Perfect Fit (Serendipity's Finest 1)

“Yeah, but they both slept better for seeing you.”

Sam didn’t reply. He was already passed out cold. Mike shook his head and walked out. First stop coffee shop, then he’d get lost in work. Later on today, he’d deal with Cara Hartley.

Two

The morning passed quickly. A beat-up Trans Am blew through the stop sign at the corner of Main Street, forcing Cara and Dare to pull over a teenage driver who carried only a permit and who wasn’t supposed to be driving without a licensed adult in the car. His attitude didn’t help his cause, nor did the fact that he should have been in school. They wrote up the ticket and gave the truant an escort to the high school before heading back to town and doing their basic drive-by.

“Man, I hope Tess doesn’t end up like that punk,” Dare said of his fifteen-year-old half sister.

“I’m sure having a cop for a brother will keep her from turning into Danica Patrick too soon,” Cara said with a laugh. “Although knowing Tess, she’ll find a way to keep you all up at night worrying.”

Tess lived with Dare’s oldest brother, Ethan, and his wife in the landmark mansion on the edge of town. Making things more interesting—and titillating for the more gossip-minded residents in town—his middle brother, Nash, was married to Tess’s half sister. But whomever she lived with, they all worried about Tess, given her history before moving to Serendipity.

“I just hope Ethan doesn’t buy her an over-the-top car,” Dare said.

Cara shook her head at the thought. “Ethan has a level head.” She caught Dare’s look of disbelief. “Now. He has a level head now.” The whole town remembered his past.

Ethan had left Serendipity at eighteen after their parents died at the hands of a drunk driver, abandoning his brothers to state welfare. He’d returned last year, wealthy beyond anyone’s imagination and had made peace with his siblings, Dare included.

“Besides, he’s got Faith in his life,” Cara said of Ethan’s wife. “I wouldn’t worry if I were you. Tess is in good hands.”

Dare grinned. “Yeah, she is. And so far she’s staying out of trouble.”

“Coffee?” Cara pointed to Cuppa Café, the town’s only stop for a good caffeine fix.

“Yes.”

Cara pulled into an empty spot on a side street, and together they walked into the coffee shop. Dare ordered a black coffee while Cara chose a nonfat latte. They paid for their drinks and Dare pulled open the door in time for Felicia Flynn, the town’s newest mayor, to enter.

“Thank you, Officer Barron.” With her jet-black hair, blue eyes, and tailored suits, she was striking in appearance.

“Ma’am,” Dare said, with a nod of his head.

Felicia was the youngest mayor of Serendipity and the first female to hold the position. For that alone, Cara wanted to admire her. She’d run on an anticorruption platform, promising to weed out the old boys’ network that had been in place in Serendipity since what seemed like the beginning of time. Another reason for Cara to like her.

“Officer Hartley, I’ve been hoping to talk to you.”

Cara gritted her teeth and forced a smile. For all the woman’s positives, she was a pit bull and a ball buster, making the liking and admiring Cara wanted to do too darned difficult.

“You owe me answers on a certain investigation,” the mayor said, pointedly meeting Cara’s gaze. “Are you avoiding me?”

Cara felt Dare’s curious stare. She shook her head as she answered the mayor. “I had an unexpected emergency. My partner is in the hospital with a bout of appendicitis, a car accident, and a serious concussion. It’s put us on hold,” she explained, hoping the mayor bought the white lie about why she hadn’t been in touch.

She and Sam had been avoiding Mayor Flynn and her tenacious please-the-people platform. Cara and Sam were looking into a cold case that was at least three decades old, involving ten thousand dollars in marked bills in the evidence room and ties to the motel on the border of Serendipity and Tomlin’s Cove, known as the old Winkler place. From the time they were old enough to understand sex, the kids in Serendipity had heard about how the Winklers had once rented out rooms by the hour. Older kids heard they’d also supplied the women, but nobody had proof of the rumors. It was also suspected that the old boys’ network in town had ignored any truth to the suspicions. Whatever went down there had long since ended, and, as Cara and Sam had confirmed, the place was deserted. The mayor just wanted all cold cases revisited and either solved or confirmed dead.

“When did the accident happen?” Mayor Flynn asked.

“Last evening,” Cara said.

The mayor nodded, understanding and compassion in her usually cool gaze. “Please send your partner my best.”

“I will. Thank you.”

“But you get back to work on things.” She shot Cara a pointed look. “I’ll expect a report soon. Have a nice day.” She turned and headed for the counter.

“Witch,” Cara muttered under her breath. The woman made her sweat, which wasn’t an easy feat.

“What was that all about?” Dare asked, following Cara out the door and into welcome cold winter air.