Wicked Season (An Ivy Morgan Mystery Book 7) Read online

  “She’s our next stop,” Brian said. “What time did you leave here last night, Lionel?”

  “Well, it must have been around five or so. I remember it getting close to dark. It gets dark a lot earlier these days.”

  “Where was Ron when you left?”

  “He was doing something in the barn, grabbing some lanterns or something, and I waved and told him goodbye. That was it. He was still in the barn and I didn’t see anyone hanging around when I got in my truck.”

  “Can you think of anyone who would want to hurt Ron?”

  Wayne and Lionel shook their heads in unison.

  “My brother wasn’t just a good man, he was the best man. I can’t think of anyone who would want to hurt him.”

  “What about the farm?” Jack asked. “What happens now that Ron is dead?”

  “The farm belonged to Ron and me together,” Wayne explained. “I owned half. He owned half. His half now passes to Gilly.”

  “Okay,” Jack said, nodding. “Thank you for your time.”

  Jack and Brian waited until they were alone to speak again.

  “What do you think?” Brian asked.

  “It doesn’t sound as if Gilly would have reason to kill her father. All of this was going to be hers eventually and she had a roof over her head and a baby on the way. If this was for financial reasons, I can’t figure out what they would be.”

  “And, as far as I can tell, Ron didn’t have any enemies,” Brian added.

  “So who would have motive to kill him?”

  “That right there is the question of the day,” Brian said, sighing. “Let’s talk to the other workers and see where we land. Right now I can’t make heads or tails of this one.”

  “That makes two of us.”

  Six

  “You look tired.”

  Margaret greeted Jack at the front door of his rental house shortly after seven. She had a big smile on her face and a pair of tongs in her hand.

  Jack forced a smile for his mother’s benefit as he rubbed the back of his neck and glanced around the house. He didn’t consider it home. He’d been enamored with the rustic appeal of the property when he first moved to town, but now it was merely a place where he kept some clothes. He spent almost every night with Ivy, every weekend hanging out with her at the cottage. Her house was his home. Even though his mother had clearly been busy cleaning and cooking, the house would never feel as welcoming as Ivy’s did.

  “It’s been a long day,” Jack said, keeping his voice even. “We had a murder at one of the farms and we had to question a lot of the workers.”

  “Murder?” Denise lifted an eyebrow as she set the table. “I didn’t think they had murders in the country. Wasn’t that one of the reasons you were so desperate to get away from the city?”

  “I was desperate to get away from the city because I couldn’t deal with it any longer,” Jack replied, opting for honesty. “The country isn’t perfect, but it is a lot quieter than the city. That’s what I like.”

  “You didn’t used to like it.”

  “Things change,” Jack muttered, rolling his neck until it cracked and staring at the feast warming on the stove. “Where’s Ivy?”

  “Oh, well, she thought we might like some time alone with you and she left us here this afternoon,” Margaret answered, averting her eyes.

  Jack, annoyed, turned to Denise. “Did you say something to her?”

  “Why would I possibly say something to her?” Denise protested, feigning hurt as she pressed her hand to the spot over her heart. “She seems like a lovely woman.”

  “Just lovely,” Margaret echoed.

  “I really love the pink hair.”

  “Okay, that’s it,” Jack barked, taking his mother and sister by surprise with his tone as he pointed toward the couch. “Sit. We’re going to have a talk.”

  “I have to watch dinner,” Margaret said, moving to skirt around Jack. “I don’t want it to burn.”

  “I don’t really care about dinner.” Jack gently grabbed his mother’s elbow and directed her toward the couch. The look he scorched Denise with promised mayhem, so she made a big show of kicking her feet against the floor as she dramatically threw herself on the patchwork sofa.

  “You’ve totally lost your sense of humor, Jack,” Denise bemoaned. “What happened to you?”

  “I was shot by my partner and left for dead in an alley,” Jack replied, not missing a beat. “I didn’t have much of a sense of humor before that happened, mostly because I was overworked and exhausted, but it was completely gone after.”

  “I hadn’t noticed,” Denise deadpanned.

  “It’s back now, and I’m happy,” Jack said, resting his hands on his knees. “I know you don’t want to see this … or understand it … or apparently even acknowledge it, Mom, but I am happy in Shadow Lake. You need to come to grips with that.”

  Margaret wrinkled her nose as she regarded her only son. “You’re happy in a town with one stoplight?”

  “I am.”

  “Forgive me if I find that impossible to believe.” Margaret shifted her gaze to her sweater so she could pick at invisible lint.

  “I don’t really care what you believe,” Jack said, licking his lips as he stared out the dark window. Darkness fell early in Michigan once fall hit and the sun had set hours before, leaving behind a chill he didn’t like given the fact that his rental didn’t boast a fireplace. He was desperate to get to Ivy so she could chase away the chill. “I love this place. I love the people. I love my job. I would think that would make you happy.”

  “If I thought it was true, I would be happy,” Margaret countered. “You’re a city boy at heart, Jack. You know it. I know it. You got knocked down a bit by what happened. It was terrible. None of us saw it coming. That doesn’t mean you should settle for less than you deserve because you’re running from demons.”

  “Is that what you think I’m doing?” Jack challenged, annoyed. “Settling for less than I deserve? Has it ever occurred to you that this place is exactly what I want and deserve?”

  Margaret locked gazes with her son. “No.”

  “And that’s exactly why I can’t talk to you,” Jack muttered, tugging a hand through his hair and growling as he rolled his shoulders. “Mother, I’ve been telling you for months that I love this place. You don’t want to listen and it’s incredibly frustrating.”

  “You’ve been telling me you love this place because you don’t want me to worry. You’re a good son.”

  “I’m not a very good son,” Jack countered. “I love this place a great deal, though. I’m not saying it for your benefit. I’m saying it for mine. This is my home now. This is where I’m going to spend the rest of my life.”

  Margaret’s mouth dropped open, dumbfounded confusion wafting over her features. “You cannot be serious.”

  “Oh, I’m serious,” Jack said. “This is my home now.”

  “Because of her?”

  Jack didn’t like the way his mother said the word “her,” as if she tasted something revolting and had to force herself to swallow it. After a long day dealing with overloaded nerves and worry, he was at the end of his rope.

  “I love Ivy,” Jack announced, refusing to play games with his mother and sister. “I love her more than anything. She’s … everything … to me.”

  “And that’s why you never mentioned her,” Margaret groused, shaking her head.

  Jack scorched her with a look. “I mentioned her. I mentioned her constantly. You just wouldn’t listen and always changed the subject. Don’t you dare sit there and play stupid with me. I know exactly what you’re doing … and I don’t like it. If you think I’m going to sit back and watch you purposely hurt Ivy, you’re wrong.”

  Margaret balked. “We’ve been very kind to that girl. If she said otherwise, she’s lying.”

  “She hasn’t said anything,” Jack argued. “She’s conveniently been away from her phone all five times when I texted today. It would’ve been a hundred an
d five times if I had my druthers, but I didn’t want to push her.”

  “So why do you naturally assume we said something to upset her?” Denise asked, her eyes flashing. “That hardly seems fair.”

  “Because I know her and you,” Jack answered, not missing a beat. “If things were okay, she’d be here to help. The fact that she’s not makes me believe you kicked her out of the house.”

  “We didn’t kick her out,” Margaret protested. “We simply explained that this was a family night and she’d have to understand that.”

  Jack pursed his lips. “Of course you did.” He signed, frustration and weariness warring for top billing in his busy head. “Mother, I’m not going to say this again so you’d better listen close. Ivy is my family. She’s the most important member of my family.”

  “She’s a woman who struck your fancy because she’s different and exotic,” Margaret corrected.

  “She’s a woman who stole my heart and I don’t ever want to be without her,” Jack snapped, causing his mother to jolt as he hopped to his feet.

  “Don’t you take that tone with me,” Margaret sniffed. “I don’t deserve it.”

  “You deserve a lot more,” Jack snapped, rubbing his cheek as he glanced at the stove. “Well, come on. It’s time for dinner. I’m exhausted and want to get this over with.”

  Margaret didn’t appear thrilled with Jack’s reaction, but she squared her shoulders anyway. “Denise and I figured we could share your bed tonight and you could sleep on the couch. We’re not thrilled about sleeping together, but we’ll make it work. We want to make this work … for you.”

  Jack’s face was unreadable as he gazed at his mother. “That won’t be necessary. Denise can have the couch and you can have the bed. I’ll be staying at Ivy’s house with her tonight.”

  Margaret balked. “You can’t just leave us here. That’s not very gracious.”

  “I’m not your host,” Jack pointed out. “You invited yourself here. I’m going to Ivy’s after dinner and I’m praying she doesn’t slam the door in my face when I get there. I’m guessing I’m going to have hours of groveling in front of me either way, though.”

  “If she makes you beg … .”

  “Then I’ll consider myself lucky,” Jack interjected, shaking his head. “Don’t push me on this. You’re not going to like what happens if you do.”

  “And what will that be?” Margaret asked, her eyes defiant.

  “Keep poking me and mistreating Ivy and you’ll find out,” Jack replied. “Now let’s get to dinner. I want to get out of this house and away from you two as soon as humanly possible.”

  IVY’S HOUSE was dark when Jack let himself in through the front door. He was secretly relieved his key still worked, although bitterly disappointed when he didn’t find her on the couch snuggling under a blanket next to the fire. If she’d gone to bed this early, she must’ve been really upset.

  Jack stood in the bedroom archway watching her a moment, the pale moonlight bouncing off her hair. She faced away from him, curled into a ball on her side – her feet poking out from beneath the covers – and even though her breathing was even, Jack knew she wasn’t asleep.

  He stripped out of his clothes, leaving only his boxer shorts in place, and slid into bed next to her. He felt her stiffen slightly when he rolled to wrap himself around her, dropping a kiss on her cheek as she sighed.

  “I’m sorry.”

  Ivy licked her lips and stared forward, refusing to turn into him like she usually preferred. “How did you know I wasn’t asleep? If I had been asleep, it would’ve been rude to wake me up.”

  “You make little purring noises when you’re asleep.”

  “That’s the cat.”

  “That’s you, too.” Jack rubbed his cheek against hers and hated that she refused to relax and let her body melt against his. “How was your day today?”

  “Fine.”

  “How did you get along with my mother and Denise?”

  “They’re very nice.”

  Ivy’s responses were almost mechanical and Jack couldn’t help but cringe. “That bad, huh?”

  “It’s fine, Jack.” Ivy gripped the corner of her pillow. “Everything went perfectly … fine. We should probably get some sleep. It’s been a long day.”

  “We’re not sleeping until this is fixed,” Jack countered, his voice low. “I texted you several times today. You never responded.”

  “I was busy with your mother and sister.”

  “I know that must’ve been difficult for you and I’m so sorry,” Jack offered. “I can just imagine some of the things they said to you.”

  “They didn’t say much of anything. They merely repeated that you’d never mentioned me and they were understandably confused by that fact.”

  “I mentioned you. I always talk about you. If you believe Brian, you’re my favorite subject to talk about.”

  “It hardly matters.” Ivy licked her lips, uncertain. “I’m actually surprised you came here tonight. Your mother said you would be spending the night at your house with them.”

  “My mother is not the boss of me.”

  “Does that mean I am?”

  Despite the serious situation, Jack couldn’t help but laugh. The fact that she could tease him, even though it was a lame joke, made him feel marginally better. “You’re definitely the boss of me.”

  Ivy exhaled heavily as she finally turned to face him, her blue eyes plaintive in the limited light. Jack tugged her close – positioning one of her legs between his before pressing her body against his and rubbing his knuckles down her soft cheek.

  “Ivy, I’m so sorry about today. You have to know I didn’t expect for that to happen. I would never purposely hurt you.”

  “I know that, Jack. That doesn’t make it hurt any less. Your mother hates me. She made that very clear. She hates the town and thinks I’m not good enough for you.”

  Jack’s heart rolled at the matter-of-fact way she said the words. “Honey, if anything, I’m not good enough for you.”

  Ivy made an exasperated face. “Let’s not try to out-martyr each other, shall we?”

  Jack chuckled as he pressed a kiss to her forehead. He felt the overwhelming need to touch her, to keep his hands roaming over her body in case she suddenly disappeared. “Okay. That sounds fair.”

  “How was your day?”

  “Nowhere near as bad as yours and I had a murder victim to contend with,” Jack replied. “We’ll talk about that tomorrow. I can’t think about that right now. All I can think about is you.”

  “That’s kind of sweet.”

  “Yes, it’s simply darling,” Jack murmured, his lips busy as he kissed a path around her face. “I love you and I’m so sorry.”

  “You can’t keep saying that. It’s not your fault that your mother hates me.”

  “Now you’re the one who needs to stop saying that,” Jack ordered. “I honestly think it would be best for everyone if I tell my mother that she and Denise have to leave. I’ve been thinking about it all day. I think that’s the only course of action I have.”

  “You can’t do that,” Ivy protested, making a face. “She’ll hate me even more then. If you send her out of town she’s going to blame me.”

  “I’m not risking this relationship for anything.” Jack was prepared to fight for what he wanted most. “You’re my life and I love you. I will not tolerate that woman – either of those women, quite frankly – being mean to you. I won’t put up with it. I put my foot down tonight, but I know neither one of them is going to listen to me.”

  “You put your foot down and two women ignored you? It’s kind of like spending time with me, huh?” Ivy was going for levity and she actually managed to tease a small smile out of Jack. “You can’t force them to leave. You’ll do damage you won’t ever be able to take back if you try.”

  “I know this sounds selfish, but I’d rather do damage to them than you,” Jack admitted. “I won’t live without you. I can’t do it.”

/>   “You don’t have to live without me, Jack,” Ivy said, her voice gentle. “We’ll figure this out. We’ll do it together.”

  Jack tightened his arms around Ivy as he pressed his lips to her forehead. He repeated the movement so many times he lost count. “This isn’t what I had planned for our first Thanksgiving. I thought we would eat so much at your mother’s house that our pants wouldn’t fit and then we’d come back here, start a fire, unbutton our pants and fall asleep on the couch.”

  Ivy barked out a laugh, amused. “I guess you’ve given this some serious thought, huh?”

  “I had big dreams for a quiet holiday.” Jack softly stroked the back of her head. “Denise and my mother are going to ruin it.”

  “They’re your family.”

  “They feel like the enemy. They don’t want what’s best for me. They want what’s best for themselves.”

  Ivy heaved out a sigh as she lifted her lips and pressed a soft kiss to the corner of Jack’s mouth. “It’s going to be okay. I promise. We’ll figure it out. You need to get some sleep, though. You’re overwrought.”

  “I couldn’t stop thinking about you all day. I thought maybe … I thought you might’ve changed the locks and shut me out. I couldn’t take it if you did that.”

  Ivy rubbed her index finger over his strong chin. “I would never do that. I love you too much.”

  “We’re going to figure this out,” Jack said, clutching tightly to Ivy as he pressed his eyes shut. “Right now I just want to escape, though. You pick the place for us to go tonight.”

  Ivy couldn’t help but be surprised. “You want to dream walk? I thought for sure you’d just want to sleep.”

  “I want to be with you. If we have to do that in our dreams, so be it. You pick the location, though. It can be someplace that tortures me. I’m fine with it.”

  “You’re fine with it?”

  “That’s what I said.”

  Ivy couldn’t help but be dubious. “What if I want us to get matching bikini waxes?”

  Jack internally cringed but didn’t back down. “I’m willing to do whatever it takes to spend time with you.”