“Your timing is good,” Harper said. “Charles is working on a benefit to raise money for a number of smaller projects. If you could put a proposal together, I could certainly get you a meeting.”
Kate beamed. “That would be great. I really appreciate it, Harper.”
“Why don’t we get a cup of coffee or a Coke?” she suggested. “Give the guys a minute to talk.”
“A Coke sounds great.” Excitement coursed through her. Tossing a glance at Jason, she followed Harper out of the office. She could feel his eyes on her as she walked past, as blue and hot as a flame.
The air seemed cooler as they made their way through the office. She took a deep breath and continued behind Harper into the break room.
“Diet or regular?” Harper asked, pulling open the door to a refrigerator at the end of the kitchen counter.
“Diet for sure.”
Harper grinned. “Definitely.” She pulled out two ice-cold cans and handed one to Kate. Sitting down at the table, they popped the tops on the cans and each took a long, refreshing drink.
Like the rest of the office, the walls in the break room were adorned with antique farm tools, but in here there were also photos of the men and women who worked in the office. A picture of the Garrett brothers at the company Christmas party hung next to one of Chase standing beside a sleek twin-engine airplane.
“Your husband flies?”
Harper nodded. “It’s Chase’s plane but all the brothers fly. Whenever they get the chance, they go down to the family-owed ranch in the Hill Country. Jason has a smaller plane, a single engine Cessna he flies when he’s hunting a bail skip.”
Surprise filtered through her. She wished she knew more about him. She was beginning to realize he was far more than he seemed.
She took a drink of diet soda. She expected Harper to ask about the charity, but she didn’t. Instead, she gave Kate a long, assessing glance. “So,” she finally said, “what’s going on with you and Jase?”
“Beautiful girl,” Chase commented. “Seems nice, too. I can see why you like her.” He sat back down on the sofa, while Jase sat down in the heavy leather chair.
“Let me guess... Bran’s been filling you in on my love life?”
Chase shrugged. “What are brothers for?”
“I like her,” Jase said. “But I don’t want to like her too much.”
Chase lounged back on the sofa. “Why not? She’s obviously intelligent. She owns her own company. And clearly you’re more than a little attracted to her.”
Jase just shook his head. “I don’t do relationships. You know that.”
“Maybe it’s time you tried it.”
Jase grunted. “Why is it married people are always trying to convince you to join the institution?”
“Could be because they’re happy and they want you to be happy, too.”
Seeing Chase with Harper, he could almost believe it.Almost. “It wouldn’t work. I live hard, do a dangerous job. What kind of a life would that be for a woman?”
“Depends on the woman, I’d say.”
Jase made no reply. It wasn’t going to happen for him. It wouldn’t be fair to a woman and especially not to Kate.
“So how’s the case progressing?” Chase changed the subject.
“We’ve come up with some interesting intel. Better if I don’t tell you how we got it.”
“Good because I don’t want to know.”
Jase went on to relay the information he’d gotten from Eli Zepeda, the location of the primary crime scene, though not yet verified, and the people Tina had run away from, a criminal organization Jase believed could be involved in human trafficking.
It was a theory he had been working since he’d seen the photos in the medical examiner’s office showing the ligature marks on Tina’s ankles and wrists.
