Page 48 of Scorched Secrets

“We will.” She managed a smile. “You have faith that God is watching over us, right? I do too.”

He surprised her by lifting her hand and kissing her fingers, then letting her go. “Okay, time to hit the road.”

After leaving Rosie’s, Colin headed to the freeway. She was surprised by the amount of traffic along both sides of the highway, people heading to summer lake houses and cabins to spend quality time with their families over the weekend.

Something she hadn’t experienced personally in a long time. But she knew her dad had taken Claire and Annie to a nice lake home for several weeks over the summer months. The realization had her straightening in her seat. “Colin, I have an idea.”

“Yeah?” He glanced at her. “You’ve changed your mind about going to your dad’s house while we spring the trap?”

“No. I don’t know why this didn’t occur to me earlier, but my dad rents a lake house for the entire summer. They don’t stay there the whole time, of course, but often enough. I think we should set up the trap there.”

“What sort of summer lake house?” Colin asked. “You didn’t mention it earlier.”

“I know, I’m an idiot.” She shook her head. “I rarely go there, that’s why it didn’t occur to me before now.” She didn’t add that the lake house was something her father did for his new family, not his old one. Irritated with her petty thoughts, she shook them off. “My schedule makes it hard to get away in the summer, but I was there over Memorial Day about two years ago, I think? I’m sure I can find it again.”

“You remember the address?”

“It’s on Fish Lake in Wautoma, Wisconsin. I tend to have a pretty good memory.” It was almost photographic, but not exactly. Her gifted memory had been an asset in getting through medical school. “I know the cabin is roughly two hours away, maybe longer with traffic. I wish I’d remembered this earlier. The good news is that if the American Lodge is full, we can use the cabin as plan B.”

“Are there security cameras?” Colin asked.

“No.” She shrugged. “But the house overlooks the lake, so someone coming by car or foot would approach from the rear of the property. There’s not any woods close to the house either; my stepmother doesn’t like bugs.”

He nodded slowly. “Okay, that’s helpful. We’ll see what Mitch comes up with. If nothing else, we can use the place as a temporary hideout until it’s time to spring the trap.”

“I really wish I’d thought of it earlier.” She could blame the stress of being on the run and the lack of sleep, but the truth was, she didn’t consider the lake house hers. Her father had offered the place to her whenever she wanted to come up, but a narrow glance from Claire had confirmed her stepmother hadn’t liked that idea.

And really, driving all the way up to the lake house by herself didn’t hold much appeal. The one time she’d gone up two years ago, the experience had proved to be somewhat awkward, so she’d stayed away, using work as an excuse.

“We need to get your replacement phone,” Colin said, changing the subject. “Any particular place you shop?”

“Yes. I use the store at Mayfair Mall.”

“Great. We’ll head there first. And we can pick up a few items of clothing if you’d like too.”

She looked down at her wrinkled navy-blue capri pants and her blue and green top. A change of clothing would be nice, but it wasn’t imperative. “I thought we weren’t going to use our credit cards?”

“We can for now, temporarily.” He put a hand on her knee. “This way, our arsonist will know we’re back in town and shopping. He won’t be surprised when your phone is back online.”

“Makes sense.” She tried not to show her concern. This guy had tracked her down to the park outside the courthouse, attempting to burn her with blatant disregard for the innocent lives he put in harm’s way.

She trusted Colin and Mitch. They were being strategic about drawing the arsonist out of hiding. Overall, she liked the plan. The sooner they knew who this guy was, the better.

Even though getting him behind bars would bring an end to her time with Colin. She told herself that was okay. She had to deal with the insurance company about her house and car anyway. No doubt working with claims adjusters and contractors to oversee the repairs to her home.

Since those thoughts were downright depressing, she decided to focus on the present. Colin pulled into the parking lot of the mall. They parked, then walked to the closest entrance.

“It’s to the right,” she said as they entered the cool air conditioning.

“I see it. We’ll get the phone first, then pick up some clothes.” He glanced down at his jeans. “Aiden is shorter than I am. I feel like people are staring.”

She scoffed. “If they are, it’s because you’re good-looking, not the clothes themselves.”

“You think I’m good-looking?” His smile widened.

She shook her head in feigned disgust. “There isn’t a single bad-looking Finnegan, so don’t pretend I’m the first to mention it.”

“You’re the only one that matters.” His tone wasn’t light and teasing anymore, but she reminded herself not to make too much of it.

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