Page 51 of Murder at Rescue Ridge

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For a moment, Conrad’s world tilted on its axis. While his gaze was locked onto Nikki’s, the world righted itself. The undeniable attraction grew stronger the more he tried to ignore it. He was no longer the only suspect in a murder case. Could he be more to Nikki than a friend? Did he have a right to ask for more?

The questions had to be placed on hold. A killer was still on the loose. Harrison Guidry had been the first victim. Would there be more?

Was Lukas Wayne dead? Did Beau fear he would be next?

“What if Lukas is dead?” he asked Nikki, breaking the sensual moment that had been happening between them.

“It’s possible,” she reasoned.

“And what if Beau fears he’ll be next?” Conrad said. “What if he’s running because he received information the trainer was killed?”

“Good questions,” Nikki said after blowing out a sharp breath. “We don’t exactly have a motive established for killing my father or the trainer.”

“What are the top three reasons for murder?” he asked.

“Greed, jealousy, and revenge,” she supplied.

“The deal they were making with an unknown millionaire could’ve gone sour,” Conrad said. He was spit-balling, but this line of thinking made sense. “That might hit on two of the three reasons. Plus, we’re seeing how jealousy and ego work together with the deal the twins are delivering on now.”

“Why wouldn’t Beau ask for help if he suspected someone was killing the three people involved in the deal and that he might be next?” she asked, moving over to the coffee machine. She retrieved a mug andthen filled it with fresh brew.

“There could be a number of reasons, right? For one, the killer might be connected. He didn’t disclose who the deal was being made with. Horse racing involves gambling and can draw all sorts of criminal elements.” Conrad threw a couple of slices of bread in the toaster. “Jelly?”

“And peanut butter if you have it,” she said.

He nodded. The toast popped up, so he slathered the other ingredients on top before setting the slices on a plate and handing it over. They moved to the table and sat down.

Nikki looked a little too good in his concert T-shirt. She must have dressed in a hurry because she still had it on with a pair of jeans. She probably wanted to grab clean clothes from her car.

The note.He thought about the note he’d left inside the cupholder.

“Do you want me to run out to your vehicle and grab clothes?” he asked.

“How do you know that I brought extra stuff?”

“You came here to have a serious discussion with your father.” He noticed the hint of vulnerability in her eyes when she asked. “It’s just a guess, but I figured he would’ve invited you to stay over, or you would have booked a room somewhere nearby. A conversation like the one you intended to have could take a couple of days to work up to or lead to a lot of baggage being stirred up. Either way, you strike me as a person who’d want a backup plan.”

She shifted her weight from left to right. “Am I that easy to read?”

“No,” he said quickly. He bit back the words he wanted to say, which had to do with them having a special connection. “It’s what I would’ve done. It’s logical.”

“No one has ever called me predictable before.”

“Believe me, you’re anything but predictable.” Again, he wouldn’t go into all the ways in which she was different than anyone he’d ever met. Suffice it to say she was special in every sense of the word.

She took a seat at the table.

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” she said. “And, yes, I would appreciate a change of clothes, which can be found in my trunk.”

“Keys?”

“In my purse, which is in the bedroom. Sorry.”

He didn’t mind. “I can use the exercise.”

His cell started buzzing as he hit the back stairwell. After fishing it out of his pocket, he saw the group chat blowing up with messages. He held onto it as he jogged to the bedroom, retrieved keys, and then headed back downstairs.

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