Page 97 of To Believe In You
“Lamb head?” Krissy cringed and flipped a page. “Grasshoppers with avocado.” She laughed. “We’re not in Kansas anymore. I had no idea how true it is when people say Mexican food up by us is nothing like the real thing. Or do you think they put this stuff on here for the shock value?”
Matt forced himself to decode the words in front of him. She’d been excited to come here. Normally, he’d embrace the experience, making her glad she’d suggested an adventure. “Tortilla soup or enchiladas look pretty safe.”
“Enchiladas. I can do that. What are you getting?”
Enchiladas sounded good to him too, but he picked two other items. “It’s between the grilled brain tacos or the beef feet tostadas.”
Krissy’s chin jerked, and she checked the menu as if she didn’t believe the items were listed. She must’ve found them because she looked up again, mouth gaping. “You’re kidding?”
His phone vibrated in his pocket. He put the menu at the end of the table. “I guess you’ll find out when the server gets here.”
She groaned, but when she took a sip of water, she seemed to be hiding a smile.
He freed the device and answered Tim’s call.
“How’d it go?”
“I haven’t talked to her yet.”
“Okay. When you do, be careful. Whatever she says, tell her you’ll think about it. Don’t agree to anything you’re going to regret later.”
They’d been over this plenty of times. “We’re trying to have lunch here.”
“Fine. If you don’t want to talk to me, you probably also don’t care that someone broke into Lina’s place.”
“What?” Matt rose and smacked his hip on the table. The ice in their glasses rattled, but nothing tipped. He started for the airlock by the front door. “Is she okay?”
“Shaken. She’s not sure when it happened, if she was in the house or not. Her doorbell cams cover the front and back doors, but if the jewelry’s worth as much as she said, she should’ve had a nicer system.”
How could Tim focus on the heirlooms when Lina’s safety had been jeopardized? Someone had been in her house, and an image of Shane looming over her while she slept injected him with adrenaline that had no outlet. Suppressing a growl, he yanked open the interior door and stepped into the glass alcove that led outside. “Did she tell the police about Shane?”
“Yeah. They’re going to find out if he’s in the area. If not, she has more problems than she knew. Either way, they say odds of recovering the pieces are poor.”
Lina must be devastated. The rings meant a lot more to her than their weight in gold. She wore them all the time, but—with the exception of the wedding, when she’d gone to more trouble—she didn’t walk around glittering in jewels. Other than Shane, who might’ve known to raid her house? A parent from Key of Hope? Or one of their teenage students? It’d take an expert eye—or a nosy inquiry—to know the gems were real, not costume pieces.
“How did they get in?”
“Broke the laundry room window. It’s on the side of the house, and the cameras are only on the front and back doors. No window sensors, which seems like a pretty big oversight.”
“She would’ve heard a window break.” Which meant she hadn’t been there at the time.
“Who knows. She overlooked something. If it happened before she got home, she didn’t notice the jewelry box was emptied until the next morning. Adeline swooped in and insisted she stay at her and Gannon’s place until a new system can be installed.”
At least Gannon and Adeline had security, but tension coursed through Matt. He was literally a thousand miles away. Helpless.
“Even with a better system, if Shane’s around, she shouldn’t be alone.”
“Good luck. It was hard enough to scare her into taking Adeline’s offer in the first place, but you can try to talk sense into her when you get back.”
“She won’t listen to me.” Matt rubbed his neck. “We’re not on good terms.”
Tim stayed silent for a beat. “I imagine the thief wanted some quick cash and a fast getaway, so they’re probably not hanging around, looking to cause more trouble.”
An unspoken apology lurked in Tim’s unusually kind tone. The manager must’ve guessed the news of Nadia’s baby had something to do with Matt and Lina’s falling out.
Tim cleared his throat. “Anyway, don’t get bogged down in Texas.”
If he had been looking for a way to motivate Matt to get back to Wisconsin, he’d chosen the right button to push. They ended the call, and Matt fidgeted with the phone.
