watched him with a mix of irritation and amusement.
Wesley watched Judson, too, his jaw very tight. “Someday you’ll have to tell me what you see in Coppersmith.” He paused deliberately. “Besides the Coppersmith family money, that is.”
“You know, insulting me and the man I’m currently dating is probably not the best way to start this conversation.”
Wesley grimaced. “I know. Sorry about that. It’s just that I really need your help at the moment, and I’m getting the feeling that Coppersmith is doing his best to stand in my way.”
“You and I have a business relationship,” she said. “Judson understands that. The tearoom is empty at this time of day. Why don’t we talk in there? I’m sure the staff won’t mind if we use one of the tables for a private conversation.”
“Fine.”
She led the way through the lobby and into the quiet tearoom. She took a seat at a table near the window. Wesley sat down across from her.
“Where have you been?” he asked. “I waited nearly an hour and a half for you to show up.”
“I had no idea that you were back in Wilby. Why didn’t you call to make an appointment?”
“I tried. Your phone was off.”
Belatedly she remembered she had turned off her phone when they went to Nicole’s shop.
“Sorry, my fault,” she said. “We’ve been busy. She dove into the tote, took out the phone and switched it back on. She glanced at the list of missed calls. “You called six times?”
“I was starting to get worried, if you want to know the truth.”
She dropped the phone back into the bag. “About what?”
“In case you’ve forgotten, two women were recently found dead in this very small town within the past forty-eight hours. This morning you went missing.”
“I wasn’t missing.”
“No one here at the inn knew where you were. All anyone could say for sure was that you were last seen in the company of Judson Coppersmith.”
She took a breath and let it out slowly. “Sorry. It never dawned on me that anyone would be worried.”
“I don’t think anyone else except me was concerned,” Wesley said. “But I have to tell you Evelyn’s death shook me. And now the local witch is dead in a house fire. Maybe I’ve done one too many
“Louise,” Gwen said. She spoke quietly but firmly.
“What?”
“The dead woman’s name is Louise Fuller. And for the record, she was not into witchcraft. She was a troubled soul who was plagued with some serious mental health issues.”
Wesley reddened. “Sorry. I seem to be doing a great job of offending you today, and believe me, that’s the last thing I want to do.”
“Tell me why you tried to call me six times today and why you waited an hour and a half for me to show up here.”
Excitement transformed Wesley’s handsome face.
He leaned forward, braced his arms on the table and started talking in low, urgent tones.
“It’s the perfect way to revitalize the series,” he said. “Don’t know why I didn’t think of it right away. It was the shock of hearing that Evelyn was dead, I guess. At first all I could think of was finding her files.”
“Oh, for pity’s sake, I should have guessed. You were the one who searched Evelyn’s office after her body was removed, weren’t you?”
“Now, Gwen, it wasn’t like that. I didn’t take anything.”
“How could you do such a thing? Talk about invading the privacy of the dead. Talk about illegal as hell. It’s called breaking and entering, you know. People go to jail for stuff like that.”
Wesley’s eyes darkened with outrage. “You’re accusing me of breaking into Evelyn’s house?”
“It wasn’t an accusation,” Gwen said. “More like a statement of fact.”
“Based on
“Intuition.”
“You can’t go around accusing people of illegal actions based on intuition.”
“It was you. Don’t bother to deny it.”
“All right, I dropped by her house that day, but I swear I didn’t take a damn thing. And I didn’t break in. The back door was unlocked when I got there. All I did was take a look through her files. I was her employer. I have a right to whatever she was working on at the time of her death.”
“That house belongs to me now. Don’t go near it again without my permission.”
“Calm down. I apologize.” Wesley slumped into his chair. “I’ve got no reason to go back there, anyway. And just to be absolutely clear, I repeat, I didn’t take anything.”
“Why did you make such a mess?”
“Because I was in a hurry,” Wesley said. “I was afraid someone might come along and find me inside the house and think I was one of those people who robs empty houses after the owner dies. I didn’t want to get caught, that’s all. But I didn’t steal anything.”
“I believe you,” she said. “Not that it makes any difference when it comes to the underlying ethical issues involved.”
Wesley watched her for a long moment. He drummed his fingers on the table. “You really think she was murdered, don’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Like the others two years ago?”
“Yes.”
“I knew it. It’s perfect.” Wesley used both hands to rake his blond hair back behind his ears. Excitement lit his eyes again. “If you’re right, this could be huge.”
“I doubt it. If I’m right, all the victims were killed by paranormal means and that will be impossible to prove.”
“But that’s exactly what you’re trying to do, isn’t it? Prove that Evelyn was murdered by paranormal means. That’s why you’re hanging around Wilby. This isn’t about taking care of Evelyn’s estate. It’s about trying to find out what really happened to her and to that witch.”
“Louise Fuller.”
“Louise Fuller,” Wesley repeated obediently.
Gwen exhaled slowly. “It’s true—I’d like to find some answers.”
“Where does Coppersmith fit into this?”
“He’s a friend.”
“You’re sleeping together—I know that much,” Wesley said. “Hell, everyone in town knows it. But that’s not the whole story. I’ve known you for two years. You haven’t had a serious relationship in all that time.”
“I didn’t realize you’d been paying such close attention to my personal life.”
“I admit that after my divorce last year, I asked Evelyn about you from time to time,” Wesley said. “She made it clear that you were not interested in an intimate relationship with a man. I got the message.”
“Did you?”
“Well, I thought I got it. I assumed that you just didn’t like men in that way, that you were more interested in women.” Wesley frowned. “But when you showed up here with Coppersmith, it was obvious that something had changed.”
“And you’re wondering why him and not you? For heaven’s sake, Wesley, you’ve never had any deep feelings for me. We both know that. Two years ago I was a curiosity to you—a woman who claimed to have some paranormal talent. You wonder what it would be like to go to bed with me, that’s all. You’re looking at this through the lens of your ego. Give it a rest. Sometimes two people just don’t click.”
“But you and Coppersmith have clicked, is that it?”
“I think we’re getting a little off topic here.”
Wesley grunted. “Yeah, you’re right. Believe it or not, I’m here to offer you a business proposition.”
