Truth and Dare. Candace Havens

hall. He couldn’t help but laugh to himself. The woman never stopped.

      Patience smiled sweetly. “No, I don’t mind.” She’d missed GG’s intimation and for that he was grateful.

      “I’ll take her bags up and show her the ropes.” He paused. “Is that chicken and dumplings I smell?”

      “Might be, but they won’t be ready until six. Ya’ll look like you’ve been rolling around in a dusty field. Maybe you ought to clean up?”

      “Oh, yes,” Patience said. Once again missing his grandmother’s double meaning. “We’ve been in the basement of the courthouse. If you don’t mind my saying, it’s very dirty down there. The town should better preserve its history.”

      “Ha, I’ll have to talk to the mayor about that,” GG said as she chuckled.

      Cade laughed as he pulled the bags upstairs and motioned for Patience to follow him.

      “What’s so funny?” she asked as they walked along the second floor hallway.

      “GG is the mayor.”

      PATIENCE FACE-PALMED HERSELF. “Great, I’ve insulted your grandmother who is one of the loveliest people I’ve ever met.”

      Cade took the key GG had given him and opened the door. “Nah, she thought it was funny. And I bet the next time we go down to the courthouse basement it will be clean as can be. This is your room,” he said as he opened the door.

      Patience walked in front of him and gave out a small gasp. “It’s beautiful.” The walls were painted a soft cornflower-blue, and everything else was white, the furniture, comforter and linens, even the vase holding the colorful bouquet of flowers on the small nightstand.

      “She’s a tough old broad, but she does have a knack for turning places into homes,” Cade said. “Where would you like your suitcase?”

      “If you don’t mind, by the bathroom would be great. Thanks for carrying everything up.” She suddenly felt awkward. The room was large, but with Cade in there it didn’t seem like it.

      “No problem. So I guess I’ll meet you downstairs in a half hour?”

      “Uh-huh,” she said.

      Cade shut her door to the hallway and then walked through one that adjoined their rooms. He smiled as he closed the door.

      Patience fanned herself. The man did strange things to her body without ever even touching her. Unzipping her suitcase she pulled out her toiletries and clean clothes.

      In the bathroom, she stripped off her dirty clothes and was about to turn on the shower when she heard someone singing. The voice was rich and beautiful, and it belonged to Cade.

      Delicious shivers shot down her spine. She listened for a moment before turning on the shower over the big claw-foot tub. She pulled the curtain around to keep the water from drenching the floor.

      Cade was on the other side of the wall. Even with the water running she could hear his humming. Why did the man affect her so?

      It’s an infatuation.

      How long has it been since you’ve been on a date? Too long.

      Patience showered quickly, turning on a cold blast of water at the end to send her traitorous body a message. She had to focus on what was most important—the case. With the towel wrapped around her she stepped out just as her phone rang.

      It was the sheriff.

      “Dr. Clark, heard you were over at the courthouse this afternoon, thought I’d check up on you.”

      “Thanks, Sheriff. I should have come to see you first. Do you have a minute for me to ask you something?”

      “Certainly. What’s up?”

      She told him about the courthouse. “I was wondering if you might have the files? If so, we’d like to come pick them up.”

      “Sorry, I haven’t seen them, but that is curious. You checked several boxes and those were the only ones you found missing?”

      “Yes,” she said as she shimmied into her panties.

      “I did some digging myself. Joseph Randall, Cade’s father, was the water commissioner back then, but he also worked in the deeds department. At the time, our courthouse was a small operation and everyone helped out when necessary.”

      “Water commissioner? I’d imagine water’s a big deal around here, where there are so many ranches.”

      “Yep,” he said. “You know, those missing files may be in a storage facility outside of town. The old courthouse was a mess five years ago and they moved a lot of stuff out. I’ll check into it and let you know.”

      Before returning to search the records she figured she should speak with Cade’s grandmother to get some background about her son’s business as the water commissioner.

      Well, I’m learning as I go.

      Now, grilling the woman wouldn’t be her best option. Patience wasn’t always known for her tact, but she knew she needed to approach Dorothy with kindness. Maybe she could ask about Cade as a child and what he was like before his father disappeared.

      She stared at herself in the mirror for a moment. You have to be patient. What was it Katie had told her? That one sentence could change the entire way one looked at a case. She needed to keep her ears open and talk as casually as possible with those involved. And not push too hard for answers. People clammed up that way, Katie had reminded her.

      Her friends often joked that her name was a misnomer. In her lab, Patience always took her time, but when it came to the rest of her life—well, she had a way of being abrupt and saying exactly what was on her mind. She didn’t have time for the games people often played. And to be honest she didn’t understand them. Unfortunately, from what her friends had warned, game play was a part of solving cases. Often a cat-and-mouse game.

      Given what she’d seen already, her direct way wouldn’t work to her advantage here.

      There was a knock on the door. “Are you ready?” Cade asked.

      She quickly slipped on her T-shirt. “Yes, I’ll meet you downstairs.” Her mind shifted to the sound of his beautiful voice as he’d been singing.

      She turned toward the shower wondering if she might need another cold spray. Patience was dressed, but she wasn’t sure about being ready for whatever it was Cade might offer her.

      4

      “I HAVE TO SOLVE THIS CASE quickly and get out of this town,” Patience said as they left the B and B and stepped onto the sidewalk. She picked up speed as she hit the concrete for their walk to the courthouse.

      Cade glanced at her sharply. “Why? I thought you enjoyed dinner. Did GG say something while I was upstairs?”

      Laying a hand on his arm, she smiled. “No, I adore her. The food was incredible, but that’s why. A few more days of eating like this, and you’ll have to roll me out of town. I thought I might pop the zipper on my jeans before we even finished the meal.”

      Your jeans look just fine. The way they hugged her slightly rounded behind and showed off her legs.

      Cade stopped. He shouldn’t be thinking like this. He had to concentrate, get back to Austin. The merger.

      Taking her hand, he tucked it in the crook of his elbow. He had to confess he was relieved by her joking about leaving town. Throughout dinner she’d talked mainly to GG, and Patience had charmed them with her openness and honesty.

      “I love food, too,” Cade said honestly. “I’m usually a nut about eating healthy and exercise. Of course, all that flies out the window when I smell my grandmother’s cooking. But I plan to work it all off at the ranch this trip.”

      “I’d like to see it.”