He smiled and kissed her cheek. “But it never worked back then. You need me to bring anything else? Sam is putting the beer and ice in the coolers.”
“I think we have it all covered. Thank you.”
“See you in a couple hours.”
“Don’t be getting distracted with your girl. I expect to see you here before food is served.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
In his car, he texted Mia to make sure three o’clock still worked for her. She answered yes and he considered what Mae had said. How badly did he want a relationship with Mia? Did she even want one with him? They’d only known each other a few weeks.
One thing at a time. Solve the crime then deal with his personal life.
Chapter Twenty
Mia was quiet on the way to the party. While the conversation with her mother went better than planned, and they chose a beautiful silk scarf for Logan’s sister, Mia was beginning to doubt the purchase. That doubt doubled as Logan turned down the street toward the house. The neighborhood was pleasant but tired. The buildings were old. Most had window air-conditioning units running and dripping onto the sidewalk between the houses.
Children were squealing and jumping through sprinklers. People were sitting on their concrete steps chatting with neighbors. Mia had heard of neighborhoods like this, but she’d never experienced them. She clutched the prettily wrapped gift and realized it was probably a mistake. She set the box near her feet.
“You’re quiet today. How did brunch go with your mother?”
“As well as could be expected. I told her my father called, and that I’ve already let the FBI know.”
“Having second thoughts then?”
“About telling you about my father? No.”
“About coming to the party.”
She looked over at him. “I’m having second, third, and fourth thoughts. I don’t think I’m going to fit in here.”
He smiled and took her hand. “You’re with me, so you’ll fit in fine.”
“That’s kind of you to say.” She looked at his T-shirt and jeans and considered her own outfit. She wore a simple black sundress with spaghetti straps. The neckline was edged in white. But it was still expensive.
Logan parallel parked into a tight little spot between a pickup truck and a rusted sedan.
“That’s another reason I don’t feel the need to drive in the city. Parallel parking.”
“It’s like riding a bike. Once you learn to park in these neighborhoods, you never forget. Ready?”
She took a slow breath and looked at the smile on Logan’s face. If nothing else, she was sure to enjoy herself being around him. “Let’s go.”
He walked around the car and met her at her door. “Don’t forget the present.”
“I think it might be better to just say your gift is from both of us.”
“Why?”
“I no longer think my gift is appropriate.”
“Did you buy her drugs, tobacco, or alcohol?”
She laughed. “No.”
“Sex toy?”
“No!”
“Then it’s probably appropriate.”
She rolled her lips in. How could she explain without sounding like a snob? “It’s a silk scarf. It’s quite pretty and I thought teenage girls like to accessorize...”
“But?”
She looked down the street. “I don’t want anyone to feel bad or think that I’m trying to buy acceptance.”
“No one will think worse of you for spoiling my sister a little. People can tell when someone is being condescending, and the fact that you’re willing to leave the gift here says plenty. Bring it. I’m sure Paris will love it.”
She reached in and grabbed the box. After she closed the car door, she asked, “Where’s your gift?”
He pulled an envelope from his back pocket. “Cash is something every teenager loves.”
“But it requires no thought or consideration.”
“Sure it does. I thought she would like to go spend money she didn’t have to work for. I considered that I have horrible taste when it comes to understanding teenage girls.” He took her hand and led her down the block.
Mia braced herself for whatever she might face. If nothing else, her con artist lessons should come in handy again. Facing Logan’s family couldn’t possibly be worse than showing her face after her father’s arrest and disappearance.
Two hours later and Mia had forgotten everything that had worried her. Logan’s family was something she’d never seen. It was sprawling and diverse and loud and rowdy and fun. It was everything her family wasn’t.
She was sitting in a plastic chair at a wobbly folding table watching seventeen-year-old Paris school Uncle Phil on the proper use of pronouns. He groused and her voice rose. Mia braced for scathing remarks, but it was just a heated exchange. Logan smiled and waved from the grill, where he’d taken over cooking because Joe, his dad, had been looking a little tired from standing over the heat.
A woman plopped down next to Mia and said, “Hi. I’m Logan’s sister Jill. You must be his date?”
“Yes. I’m Mia. Nice to meet you.” Jill. Another sister. She’d already met Sam, who was a short blonde with a loud laugh, and Carmen, a curvy Latina who took credit for teaching Logan to salsa. “I think you all should wear name tags because I’m going to lose track of all the siblings. I’m an only child and I have one cousin. You have aunts, uncles, cousins, and neighbors on top of... I lost count of how many siblings.”
“You’re not alone. Mae raised us and she messes up our names all the time.”
“I heard that,” Mae yelled from the kitchen window.
“She hears everything. Just can’t remember our names,” Jill said jokingly.
“Heard that, too, smart aleck.”
Mia had no idea how Mae managed to hear over the noise of the radio and people yelling and laughing.
“Logan sent me over here to check on you. Do you need a drink or a snack?”
“I’m fine thank you. I was thoroughly enjoying listening to Paris teach Phil how today’s world works.”
“Whew. Sorry I missed it.” She glanced over, but Paris was making her rounds, chatting with the guests. “When that girl gets riled up about something, watch out.”
“I got that impression. She will be a force to be reckoned with as an adult. You can go back to enjoying the party. Tell Logan I’m fine. I don’t need a babysitter.”
Just then, Sam sat down, holding three bottles of beer and two decks of cards. “Who’s up for a game of Bullshit?”
Suddenly a crowd swarmed the table. Mia shifted to get up to allow someone to take her spot, but Sam pointed at her.
“Nice try. You have to play.”
“I don’t know how to play.”
She opened the decks and shuffled the cards. “We’ll teach you.”
Carmen brought a chair over and sat on the other side of Mia.
Mia got the feeling that this game had nothing to do with entertainment and everything to do with vetting the new woman in their brother’s life. She was not one to back down from a challenge. “What are the rules?”
* * *
Logan cooked up burgers, brats, hot dogs, and chicken, all while watching Mia kill it at Bullshit. As good as his sisters were, Mia had had a lifetime of masking her thoughts. But after witnessing the first few rounds, he saw what he’d been looking for: her tell. When she lied, she always glanced up from under her lashes, almost coyly, before making full eye contact.
He filled the final platter and handed it off to Anton. “Take this in to Mama Mae and see where she wants it set up.”
Anton followed Logan’s gaze to where the girls played cards. “She’s hot.”
Logan gave him a shove. “Have some respect. That’s my date.”
“Not your wi
fe. So maybe when you’re done with her...”
“You couldn’t handle her. I’m not even sure I can. Get moving.” He crossed the grass and stood behind Sam.
Sam reached up and waved an arm wildly. “No cheating. Your girlfriend doesn’t need help.”
“You’re right. You’re the one who needs the help.”
Mia’s eyes went wide. “You cannot help Sam either. She roped me into this game and now she’s being a sore loser.”
“Only because she hasn’t figured out your tell.”
“Food’s ready!” Mae called from the porch. “Come and eat before it gets cold.”
Sam tossed the cards on the table. “She doesn’t have a tell. She’s like a damn robot.”
Mia stiffened.
Sam snickered. “I could’ve used your help when I was a teenager. This one—” she flicked a thumb over her shoulder at Logan “—is like a human lie detector. Maybe you can give me lessons.”
“You are the last person who needs to become a better liar,” Logan said.
Carmen stood. “It was a fun game. I think later we should up the stakes and play a drinking game. I bet all the stoicism will be tossed out the window if we get you drunk,” she said to Mia.
“And why would you like to see me drunk?” Mia asked with an arched brow.
“We have to vet you for Logan. It’s like our sisterly duty. Plus, we can tell you all his embarrassing stories.”
Logan walked around the table toward Mia. “As if you need to be drunk to try to embarrass me.” He held out a hand to Mia. “Ready to eat?”
She took it and rose. “Sure.” With a wink at Carmen, she added, “I would love to hear all your stories about Logan.”
Jill came up on Mia’s other side and looped an arm around hers, tugging Mia from his grasp. “First, know that the whole uber-gentleman thing is all an act. He wants to impress you. A more typical image of him is sitting on the couch half-dressed with a bag of Cheetos and a bottle of beer, belching and farting through a football game.”
“Really? That is not at all how he’s presented himself to me. Do tell more.” With a glint in her eye, she let Jill lead her away and into the house.
“Thanks,” he said to Sam and Carmen.
“For what? We were checking her out no differently than you have our dates.”
“I haven’t met anyone you’ve dated in years. I’ve been in New York. And we’re not kids anymore. I’m pretty sure we all have the capacity to make sound judgments.”
“I like her,” Sam said. “I mean, she’s obviously not from around here.”
“Her dress!” Carmen said. “That is not a dress from Target or Kohl’s. And her perfume? It might as well be called Money because I’m sure each spritz is twenty bucks.”
“But she didn’t run and hide from us or stand at your side waiting for you to protect her.” Sam pushed her chair back under the table. “And she’s a damn good Bullshit player. Next game, I want her on my team.”
As much as he should’ve hated his sisters all ganging up on Mia, this was the most at home he’d felt in a long time. He’d missed the noise and nosiness that came from his family. “Hell, no. I brought her, I get to keep her.”
“I taught her the game,” Sam called over her shoulder as she headed toward the house. “I’m starving. You better not have burned the food.”
Even though his relationship with Mia was new, something felt right about having her here with his family. It was definitely the start of something good.
As the evening wore on, Logan had barely left Mia’s side. Not that she wasn’t handling herself just fine with his family, but he wanted to enjoy this respite from work and art and forgeries. Today, they were just a couple hanging out and having a good time. Until her phone started buzzing incessantly. The first couple of times, she barely glanced at the screen, but it didn’t let up.
“Something wrong?” he asked.
“I don’t think so. Work stuff.”
“On a Saturday?”
She glanced down and then back up. “Unfortunately.”
Damn. Maybe he’d had one too many beers, but that looked like her tell when she was playing Bullshit. The look from under her lashes. Why the hell would she lie about work calls? Unless it wasn’t work. Maybe it was one of her friends with benefits looking for a booty call.
He tried not to be irritated by the possibility. They didn’t have an agreement about monogamy.
She walked toward the gangway between the houses and checked her phone. Logan came up behind her. “Is everything okay?”
“Um, no actually, I think I should be heading out.”
“Oh, uh, let me give Paris her gift—”
“No, you should stay. I can call a car.”
“No way. We came together. I’ll drive you home.”
“Logan. You should stay with your family. It’s all right.”
He studied her face. “Are you seeing anyone else?”
Her brow furrowed. “Where did that come from?”
That wasn’t an answer, which didn’t make him feel any better. “You’ve had a bunch of texts and now you want to leave without me. I know we haven’t discussed monogamy, and there’s no pressure. I just want to know where I stand.”
She wrinkled her nose. “Right now, you’re standing like an ass. I’m not seeing anyone else. If you recall, when you asked me out, I told you I had a lot going on and I’m not looking for anything serious. Where the hell would I find time to date more than one man?”
“I’m sorry. Sometimes my imagination runs.”
“Thinking about me on a date makes you jealous?”
“I invoke my Fifth Amendment right.”
Her crooked smile lit up. “A nonresponse is often an answer.”
“Call your car and then let’s have Paris open your gift before you go.”
“I’ve had a good time today. I’m glad you invited me.”
“I’m sorry I almost spoiled the night with my stupidity.” He stepped closer, backing her to the wall.
She tilted her face up. “We all have moments of stupidity,” she said quietly.
“Can you forgive me?” He lowered his mouth to hers and kissed her. He held her hip and his fingers flexed, wanting to touch more of her.
She patted his chest. “For a kiss like that I can forgive quite a bit. But I do need to go.”
He sighed and stepped back. “Let’s go find Paris. I’m guessing seeing you tomorrow isn’t going to happen, given that your phone hasn’t stopped ringing.”
“Probably not. And for that, I’m more sorry than you know.”
“I think I do know.” He’d thought they’d spend the night together tonight and maybe even tomorrow. A real weekend. But it wasn’t in the cards.
Chapter Twenty-One
Mia had a hard time walking away from the party. Paris loved the scarf and thanked her profusely for it. Everyone was gracious as she said her goodbyes, and Mae offered her a plate of food.
Logan walked her to the front of the house to wait for her ride. “Thanks for coming with me. I know they’re a lot to take in.”
“They are a lot, but it’s obvious they love you. It’s a pretty amazing family you have.”
“They like you, too.”
Her phone vibrated in her purse again.
“What’s going on?”
“Some of the texts coming in are work, but I just got word that a family friend died, and I didn’t want to mention it at the party.”
“Damn. Was it someone close?”
“No.” Just one of our marks, so my plan is blowing up again. “Word travels in our community. I’m sure you know how it is.”
“Yeah. I have sisters.”
A car pulled up. “That’s my ride.”
Logan walked her to the car and opened th
e door. Mia put the container of food on the seat. When she turned to say goodbye to Logan, he slid an arm around her waist and pulled her into him, planting another hot, wet kiss on her. When he released her, he said, “Let me know if there’s anything I can do.”
“Thank you.” She got in the car and waved after he closed it behind her.
As the car drove off, she called Nikki. “What the hell is going on?”
“Where have you been?”
“I couldn’t answer. I was with Logan and this didn’t seem like something I could discuss in his company.”
“You heard Jerome Bauer died?”
“Yes. My phone has been going off nonstop. You, Audrey, my mother.” She felt overwhelmed having two phones go off, not sure which to check, if any. And she couldn’t afford to have Logan question why she had two phones. “I got the message. I’m on my way to the apartment now to discuss options.”
“We’re kind of fucked here.”
Mia rolled her eyes. “You’ve said that before, and we’ve managed.”
Although this time she had no idea how they were going to pull off the heist. Jerome was the owner of the Hardison painting that would be their biggest score yet. And now he was dead. She texted her mother to let her know she’d heard, and asked Beverly to let her know if she had any details. When she got to the apartment, everyone was there, including London, which was a little surprising, given that the forger didn’t need to be there to strategize.
“What do we know?” Mia asked as she set the plastic container of food on the table.
“What’s this?” Nikki asked.
“Leftovers from the party I came from. Help yourself.” The woman was always hungry.
Jared stepped away from the computer and Audrey. “The gossip sharks are circling on this one. Jerome died in a car accident four days ago. His wife, Candace, told no one other than close family because as it turns out, Jerome was with his mistress when he died. They are not having a public funeral because Candace doesn’t want the scrutiny. They were already on the way to divorce, which explains why they had nothing on their social calendars. Candace was in rehab, and based on the advice of her therapist, she’s moving out of town.”
To Catch a Thief--A High Stakes Romantic Suspense Page 20
