Missing and Endangered (Joanna Brady #19)(34)
Their video chats were one-way only. Ron said that security restrictions at his job made it necessary for him to keep his current image blurred on-screen, but that didn’t matter to Beth. In fact, that somehow made the whole idea seem even more mysterious and exciting. Once they started, he’d been thrilled beyond measure. He wanted to see all of her, exploring her body one piece at a time, as though he were taking a guided tour. For Beth the experience had been both terrifying and exhilarating—right up until Jenny knocked on the door.
In the course of all their many midnight calls, that had never happened before. Usually Jenny was asleep long before Beth and Ron got on the phone. Thank God Jenny hadn’t come barging in. Beth had been standing up at the time. The phone had fallen all the way to the floor. It was a miracle it hadn’t broken. She’d turned on the shower and wet her hair, hoping the noise from that would be enough to keep Jenny from hearing her tell Ron about what had happened and saying good-bye.
Jenny had made it clear that she’d been pissed when Beth came out of the bathroom. And things this morning hadn’t been any better between them. Beth had worried about it all day long and wondered how she could go about making things right. Thankfully, bringing home pizza had done the trick.
Beth and Jenny were good again, and Beth was relieved beyond words. She wanted to have Ron in her life, but she needed Jenny, too. The last thing she wanted was for Jenny to rescind the invitation for Beth to come to Bisbee over Christmas vacation.
She sure as hell didn’t want to go to SaddleBrooke! And by eleven thirty that night, Beth was camped out in the bathroom awaiting Ron’s call.
Chapter 12
With Butch at home, Joanna slept better than she had for days. When she woke up on Saturday morning to the aroma of baking waffles, her life was complete. Waffles were Denny’s personal favorite—and Joanna’s, too, for that matter. Traditionally that’s what they had for breakfast the morning after Butch came home from a book tour.
When she walked into the kitchen in her robe to collect her coffee, Denny was downing his second waffle while Sage, in her high chair, worked her way through a serving of bite-size waffle pieces with Lucky waiting nearby in hopes of capturing anything that missed her mouth and landed on the floor.
“Thanks for letting me sleep in,” she said.
“After the week you’ve had, you deserve it,” Butch said with a grin. “Your waffle is coming right up.”
Joanna took her coffee and took her customary place in the breakfast nook.
“You’re off today, aren’t you?”
Joanna nodded. “Today and tomorrow both,” she replied.
Settled into her third term in office, Joanna was attempting to do a better job of splitting her time between home and work. She and Tom Hadlock now routinely spelled each other on weekends. They were both on call, of course, especially if something serious went down, but every other weekend they took turns being first up, and this was Joanna’s scheduled weekend off.
“So here’s an idea,” Butch said, handing her a plate loaded with a steaming waffle. “As I understand it, today Denny has an overnight playdate at Jeff and Marianne’s, with us due to pick him up after church tomorrow, right?”
Joanna nodded.
“How about this?” Butch continued. “The book signing at Sun City Oro Valley starts at one P.M. Why don’t you and Sage come along? After the signing we can do some Christmas shopping. If Sage happens to see what we’re buying, I’m pretty sure she won’t tell. And when we’re done shopping, we can stop off for a nice dinner on the way home. Come to think of it, if you want to, we could maybe even swing by the hospital to check on Deputy Ruiz while we’re at it.”
Joanna reached for the butter. “Sounds like you had this all plotted out well before I ever set foot in the kitchen.”
“You know me,” he returned with a grin. “When it comes to writing books or living life, I’m all about outlining.”
“And I’m all about spur-of-the-moment,” Joanna countered. “But what if Sage raises a fuss during your talk?”
“So what?” Butch returned. “Loyal fans will love it. After all, how many times does an author’s baby show up at a signing? As for the people who still can’t wrap their heads around the idea that Gayle Dixon is actually a guy? Having Sage there will make them that much more confused.”
“I’m not sure,” Joanna said, feigning a frown.
“How come?”
“The three of us going on a family outing on a weekend? Doesn’t it sound a little too normal?”
“We feel pretty normal to me,” he said.
“All right, then,” she said. “Count me in.”
After breakfast, while Joanna was in the bedroom getting dressed, she took her phone off the charger and called Ernie. “You asked if there was something you could do to help out,” she said when he answered, “and there is.”
“What?”
“I need you to track down the robe that Madison Hogan was wearing in that Huachuca City squad car. It’s possible it went to the hospital with her, the EMTs might still have it, or it might have gone back to the woman who lent it to her originally—Alice Kidder, one of Leon Hogan’s neighbors over in Whetstone.”