“I think you’d choke on your own integrity and pride before you’d help someone you thought was doing something wrong. Even if the value was only a dollar.”

  “That’s right,” she said. “But I want to make sure I prove it to you and everyone else. What do you need me to do for that?”

  “Right now,” he said. “Nothing other than answering my questions. Cooperation helps.”

  “And I am,” she said.

  “Do you have any communication with anyone at your old job?”

  “No,” she said. “I don’t make friends easily. I went in and did my job and went home each night.”

  He nodded. “Shawn was on vacation in November. He rented a car and put enough miles on it when it was turned in to have driven here and back. You’re sure you haven’t seen him?”

  Her jaw dropped. “I assure you I haven’t seen him. I’m not a violent person, but if I did see him again, right now I’d kick him in the balls for dragging me down with him. Do you have any proof he came here? Don’t most rental cars have GPS or something on them? It wouldn’t be to see me. He wasn’t happy when I broke things off.”

  “No proof of where he went since the GPS wasn’t working at the time,” he said. “He put a lot of miles on a rental, but wherever he went or stayed it was with cash or another name.”

  “It’s called the Midwest for a reason. He could have gone in any direction without you knowing then.”

  “Someone will be able to ID him if we get a big enough lead,” he said. “But that is neither here nor there.”

  “Seems like it’s here right now. In my living room too,” she said sarcastically.

  He snorted. “As long as you continue to cooperate you have nothing to worry about.”

  “I’m doing that and I’ll continue, but I’d like this kept between us for now.”

  “I don’t see any reason not to,” he said. He pulled his card out and stood up. “If you think of anything else, you can reach out to me. I’ll do the same.”

  “I’d ask if you need my number, but I’m positive you’ve got all that information.”

  He smiled at her. One that made him look not as daunting or dangerous...more like sexy.

  Why was she thinking that at a time like this?

  “I’ll be in touch if I need you for anything.”

  She got up and walked him to the door, showed him out and then bent over at the waist and took a few deep breaths.

  She thought moving here she could start over and be stable again. That plan was going so well...until today.

  4

  ATTRACTION AND AROUSAL

  Hugh hung up the phone. He had more than one case he was working on.

  Everyone thought the life of an FBI agent was this exciting job.

  What they didn’t see was the paper cuts and finger aches from calling people.

  He picked up his glass of water and took a drink. He’d never talked as much as he had since he moved to this department.

  He didn’t miss being in the field though. Not like he used to be.

  He’d never be able to go back to that life again.

  Boring was a damn good thing even if it was lonely.

  When his email dinged, he read some more information from his contact in Chicago.

  Shawn was formally arrested and his home was searched. They hadn’t found any records in his apartment. His laptop had been seized and was being examined now. Hugh looked at the picture and wanted to find out from Dahlia if it was the same laptop Shawn had when they were dating.

  The guy had been embezzling money for years. Before Dahlia, during the time they dated and after. The problem was, they saw money going out, Shawn using it for stocks, the stocks moved but the profits not moved with it. Where those profits went was anyone’s guess and Shawn wasn’t offering it up, sticking to his story that he was just “lazy” about moving money rather than taking it. Or sloppy with the transfer, but that didn’t mean theft.

  No one was buying those explanations.

  Hugh truly felt bad that he had to let Dahlia know she’d been lied to over something so simple as Shawn not having a child.

  Could be the guy was just a dick and wanted a woman to feel sorry for him and pay for everything.

  When the pictures came in a minute later, he grabbed his jacket and keys and left.

  After he parked outside of Blossoms he reminded himself that he’d keep this private. Not sure why he was doing it, but there was part of him that was drawn to Dahlia and what she was going through.

  Maybe he saw some of himself in her. That she moved here to start over as he did.

  Only he was alone.

  She had her siblings, and yet, he believed she was still alone.

  He decided to text and see if she could come out and talk. He was pretty sure she’d agree so he didn’t go in.

  She replied fast that she’d be right out.

  It wasn’t even a minute when he saw her open the door to the retail store and come out with her purse on her arm.

  The bright blue with white floral print stood out against her navy suit. One similar to what she’d worn last week. She had a white sweater under her jacket and navy flats on her feet.

  Last week she was barefoot as if she’d kicked her shoes off when she walked in the door, but he’d seen the black heels there. Just small ones.

  He climbed out of his black SUV and walked toward her. “Thanks for coming out so quickly.”

  “Not a problem,” she said. “I said I was going to get a snack. Can we walk and talk?”

  “A snack?” he asked.

  “Yeah, there is a bakery down the block. They’ve got coffee and cookies, fudge and chocolates. Things like that. Guess I can bring back something so I’m not lying.”

  “We can do that,” he said. “I won’t take up much of your time.” He pulled his phone out. “Does this computer look familiar to you?”

  She reached for his phone, their fingers touching. That light innocent caress sparked a movement in his body he hadn’t felt in way too long.

  Attraction and arousal.

  He pushed it back because he was working and it wasn’t appropriate.

  “I think that is Shawn’s computer. I mean that is his coffee table. He always kept it there. He’d never put it in his office or away. It was always open even if the screen was black.”

  “Did you ever see anything on his computer?”

  “No,” she said. “I had no reason to look. I know it’s password-protected. Most people’s are.”

  “Is your personal computer protected?” he asked.

  “Yes. I’ve got a fingerprint and a password. I’m sure you do too.”

  “I do,” he said. “Though I don’t do much on my personal computer. Seems I’m always on my work one.”

  “The same,” she said. “I never mix the two though. I know a lot of people do. Shawn was on his phone all the time. I hated it. You could be talking to him and he’d pick his phone up and put it back.”

  “Did you ever ask him what he was doing on it?”

  “Not at first,” she said. “Then it would get annoying. He knew it bothered me. He’d say he was just checking stocks. I’d see it on his screen so I didn’t think anything of it. But it was odd to me.”

  “How so?”

  “For a guy that had no money, he was always checking the stock market. I got thinking he lost his shirt. Maybe that is why he didn’t have money. I never asked. This probably sounds horrible, but I didn’t care. Then I got thinking, if it were me, I’d be embarrassed if I was doing poorly. People’s personal finances are private.”

  He’d always felt that way too. “They are,” he said. “Yet Shawn had no problem saying he had no money. At least from what you’re saying.”

  “I’m sure a lot of people would say it,” she said. “After we were dating I’d heard it was a joke that he never had cash on him when he was with people. He’d be the jerk that always left his wallet in the office or at home and would get the next one.”

  “The next one never came?” he asked.

  “He’d pay just often enough to keep people thinking they’d get it back,” she said.

  Dahlia stopped walking and opened the door. He held it for her.

  The place smelled great. Sweet and fruity at the same time mixed with a heavy dose of coffee.

  “I’ll have to come back here again. I’m still learning my way around.”

  “You’re new to the area?” she asked.

  “I am,” he said.

  “Not much to see or find. It’s small but nice and quiet. I like it much better than the big city. I think I thought I’d love the city after the way I grew up, but then I realized you can’t force something.”

  “No,” he said. “You can’t.”

  “Hi, Dahlia. What can I get you?”

  “How about a dozen of the chocolate chip cookies, Colleen,” she said. “Would you like anything?” She was looking at him.

  Considering he was here questioning her and most would want to get rid of him fast, she was being friendly.

  “How about an espresso?”

  “Sure thing,” Colleen said after she boxed up the cookies.

  Dahlia took the cookies. “Why don’t you get me one too, Colleen. I haven’t had one in a while and I could use the jolt today.”

  They were both handed their drink, Dahlia the cookies, and wrung up. Before she could pull her wallet out, he held his phone to the credit card machine and paid.

  She turned. “Thank you. You didn’t need to do that.”

  “Not a big deal,” he said. They walked outside. “Not many offer to buy me a drink.”

  She grinned. “I’ve got manners even when I’m nervous.”

  “Why are you nervous?”

  “Wouldn’t you be if the FBI was asking you questions?” she asked quietly. “Oh wait, no, you wouldn’t be.”

  “I might be,” he said. “But I believe in the system and if you’ve got nothing to hide the more honest you are and forthcoming, the easier it is.”

  “That is what I’m hoping for. That I can look back a month from now and not remember.”

  “Trying to get rid of me?” he asked.

  “No offense,” she said.

  “None taken. It’s not the first time.”

  “Do you have anything else you can share?”

  He debated for a minute. “Shawn was arrested yesterday and they’ve searched his house. I wanted to verify if this is the computer he had two years ago.”

  “Did he say he did it?” she asked. “Whatever he did. Can you tell me how much?”

  “We are still gathering information,” he said. No reason to say it was over five million at this point. He learned quickly it always ended up being more than suspected when everything was shoved under a microscope.

  “So that is a no,” she said.

  “Sorry,” he said. “I will tell you that this laptop was hidden in a wall in the bathroom.”

  It was comical the way her eyes popped open. “Did he have another computer out in the open?”

  “He did,” he said. “That one was clean so far. This one, we are thinking not so much.”

  “Do you think he suspected he was being investigated?” she asked. “Can I ask who discovered the money?”

  “Bob Visten started to look more into Shawn’s work after there were some discrepancies.”

  She laughed. “Bob was my boss before he was promoted to partner. I remember now that Shawn was nervous about that, but I didn’t think anything of it.”

  “Nervous why?” he asked. He took a sip of his espresso and closed his eyes at the flavor. Oh yeah, he’d be coming back and maybe this would get him through the day.

  Hugh hadn’t been sleeping well lately. Not like when he first moved here and realized the change of pace wasn’t going to wipe away his past and what was causing the anxiety keeping him up at night.

  “Bob was very thorough. He was fair, but he double-checked everything. He was good at finding answers.”

  “Finding answers?” he asked. He was still learning his way around the accounting end of the case.

  “When people were stuck and money didn’t match up, Bob was the one that could work it out. I could too and loved the puzzle of it, but he was faster. If money wasn’t adding up, he could find it or where it was put. If it was a mistake, which a lot of times it could be. Just entered it wrong and needed to be moved. Cooking the books doesn’t mean someone is actually taking money, it could be journal entries to make a business look better than it is without actual theft.”

  “Which is still illegal,” he said.

  “Absolutely. I’m just saying that he was good at those things. Maybe that is why Shawn was nervous.”

  “He had every reason to be. If you think of anything else, will you let me know?”

  “I will,” she said when they were in front of Blossoms.

  “Hey, Dahlia.”

  He turned his head to see Dahlia’s sister Ivy open the door.

  “Hi, Ivy,” she said. “I just went and got cookies.”

  “Yum,” Ivy said. “And speaking of yummy, who are you?”

  “This is Hugh Crosby,” she said. “We just got coffee and were talking.”

  He’d follow along. No reason not to.

  He put his hand out. “Nice to meet you.”

  Ivy looked him up and down. “I see you two have the same taste in wardrobes. Do you work with numbers too?”

  He held back his snort. Barely. Guess Ivy didn’t notice the bulge in his side where his gun was. Dahlia might not have either or she wasn’t nervous about that.

  “Yes,” he said. It wasn’t a lie.

  “How do you two know each other?”

  “I met your sister last week,” he said. “Just ran into each other.”

  “You didn’t tell me,” Ivy said, nudging her sister’s arm. “Did you go on a date? I’ve been bugging you for months to get out and meet someone.”

  “No date,” Dahlia said, her face red.

  “Maybe you should ask my sister on a date,” Ivy said, grinning. “She’s shy, but the fact you are both here drinking coffee could come across as one.”

  Dahlia looked mortified and he felt bad for her.

  He’d do her a solid. He figured she deserved it after the chaos going on in her life.

  “I could handle dinner,” he said, looking at Dahlia. “How about this Friday?”

  Ivy was looking between the two of them and almost dancing on her toes. “Well, Dahlia? Don’t be rude.”

  “Sure,” she said.

  “That didn’t sound like you mean it,” Ivy said. “But I’m sure you’ll figure my sister out, Hugh.”

  “I think I’ve got a decent handle on her,” he said.

  He was grinning and Ivy laughed, took the cookies out of her sister’s hand and went back into the store.

  “I’m so sorry,” she said once they were alone.

  “Don’t be,” he said. “I’ve got a younger sister too.”

  “Ivy is one of a kind. But you know, something tells me you know a lot about her.”

  “Not her personality,” he said. “Just facts.”

  “Facts are enough,” she said. “It seems like I’m at this huge disadvantage around you.”

  “Don’t feel that way.”

  “Thanks for playing along,” she said. “I’ll make up some excuse about why the date didn’t happen and she’ll leave me alone.”

  “We could keep it,” he found himself saying. “Since I’m new to the area you could tell me the good places to get coffee. Other than where we just were.”

  “Seriously?” she asked. “Isn’t that a conflict of some kind?”

  “You’re not a suspect,” he said. “You’ve been officially cleared.”

  “Really?” she asked. “When?”

  “A few days ago,” he said. “I was going to tell you just now, but your sister popped her head out.”

  She let a breath out. “Okay. Maybe dinner is good. I can celebrate for not being wanted by the FBI.”

  She whispered the last part and he only shook his head.

  “I’ll be in touch.”

  “Bye, Hugh.”

  “Bye, Dahlia.”

  He went to his SUV and drove back to his office looking forward to something for the first time in over a year.

  Maybe this move wasn’t going to be that bad.

  5

  DOUBT AND INTENTIONS

  “Spill it all,” Ivy said the minute Dahlia sat at her desk.

  She knew this was coming. She wanted a cookie so she had to go get them from the break room and her sister was like a hawk flying around waiting to come out with claws and latch on.

  Thankfully, Ivy learned a long time ago to do it in private.

  “Not much to say,” she said. She wasn’t lying and was going to try to avoid that as best as she could.

  “Come on,” Ivy said. “He’s cute in a nerdy way.”

  Dahlia frowned. “Just because he had a suit on doesn’t mean he’s nerdy.”

  She didn’t want to add nerds didn’t usually carry guns. She’d noticed it on him the other night but let it go. The same with today.

  Considering her sister was dating a man who wore a gun daily in his job, she wasn’t sure how Ivy didn’t pick up on it.

  Then she had to remind herself that Brooks didn’t wear a suit, his gun was always visible.

  “You’re right,” Ivy said. “He was pretty big. Not as big as Brooks but not your type.”

  “How do you know my type?” Dahlia asked. “It’s not like you’ve ever met anyone I’ve dated.”

  “Because you’re private that way,” Ivy pouted. “We ask and you don’t tell us much.”

  “That’s right,” she said. “I’m not going to this time either.”

  Ivy’s shoulders slumped. That was easier than she thought.

  “Okay. I get it. So is this your first date?”

  “Yes,” she said. “I’m not sure if there will be more or not.”

  “Why not?” Ivy asked. “Think positive. That is your problem.”

  She squinted one eye at her baby sister. “That’s my problem? I thought you had a list of other ones.”