“Amber isn’t exactly known for her stellar taste.” She reminded Luci of a little drab brown mouse.
Jill pinched her lips, as if she were holding back a comment, then said, “Warren moved here last month from Florida, if you must know. The last hurricane tore down his office and he decided to move up north instead of rebuilding.”
“He might regret that come January,” Luci muttered. More likely he wouldn’t even be here, if Dom was right. He’d be long gone with all of Jill’s assets. God, Luci didn’t want Dom to be right. How would Jill support her son? How would she get over another betrayal? Luci wanted everything to stay as it was, even if it meant she’d always be banned from the country club dining room and sniggered at by the other moms. At least everyone she loved would remain safe.
“Well, that’s why we have airplanes,” Jill said. “We can vacation somewhere warm.”
Already Jill saw herself and Warren as a couple. Not good. The guy was moving fast. Another sign of a con man. Dazzle and disappear before the stars in the mark’s eyes faded and she quite knew what had happened to her.
Jill stalked to the green garbage barrel by the parking lot and dumped her linen handkerchief.
That’s when Luci noticed the truck. Big, bold and Aggie burgundy. Obviously, her days as a sniper hyper-aware of her surroundings were long gone if she’d managed to miss a truck like that following her.
Luci tried her best to ignore Dom and his truck with its smoked glass, but her gaze kept drifting to the parking lot. Every sight of him would remind her of danger, of death, of everything she thought she’d left behind after Cole had died. Risk was no longer part of the equation of her life. She didn’t want it back.
But there was no point pretending Warren hadn’t already established a toehold in Jill’s life. The trick was making sure he didn’t get the rest of the foot in. She still had a few contacts. She’d verify what Dom had told her and make sure Jill wasn’t hurt.
“I know how much J.J. hurt you when he left,” Luci said once Jill had returned. “You wouldn’t mind if I ran a background check on Warren, would you?”
“Oh, no.” Jill shook a finger at her. “You are going to leave Warren alone. He’s a good man, and I don’t want you ruining this for me. What is it with you anyway? Why can’t you ever be happy for me?”
“Of course I’m happy for you, Jill. But you’re my little sister, and I don’t want to see you hurt again.”
“Warren would never hurt me.” Jill’s face turned soft and besotted again. “He cares for me. He takes care of me. He gave me this.”
Jill plucked a small gold chain from under her sweater. A thumbnail-size diamond glittered in the afternoon sun, nearly blinding Luci with its brilliance. “He says it reminds him of my smile.”
Cubic zirconium, no doubt. “It’s, um, pretty.”
“It’s beautiful, and I’d love it even if it was paste.”
Oh, God, Jill was in deep already. Warren was giving her gifts, gaining her confidence. How soon before he started asking her for money?
Jill lifted her chin and wrinkled her nose in that cute way she did when she was trying to hold back a smile. “Did you know you should check your credit report every year? You know, in case someone has bad information or is trying to steal your identity.”
“Really?” No, no, no, Jilly, you didn’t fall for that, did you? Now he has all your financial information at his fingertips. The better to rob you blind with.
“Yes, and everything’s just fine.”
Of course it was. If it wasn’t, Warren would have moved on to fatter prey. Luci glanced at Dom’s truck and cursed him for plopping this mess in her lap.
Jill craned her neck in the direction of Luci’s preoccupation. “Who’s that?”
“Who’s who?”
“The guy in the burgundy truck.”
“An old friend.” Luci had given up hunting a long time ago. But she couldn’t just stand by and watch her sister be used and tossed aside. She had to do something. “He came to town unexpectedly.”
“What kind of old friend?”
“Just a friend, Jill.” At her sister’s pout, Luci softened her tone. “Can I bring him to dinner on Saturday?”
Jill smirked. “But of course, Lucinda Louise. It’s about time you found yourself a boyfriend.”
“He’s not a boyfriend. Just a friend.”
“Sure, sure. Whatever you say. Bring him.” From the middle of the field a whistle shrilled and a thunder of cheers rose. “Looks like the game’s over. Meet you at The Leaning Pizza?”
“Can you take Brendan for me? I’ll meet you later.”
“Sure, take your time.” Jill glanced at Dom’s truck and slanted Luci a knowing smile. “If you’re not there by the time we’re ready to leave, I’ll just take Brendan home with us.”
“That won’t be necessary.”
Jill brushed at the dog hair decorating the front of Luci’s sweatshirt. “Luci, you have to loosen up a bit.”
Luci pantomimed a stringless puppet. “I’m so loose I can’t keep track of time.”
“Not that kind of loose.” Jill tilted her head to one side, meeting Luci’s gaze. “You need friends. You need fun. You need—” she leaned forward, cupped a hand around her mouth and whispered “—sex.”
The sizzling sound of the word kicked Luci’s midriff with an almost forgotten punch. “That is not the answer to everything.”
Especially not with Dom. He knew too much about her. He’d seen the black mark on her soul. He’d once been a friend. But he could never be a lover. And Luci certainly hoped Jill’s relationship with Warren The Worm hadn’t progressed to that intimate stage.
Jill waggled her eyebrows. “But it sure makes everything rosy.”
Luci barely managed to swallow her groan. So much for that hope. Warren had obviously wowed Jill in bed, too.
Jeff and Brendan pounded their way toward their parent. Each grabbed one of Jill’s hands and started dragging her toward her Lexus SUV. “Come on, Mom.”
“Come on, Auntie Jill. It’s pizza time!” The DVD player was the big pull for Brendan wanting to ride with his aunt to the post-game party.
Jill pretended helpless worry at her captors’ strength. Head thrown back, laughing, she let the boys lead her away. “Guess I’d better go. Take your time.”
“Come on, Mom,” Brendan called over his shoulder.
“I’ll be there in a bit. Be good for Aunt Jill.”
Jill’s retort was lost in the confusion of little boy rambunctiousness.
Dragging her uncooperative folding chair behind her, Luci reluctantly made her way to Dom’s truck at the edge of the now near empty parking lot and rapped her knuckles against the passenger’s side window. The tinted glass wound down silently and smoothly.
Her heart rate doubled as his face appeared. The soft blue of his eyes was filled with compassion, as if he truly understood the depth of the wound on her soul and the toll his presence was taking on her. He’d loved Cole, too, and Cole was the one thing they could never discuss if they were to make it through until Jill’s predator was behind bars. “We need to talk.”
DOM REACHED ACROSS the truck’s cab for the passenger door handle, but Luci clamped a hand around the door and held it firmly in place. She stood there, not saying anything, the wide yawn of the years gaping black and empty between them, a burned-out