Nell laughed. “Is that so?”
“Yes, that’s so.”
“Does that mean that what happened to you in room ten was all a prank?”
“How did you know about—”
“Cleo’s my best friend.”
“Of course,” he drawled sarcastically. “How could I forget?” He took a drink of his coffee, set the cup back down on the table. “All right, so they didn’t find anything fake in room ten. They found all sorts of stuff in the new section—especially in Jenny’s room—nothing in the old section.”
“And nothing that explains what happened to you in room ten.”
“No.”
“Cleo says Jenny is investigating, tryin’ to figure out who the spirit is.”
“She’s been at the library all morning. Will’s with her, of course. I’m more worried about the guy who shot me going after Jenny than I am about the demon in room ten.”
Nell’s silver eyebrows shot up. “Demon, is it?”
“Who the hell knows. Pardon the pun.”
Nell smiled. “You know, you just keep gettin’ smarter and smarter. Or at least more open-minded.”
Cain took a sip of coffee. “Two things I’ve learned—anything is possible, and never underestimate Nell Barrett.”
His grandmother laughed.
The food arrived, and they ate for a while, enjoying the bacon, eggs, fresh-squeezed orange juice, more coffee, and each other’s company.
“So how’s it goin’ with you and Jenny?” Nell finally asked.
“I wondered how long it would take you to get around to that subject.”
“Well . . . ?”
“Well, I like her.” Nell’s snowy eyebrows climbed. “I like her a lot, okay?”
Nell said nothing. Just kept staring, waiting for a truthful answer.
“Fine. If you must know, I’m crazy about her. I’m just not quite sure what to do about it.”
“Maybe you should marry her,” Nell said.
Cain choked on the mouthful of orange juice he had taken. He dabbed his mouth with a napkin. “As I said, we like each other a lot. Marriage is a big step. It takes time to sort through all the angles.”
“There’s only one angle that matters. Do you love her, and does she love you? That’s it. The rest will work itself out.”
“I have no idea how Jenny feels about me.” Which was a fact he didn’t like to think about. “She’s never really said.”
“One of you is going to have to take the first step. If you don’t, things could go south in a hurry.”
“We’ve talked about this before. It’s none of your concern.”
“You’re right, of course,” Nell said, returning to her breakfast. “What was I thinking?”
Cain scowled, but her words had struck a chord. What was Jenny thinking about their relationship? She was an extremely independent woman. Being tied down by marriage might be the last thing she wanted.
