Page 33 of Texas-Sized Scandal

“It is, but Hamm was from Royal and a family friend. I’ve promised his father I’d find out what happened. You know a text was sent from Vincent’s Perry Holdings phone—after he was dead.”

“Who would do such a thing?” Melinda asked. “That’s horrible.”

“It’s awful,” Slade added. “Some people will do anything to cover their tracks.”

“Yes, they will,” the sheriff said. “Well, I’ll leave you two to your drinks. If you think of anything that could help with my investigation, give me a call.”

He handed them his card and then walked away. Slade watched him leave before finally sitting back down. He looked at the card for a moment before tucking it into the inside pocket of his jacket.

Slade Bartelli hadn’t been exactly what Nathan had been expecting. He had a firm handshake and he’d been respectful and forthright with him. Nathan rubbed the back of his neck as he headed to the Houston Police Department. He was frustrated by the lack of suspects in Vincent Hamm’s murder.

He knew he’d stopped and warned Bartelli because of that. He normally wasn’t the kind of sheriff who threatened men like Slade—a billionaire entrepreneur and not a street thug. He waited for Detective Zoe Warren and decided he was ready to be back in Royal.

He liked being on his own turf. He missed his wife, Amanda, and the diner she ran back in Royal and the coffee that she always had waiting for him when he stopped by. He didn’t relish going back to Royal without some answers for Vincent’s family. They were all beside themselves, and he admitted to himself that that was one thing he really hated about his job. Talking to the victims’ families. Especially when he knew them as well as he did the Hamms.

“Sheriff Battle, what can I do for you?” Zoe asked as she met him in the waiting area.

“Just following up to see where you stand on the Hamm investigation,” he said.

“Come back to my desk and I’ll update you,” she said. “I have to be honest. We don’t have much to go on.”

He followed her through the precinct to her desk and he realized he started to relax being in the familiar environment. He liked cops and he felt most at home when he was surrounded by them.

“As you know, I’ve had Sterling Perry in for questioning. The man was cagey and not very cooperative. Could be because he’s been under investigation since the first time I talked to him.” She shrugged. “But he didn’t add anything new. Neither did Liam Morrow, who, along with the construction crew, found the body. And none of Hamm’s colleagues have anything to add either.”

“Hmm, I don’t like that. Someone has to know something,” Nathan said.

“I agree. I’m shaking some trees... I was hoping that since you were here, maybe you’d heard something in Royal?” she said with a question in her voice.

“Nothing yet. But I’ll keep poking around and let you know what I find,” he said.

“Good. I’ll keep you in the loop if I get any breaks on this case,” she said. “I know this one is personal for you. That always makes me more determined to solve it.”

“I doubt you are ever not determined,” he said, standing up.

“Very true,” she admitted with a smile.

He shook her hand before leaving the station. When he got out on the street, he took a moment to think about the suspects. Hell, there weren’t any. But Sterling Perry being cagey... That bothered him. He would put out a few feelers and see what else he could find out about Perry and his business.

Melinda watched Slade as he sat back down. He was on edge and looked like he wanted to punch someone. It was the first time she’d seen him like this. She could tell he didn’t like being treated like a criminal when he wasn’t one.

She didn’t like it either. Slade was a good man. The man she loved. How dare that sheriff stop and talk to him like that.

“I cannot tell you how many times I’ve had that conversation with law enforcement,” he said.

“I can’t believe it,” she said, realizing that there was a lot more to Slade’s life than she had glimpsed. “I mean, your dad of course has a reputation, but you’ve never done anything outside the law. Is this what you are afraid of if we got married?”

He looked at her, his dark gaze a cocktail of emotions that she had a hard time reading. Anger and remorse and something else she couldn’t identify.

“Hell, Mels, of course, I don’t want you subject to anything like that. I hate that he felt justified in coming up to talk to me when I was with you. I’m not a criminal. I have lived my life above reproach...but this kind of thing isn’t going to just disappear.”

“It isn’t,” she said, her heart aching at the thought of Slade spending the rest of his life alone and isolated from her and their child to protect them. It was an honorable sentiment, but he shouldn’t be alone. He didn’t have to be. “I can handle that, Slade. I’m not as frail as you might think I am.”

“I know that, woman. That doesn’t mean I want you to have to fight the battle that comes with my last name,” he said.

“You’re not asking me to, I’m asking you to let me,” she said. “Do you understand? For me, this is something that I can’t just ignore. I care deeply about you. I can’t stand the thought that anyone feels as if they can question you about your father’s crimes.”

He nodded, leaned over and kissed her so softly and sweetly that the love she was trying desperately not to confess almost spilled out.

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