Page 58 of Written with Love

Max exhaled sharply, scrubbing a hand down his face. “We need to take this to Palmer and Parker. If this was one of the workers, they might recognize him.”

She nodded, already closing her laptop.

They moved quickly, finding the brothers in the middle of a discussion about materials in one of the upstairs bathrooms. The second Palmer saw their faces, his expression darkened.

“What’s wrong?” Parker asked, setting down a clipboard.

Juliette opened her laptop again, turning the screen towards them. “We caught something on the footage from yesterday.”

Both men leaned in as she played the clip, their gazes sharpening when the figure appeared. Palmer muttered a curse under his breath while Parker crossed his arms.

“Any idea who that might be?” Max asked, his voice tight.

Palmer exhaled through his nose. “Give me a sec.” He pulled out his phone and scrolled through a list, then exchanged a glance with his brother.

Parker nodded. “We can put together a short list of guys who match that build and were working yesterday.”

By the time Aiden arrived, the brothers had narrowed it down to three potential suspects.

Aiden listened as they explained, his expression growing graver by the second. “Alright,” he finally said, jotting down notes. “I’ll need their names and contact info. If they’re here working today, we can question them, if not, we’ll bring them in for questioning.”

Juliette stole a glance at Max, the tension in his posture unmistakable.

“Why don’t the two of you go take a walk while we handle this?” Aiden suggested.

“I have a better idea,” Max said, taking her hand. “I have a few errands to run in Edgeview. I need to pick up a few things. We’ll be back after lunch.”

“We’ll keep you posted,” Aiden assured them.

“I’ll grab my purse,” Juliette said, and disappeared.

In all the excitement, she’d forgotten to hit publish on the posts and did so before they left, making sure to exclude the scene where Max was followed.

As they pulled out of the driveway, Juliette kept sneaking glances at Max. Since his head was still aching, she drove his car.

“You okay?” she asked softly, reaching out to rest a hand on his arm.

He exhaled slowly, forcing a small smile. “Yeah. Just trying to keep my head straight. It’s one thing knowing someone attacked me, but seeing that guy actually following me…” He shook his head. “It’s unsettling.”

Juliette squeezed his arm gently. “We’ll figure out who it is. Aiden and the guys won’t stop until they do.”

Max nodded but didn’t say anything else. She turned onto the highway that would lead them towards Edgeview, the larger town about thirty minutes away.

“So, what are these errands?” she asked, trying to lighten the mood. “You’re being all mysterious, it almost makes me think you’re either picking up something completely boring like light bulbs or something ridiculously extravagant.”

He smirked, the tension in his face easing just slightly. “What if I told you it was somewhere in between?”

Juliette raised an eyebrow. “Interesting. Okay, I’ll play along.”

They spent the next few miles chatting about little things—the upcoming work still needed on the house, the posts she’d uploaded, and the fact that they now had over two million views on their latest video.

By the time they reached Edgeview, Max had fully relaxed, and Juliette was feeling more at ease too.

Their first stop was a small specialty store tucked between a coffee shop and a bookstore. Inside, Juliette immediately caught the scent of leather and aged paper.

Max led her to a glass case where a variety of cameras were displayed.

“Ah-ha,” she said, crossing her arms. “Now it makes sense.”