Page 75 of Only One More Lie

Now that she mentioned it, Andi was kind of hungry—despite their dire circumstances. She hadn’t eaten much yesterday, and now her stomach was reminding her of the fact.

They started toward the buffet.

Before they reached the food, the door flew open again.

Andi jerked her head toward it, curious about who was here now.

Her eyes widened when she spotted a man she’d never seen before.

Based on the fire shooting out of his eyes, he was angry.Reallyangry.

“Mr. Klinkhart . . .” Juniper muttered, taking a step back.

“Wait . . . who?” Mariella murmured.

“That’s Heath,” Duke told her, gripping an empty plate in his hands. “Pepper’s dad. I saw his picture when I was doing research earlier.”

The tall, broad-shouldered man stormed toward Juniper. His hands were fisted at his sides and his face a fiery shade of red.

The man was seething.

“I just heard about my daughter,” he announced. “From someone else. You didn’t even have the nerve to tell me, even after all you’ve done?”

Even after all you’ve done?Was there more to this story? Or was the man simply referencing the fact that Juniper had helped Pepper start a new life for herself?

Duke edged closer to Juniper, ready to step in if things turned uglier.

He didn’t need to, however. Gibson did instead. “I’m State Trooper Logan Gibson. Can I help you?”

The man’s nostrils flared, and his gaze remained on Juniper. “I’m Heath Klinkhart. My daughter was found dead on this property. I flew in as soon as I heard.”

“I’m sorry for your loss, Mr. Klinkhart.” Gibson kept his voice professional. “But it wasn’t Juniper’s job to let you know about your daughter.”

Heath only grunted.

“Traveling here was a risky move considering how bad the roads are,” Gibson continued. “I’m surprised they didn’t tell you to go to our office in Fairbanks.”

“Nothing was going to keep me away. I haven’t seen my daughter in a year, but I still had hopes I’d see her again one day.” His gaze went back to Juniper, hatred rising in waves from his eyes. “Thanks to you, that isn’t going to happen.”

“Me? I just tried to help my friend. It’s more than you ever did. You insisted she move with you. That she marry that man she didn’t even like. It’s not like we’re in the 1800s or something. People don’t do that anymore!”

“She wasn’t making good decisions! We just wanted to help guide her. We wouldn’t have forced the marriage. I’m not barbaric.”

“She loved this place,” Juniper countered. “She loved everything we represent, and she didn’t want to leave.”

“You shouldn’t have interfered!”

As his voice thundered across the room, Juniper backed up and hit a dining table. A chair on the other side fell backward, causing a loud crash to echo in the room.

“You should have stayed out of it.” Hatred came in invisible waves from the man.

“Do you want to tell me what’s going on here?” Gibson stepped closer, placing himself between Heath and Juniper.

“The problem here is this woman.” He glared at Juniper. “She’s just like her parents—meddling, lying, and controlling.”

“Don’t talk about my parents.” Some of the fear disappeared from Juniper’s voice, replaced with defensiveness.

“I told your dad not to open this place. That it was bad news.”

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