’ve got a horrible feeling the police aren’t going to get to the bottom of this for a long time. That isn’t good enough. Sarah was a special lady who deserves the best. That’s exactly what Cat is.”
“The best, huh?”
He turned. “The best. She’s a friend from way back. Her family came here every summer and the three of us hung out together all summer long. She’s...”
“I see. And now you’re grown-up playmates.” Marian winked.
“Will you stop?”
Marian turned to study Cat, her eyes narrowed. “A detective. Well, now I’m more intrigued than ever.” She walked toward her.
Jay uttered a curse before following, managing to reach the booth in synch with a now-beaming Marian. He held out his hand. “Cat Forrester, please meet the lovely, if incredibly pushy, Marian Cohen, baker and cake-maker extraordinaire.”
When Cat lifted her head from the menu, her smile was in place, but it didn’t light her eyes the way it usually did. Her gaze screamed an unexpected insecurity that completely threw Jay off. Whatever Cat meant by referring to Julia earlier, Marian was the catalyst to the new emotion storming in her green gaze now.
“Nice to meet you, Marian.” She held out her hand.
Marian brushed the offered hand aside and gestured for Cat to stand. “Come out of that booth, young lady. A handshake is not the way for me to meet one of Jay’s new friends.”
Cat’s gaze darted to Jay’s to Marian’s and back again as she slid out of the booth. The moment she was out of the booth, Marian enveloped her in a bear hug. Jay grimaced. Cat stood ramrod straight in Marian’s arms, her eyes closed.
Jay’s mind whirled with questions of what she thought and felt in that moment. Another second or two passed before Marian released her.
“So.” Marian gripped Cat’s shoulders. “Jay says you’re a detective. But knowing him, he’s just saying that because he doesn’t want me to know you two are courting so I won’t tell you what he’s really like.”
He cleared his throat. “Well, there will be plenty of time for that another day. Right now, we’re in and out of here. Coffee needed pronto.”
Dropping Cat’s shoulders like they were burning rocks, Marian turned on him and fisted her hands on her hips. Jay noticed Cat took the opportunity to slide back into the booth quicker than Marian could blink.
“Excuse me, Jay Garrett?” Marian glared.
He raised his hands. “Fine.” He looked past her to Cat. “If we’ve got any chance of getting out of here this side of Christmas, you need to tell her your national insurance number, address and bra size. Now.”
Cat laughed and Jay grinned...until he looked at Marian. Her expression could frighten the birds from the trees. His smiled dissolved. “Cat lives in Reading with her mother. She has one brother and worked her way up the police force faster than anyone else ever could.”
Marian turned. “Is that right?”
Cat nodded. “Not so sure I’m the fastest. It’s nice of Jay to say so... But for the record, Jay and I are not courting.”
“And your father?”
Jay didn’t miss the shift of Cat’s throat or the flicker of surprise that swept across her eyes. Part of him wanted to stop the interrogation, but he wouldn’t. He wanted to hear what she’d say.
“He was killed by a drunk driver seven years ago.”
The clang of trays and the hum of conversation surrounding them faded into the background. Jay’s heart twisted. Cat had idolized her father. Despite the steady way she held Marian’s gaze, the hurt, loss and anguish stormed like an eddy in her eyes. The sudden strike at his gut hitched the instinctive feeling that Cat’s pain went deeper than natural bereavement. He sensed much more going on inside her.
Leaning forward, Marian squeezed Cat’s hand, which lay frozen on the table. “Well, I’m sorry to hear you’ve lost your dad, sweetheart. It explains that big old burden you’re carrying around.”
Cat glanced at Jay before she huffed out a nervous laugh and sat straighter in her seat. “Burden?”
Marian nodded. “All hunched over with it, you are. Oh, you stand tall like Jay but you’re both carrying stuff that will end up breaking you down and burying you alive if you’re not careful.”
A rush of color leaped from the neckline of Cat’s T-shirt all the way up her neck. She looked panicked. “I don’t know what you mean.”
Jay cleared his throat and pulled back his shoulders. Cat needed him and needed him right now. “Marian, come on now. Enough with the questions. What’s a man got to do to get a couple of frothy coffees and two honeycomb muffins around here, huh?”
Marian looked at him and arched an eyebrow. “Well, some manners might be a start.”
“Please, may we have two of both...to go?”
Cat sprang to her feet as if a bomb had gone off under her perfect behind. “Yes, to go. Perfect.”
Marian looked from one to the other, her eyes narrowed. “I’ll get your muffins. Hell, I’ll get your coffees, but if you two ain’t courting, I’m a damn supermodel.”
Cat choked out a laugh, her eyes shining. Jay’s heart warmed for the first time since they stepped inside the bakery. He fought the urge to smooth the fallen hair back from her face. After a long moment, he turned. Marian still stood right beside them, watching their every move like a tabloid reporter. Jay frowned.
“Coffees?”
Marian sniffed. “In a minute.”
Cat laughed again and touched Marian’s arm. “I promise you we’re not courting. I’m here to investigate Sarah Cole’s murder.”
“Hmm. That detective inspector what’s-his-name is heading up the investigation, isn’t he? George and I saw him talking about Sarah on the news last night.”
“Detective Inspector Bennett, yes,” Cat said.
Marian nodded. “That’s right. Bennett. Don’t trust him. Beady eyes.”
Cat smiled.
“Are you going to find the man who did this?”
The pain on Marian’s face scratched at Jay’s heart. Sarah had come into the bakery as much as everyone else in the Cove, and when he’d worked the counter, they’d spoken a bare minimum of words, but Sarah and Marian had talked and laughed for half an hour at a time, regardless of the waiting customers.
He slipped his arm around Marian’s shoulders and pulled her close. “I brought Cat in to get the job done, remember?”
“Shouldn’t you being letting our police deal with it?” She tipped her head back, her worried gaze darted over his face. “Do you know something they don’t?”
“No, it’s just...” It was just what? Gut instinct? Stupidity? Guilt? He shook his head. “I just know Sarah would’ve wanted Cat here. We were friends. Close friends. If I couldn’t be there for her when someone was choking her life away, maybe both of us can now.”
Marian’s eyes glazed with tears and she clutched Jay’s hand. “You’re a good boy. Getting better every day. I knew to keep the faith in you even if everyone else said dif
ferent. I knew you wouldn’t always be such a selfish son of a gun.”
Cat’s burst of laughter did nothing to appease Jay’s affront. He lifted his arm from Marian’s shoulders and raised it in surrender.
“Marian, please, can we just have the coffees so I can leave here with at least an inch of male pride left?”
“What? All I’m saying—”
“I know exactly what you’re saying and I can’t hang around here listening to it all day. Do you know what? I give up. Don’t worry about the coffees.”
He gripped Cat’s hand.
She sucked in a breath. “Jay, what are you doing? Wait.”
Jay ignored Cat’s protest and marched toward the door. He was trying his hardest to change, to make up for all the mistakes he made and didn’t need Marian reminding him of everything he’d done wrong. He wanted a better future for himself, for the Cove, but more than anything, he hated the way the barbed wire ripping through his chest felt strangely like fear. Fear that he hadn’t changed. Despite wanting Sarah’s death avenged, the truth was he wanted Cat to stay with him like he wanted air to breathe.
Didn’t that make him the same selfish man he’d always been?
Anger coursed through him, ignited by panic that Cat would turn away from him like she had last night. His inability to stop that from happening did nothing to lessen his shame.
CHAPTER EIGHT
CAT FLINCHED WHEN JAY slammed her door shut with such force the car vibrated its indignation. She had no idea what just happened but certainly intended to find out the cause of Jay’s uncharacteristic U-turn. The driver’s door opened and he sank into the seat, exhaling a heavy breath.
Finding Justice Page 10
