Placing her hand on the top edge of the container, she planted her tennis shoe–covered foot on the side—
“Hey!”
She slipped at the sound of a deep male voice and nearly landed on her backside. Dread filled every cell of her body, andshe searched her mind for a cover story as footsteps neared, then slowed down.
“Jade?”
Sebastian?Of all the people to catch her climbing a dumpster... Slapping a smile on her face, she slowly turned around. “Hi,” she said, giving him an awkward little wave, as if they’d just run into each other in the frozen food aisle and not outside a huge trash receptacle. “What brings you by?”
While the streetlamp did provide some light, it wasn’t enough to see his face clearly. He shined his flashlight on her. “Newspaper delivery. We’re down a carrier, so I picked up this route. When I pulled into the parking lot and saw someone walking around the dumpster, I had to check it out.”
“Isn’t that dangerous?”
“No offense, Jade, but you’re not the size of a linebacker. I can handle myself. Besides, this isn’t the big city, and we don’t have much crime here. The last time Sheriff Thistle had to arrest someone was over a year ago, and that was for drunk and disorderly, which I thought might be what was going on. Most folks around here are good, honest people.”
She gulped.
“So... what’s a lady like you doing at a dumpster like this at 4:00 a.m.?”
She tried to chuckle, hoping it sounded light and airy instead of deranged. “I... I’m looking for something.” The truth, such as it was.
“Your briefcase?”
“No, we found that.” She was disturbed by how easily the lie slipped out.
“Where was it?”
“Phoebe picked it up. She’s one of the housekeepers. Did you know she finally got married to that navy guy she’s been dating? They went on a two-week cruise to Turks and Caicos.”
“Yeah, everyone knows about Phoebe and Gary. I’m more surprised thatyouknow that.”
“Mabel is quite informative.”
“That she is. If you’re not looking for your briefcase, then what are you looking for?”
Of course he would ply her with twenty questions, or more. “A bracelet.” It was the first thing that popped in her mind. “I set it on the bathroom counter yesterday morning and forgot to put it back on. With, um, everything going on, I didn’t remember about it until early this morning, and when I couldn’t find it, I thought it might have fallen into the bathroom trash, but that had already been taken out. I didn’t want to wake up Mabel and Clyde, so I came out here to see if it was in the dumpster.” Oh no. Too many words. No way he would believe such an absurd story.
“Must be an important bracelet.”
Her irritation rose. Why couldn’t he just return to delivering the papers and let her be? “If it wasn’t, I wouldn’t be out here looking for it in the dumpster. I’m not an idiot.”
“I didn’t say you were. You’re one of the smartest, most capable people I’ve ever met.”
During the last two days, she’d been anything but smart or capable. The compliment was the last thing she anticipated from him, and it triggered that warm feeling she did not want to feel around Sebastian Hudson.
“Need some help?”
“I can do it.” She resumed her climbing position on the dumpster. Immediately, her foot slid down the side. Nuts.
He moved closer to her, handed her his flashlight, and dropped down, threading his fingers together to give her a foothold.
Now that he’d gone to the trouble, she couldn’t refuse. She put her foot on his hands, and he lifted her up. She peeked over the side of the dumpster, expecting to see full bags of trash, but it was empty. Whew, she wouldn’t have to jump inside.
“Is it there?” Sebastian asked.
“No.” Her disappointment was real as he helped her down. “It’s gone.” She handed back the flashlight.
“Sorry,” he said, taking it from her.
