Page 86 of 5 Golden Flings

I’m not herefor a Christmas romance. I’m here for revenge.No way could Brynn say that out loud. Wouldn’t that have gone over like a lead balloon?

That was probably the last thing on his mind. She, on the other hand, was thinking about it way too much. If she could just get the image of that easy smile and cocky—um—out of her brain!

For right now, she needed him to be occupied elsewhere, both for her peace of mind and so she could search the attic.

Colby went into the bathroom to get his outer gear on, and Brynn went upstairs to change her own clothes. Instead of closing the door, she left it open so she could hear his movements downstairs. Not because she thought he would bother her, but so that she knew exactly when he went outside.

She’d spent some time during the night surreptitiously checking the upstairs rooms for anything unusual. Banging on the walls wasn’t an option with Colby sleeping downstairs, but she’d searched the walls and floor for anything that could be considered a hiding space. Even the closets were clear. The fact that Maria had packed up well made searching much easier.

The only other option up here was the attic, which made sense because her father hadn’t had a lot of time to hide it. She knew she might not be able to finish during the short task she’d asked Colby for, but at least she could check for anomalies.

Her father’s evidence was hidden somewhere in this house and she wasn’t going to let Colby’s presence stop her from finding it.

Once word got around that she was living here, someone could figure out who she really was and her time would be up. Better to have the evidence before the fight came to her door.

Gingerly she lowered the wooden attic ladder and extended it to the floor. A quick pause told her Colby was still outside. Rising up the stairs into the dusty attic set her nerves on edge, along with the ticking clock in her brain, but this had to get done. She steeled herself against the feeling of unease the unused space gave her. The attic had a bluish-white glow inside from multiple windows at either end. They must have been original to the church, considering the pointed arch shape that mimicked the front stained-glass window. They certainly didn’t provide any insulation. The room was frigid.

At least, she hoped that’s what had her shivering. The gray light from the small windows created varied shadows in the corners and around the boxes she could see. She’d do a quick check for anything locked, then move on to the walls.

Luckily only the far half of the long, narrow room was occupied with storage boxes. If she remembered correctly, the attic space was only over the back section of the building that had originally been cut from the sanctuary. The living room still had the original ceilings, but the rest had been cut into thirds: first floor, second floor, and attic to create more residential space.

As she approached, most of what she could see looked like moving boxes that she could glance in later. A large trunkoccupied one corner but she was able to easily open it to find a bunch of old clothes. No folders or photographs.

None of the outer walls in this corner seemed disturbed or cut.

Damn it. She’d hoped this would be easy...and quick.

Her heartbeat thumped hard as she heard the outer door close. She held her breath as footsteps sounded down the lower hallway. Then wood fell into the metal bucket on the hearth and footsteps returned to the outside door.

She turned to the opposite side, hoping to find something more promising. Just a few pieces of furniture. She opened what drawers she could find. One did have paperwork in it, but a quick riffle through didn’t show anything noteworthy.

Her heart beat harder and faster as she started to frantically pull at the tops of the boxes to get a quick glance inside. After several disappointments, she turned back to the other aisle, only to slam her toes into one of the boxes.

She cursed, falling to her knees as her abused toes throbbed their protests. Of all the stupidest damn things?—

“Brynn? Are you okay?”

The sound of footsteps pounding up the stairs forced her to think quick. She dropped to the ground and grabbed her sock-clad foot. She heard Colby pause in the upper hallway, then more carefully climb the attic ladder. His head popped up over the rim of the opening.

“You all right?”

When he spotted her on the floor, he rushed the rest of the way up. “What are you doing up here? What happened?”

“I thought I heard something up here, like an animal or something, so I came up to investigate. But I hit my foot on this box.”

“I wouldn’t be surprised if something tried to get in out of the weather.” He knelt down next to her. “How’s it feel? Can you move it?”

“Yeah, just didn’t feel great at the time.”

To her surprise, he gently cupped one hand beneath her heel and the other on her calf to lift her leg. His palms provided two spots of heat that caused her senses to zero in on his touch. She swallowed as her mouth went dry. She wiggled her toes to show him nothing was broken. “I should have been paying more attention to my feet.”

And she should have, or she could’ve put the ladder up on one of his trips outside and he would have been none the wiser. Not to mention she wouldn’t be wishing she could press against him and feel that warmth all over. What the hell was wrong with her? Why was nothing going according to plan right now?

“It happens to the best of us.” He eased her foot back down, then leaned back on his heels, leaving her feeling unexpectedly bereft, and glanced around. “I wonder if Maria is coming back for this stuff?”

“She didn’t mention anything about it.” She wasn’t about to tell him that selling the house was up to her, not Maria. Her father still owned it. Maria had been its meticulous caretaker all of these years without revealing the true situation to anyone, except her current husband, and only then after requesting to do so. Brynn had always been grateful for her discretion.

“I wonder what else she left?” Colby asked.

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