“He’s right,” Megan said. She stood with her hands on her hips, eyeing the message, fury glimmering in her eyes. “June might not have told anyone. And I haven’t been in this room since arriving in town.”
“Spray-painting the threat seems to be the main purpose for jimmying the lock.” Brent pointed to the saddles. “Those are still here, so the perpetrator wasn’t after a quick buck. Fingerprinting might not yield us anything, but I’ll get the kit from my car and try anyway.”
He strolled out of the tack room.
“I touched the door handle. Even if there were fingerprints, I’ve probably smeared them.” Megan yanked the clip from her hair, sending it cascading down her shoulders in a golden wave, and rubbed her scalp. “If the perpetrator thinks this will make me back down, he’s got another thing coming. I’m not going anywhere.”
“You mean, we,” Luke said. “We’re not going anywhere.”
The tension in her body eased. Her lips curled into a smile that kicked his pulse up a notch. “Right.”
Brent re-entered with a field kit. “Hey, dispatch told me they’ve located Franny’s case file. I’m gonna need some time here, but you don’t have to wait. Why don’t you guys go on ahead?”
“We were going to take the saddles over to my ranch,” Luke said.
“I’ll do it after I’m done. Megan, I’ll need to collect your prints to exclude them, but we can do that later.”
“Thanks, Brent.”
During the short drive, Luke’s mind twisted with various possibilities. The warning on the tack room wall was amateurish and silly. It didn’t fit with the carefully planned attacks carried out on June and Megan. Nothing about this was adding up or making sense.
He pulled into the parking lot at the sheriff’s department and rounded the vehicle to open Megan’s door.
“Let’s go over to the pharmacy and talk to Kyle first, as we’d planned,” he said. “His property butts against June’s. Maybe he’s noticed someone hanging around in the last couple of weeks.”
As they made their way down the sidewalk, Luke noticed her gait wasn’t even. “Is your leg bothering you? Let’s go back. We can drive—”
“No, it’s just a bit sore. I’ll be fine.”
Stubborn woman probably wasn’t taking her pain meds. He offered his arm. Megan hesitated before sliding her hand into the crook at his elbow. Heat radiated out from the point of contact, wiping away any trace of a chill from the February air.
Luke knew he should keep a firm distance, but recalling the look on Megan’s face while they were talking in front of June’s house pushed logic to the wayside. In the depths of her green eyes, he’d seen an echo of the love they’d once shared. It weakened his resolve, and he’d been tempted to lean over and kiss her.
The same feeling, along with a host of memories, tugged at him as they strolled down the sidewalk. Megan’s hair shimmered like spun gold in the sunlight, and when she smiled up at him, Luke felt like a superhero. He needed to get control of this before his heart ended up in serious trouble.
The pharmacy was on the corner and the automatic doors slid open when they approached. Every head in the place turned in their direction. Luke ignored the stares and beelined for the back counter where prescriptions were filled. Kyle caught sight of them and stiffened. His narrow shoulders and mop of shaggy hair made him look more like a teenager than a man in his twenties.
“Luke. Megan. What can I do for ya?”
“Hi.” Luke greeted him with a smile. “Sorry to drop in on you, but I have some questions about a couple of incidents that happened on June’s property.”
“I don’t know anything about the fire.” His voice, thickened by a Southern drawl, was loud enough to carry across the store. “I wasn’t home when it happened. I was here.”
“I’d still—Oof!"
Luke cut off as Megan’s elbow jabbed him in the ribs. He glared at her.
“Sorry. I was trying to find something in my bag.” She smiled sweetly before setting her purse on the counter and rummaging around inside. “I have a question about something else. June’s doctor at the hospital wants to change her thyroid medication. Can you explain the possible side effects?”
Luke glanced over his shoulder. Mrs. Patchinson, the elementary school principal, pretended to study a box of cold medicine while eavesdropping. An employee in the next aisle had edged closer, still holding the same magazine from earlier.
He shot them both a glare, but it had no effect.
Kyle went into a short spiel about the medicine and picked up his pen. “I’ll write some of this down for you. That way it’ll be easier to discuss with the doctor.”
Megan nodded. “That’d be great.”
He scribbled on her paper before folding it over and handing it back. “Is there anything else?”
“No, that’s it. Thanks.”
Megan nudged Luke, more gently this time, and headed for the door. The heat of everyone’s stare seemed to bore into their backs. He followed her around the corner and out of potential eyesight range.
She opened the note. “Kyle says to meet him in the alley behind the hair salon in ten minutes.”
“This is ridiculous.”
She let out a half laugh and slipped her hand back into the crook of his elbow. “This is small-town politics. I would’ve thought you’d be better at it by now.”
“I’ve only lived here for seven years. Maybe I need another seven to understand it.” His mouth twitched. “You’ve been away for three years but fall right back into it like a duck to water.”
“I grew up here. That makes a difference.” She shook her head. “How does June stand it? The looks and whispers. The hostility. It’s already making my skin itch.”
“I think it was tough for a while, but things died down. We’ve kicked it all off again with the investigation.”
“I suppose. It’s easier in Houston. No one knows who I am or who Wade is, unless I tell them.”
She turned
