Cold Case Manhunt. Jennifer Morey

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      Cal refrained from comment, but Jaslene watched him and must have picked up on the general direction of his thoughts.

      “I’ve known Payton since high school. We went to the same college, where we met two other friends and rented a house together. Payton and I did a lot together. We were going to get married on the same day in the same church and have kids the same age. Tatum and Catherine don’t understand. They haven’t known her as long as I have.”

      “Well, I understand.” He understood about not giving up on the missing. Not giving up on the dead.

      Her eyes softened, full of relief and gratitude. Her mouth lifted in the most tender smile, and he was enraptured.

      “Have you eaten lunch yet?” he asked.

      “No.”

      “Why don’t we go grab something and talk about how we’re going to proceed?”

      Her smile broadened, snaring him further. “Okay.”

      “I just need to resign first.”

      She laughed. “I’ll wait for you outside.”

      * * *

      Jaslene did not expect Cal to turn out to be such a warmhearted soul. Whenever she met him before, he had always been professional and only focused on the case. Today his demeanor seemed...more personal. Maybe being freed from the police department had done that. She had always thought he was the best detective for Payton’s case. He had done more than anyone else in searching for her.

      She believed him when he’d said he only cared about the victims. He also showed compassion for her. She hadn’t expected that, or the sudden flash of attraction that had come over her. She’d thought he was a good-looking man from the very beginning, but she had been so intent on finding Payton that it hadn’t mattered.

      Now Cal had quit his job and was joining a private investigation agency, taking Payton’s case with him. He’d become her champion.

      He came out of the station with the same hard set to his eyes she’d always found so unreadable. Now he just looked sexy. Six-four with dark hair and blue eyes a shade lighter than hers, he dressed in slacks and a suit and tie. When he’d first introduced himself he’d said, I’m Detective Calum Chelsey, but call me Cal.

      “There’s a good deli just up the street,” he said.

      “Okay.” She walked with him, feeling self-conscious of her appearance. Did she look good enough? Why did she worry about that when she was with him?

      “Are you from here?” he asked on the way.

      “Yes. My family lives here. You?”

      “No. I’m from Texas. I like not being close to my family.”

      “Black sheep, huh? My family is very close. I’m the second youngest of four very different people who all got varying professional degrees.” Talking eased her nerves. Why was she nervous anyway?

      At the deli, they ordered and found a table next to the window. Although a clear day, it was chilly and she could feel the cold air radiating inside. Winter had set in early this year. She saw snowflakes and dead leaves blow across the street, whipped up by passing cars.

      “What about you?” Cal asked. “You said you were a geologist but what do you do?”

      “I’m an environmental geologist. I work with renewable energies at a consulting firm.”

      “Interesting.”

      “I’ve always loved earth science. At the risk of sounding insensitive, in college, I was not very interested in the environment but those were the hot jobs at the time. I care about the environment, but as a science it isn’t very fascinating. I need that kind of stimulation. I don’t do meditation well. Sometimes I think I should have gotten into seismology or something.”

      “You would have had to move away from Chesterville. Not much earthquake activity here.”

      She smiled. Moving away had never occurred to her. She enjoyed being with her family, especially her parents. She couldn’t imagine not being able to stop by for tea in the sunroom with her mother. They could talk for hours.

      “Why don’t you like your family?”

      “I like them...well, sort of.” He grinned. “My dad loves the NRA and ranching. He’s ex-military, so he was always very strict. That I didn’t mind so much. Guns have their usefulness but being an NRA fanatic goes too far in my opinion. My younger brother loves guns, like my dad, and capitalism. They are both executives at the same oil company. Corbin followed in Dad’s footsteps. They are both very successful. I never wanted to be an executive. I wanted to make more of a difference than a ton of money. My dad and I had a lot of arguments about my career choice.”

      “What about your mother? Surely you like her.”

      He chuckled briefly. “Of course. She didn’t have to work, but the ranch keeps her busy. She always let Dad make all the big decisions when it came to us. I guess I resented her for that, but not anymore. She was a great mom.”

      He seemed to like his family more than he let on. He might have a rift with his father and maybe his brother, but what family didn’t have their differences?

      “Is it just you and your brother?” she asked, wondering why she was so curious. They had never talked like this before.

      “I have a little sister. She is the ranch manager. I’m probably closest with her.”

      “And you’re a homicide detective.” Jaslene pondered that a moment. “Why?”

      “My grandfather was murdered. He was in a convenience store when some robbers arrived. He tried to stop them and one of them shot him. I was very close to him. It changed me. Losing him that way.”

      “I’m so sorry.” She could feel his sorrow. Even after all these years he still missed his grandfather. Jaslene averted her gaze as she thought of her own loss. Her husband had been murdered, too. Before that all-too-familiar pain overtook her, she smothered it as she usually did.

      “It made me want to go after every thug who hurt anyone,” Cal said. “I still do. Joining DAI will allow me to help more people who have nowhere else to turn. That will give me the most gratification.”

      She had sensed that in him early on, his determination to catch criminals. He had gone after Payton’s missing persons case with an aggression she had not seen in other officers. She had never doubted him when he said the case had gone cold. She had despaired numerous times but had never had any reason to fault him. He had left no stone unturned.

      As they finished and left the restaurant, Jaslene marveled how much things had changed in less than a day. This morning she hadn’t thought much of Cal Chelsey. Now she saw him in a completely different way. Maybe it was his understanding over the way she felt about losing Payton. Maybe it was his devotion to victims of violent crimes.

      “This is my car.” She stopped at her sage-green Jeep Renegade.

      “I’ll СКАЧАТЬ