Fate Actually (Moonstone Cove #2) - Elizabeth Hunter Page 0,23

in one movement. His hand moved from kneading her hip to cradling her neck while his thumb ran along her jaw.

Toni’s head swam from the intoxicating taste of red wine and Henry. She gripped the front of his shirt with her fist and spread her knees so he could lean in closer.

Her head fell back against the back of the couch and Henry groaned into her mouth.

The door opened.

“Sorry!” Megan squeaked.

The door slammed, and Toni blinked back to awareness as Henry ended the kiss.

He was pressed against her, practically humping her on the couch while one of her hands was fisted in his shirt and the other was tangled in his hair.

“Right,” she panted. “People.”

“Tell them you need to rest.” He ran his lips along her neck.

“Uh…” Why was that a bad idea again? “Police, Henry. Dead body. Murdered… person.”

He pulled away, and she saw his lips form the word fuck even though he didn’t say it.

The fact that he only cursed silently and usually only when they were intimate made him even sexier. He had a vocabulary with manners and a mind with none.

Hormones. They would be the death of her.

She released his shirt, and he sat back on his knees. “Okay. Um… tea?”

He glanced down, back to her, then stood, adjusting himself quickly before he walked away. “What kind of tea do you want?”

Whichever one tastes like you.

“Uh… mint.” She rubbed her flushed cheeks. “Let’s go with mint.”

Chapter 8

Drew sat on the edge of the recliner, facing the couch where Toni, Katherine, and Megan all sat. Henry was sitting next to Toni, a dining room chair flipped around so he could straddle it.

Focus on the stern police detective, Toni. Not Henry’s thighs.

“Why’d you decide to take that trail today?”

Toni could sense Drew was suspicious. He didn’t want to be, but he was.

Toni shrugged. “I hike that path a few times a month. It goes right behind my house and leads all the way up the hill to the winery. I’ve been bringing Nico’s wine over to Katherine’s for months now and—”

“We just wanted to see the winery,” Megan said. “Thought it would make a fun Friday afternoon.”

“A fun Friday afternoon for the county forensics team,” Drew said. “I don’t know that we’ll be able to find every part of that body before next week.”

“You’re welcome to park here as long as you need,” Toni said. “It’s probably the closest access to the trail.”

“Yeah, I noticed that.”

Henry piped up. “I already called Nico. If you need to widen that trail at all, we can bring a little Bobcat tractor down from the barn. We have one narrow enough to get down that trail and clear it out a bit.”

“Thanks,” Drew said. “I’ll let you know. For right now, we’re still trying to pick up evidence.”

“How long?” Katherine asked. “Was it about a week and a half? I was looking at the insect life on the cadaver and—”

“I can’t tell you that, Katherine. You know that.” Drew cleared his throat. “Can you tell me why you ladies keep showing up any time there’s a violent event in Moonstone Cove?”

Megan’s eyes were wide and innocent. “What do you mean?”

“Near shootings. Car crashes. Ambulance accidents.” He slid his eyes toward Katherine. “Don’t think I’ve forgotten about that one, Professor Bassi.”

“The important thing is, we found out who the finger belonged to,” Toni said. “That was really bugging me.”

“Was it?” Drew’s voice dripped with sarcasm. “So glad we could clear that up for you.”

Toni shrugged. “What? I’m not saying I’m glad he’s dead or anything. Just that the mystery was annoying me.”

Drew rubbed a hand along his beard. “Okay, so if Katherine is right and he was killed about a week and a half ago, that would have been…” He thought quickly. “Saturday or Sunday weekend before last.” He looked at Toni. “You’re the closest house to the crime scene. Did you hear or see anything suspicious?”

She shook her head. “I was home, but I didn’t see anything weird. Sometimes during the spring, tourists will walk along the creek, but I didn’t see any hikers that weekend that I can remember.”

“Did you hear anything? He was shot. Did you hear gunfire? Anything that you thought was a car backfiring maybe? Anything like that?”

“Not that I can remember. If it was the middle of the night, I’m a pretty sound sleeper.”

Henry opened his mouth but closed it quickly when she shot him a look.

“Also, you’d be amazed,” Toni added. “The way the hills are