I know, I was really on a roll, and probably going to get myself kicked out any second now.
“Actually, I think I can help.”
Now it was his turn to raise a brow. “Oh really?”
“Yes.” I leaned forward in my seat. “Did you know that Earl was selling drugs?”
Other than a slight eye twitch Cole showed no visible signs of surprise, so I wasn’t sure if that meant he didn’t know, or if the twitch was merely because he was annoyed with me.
“Where did you hear that?” he asked directly.
I thought back to Floyd’s threat to have me whacked if I spoke to the cops. “I can’t say.”
Cole’s eyes flew to the ceiling, and I could guarantee he was counting in his head to avoid unleashing his anger on me. Or he was praying for patience. It could be both.
His head lowered, and his eyes bored into mine. “You mean you won’t say. And I’m sure you’re aware that it’s a crime to withhold evidence.”
“Who said I was withholding evidence?” I asked innocently. “Could just be hearsay.” But it wasn’t.
“You’re talking about Earl’s brother, Floyd, aren’t you?” Okay, he apparently already knew. Perhaps I didn’t give him enough credit.
“Yes,” I said softly.
He eyed me suspiciously. “You didn’t talk to him, did you?”
I hesitated, then nodded begrudgingly.
“Charlee!” His hand made a fist and I thought he was going to pound it on his desk, but he stopped, and dropped his hand into his lap. “I told you to stay out of this. Did you forget our conversation the other day?”
“No, I remember it clearly, it was right before my…” I hesitated, and his eyebrows raised.
“Your date,” he supplied.
“No, just lunch,” I corrected.
“How was that, by the way?” There was a hint of teasing in his tone. Frankly, I was shocked he was halfway flirting with me right now.
“Fine,” I lied. Actually, Preston’s company was fine, it was seeing Ashley that ruined everything.
“You just chose to ignore what I said,” he accused.
“I wouldn’t say ignore. I just figured it wouldn’t hurt to have a chat with Floyd. And for what it’s worth, I don’t think he killed Earl. But I’m pretty sure he knows more than what he told me,” I rambled, pausing at Cole’s furious expression.
“Charlee,” he started, but was interrupted by a knock at the door. “Come in,” he barked.
The door opened, and in waltzed a petite woman around my age. “Hi, Cole,” she cooed sweetly. “I was just returning the file I borrowed.”
She wore a sleeveless snug white blouse tucked into a tight black pencil skirt and three-inch heels. With a flick of her wrist she casually flipped her straight blonde hair (clearly not her natural color) over her shoulder.
This woman was all the things I was not. Short, skinny, and beautiful. I admit, I pretty much loathed her on the spot. Her smile died abruptly when she noticed me.
Cole stood and took the file from her and placed it on his desk.
“Sorry to interrupt. I didn’t realize you were with someone,” she gave me a fake smile, and not a very good one at that. I would know since I used them regularly, especially since coming back to town.
“Harper, this is Charlee King,” he motioned to me. “And Charlee, this is Harper Mitchell, the new DA.” At that pronouncement, I almost started choking, but managed to recover with a pretty convincing fake smile.
Harper, however, didn’t hide her disdain and scowled. It was clear she knew who I was and didn’t like me. I didn’t care because the feeling was mutual.
“It’s nice to meet you.” She eventually curtailed her scowl with another weak smile and turned back to Cole. “I’d like to speak with you later when you have a minute.” She fluttered her fake black eyelashes and smiled.
“Sure,” he said, dipping his head in a slight nod. District Attorney Barbie spun on her ridiculously high heels and left the room without giving me a parting glance.
Cole returned to his chair and sat.
“So, that’s the new DA.” I stated the obvious.
“Yes.”
With her thinly veiled disgust toward me, I had a very bad feeling about Harper Mitchell. “Why is she even here?” I whispered as if she might be listening at the door.
“She’s just getting a feel for things. Learning the ropes from Mr. Hines before she starts her term,” he explained unconvincingly.
I rolled my eyes. “You know that’s not true. If it was, you wouldn’t have come to warn Fern today. Why doesn’t someone stand up to her? She doesn’t have the authority to call the shots yet, but she will if you let her.”
He glared at me, clearly not appreciating that I was putting this on him. “Charlee…” he lowered his voice. “That office is beyond my purview. I’ve learned that it’s best to stay in your own lane, and I suggest you do the same.”
I stood and approached his desk. “Then do your job and find the person who killed Earl. Because it wasn’t Fern, and there is no way I’m going to sit around and do nothing and let her take the fall for this.” I wanted to add something snarky, like Thanks for nothing, but I refrained.
The look on Cole’s face told me he was seriously ticked, and I took that as my cue to leave. When I reached the door, I almost turned around and apologized, but the stubbornness in me won out. I was ticked, too. Cole might think he was helping, but allowing Fern to get arrested for a crime she didn’t commit wasn’t very helpful in my book.
Harper was talking with one of the deputies as I walked toward the reception area. I could feel her heated glare on me as I passed. I had a feeling that her dislike of me had more to do with me talking to Cole than anything else.
Her family may not be a big fan of my family, but she didn’t know me from Adam. What she did see was competition. For
