Page 4 of All I Want for Christmas

But Carter had gone above and beyond to help me find my wayward husband, Ronnie, even if his attempts hadn’t been unfruitful. I decided to give him the benefit of the doubt. “I’m good. I’m happy,” I said softly. “I love my life with Jed and our baby.”

He nodded slightly as he continued to look at the rack, shuffling the hangers, metal screeching on metal. “I was going to call you,” he said, still keeping his gaze on the hangers. “I feel like I should warn you…the FBI will be contacting Jed after the first of the year.”

I felt like I was going to pass out. Suddenly, every dream I had of my life with Jed felt like it had been tossed onto a funeral pyre and Carter was holding the torch. “What?” I asked breathlessly. “Why?”

He glanced at me. “Therealquestion is, why haven’t they already? Haven’t either of you wondered? Jed Carlisle was a known associate of James Malcolm for over a decade. Seems to me they’d think Jed had plenty of dirt to bury Skeeter.”

I shook my head. Sure, we’d worried that they’d question him, mostly because Jed’s hands weren’t clean. He’d done things, some of which he wasn’t particularly proud of, and there was no statute of limitations on some of them. But Skeeter had been arrested last June, and after so many months, we thought we were in the clear.

“Are you sure?” I asked, my voice shaky.

He turned around to face me. “About ninety-five percent sure.”

I drew in a sharp breath. “Are they gonna try to pin something on him?”

He hesitated. “Jed should get an attorney.”

My head started to become fuzzy. “I thoughtyouwere his attorney.”

“I’mSkeeter Malcolm’sattorney. If Jed uses me, it will look guilty by association, and even if he was complicit in this mess, he still couldn’t use me. It would be a conflict of interest.”

“How is it a conflict of interest?” I asked in dismay.

He leveled his gaze and said firmly, “He needs to get an attorney, Neely Kate.”

I backed up a few paces, and Carter followed, gripping my elbow. “Do you need to sit down? You look like you’re about to pass out.”

I didn’t respond, but he gently guided me to the boot section a few feet away and helped me sit on a bench.

I took several breaths to calm down, but my panic continued to rise. “What are the chances they’re gonna charge him with something?”

Carter squatted in front of me, compassion filling his eyes. “I suspect they’re gonna want dirt on Skeeter. They might threaten him with charges, then offer him some kind of immunity deal to get it. Which means he’s gonna need a shark of a lawyer. I’d ask Deveraux for some suggestions.”

My eyes flew wide. “Mason?”

He nodded.

“But Mason’s not even around here anymore. Last I heard, he got a job with the secretary of state up in Little Rock, not to mention he’s on the prosecuting side of the law.”

“Neely Kate, this’ll be happenin’ up in Little Rock. Mason may not be Jed’s friend, but he’syourfriend. He’ll help you.”

I tried unsuccessfully to swallow the lump of fear in my throat. “Just like you’re helpin’ me now.”

He nodded. “I tried contacting Jed, but I think he’s blocked my number.”

“That was stupid,” I grunted.

Carter laughed. “I always liked you, Neely Kate. You never held back any punches.” He paused, then said, “Skeeter liked you too.”

I made a face, then after a second said, “My feelings for that man are complicated.”

“That’s fair.”

I gave him a sad smile. “Isn’t this where you threaten me that Jed shouldn’t rat Skeeter out…or else?”

He slowly shook his head. “No. I’d never do that to you, Neely Kate. You deserve every bit of happiness that you can get. I hate telling you this, especially so close to Christmas, but I didn’t want you to be caught unaware. Jed needs to find a lawyer fast and come up with a game plan.”

Tears filled my eyes, and I reached out and put my hand on his shoulder. “You’re a good friend, Carter. Thank you.”

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