Conflict of Interest (The McClouds of Mississippi 2)
Page 58
Though the image of Gideon as a serious shopper was rather odd to her, Adrienne said only, “Would either of you like a cup of coffee? I have a fresh pot in the kitchen.”
Nathan’s blue eyes lit up eagerly. “Coffee sounds great. And do you suppose Gideon’s got the makings for a sandwich in there? We’ve been traveling all day and I’m about wiped out.”
“Nathan,” his bride protested, “you can’t just barge into your brother’s house and raid his refrigerator.”
He flashed her a grin. “Watch me.”
“I’m sure Gideon wouldn’t mind,” Adrienne said, though it occurred to her that she’d been awfully free with Gideon’s hospitality that day.
She happened to be watching Nathan’s face when he saw Dylan sitting at Gideon’s table drinking coffee. Until that moment she had seen little resemblance between the McCloud brothers, but Nathan’s expression reminded her very much of Gideon.
“What the hell are you doing here?”
“Nate.” Clucking her tongue reprovingly, Isabelle tapped her brother’s shoulder. “That’s not very nice.”
His smile looking quite different from the one he’d worn earlier, Dylan stood. “That’s okay, Princess Isabelle. I’m used to it from your brothers.”
“That doesn’t make it any more acceptable.” Caitlin frowned at Nathan, then held out her hand to Dylan. “It’s nice to see you, Officer Smith.”
“You, too, ma’am.” He shook her hand, his expression marginally warmer than it had been when he’d faced her husband. “And congratulations on your marriage.”
She laughed. “Even if I did marry a McCloud? Never mind, I know what your answer to that would be.”
He only smiled.
Adrienne felt the need to defend Dylan’s presenc
e. “Dylan has been quite gracious to me during my visit here. He was very helpful to me and Isabelle when we were involved in the minor car accident on Tuesday, and he—”
“A car accident?” Frowning, Nathan looked at Isabelle again as if searching for overlooked injuries. “Why didn’t I hear about that?”
“I thought Gideon had mentioned it to you to explain why I’ve been staying here. I guess he didn’t want to alarm you, especially since no one was hurt. Officer Smith arrived at the scene almost immediately, and he took excellent care of Isabelle and me when I carelessly fell and sprained my ankle.”
Caitlin nodded. “I did notice that you were limping.”
“What happened?” Nathan asked, still looking concerned.
“A red sports car ran a red light in front of me, causing me to slam on my brakes and go into a spin on wet pavement. The back of my car hit a lamppost, but Isabelle and I were both securely strapped in, so we weren’t harmed.”
“A red sports car.” Nathan gave Dylan a look. “Did you get him?”
“I didn’t have positive ID. Adrienne couldn’t describe the car.”
“It happened too fast,” Adrienne added, somewhat apologetically.
Nathan was still looking at Dylan. “Did you talk to Sawyer?”
“Yeah. He denied even being in his car that day.”
Nathan made a sound of disgust. “Of course he did.”
His eyebrows rising, Dylan asked, “Isn’t this your own client you’re talking about?”
“Not anymore. I suggested after his last DUI that he seek another attorney. For his sake it should probably be someone who doesn’t want to see him thrown into jail.”
Dylan chuckled.
Taking encouragement from that very brief accord, Adrienne said, “I’ll start preparing the sandwiches. Caitlin, would you mind making a fresh pot of coffee?”