“What, exactly, does that mean?”
“It means until somebody talks or your attacker comes at you again, we have nothing new to investigate.” He leaned forward. “I swear, Angelique, if I could, I would have your mother’s murderer behind bars right now. I would definitely have the person who came after you behind bars as well.”
She reached out and covered one of his hands with hers. “It’s okay, Daniel. I know you’re doing everything you can to find the bad guys.”
“I just wish it was enough. I’m supposed to get the bad guys in jail. That’s my job, and right now I feel like I’m failing at it miserably.”
“You’ll get the bad guys,” she replied. “We all just need to be a little patient. I knew solving Mama’s murder was going to bedifficult, and as far as the attack on me, I haven’t been able to give you anything to go on.” She pulled her hand back from his.
He smiled at her for a long moment. “You are absolutely nothing like what I initially thought you were going to be,” he said.
She released a small laugh. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
He leaned back in his chair. “When I first met you, I thought you were going to be a controlling witch. I figured you’d ride me hard and expect unreasonable progress in a complicated murder case. Instead, you’ve been quite the opposite. You’ve been very patient and understanding, and you’ll never know how much I appreciate it.”
“And when I first met you, I thought you were going to be a real hard-ass jerk who would reluctantly dole out information to me as you saw fit. Funny how first impressions aren’t always the right ones.”
“By the way, you look quite pretty tonight.”
She smiled in obvious pleasure. “Why, thank you, kind sir. How is your arm doing?”
“Good, it’s pretty much healed up. We’ve both survived our war wounds.”
She laughed, the musical sound so pleasant to his ears. “And hopefully we won’t get any more.”
“Amen to that,” he replied. “And, on that note, I’m going to head outside and get the steaks on.” He got up from the table. “You just sit tight right here. Can I get you something to drink before I go out?”
“No thanks, I’m fine.”
If it wasn’t so hot outside, he would have set the table on his patio so they could eat out there, but the night was sultry and the air was thick, making it unpleasant to be outside. It was only going to get worse as the summer months went on.Thank goodness for air-conditioning, he thought.
The gas grill fired right up and within minutes he had the steaks cooking. It had been the perfect time for him to escape the kitchen and Angelique. Tonight, he was feeling particularly vulnerable to his own feelings where she was concerned.
He was in love with her. The sudden realization struck him like a thunderbolt out of the sky. He didn’t know exactly when it had happened. He couldn’t pick out one specific moment when he’d fallen for her. And in any case, it didn’t matter. What did matter was he was hopelessly, crazy in love with her and he wasn’t sure what to do about it.
Do nothing, he told himself. No good could come from him sharing his feelings for her. Besides, just because he was in love with her, that didn’t mean she felt the same way about him. He might just be the first in a long string of lovers she’d take. The very idea of her casually taking lovers hurt his heart. She deserved so much more than that.
By the time the steaks were cooked, he had his emotions back under control. He carried the steaks inside, where he plated them along with the baked potatoes.
“This looks yummy,” she said as he set her plate before her.
“I hope it tastes yummy,” he replied as he sank down across from her. “Do you need any steak sauce?”
“Heavens no, why would I want to mess with the taste of the steak?”
He laughed. “I’ll ask you about the steak sauce again once you’ve taken a bite. You might need to mess with the taste of the steak.”
As they ate, they talked about the Fourth of July celebration that had just passed. “It was a lot of fun,” she said. “It’s always fun when a carnival comes to town.”
“We’re lucky to get the carnival since we’re such a small town,” he replied.
He’d been on duty that day, but he’d seen the three Santori women together, enjoying themselves. “Did you try to win a stuffed animal at any of the booths?”
“We shot guns and picked up floating ducks and played ring toss, but none of the three of us won anything.”
“Did you get a ride on the Ferris wheel?” he asked.
“Not me,” she said and laughed. “Dominique and Monique rode it but I don’t like heights.”
