Partner? Sophie grinned. Not wife or girlfriend? Isn’t that interesting. And she found herself wondering why the knowledge that Cain was single made her feel all warm and fuzzy.
“Your brother saved my life,” Sophie said. “I’m shuddering just thinking about how much he plans to bill me for services above and beyond the norm.”
Holly grinned and hopped up on the edge of the desk. “Nice to meet you. Sorry for the way I burst in the door. It’s just…”
“Don’t sweat it. I understand. I’d be upset, too, if my brother jumped in front of a moving car. If I had a brother, that is.”
“So, who’s the dude with the lead foot?” Holly asked. “Ex-boyfriend? Ex-husband? Current husband?”
“Holly, knock it off,” Cain chided.
“What? She must have hired you for something that made somebody mad. It’s a logical conclusion.”
Mr. Garrison laughed out loud. “Holly and the word logic in the same sentence? Wait until I tell your mother.” He closed the first aid kit and headed for the door. “Will you be coming over for dinner, son? You know as soon as your mother gets wind of this she’s going to be all over me for answers.”
Cain shook his head. “Sorry, Dad. Holly can fill her in. I’m going to run Sophie home.”
“That’s not necessary,” Sophie interjected. “My car is parked across the street.”
“Don’t worry about your car. My sister can drive it out first thing in the morning. I’ll follow her and we’ll ride back to town together.”
“But I can drive…”
“Sure you can,” Cain said. “But it is southern hospitality to make sure a young lady gets home in one piece…particularly after she hired you to work for her and then almost got run down right in front of your place of business. Besides, do you really want to grip a steering wheel with scraped hands?”
Sophie paused for a moment and looked at the three people staring at her. For the first time in weeks, she didn’t feel alone. They were going to help her. Suddenly the heavy weight she’d been carrying felt lighter.
“Thanks, Cain. Holly. Mr. Garrison.” A warm glow washed over her from head to toe.
Mr. Garrison nodded and slipped out the door.
Sophie was too stubborn to offer up the silent prayer of gratitude that rested on the tip of her tongue. She was still mad at God. Sometimes she thought she always would be. But a little voice inside her head told her He already knew her heart.
“So, you’re our new client.” Holly gave her the once-over. “Please tell me you didn’t hire us to follow a cheating husband. Someone as pretty and sweet as you shouldn’t be married to a no-account.”
Sophie laughed. “I’m not married.” The smile fell from her lips. “I hired your firm to investigate my missing father.”
“Your father? Wow, that stinks. When did he disappear?”
“Two weeks ago.”
“And the police?”
“They didn’t find anything useful.” Sophie sighed. “I’m sorry, Holly. I really don’t feel up to going over all of it again.” She pressed her fingers to her forehead and rubbed little circles against her skin in an attempt to stop the pounding. “Cain has all the information. Would you mind terribly if I let him fill you in?”
“Sure. What am I thinking? I’m the one who needs to apologize. You almost got run over. I’d say that’s more than enough to deal with for one day.” Holly rummaged in the first aid kit and then held out two pills and a glass of water. “Here. This should help with that headache.”
“Thanks.”
“Don’t worry,” Cain assured her. “All you need is a good night’s sleep.” He cupped her elbow and helped Sophie to her feet. “C’mon, let’s get you home.”
As Sophie stood, her stomach growled loudly enough to draw attention. Her cheeks flamed with embarrassment and Holly and Cain laughed.
“Sounds like you could use a good, hot meal.” Holly spoke to Cain as she headed for the door. “I’ve gotta run. I left Phil in charge of the diner and you know how dangerous that can be.” She rolled her eyes. “Bring Sophie over for lunch and I’ll get the particulars of the case then.” Holly turned her attention back to Sophie. “We can talk while you eat. After lunch, Cain can run you home. We’ll be sure to get your car back to you first thing in the morning.” With a wave over her shoulder, she hurried out.
Both of them stared at the empty doorway and then Sophie asked, “Is it just me or does it feel like she sucked all the energy out of the room when she left? Is she always so bubbly and energetic?”
“Bubbly and energetic?” Cain grinned. “Those aren’t the words I’d use to describe Holly. More like impish, meddle-some and a royal pain at times. But I love her.”
Cain’s expression sobered. He tilted Sophie’s chin and examined the bruise on her cheek. “How are you doing?”
“Fine. Except for a headache. Probably from all the excitement.” She gingerly placed her fingers to her scalp. “Thanks to you, I barely hit anything. And even if I had, my dad always said I’m hardheaded.”
She made a point of studying Cain. “What about you? I’m not the only one who took a nasty spill. Were you hurt?”
Cain moved his right hand and Sophie could see a bandage stretching from the tip of his little finger to his wrist. She sucked in a breath. “Ouch, you were hurt.”
“This?” Cain shrugged, dismissing it as insignificant. “This isn’t anything. But tomorrow I bet we’re both going to be sore in spots we didn’t even know we had.”
Sophie’s stomach growled again.
Cain laughed out loud. “Let me lock up and I’ll take you for that lunch I promised.”
He put the first aid kit away, made sure the coffeepot was unplugged and gently followed her into the hall. Sliding his key into the lock, he glanced at her.
“Sophie, what happened this afternoon was not an accident. Someone deliberately tried to run you down.”
She shook her head. “No way. It was probably an older person who got their foot caught on the accelerator. Or a teenager texting. Or whatever.”
“Sophie.” His grim expression and the way he dragged out the syllables in her name told her he wasn’t buying her explanations.
Dread oozed up her spine. First her father disappeared. Then she found out his identification papers were fake—then hers turned out to be phony, too. Now this. Sophie didn’t have a clue what was going on but none of it felt good.
“I’m not trying to frighten you,” Cain said and walked with her outside.
Really? You’re doing a pretty good job of it.
“I
