pursed her mouth, even more suspicious now that he so readily admitted to going back on his promise to her not to gamble. She looked at Peter, who seemed to be looking everywhere but at her. She glanced at Jack, whose expression told her he didn’t believe Wesley’s story any more than she did. Then he shrugged, obviously willing to forget the entire incident.
She was irritated with the lot of them. “We’ll talk later,” she muttered to Wesley. “Meanwhile, you need to call Coop, who was out all night hunting for you, and your probation officer.”
“Okay,” he said. Then he went over to shake Peter’s hand. “Thanks, man.”
“No problem.”
Okay, now she was really suspicious. Peter and her brother barely knew each other, but Wesley had never bothered to hide his disdain for Peter’s actions when their parents left, dumping her and leaving her in the lurch. On the other hand, she had told him about their father calling Peter, so maybe Wesley had warmed toward her former fiancé. Or maybe he’d ridden to Peter’s house to talk about the phone call….
Wesley disappeared into the house, taking his secrets with him for the time being. Hannah gave them a group wave. “Since the prodigal son has returned, I’m outta here.”
“Thanks, Hannah, for staying with me,” Carlotta said to her friend. “I’ll call you.”
After Hannah pulled away in her van, Carlotta was left standing between Jack and Peter, each of whom seemed to be waiting for the other to leave.
“I need to talk to you,” Jack said to her pointedly. When Peter gave him a hard look, he added, “It’s business.”
“Can’t it wait?” she asked, not in the mood for more sparring.
“No.”
Peter shuffled his feet. “I guess I’ll be going.”
“I’ll walk with you,” Carlotta said, then followed him around to the driver’s side of the SUV, giving them some privacy from Jack.
“Peter,” she said quietly. “What really happened?”
“It happened just the way Wesley explained.” But his blue eyes were evasive, his tone practiced.
Her heart swelled with gratitude. “I have a feeling that I owe you a great debt.”
“You don’t owe me anything,” Peter said, taking her good hand and lifting it to his mouth for a kiss that conjured up images of other things he used to do to her when they were younger. “I’ll always be here for you, Carly, and for Wesley.”
“Thank you,” she murmured. When Wesley had gone missing, it hadn’t even occurred to her to call Peter. In fact, she’d gone out of her way to conceal most of the Wren family doings from him. She didn’t want him to know that the warning his parents had given him ten years ago—that her family would go to the dogs—had pretty much happened.
“Don’t forget that I’m holding something for you.”
The ring. “I won’t forget.” And her heart was so full of good memories and goodwill toward Peter for helping Wesley, she would have agreed to marry him at that moment if he’d asked.
Instead he honored her previous request not to rush her, and climbed in his vehicle. She waved until the car disappeared, then turned back to Jack, whose disposition seemed to have further soured.
“What did you need to talk about?” she asked. “If it’s about Wesley, I don’t believe his story for a minute—”
“It’s about your father,” he interrupted.
Her heart stuttered. “What about him?”
“A Holiday Inn in Daytona Beach, Florida, was robbed at gunpoint a few days ago. When all the fingerprints were run, one set matched up to Randolph Wren.”
Her entire body tingled. She shook her head in confusion. “What are you saying? That my dad robbed this hotel?”
“No. All I’m saying is that sometime recently, your dad was there. He could’ve been a guest, or visiting a guest …”
“Or he could’ve robbed the place,” she finished.
Jack’s face told her that it was a distinct possibility. “I’m driving down to take a look, but I wanted you to know. I’ll let you decide whether you want to tell Wesley.”
“I’ll go with you,” she offered.
“Absolutely not.”
“But I’m off work right now—it’s perfect timing.”
“What part of ‘absolutely not’ don’t you understand? Carlotta, you can’t get involved in your father’s case! I can’t spend all my time saving you from the scrapes you get yourself into.”
“But that’s the beauty of it. I’ll already be with you.”
“No. No. No.”
“Are you taking your girlfriend, Liz?”
He puffed up, meaning she’d hit a nerve. “She’s not my girlfriend. But … I thought I might ask her to ride along in case I bump into her client while I’m there.”
“So they can have a tumble for old times’ sake? That’s nice of you.” She squinted. “Why don’t you have a partner for these kinds of things, Jack?”
“I’m on the waiting list, but the department is short of manpower.”
“So when are you leaving?”
“Day after tomorrow.”
She shook her head, frustrated with the whole situation. “Don’t mention this to Wesley. And let me know if you bump into dear old Dad.” Carlotta turned and walked stiffly toward the house.
“Carlotta, don’t be like this. I didn’t have to tell you, you know.”
But she didn’t look back because she didn’t want him to see the abject humiliation coursing through her. Her father had left a stink on the family that they couldn’t seem to get away from. It was mortifying to think that of all the policemen who could capture her fugitive father, it would probably be Jack who ultimately brought him down.
6
Carlotta gave the new living room window one last swipe, then stood back to admire the shine. But instead of crystal-clear sparkle, the glass was smeared with cloudy streaks.
“You have to use newspaper to get the best shine,” Wesley said from behind her.
She turned and frowned. “You don’t say? I see you decided to grace the world with your presence today. It’s almost noon.”
“Sorry,” he mumbled. “I was up most of the night before.”
Seeing the dark circles under
