Don't Look (Pike, Wisconsin #1) - Alexandra Ivy Page 0,94
but if she was anything like his father, she would have saved every penny to buy booze. Eating out at a restaurant would have been a rare indulgence. “It was cold to be out walking.”
Lynne shivered. “It’s still cold.”
It was their cue to leave, Kir decided. “I think we’ve seen all there is to see here.”
She didn’t hesitate, hurrying toward the truck and taking her place behind the wheel. Kir climbed in beside her.
“Now where?”
“The café,” Kir said without hesitation.
“I’m pretty sure it’s closed,” Lynne warned, putting the truck in drive and easing her way over the snowdrift blocking the path. “They only serve breakfast and lunch there.”
“I don’t want to eat. I want to search the alley next to the building.”
“Search it for what?”
“The letters.” He held his hands toward the heater that was blasting hot air. “Or whatever Rita might have found at my father’s grave.”
They pulled out of the cemetery. “Wouldn’t it be easier to search during the day?”
“I don’t want anyone asking questions,” he told her. “Not to mention the fact that there’s a good chance the sheriff is going to block the alley off as a crime scene once they get around to listening to the tape.”
Lynne snorted. “If they get around to it.”
“True.” Kir shrugged. “But I don’t want to take a chance.”
Lynne was silent as she concentrated on the slick streets. The wind had picked up, blowing the snow to create a fresh layer of ice. At last she pulled into the lot in front of the café and parked.
“You can stay in the truck. There’s no point in both of us freezing.”
She slowly turned her head, studying him with a narrowed gaze. “Do you know how many nights I’ve spent in the middle of a pasture pulling a calf? If anyone should stay in the truck, it’s you. After all, you’re the soft city boy.”
“Soft?” He leaned across the console, pressing a lingering kiss against her lips. “I’m going to prove just how wrong you are.” Another kiss. “Later.”
“You promise?”
He nipped her lower lip, savoring her sweet taste. “You have my word. And my heart.”
Swiftly she pulled back, her eyes wide. “Kir.”
Kir swallowed a sigh. “Yeah, I know. My timing sucks,” he admitted, cupping her cheek in his hand. They were parked beneath a streetlight that bathed her face in a silvery light, adding a hint of mystery to her beauty. His heart swelled, filling with an emotion that felt too big to be contained. As if it was going to burst out of him if he didn’t share it. Unfortunately, this wasn’t the time, and most certainly wasn’t the place. “Put a pin in it and we’ll revisit this conversation when we’re back home.”
She hastily scurried out of the truck, reaching behind the seat to pull out a heavy flashlight. Kir followed behind her, using the flashlight on his phone to penetrate the thick shadows of the alley. He pushed away the fear he’d just made an idiot of himself. Men in love were supposed to make idiots of themselves, weren’t they? He’d worry later about finding a more graceful way to convince her they belonged together.
For now, he had enough to deal with searching from one end of the short alley to the other.
It didn’t take long. Besides the dumpster there wasn’t anything to see. The trash had either been collected by the sheriff’s department to be searched through later, or no one ever bothered to enter the alley besides the owner of the café. He was betting on the latter.
“Nothing. Not even a stray piece of paper,” he muttered in disgust, glancing along the foundations of the brick buildings. “I suppose it was a long shot.” He glanced to the side, surprised to discover Lynne standing at the entrance to the alley with her hands on her hips. “Is something wrong?”
“It’s too narrow.”
With a frown he walked to stand next to her. “What’s too narrow?”
“The alley.” She spread her arms, indicating the width. “Only a compact car could fit between the buildings. And even then, it couldn’t get past the dumpster.”
“You’re right.” Kir cursed. How had he missed something so obvious?
Lynne shook her head in confusion. “So was the car chasing her and she ran down the alley?”
Kir tried to picture it. Had Rita been heading to the café? If so, why wouldn’t she have run inside instead of entering the alley? Or had her destination been the alley? Maybe she’d been meeting someone there?