Total pages in book: 107
Estimated words: 102071 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 510(@200wpm)___ 408(@250wpm)___ 340(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 102071 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 510(@200wpm)___ 408(@250wpm)___ 340(@300wpm)
“Then maybe it’s the proceeds from those sales she’s putting into this charity? Could there be a connection?”
It was my turn to stare as Jake emerged from the bathroom in all his naked glory. I sighed as he put on boxers. “Makes me sad to see you in clothes.”
“Speaking of clothes, you need to add a bikini for our date,” he said.
I smiled, grabbed one, and stuffed it into my purse. “Done.”
“Excellent,” he said as he grabbed a pair of trim shorts. “And to answer your question, there are too many coincidences here for things not to be connected.”
I gasped and clapped a hand over my mouth as a terrible thought slammed into me. “What if they’ve cashed out all the diamonds, Jake? What if there is no more missing money? Maybe it’s a lost cause.” The awful possibility of coming up empty-handed clanged in my brain. No justice, no chance to do the right thing, just thieves getting away with thieving.
“Not every case is solvable,” he said in a matter-of-fact tone as he snagged a shirt from the closet and put it on. “Sometimes people move on and the money is gone. We don’t know what they’ve done with the rest of the diamonds they bought from the Frayer mine or who stole the two Eli gave as gifts to you and Willow. We only have evidence that Eli moved thousands of valuable items and his fiancée has donated a large sum to a charity for those affected by the diamond economy. The rest is circumstantial.”
“What if we find the gems and prove Eli bought them with stolen money? Are you going to turn him in?” I asked. We’d talked about this topic before, but still it nagged at me. Thieves should be held accountable. But if Eli was arrested, I could say goodbye to recompense for Mom.
Jake shook his head. “Andrew wants to keep this as quiet as possible. He seems mainly focused on restoring the money to the investors rather than turning Eli over to the authorities. So that’s my goal too.”
Conflicting feelings swirled inside my chest, making a whirlpool that threatened to draw me under. If the diamonds went back to Andrew’s company, he could put things right with the defrauded clients, and I would have leverage to hopefully make Eli treat Mom fairly. But that only worked if we got the gems before “Mr. Smith” could steal any more. The thought that I might never make this right for my mom weighed heavily on me.
“I need to see Eli again,” I said, swallowing thickly, fighting the pull of anxiety. It would be hard—confronting him one more time. Pressing, pushing, trying harder. But I had to stay ahead of the thieves, and my access to my stepfather was an advantage I couldn’t ignore. “I’ll give him a call in a few minutes. Set something up. See what I can find out. Surely this time he’ll give me some more intel.”
“Maybe another breakfast at Tristan’s,” Jake suggested. “I have fond memories of that street in the diamond district.”
He smiled wickedly. Judging by the heat in his eyes, I knew he was remembering the time when I’d grabbed him and we’d made out so Tristan wouldn’t see and recognize me.
“You just want to go to the diamond district to stage a reenactment,” I teased.
He snaked his arm around my waist and tugged me closer to his body. “Why drive all that way? You can pounce on me right here.”
In spite of our serious conversation, I laughed at his moment of playfulness. “Maybe after dinner. I’m too hungry to drag you in for a lip-lock…”
I trailed off, noticing that Jake’s expression had changed. He stared blankly as if he was looking inward at the churning wheels of his brain. Then he focused on me so fast I could almost hear the puzzle pieces snapping together.
“Does Tristan have gray hair?” He ran his hand over his own golden-brown locks. “And is he tall?”
“Yes. Did you glimpse him when he walked by that day?”
“Barely.” His voice rang with excitement, and his words sped up along with my pulse. “But if I’m thinking of the same person, a glimpse was enough for him to look familiar. Any chance he drives a green Honda?”
Now my head was spinning, and I made a stop there gesture. “How would I know that and why is it important? You’ve lost me, Jake.”
“Because a tall, gray-haired man pulled up to the gallery in a green Honda this morning, but instead of going inside, he went to the souvenir shop across the street.”
In an instant, I’d whipped out my phone, called up the website for Tristan’s restaurant, and zoomed in on the owner/chef’s photo. “Is this him?”
“Bingo!” Before I could react, Jake swept me up in his arms and kissed me. “You’re brilliant. And impressively fast with a search engine.”