Page 90 of Hero's Prize

“Not for the most part. No real inconsistencies on anything major.”

Colton was waiting for the rest. The older man wasn’t calling him to tell him there was no new information. That would be a waste of both their time, and Callum Webb had never been one to waste time.

“However, Jeremy wasn’t too trusting that he would actually get paid, so he spied on his mysterious benefactor when the bag was dropped off. He didn’t discover anything concrete—Jeremy didn’t want to get caught snooping, but there was one interesting detail.”

“What’s that?”

“The person Jeremy saw was a man.”

“He’s sure?”

“Yep.”

Colton stepped out of the way of a young family. “What does that mean? I was sure the stalker was a woman.”

“I agree. The phrasing of the letters—especially before she got aggressive—suggests a female author. So, I don’t know. Maybe it’s a couple working together? Maybe the stalker is a woman, and she hired a man to deal with Jeremy?”

“Seems complicated.”

“Yeah, and generally, the more complicated the theory, the less correct it is. Occam’s razor and all that.”

The simplest answer tended to be the correct one.

“Agreed. What does this mean for us?” Colton stopped outside of Fancy Pants. He didn’t want to continue this conversation in Ella’s bakery.

“Gives us more to look into. We need to go back through the notes and our sting attempts within the framework of it being more than one person involved. Maybe have Lincoln look through everyone again—especially the men.”

“Okay, I’ll tell my team. I’m on my way to a meeting right now.”

“Good,” Callum said. “We’ll want to coordinate efforts even after you leave town.”

“I’m not leaving town. At least not permanently. Maybe to catch this stalker, but then I’ll be coming right back.”

“Found something to stick around for, did you?”

Colton didn’t even try to stop the grin that spread over his face. “More like foundsomeonestick around for.”

Callum chuckled. “It didn’t take much detective work to see that one coming. Congratulations.”

“Believe me, the thrill is all mine. I’ll be in touch. If anything else comes up, let me know.”

“Roger that.”

He hadn’t talked to Ella about his plans to stay in town, but that didn’t matter. He would take care of this stalker then do whatever was necessary to woo her. Even after last night, he wasn’t going to assume she was a sure thing.

They could take it fast, they could take it slow…he didn’t care. All he cared about was him and Ella being together when everything was said and done.

And honestly, he was a little pissed at himself that he hadn’t realized what an amazing gem he had in his life earlier. How had he managed to live without her all these years? He’d known she was a great friend but had somehow missed that she was so much more.He could only be thankful that no one else had come along and scooped her up.

Colton ended the call and walked into Fancy Pants, moving straight back to the office Ella had left open for him. Tony was already there, and Colton grimaced when he saw Rick sitting over by Ella’s desk.

Tony caught it. “Don’t worry, he’s going to stay over there and keep his damn mouth shut.”

Colton nodded, but honestly, he was in too good of a mood to worry much about the younger man.

“Guys, we need to talk.” Colton wanted to handle this delicately. They were both professionals—even if Rick was sometimes an asshole—and Colton appreciated the support they’d always provided.

“Yeah, we do,” Tony agreed. “We figured out what happened yesterday at the sporting goods store.”

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