“More than anything in the world.” I smiled.
Thelma settled back on the sofa. “I won’t take him if you’re interested.”
I shook my head. “Nope. I’ve caught my limit on men lately.” Not that I’d really caught either Aiden or Nick, but the last thing I needed was a detective in my personal business. “Grant Pierce is all yours.”
“Oh, goody.” Thelma bounced on the cushions, sending her earrings clanking. “Now, tell us what’s going on next door.”
Georgiana returned and handed over a muffin and milk, and it took me several minutes to chew in absolute heavenly bliss before I answered. “We have a warrant to search Melvin’s place because of the pot exchange I saw between Randy and Cheryl the other day.” Then I took another big bite of warm, gooey chocolate muffin.
“It is so sad about Randy,” Thelma said, her eyes clouding.
I finished my muffin. “I agree. Hey, did either of you ever see Randy with anybody else besides her?”
“Nope,” Thelma said.
Georgiana sat. “Not really. The only visitor I’ve ever seen is one of those hot biker guys like you see on television, and he was there to see Melvin and not the kid.”
Bits of muffin caught in my throat, and I coughed, reaching to down the milk in one gulp. I wiped off my lips. “Biker guy? Like a Lorde’s member?”
“Lord? No crowns or anything like that. His leather jacket had a shield with a bleeding lion on it,” Thelma said.
Holy crap. It was the Lordes. There were a lot of Lordes members, probably. That didn’t mean anything. Yet, I had to ask. “Tell me about this guy. Is there any chance he had black hair that’s a little too long but is still sexy, a big torso, and is tough-guy handsome?” I could barely breathe.
“Yes, and he had the most spectacular blue eyes,” Thelma said, her voice dreamy. “So blue it’s hard to describe. Have you ever seen anybody like that?”
“Yeah,” I said slowly.
Thelma nodded. “I heard Melvin say goodbye, and he called the guy ‘Devlin.” Isn’t that the best name ever?
Not at the moment. Aiden knew Melvin. It was time to confront my old friend—after we served the warrant on Cheryl’s home.
Chapter 21
After leaving Thelma and Georgina’s, I glanced at the navigation directions on my phone to find Cheryl’s place. Or what had been Cheryl’s place.
How could the young blonde be dead?
I took a left turn toward the bad side of town when my phone buzzed with a video call. Pulling the car over into a deserted parking lot that no longer held a building, I accepted the call. “Hello?”
“Hey.” Lacey O’Shea’s pretty face came into view. She was still blonde with freckles and deep topaz eyes, which were dark with concern, and she was in her cop uniform, looking tough. “Today is suck it day, and I thought I’d check in.”
We always called each other on this day, considering it had shaped both of us. “I kissed Aiden Devlin,” I blurted out.
Her chin dropped and her eyes widened. “What? Whoa. How? I mean, when? Well?”
I laughed. “Yes, to all of that. He’s in town, he’s in trouble, I may have to prosecute him, and he’s as good as a kisser as I dreamed.”
She shook her head like a kitten that couldn’t sneeze. “Okay. There’s way too much to unpack there. I only have a minute here and just wanted to check with you. Promise you’ll call later and tell me everything. I meaneverything.”
I laughed, feeling better than I had in days. “I promise. For now, I’m fine. You?”
She shrugged. “I’m okay. We survived this day years ago, and I keep reminding myself of that. Is Pauley okay?”
“Yes,” I said. “I’m keeping an eye on him and will report back. When are you coming home?”
She sighed. “I’m not sure. Probably sooner rather than later.”
Oh, there was something to unpack in that statement, too. I nodded. “We’re definitely going to talk later. Love you.”
