want to grab a hamburger with me?”
“You should have called earlier. I’m already having lunch.”
Brooke said, “Tell Maverick I said hi.”
“You’re eating with Brooke at her store?”
“Yeah. I came by to tell her what I learned about the reindeer theft.” Josh cut into his chicken.
“And question me some more.” Brooke cut up one of her asparagus spears.
“You’re there questioning her again?” Maverick sounded annoyed.
“I’ll see you tonight, Maverick.”
“What did you get her for lunch this time?”
Josh knew his brother would give him grief over questioning Brooke further when he went home for dinner. “Talk later.” Josh didn’t see himself as a pushover, but what could he say when Brooke wanted a special meal?
“You didn’t tell him what we were having for lunch,” Brooke said.
“I’ll tell him tonight. If I didn’t end the call, he would have continued to talk.”
“About me.”
Josh leaned back in his chair. “He didn’t think you were guilty of stealing Jingles.”
“But you did.”
“From a police detective’s point of view, I had to consider anyone who had motive, opportunity, and the stolen reindeer in possession as a possible suspect.” He drank some of his water. “You have to admit things were looking bad for you.”
She shook her head. “Have you ever run in Forest Park in Portland? It’s supposed to be one of the largest urban forests in the United States, and I’ve never run there before. I was thinking of doing it tonight.”
“Yep, with eighty miles of trails, fire lanes, and forested roads, the park stretches over seven miles. It’s open from five in the morning until ten at night, so we could run tonight after it’s closed. Fishing and hunting are prohibited, and no fires, camping, fireworks, or firearms are allowed, so we should be safe running as wolves. We might even see others there from the pack.”
“We?”
He shrugged. “Think of me as your tour guide. My brother and I have run there for years, when we’re not running on our ranch or Leidolf and Cassie’s ranch.”
“What about Maverick?”
“I’ll ask him if he wants to go.”
She was about to take another bite of her chicken when the front door opened with a jingle. She sighed again. “Thanks so much for lunch. It was delicious.” She packed the rest of her meal in a microwave container. “This will be perfect for dinner. Feel free to enjoy the rest of yours. I’ve got to help my customers. I’ll see you after ten tonight?”
“At the shop or the house?”
“House.” She stuck her leftovers in the fridge and hurried off to greet the new people in her store.
Josh finished the rest of his meal, figuring it was better than just grabbing a burger and eating it on the run, even though he had wanted to visit more with Brooke. Then he got a call.
“Hey,” Adam said, “we’ve got another case. Another robbery. Same MO: two guys wearing black ski masks, blue jeans, heavy boots, dark-gray parkas, black ski gloves—”
“Like Ackerson.”
“Yep. I smelled his scent for sure. Either he picked up another partner or this guy was with him on the other case, too, but maybe the getaway driver that time. We have no description of a vehicle. They stole about $40,000 in jewelry, threatened the clerk with guns, and tore off before the clerk could call the police. They must have been parked somewhere else.”
“Like the last time. Location?”
“Johnson’s Jewelers. Five miles from the other store.”
“I’m on my way.” Josh couldn’t believe the same man would rob another store so soon after the other one. Then again, there was really no rhyme or reason for what some thieves did. Maybe the thief was emboldened because he didn’t get caught the last time. Maybe he was angry he didn’t get anything out of the earlier attempted robbery and was determined to do so this time.
Josh hoped they’d catch him and his cohorts before they hurt any innocents. Was Ackerson in charge of these jobs, or was someone else hiring him to do them?
Josh threw out his trash and put their cups in the dishwasher, then left the kitchen. He had the unfathomable urge to kiss Brooke before he left the shop—as if their lunch together had been a real date—but she was cheerily talking to a customer. He noticed she was standing underneath an archway, and above it, mistletoe was hanging. She waved goodbye and mouthed a thank-you to him. He thought if he could time it right later, he’d kiss her under the mistletoe. She couldn’t object to that, could