Death and Her Devotion (Rogue Vows #1)(14)

“Spider never expressed any concerns about having Brandon in close proximity with Chase? Perhaps because Chase had been threatened by someone? As his mother, I assume Brandon’s safety is your main priority.” Stevie felt low for playing the mother guilt card, but Jenny was hiding something.

“Those guys would never let anything happen to Brandon,” Jenny snapped.

“Well, your son was fifty yards from a murder last night. I’d call that a close call.”

The mother paled.

“What aren’t you telling me, Jenny? What is more important than finding the person who killed your son’s uncle?”

She opened her mouth and closed it, an internal battle in her eyes.

Stevie waited.

Jenny closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “Chase is Brandon’s father, not Spider.”

“What?” Stevie sat upright in her seat. “Why . . . who would . . . oh my goodness . . . does Brandon know?”

“Yes, he knows . . . they all know, but we emphasize to Brandon that Spider has an important role in his life. Chase isn’t . . . paternal, and Spider really steps up to the plate. Brandon knows he can’t tell people about Chase. He understands.”

Stevie couldn’t speak.

Jenny looked directly at her. “It’s important that the public doesn’t know Chase has a son. His image is of an upstanding single man. He broke into Hollywood with that image, and if the fact that he has a son came out, it could harm his career.” Her face crumpled. “But I guess it doesn’t matter now.” She buried her face in her hands and silently sobbed.

That poor boy. Hidden all these years to save face for his father.

She doubted Brandon truly understood.

Her perception of Chase Ryan took a dive. Hearing that he’d propositioned two girls last night hadn’t done him any favors in her eyes, but the revelation about his son hurt her heart.

Jenny wiped her eyes. “Please don’t let it get out yet. I don’t want people tearing his memory apart. I’d always hoped that one day . . .” Her voice trailed off, and Stevie suddenly understood.

She’s still in love with him.





Late that evening, Zane pulled a beer from his fridge. “You want one?” he asked Stevie as he watched her give Magic enough head rubs and hugs to last the dog for the next three days.

“No, I have to drive back to my mother’s in a bit,” she said with a wry look.

“I’d hoped you’d forgotten.” Zane was tired of sleeping alone. Magic wasn’t a sufficient substitute for his wife . . . almost-wife.

“My mother won’t let me forget.” Stevie sank into the couch and sighed. “Today was exhausting.” She flipped on the TV and stilled as Chase Ryan’s face filled the screen in a Detective Alex Gunn rerun.

“Ouch,” muttered Zane as he spotted the show. He took a seat next to Stevie, and she leaned her head on his shoulder, but neither one of them changed the channel. Leaving the sound off, they watched as Chase’s Detective Gunn silently drove through the streets of LA, sunglasses on, confidence radiating, no doubt heading to a crime scene.

“I can’t believe he’s gone,” said Stevie. “It feels so wrong to watch this knowing he’s been murdered.”

“I called on the two customers Jake mentioned at the bar. Neither one noticed Chase Ryan in the bar last night or saw anything odd happen. I don’t think either of them would have paid attention if a car had crashed through the front door. They were solely focused on their drinks.”

“Well, that’s no help,” said Stevie.

“You were going to tell me about your talk with Brandon’s mom,” Zane reminded her. There hadn’t been a moment to talk to Stevie since that morning; he’d been pulled in a dozen different directions. The afternoon’s press conference had gone well. Both he and James had spoken, but he hadn’t revealed any facts of the case other than to confirm that Chase Ryan had been found dead under suspicious circumstances. He must have said, “I don’t have the answer to that yet,” twenty times. James had handled the bulk of the conference, focusing on boring topics like managing the arriving crowds and the town’s ability to handle the influx of people.

“Oh, have I got news for you,” Stevie exclaimed. “You’re not going to believe what Jenny Blair told me.”

“Let’s hear it.”

“Chase is Brandon’s father, not Spider.”

Zane let that sink in, Stevie’s words echoing in his head.

Why am I not surprised? Something had felt off in the way the guys behaved toward Brandon. Spider hadn’t treated him any differently than the other two men had. He acted like a guardian, not a father. “Does that mean Chase’s assets will go to Brandon?”

“Oh!” Stevie sat up. “I hadn’t even thought about that. I was preoccupied with understanding how a ten-year-old could never tell his friends that his father was a TV star. I hadn’t thought of the financial implications.”

“Where’s Jenny now?”

“She got a room at the B and B. She was smart enough to call before she left Portland and beat the rush of reporters looking for rooms. Brandon is staying with her instead of with the guys at the real estate office.”

“That’s good. We’ll need to confirm that Jenny was actually in Portland last night.”