Dorchester and I thanked them for their time and showed ourselves out. “Let’s go talk to Robertson’s nephews and see if we can shake any information out of them. They’re the only ones that I can think of that might be salty about Robertson selling that land to someone other than them.”
We drove thirty minutes north of the city to Sharpe Development Inc. and asked to speak with Scott and Mark Robertson. We learned that Mark was in Arizona and Scott was in New York on business. Dorchester and I were frustrated that it looked like we wouldn’t be making any advances in the case that day.
“Now what?” Dorchester asked after a long-suffering sigh.
“We’re halfway home already,” I said. “There’s nothing else we can do until we uncover more evidence so we might as well head that way.” And so we did.
The lure of a welcome home kiss was too much to resist after a shitty day that had started out with so much promise. Josh looked at me with surprise when I entered the salon, but then a smile spread slowly across his face when he saw the intent in my eyes. He rose on his tiptoes to meet me halfway once I reached him. I dropped two quick kisses on his plump lips and said, “Don’t be too late.”
I smiled when I heard whistles and catcalls ring out behind me when I left the salon. “Y’all behave,” Josh told his clientele. “That man doesn’t need any more encouragement from you.”
“Blow me, baby,” Savage said when I stopped to retrieve his cage.
Damn, it was good to be home. I didn’t allow myself to dwell on the sadness of the day once Josh got home from work. We made dinner together then Josh went upstairs to work on Adrianna’s painting while I watched some baseball. The game was a defensive one, which meant low scoring and boring, so I went upstairs to see what kind of progress my guy was making.
Josh truly was magical to me, regardless of what he was doing. He was so enthralled in his painting of baby zoo animals that he didn’t notice I was in the room. I must’ve sat in the chair for hours watching him dip his brushes in the paint before brushing them on the canvas. Only when he stopped to stretch did he realize I was in the room with him.
“How long have you been sitting there?” he asked. Long enough to know he was the only one I wanted to spend my life with, but that wasn’t the answer I gave him.
“Long enough to know it’s time to go to bed.” My tone of voice told him that sleeping wasn’t what I had in mind.
“Who needs a bed,” Josh said, giving me a come-and-get-it smile.
Who could resist that kind of invitation? Not me because I would never pass up the opportunity to be on the receiving end of his magic.
IHAD GOTTEN USEDto running into Emory every time I turned around, or so it seemed, but I hadn’t seen hide nor hair of him once he left our home on Easter Sunday. It had only been a few days, but it seemed longer. The sadness that clung to Emory when he went home had left me feeling unsettled. I was eager to see if he was okay and knew I’d get my chance because he’d have his hide parked in my chair and his hair in my hands at his appointment.
I had a busy morning and lost track of time until I realized my chair had been vacant longer than normal. I mean, that chair saw more action than a high-priced hooker and it was only empty when I took a break or had a day off. Neither of those things was happening right then, which meant that I had a no-show. That. Never. Happened. Ever.
Annoyance, anger, and concern fought for dominance in my brain as I marched my unhappy ass out the back door of the salon, down my driveway, and across the alley to Emory’s house. I knocked loudly on his door and became more miffed when he didn’t answer right away.
“I know damn well you’re inside, Emory. I see your black Mini in the driveway with its showy, look-at-me stripes. Answer this damn door before I call the cops and tell them I smell an odd odor coming from your house. They’ll think you’re dead because that’s our new normal and come busting through the door.” I banged some more and added, “You better have clothes on unless you want them to see you in your skivvies or buck-ass naked.”
I was starting to freak out that something had happened to him, but then I saw the slight fluttering of curtains at the back door seconds before they parted to reveal Emory looking at me through the glass. He had dark purple rings beneath his eyes as if he hadn’t slept in years, and the sadness in his gaze was that of a man who had seen too many terrible things. He was the epitome of bruised and broken that afternoon.
“Please let me in, Emory.” I released a sigh of relief when I heard him unlock the deadbolt.
“Hey,” he said softly. “I’m sorry I didn’t call and cancel my appointment.” I could tell by his stance that he hadn’t planned on granting me entrance.Too damn bad!I shoved past Emory and entered his kitchen, catching him off guard because I was much stronger than people expected.
“Josh, now isn’t a good time.” I was happy to hear the irritation in his voice instead of sadness.
“Now’s the perfect time because I happen to have an empty salon chair for the next one hundred and eighty minutes. So,” I pulled out a chair and sat down at Emory’s kitchen table, “why don’t you tell me what’s going on. Every time I turned around, you were in my face, and today I had to force myself on you. That’s a big turn of events. I’m starting to get my feelings hurt that you didn’t like my cooking or something.”
“You know that’s not the case,” Emory said in a grim voice. “I just had a setback and needed time and space to deal with it.”
I studied him and his surroundings. I recalled the expensive outfit that he wore the day he moved in and how he’d downplayed his wardrobe since then. His kitchen appliances and the furniture I could see were expensive, high-end stuff. His espresso machine alone cost at least five big ones. His dining room table and chairs appeared to be custom made, not something you’d find at a value furniture store. The highlights in his hair were so good that they couldalmostpass as natural, which spelled big talent and big money. I was struck again by the oddity of Emory’s appearance in our lives and town.What the hell was he doing here?
All my suspicions and concerns vanished when I realized just how lost he looked in his kitchen. All I wanted to do right then was help him. “Talk to me, Emory. You can tell me anything, I promise you that I won’t gossip.”
Emory was watching his finger draw the infinity symbol on the shiny wood surface of his table. “I’m not sure talking about it will help me, Josh, but I appreciate your willingness to listen,” he said after several quiet moments. I had begun to think he hadn’t heard me.
I covered Emory’s hand to stop the motion and hopefully get his attention. It worked because he looked up at me curiously. “I have to be honest with you, Emory. It looks like not talking is killing you. Is this about a vision?”
Emory snorted and said, “You could say that.”
“It’s about Jonathon Silver, isn’t it?” He looked at me in surprise. “I saw the way you reacted to him when your hands touched. Is he in trouble?”
“I don’t know about that, Josh. It wasn’tthatkind of vision,” he said morosely.
