Secrets in a Still Life, Kari Ganske [best fiction books to read .TXT] 📗

tears dropped from my eyes. Linc shook his head at me but couldn't hide his smile. I'd moved out so my parents wouldn't interrupt "adult relationship time," and yet here they were. When I snorted and covered my mouth, he started laughing too.

"What in the turnip field is going on here?" Mom asked, following the sound of our guffaws to find us in the empty kitchen. She didn't wait for an answer, just gathered me into her arms and held on tightly. My father's arms came around me from the other side and I melted into their love.

"We thought we'd lost you too, Peanut," Mom said, "when we heard it on the scanner."

"I'm okay, Mom. I'm made of tough stuff," I assured them. Harrison was on all our minds.

Linc busied himself making tea for everyone. When my parents assured themselves that I was actually okay, they finally released me. Then bombarded me with questions. Although I'd already talked to my parents on the phone—Linc's phone since mine was confiscated by police—I again recounted the story, reassured them I was okay, and then reassured them some more. Linc handed out the tea as we stood around the kitchen area. Mom sat on the couch while the rest of us leaned against the counter.

"Who made the fire?" Mom asked when all their questions about the evening's adventure were exhausted.

"Linc did," I said. "Isn't it lovely? Almost feels like a home."

"You need a table. This conversation would be much easier if we had a proper place to sit."

"If I got a table, that would encourage people to come and sit," I said pointedly. My father smirked behind his coffee mug.

"Of course, dear," my mother said, completely missing my sarcasm. In Mom's world, everyone thrived on company. "Once I get you to join our book club, you could host a meeting. But not with this sparse seating," she added.

"I still have to pay for the sign and the car, so a table is low on the priority list," I explained. Before my mother could say anything else, I added, "I'm really tired. It was an exhausting evening. Both emotionally and physically. If you don't mind, I'm going to crash. Feel free to stay and finish your tea. Just lock the door on the way out, please."

I gave hugs all around, keeping the one with Linc short. I fell asleep as soon as my head settled on the pillow.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chapter 34

 

 

 

A few weeks later, I sat on the hood of the fire truck, camera in hand, documenting the Welcome sign regaining its proper place as the sentinel to Piney Ridge. Colleen, leaning against the fender below where I clicked away, clapped, and whistled. The new acting mayor promised an official unveiling later in the week. Mike Vandenburg had quietly stepped out of the role to help focus on Jodie's upcoming legal problems. An ominous For Sale sign sat in front of the Vandenburg home. Rumor around the Ladies' Auxiliary was that he was packing up his children and moving to Baltimore, where Jodie was being held—probably for a long, long time. She finally got the attention from her birth parents that she craved.

I checked the histogram on the back of the camera. The sign really did look spectacular. Since it was flat on the ground for several weeks, a few townies took it upon themselves to touch up the paint that had been chipped and flaking for years. The new posts and new paint really did breathe new life into the historic sign. I smugly, and silently, congratulated myself on being the cause of the transformation. At least my money had gone to something worthwhile.

And someone worthwhile. I snapped a few pictures of Linc, muscles flexing under his tight T-shirt as he worked with the other firefighters to secure the sign in place. We'd pretended the almost kiss in my loft never happened. That didn't mean that I didn't think about it. A lot. I mean even though our teenaged kiss was awkward and messy, it was still good. Linc knew what he was doing then. Kissing Adult Linc would have been even more inspiring, I was sure.

But that ship had sailed away as the wave of adrenaline and danger surrounding that night ebbed. I was officially back in the friend zone. Or even worse—in the "like a little sister" zone.

"Stop that," Linc said, catching me taking pictures of him out of the corner of his eye.

"Outtakes for the calendar," I said, even though I'd already finished the calendar and sent it to the printer. But I obliged. My file of Linc pictures was growing at an embarrassing rate. Having just been cleared as a murder suspect, I needed to be careful I didn't turn into a stalker suspect. I tucked my camera into the gear bag in my car.

Yes, my car. I'd gotten a reprieve on the safe-driving class and the rest of my community service from Judge Cockran. Much to my surprise, I also got a begrudging apology from Chief Duncan. I wanted to respond with a "You're welcome for doing your job for you." But my mother, knowing the snarky spark in my eye, gave me a death stare over Chief Duncan's shoulder. I wrinkled my nose at her and kept it at "Thanks for the apology."

Linc joined me and Colleen by the Fiat. "Congrats. You can officially wipe this black mark off your consciousness. Much like you wiped out the sign," he said.

I smacked his arm. So what if I let my hand linger there for a moment longer to feel his hard muscles. I may be in the friend zone, but I wasn't dead.

"Come on back to my place," I said. "We can sit outside and drink something cold to celebrate my liberation from all things criminal."

Stalking aside.