mode.”
“We’re so screwed.”
The tension in Jet’s face is plain. “It’s not ideal.”
“Far from it.”
“Hey, the coffee’s ready.” She takes a painted mug from the Keurig and tries a scalding sip. “There’s something else,” she says, sucking air across her lips.
“What?”
“My mother-in-law’s acting weird.”
“Sally?”
“She is my only mother-in-law.”
Sally Matheson is a Bienville native and archetypal Southern belle. One of the town’s great mysteries is how a saint like Sally ever stayed married to Max. “What did Sally do?”
“She asked to talk to me today, in private. I’d gone by her house to drop Kevin off. He was supposed to do some batting practice with Max on the machine. After he got out of the car, Sally asked if I had time to come in. I saw something in her eyes—something off, I don’t know what. But she gets that look when there’s some serious family matter that needs dealing with. Anyway, I was worried she might have heard something about you and me.”
“What did you do?”
“I went in, of course.” Jet takes another careful sip of coffee. “Sally fixed some tea. We were trying to find an excuse to get Kevin out of the kitchen when Max called and said some famous baseball player had shown up down at College Sports. He asked if I could run Kevin down there to meet him. Kev got all excited, but I told Sally we could wait ten minutes. I wanted to know what was worrying her. But she waved me off and said to take Kevin right down to the store. We could talk another time.”
“That’s it?”
Jet arches her eyebrows. “It may not sound like much, but I know Sally. She doesn’t ask for tête-à-têtes unless it’s important.”
“What do you think it was?”
Jet takes a deep breath, exhales slowly. “I’m worried someone busted us without our knowing, then went to her about it.”
My heart kicks again. “How careful were you coming out here today? You said you had issues.”
“Just logistical complications. Nothing to do with Paul.” She takes the K-Cup out of the Keurig and drops it in the trash can under the sink. “I know for sure he’s out at the baseball field right now with Kevin and the team.”
I sigh with relief. “Okay. But I’d better not go to that party tonight.”
“The Aurora party? Were you invited?”
“No. But Nadine Sullivan asked me to be her plus-one.”
Jet’s eyes flicker with interest. “Really. You told her you’d go with her?”
“I did, actually. Are you okay with that?”
“Well . . . sure. I’m just surprised.”
“Why? I thought it was good cover. I want to look over the Poker Club guys, see how they’re acting after Buck’s death. Maybe question them a little bit.”
Jet is giving me a sidelong look. After a few seconds, she clucks her tongue and says, “You’re right. You showing up with Nadine could be the best possible move. She’s a credible love interest for you.”
This makes me laugh. “What does that mean? One who can compete with you?”
“You tell me.”
“Are you jealous? Seriously?”
She looks back at me for a while without speaking. In the dim light of the kitchen, her dark eyes appear luminous. Against her brown skin, her sapphire earrings look like stones taken from the eyes of some idol in a distant land. Just as I feel the impulse to reach under her T-shirt, I wonder whether she bought the earrings herself or if Paul dropped ten grand on them one night while surfing the web.
“What are you thinking?” she asks, reaching for the button of my jeans.
“Maybe you should head on home. Just to be safe.”
Her unblinking gaze deepens. “You say that like I won’t be coming back for a while.”
I’d like to argue with her, but the idea that Paul might know about us has profoundly altered my view of our situation.
“If Paul knows,” she says, “I’ll know it tonight. I’ll feel it.”
“When he throws you off the roof of the Aurora?”
“Let’s hope not.” She drinks a big swallow of coffee, then looks toward the back door. “I bought new burner phones at Walmart. They’re in my pants, out in the yard.”
Now I remember her clothes strewn across the grass. “You paid cash?”
Her eyes say, Do you think I’m an idiot? But her mouth says, “Of course.”
“Jet . . . we can’t keep doing this. Not with Paul acting paranoid. If he’s looking for clues, he’s going to find them. Just you peeling away from your normal life every day is dangerous.”
“Not while they’re at baseball