As he took her by the elbow, the murmur of the crowd became a buzz, then a roar. People all over had pulled their phones out and were recording the encounter.
With dread growing in my stomach, I moved closer, but quickly, a hand grasped my elbow, stopping me.
I whirled around, finding Jasper, along with the stroller. He pulled me behind him, then stepped in front of Vincent, instinctively protecting us.
Just as I opened my mouth to shout, to demand to know what was going on, Vincent cried out.
Heart lurching, I scooped him up, shushing him. The sirens and crowd noise must have woken him.
When I turned back, Louisa, icy and composed as always, was being led into a waiting police cruiser.
I gasped. “Are they arresting her?”
Josh, who’d suddenly appeared at his brother’s side, tapped furiously at his phone’s screen. “I’m texting Gabe. What the hell could she have done?”
Chapter 35
Jasper
Once the cruiser pulled out, we loaded Vincent in his stroller and walked to Evie’s house as quickly as we could.
She was stunned. Shaken and confused. She didn’t speak the whole way home. Inside, I went straight to the bathroom to run water for Vincent’s bath.
“They arrested her,” she said as I came out to take him from her. Her expression was blank, like she’d drifted elsewhere. “Just walked right up and took her away. A few hours earlier, she was cooing at Vincent and we were talking about fried dough.”
“We’ll figure this out. I’ll call Gabe.” My mind raced. I knew nothing about Louisa Meyer other than that she owned the company Evie worked for. And although she wasn’t well-liked in town as a citizen, she was respected as a business leader and was generous to our community.
She frowned, her lips trembling. “Do you think it’s related to…?”
I shook my head. It couldn’t be. Whatever had happened to Will was dark and dangerous. Bad guys and deals gone wrong. I couldn’t imagine a forty-something CEO doing that to him.
“If the CEO of the biggest employer in town can be hauled off like that, what does it mean for the rest of us?” she whispered. “For the employees and the farmers and the town?”
I wanted to tell her it would be fine, that it had to be a misunderstanding. That the town wasn’t unraveling at the seams. But I didn’t make promises I couldn’t keep. So instead, I went with the truth. “I don’t know. But you’re amazing and brilliant. Regardless of what happens, you will land on your feet. And I’m here to help. Always.”
She looked up at me, her face so beautiful, her expression earnest. “Is that what you think? That I always land on my feet?” Her lips trembled then, her confidence slipping. Worry and exhaustion were taking over, along with the fierce sense of responsibility she carried for everyone but herself.
I clasped her hand,giving it a squeeze. Then I kissed the inside of her wrist. Damn, I wished I could fix it. Take away all her stress and worries. But Evie didn’t need me to step in and solve her problems. She needed me to stand by her side while she handled them herself. “There is nothing you can’t do.”
Together we bathed Vincent, and while she fed him and rocked him to sleep, I did a load of laundry. As we stood side by side over his crib, watching the rise and fall of his little chest, she grabbed my hand again.
“This town,” she whispered. “I really thought it was perfect. My home. But then this happened. I want to raise him somewhere safe. Give him that magical kind of childhood.”
That sensation tugged at my chest again. The one that had taken up residence, like a second heartbeat. The constant urge to protect them. My family. I hugged and kissed her forehead.
“Come on. I’ll make dinner. Then we can make some calls, see what we can learn.”
I had no answers. I had no reassurance. Nothing had been the same since Will’s murder. The entire town had changed, andwho knew how deep all this ran. All I could do was protect my family. Evie and Vincent. Give them everything I had and hope for the best.
“What if…” She turned and ran her hands up my chest. “What if I want to be distracted for a bit?”
I sighed, considering what kinds of activities would help her manage this anxiety. “Do you want to play Scrabble?” I whispered. “Or watch that Martha Stewart documentary on Netflix?”
She tipped her head and bit her lip, her eyes flashing even in the dark. “Jasper,” she teased. “I’m talking about a naked distraction.”
It took a minute to register in my brain. I was deep in problem-solving protector mode. So when she turned around, threaded her arms around my neck and pulled me down for a kiss, I was a bit confused.
“I don’t want to think right now,” she said, her hand resting on the waistband of my pants.
