Page 30 of The Jade Stone Sleuth

“Brex.”

He only grinned and cut off any protests with another kiss.

She’d tell him about how serious the risk was of dating her. Later.

He increased the depth of the kiss.

Much, much later.

Chapter

Ten

Brex wasan absolute mess and certain he was failing at this job. Rulon and Pamela had called to check his progress after the brilliant kissing session in the waterfall and he’d had to admit he was no closer to finding the killer. They were obviously disappointed and Pamela kept saying Clara was the murderer, which made his gut twist and made him want to lash out. He’d calmly told her he’d keep working to find answers and ended the call.

He should be playing a part to get close to Clara and drawing out whoever might have murdered those men, but after their reconnection at their magical slot canyon waterfall, he couldn’t keep his hands from reaching for her. Emotional distance was nowhere in his mind.

He hated lying to her and didn’t like himself much right now. Except the way Clara seemed to see him. In her eyes, he seemed to be the sun, moon, and stars. How was a man from a shallow existence supposed to resist the genuine and unique beauty that was Clara Gem?

He and Clara spent their mornings and evenings together. He needed to be with her and wanted to draw out the attempted murderer.

Her mission trip and his assignment deadline were only two weeks away. Brex didn’t know how he would let Clara go. Not just because this case was far from solved, but because he was falling in love with her and wanted her by his side every moment. It blew his mind that he could fall in love with a Christian who was as naturally beautiful on the inside as she was on the outside. She wore very little makeup, homemade clothes that fit her perfectly, and social scene or posturing weren’t even in her vocabulary.

Tonight they were having a barbecue in her backyard with her parents, the vivacious Melody, Clara’s hilarious brother Lincoln, her oldest brother Vance, her firefighter brother Wade, her cousin Tess, her close friends Jane and Weston, and her entertaining grandmothers.

As they bowed their heads and Vance said a heartfelt prayer, Brex stewed about religion and what a huge part of Clara’s life it was. They hadn’t talked about the fact that he wasn’t a believer. Maybe she thought he was. He attended church with her, bowed his head for prayers, never questioned her beliefs.

The prayer finished, and they all dished up. He looked around at the paper tablecloths, the mismatched chairs in the backyard, the plastic lemonade bottles instead of wine coolers, Baxter running around eating anything that someone tossed to him.

He loved the down-home feeling, the homemade food, her Grandma Gem and Granny Pearl teasing everyone, he loved all of her family truly. It stunned him how accepting her family was of him. Shouldn’t her dad, an insightful and religious leader, see through him like Shayna’s dad had? He pushed those memories away.

As they ate, Lincoln started telling jokes that his mom Ruth said were ‘crass’. Brex couldn’t help but laugh at Lincoln’s jokes. He thought of any of these innocent people around some of his ‘friends’ from San Diego and was grateful for the protective bubble that seemed to surround Jade Valley.

Later, during cleanup, Melody bumped into his side. “Are you going to let me put you and my gorgeous sister on my channel? I could raise a lot more money for her charity if I bragged about Aiden Porter’s top operative dating my sis.” She sang half the words and grinned vivaciously at him.

“He likes to stay incognito,” Weston muttered behind him.

Brex gave the guy a pointed look.

“Weston,” Jane whispered loudly. “Careful with the buff guy.”

“Oh, Jane.” Weston gently guided Jane over to play with the dog Baxter. The guy did have some redeeming qualities.

Did no one but him, and Weston, see the contrast between him and Clara? She was genuine, light, and joy; he was shallow and lying to her.

Brex focused on Weston talking quietly to Jane as he wrapped up paper goods in the throw away paper table cloths. He was struck by the contrast of an outdoor barbecue on the beach he’d been to with Rachel where they’d used china and real silver. Miserable people hiding behind fake smiles and cocktails, only there to make themselves look better than everyone around them. No one here was posturing, except maybe Weston. Weston aside, he loved how relaxed everyone was.

This casual family atmosphere was far from the life he’d imagined for himself. The million-dollar paycheck for this case felt as elusive as the murderer. It felt impossible to see past Clara’s authenticity and light. The guilt of being here for the job and the money dug at him. Was he still that shallow, socialladder climbing guy, or was he becoming Clara’s guy and could somehow make recompense for hiding the truth from her?

He tossed a wad of paper tablecloths, napkins, and plates in the garbage and turned. Lincoln had Clara in a bear hug and lifted her off the ground. She looked small compared to her huge little brother, but Clara was substantial in every way that mattered.

Laughing, she let Lincoln spin her around, then she shoved at him and he set her on her feet. She glanced over at Brex. The moment seemed to catch and hold. Clara was all he could see and all he wanted to see. If they’d been alone, he might’ve fallen to the ground and begged her to marry him. She was real … and exactly what he wanted and needed in his life.

After the barbecue, Brex and Clara said goodbye to everyone, ignoring the annoyed looks from Weston and the speculative looks from everyone else, and went on a late-night walk. Brex was armed and kept an eye out for danger. They ended up at a park by the river and sat on a bench. It was quiet and peaceful, the flow of the water their only accompaniment.

Brex wrapped one arm around her and took her hand with his other hand. He was failing at this job, but he couldn’t let anyone know that. It was difficult to focus on anything but the enticing Clara. All of his research and Aiden’s team’s research had turned up nothing suspicious on anyone affiliated with the case. Even Weston was lily-white and clean.

Brex planned to schedule a chat with Nick and Aiden and tell them that Clara couldn’t possibly have hurt anyone and get their advice on drawing out the murderer, if there was one. His and Clara’s early morning hikes were the perfect place for the murderer to try to come after him. Yet Clara never took him on hikes with game-ending drop-offs. He would have to research some treacherous hikes close by and insist they do them.

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