few weeks. At first she thought it had something to do with Fallon, but his break-up with her had occurred months ago. Take these last few days where he’d been casually glancing her way, almost as if she were starting to sprout horns, and that concerned her. A flash of yesterday morning burst through her mind when he’d told her to put a shirt on when normally her sports bra didn’t bother him in the least. Shit, that thing covered up more of her than last year’s bikini swimsuit had. Why would he care?
Taryn finally arrived on the lower floor and walked off of the elevator, casually glancing around the lobby for anyone that shouldn’t be here. She would ask Ethan later tonight when they returned to the hotel if something was weighing on his mind. Right now she needed to keep herself alert. She returned a professional smile to the woman behind the counter and then proceeded through the main doors and out into the heat. The high seventies temperature sure as hell beat the fifty and sixty degree forecasts that the Twin Cities was experiencing. Ethan was parked right out front, so she took the five steps to where her Nissan was waiting and opened the door.
“Have you checked in with Crest?” Taryn asked, repositioning her holster and fastening her seatbelt. She stretched over and above the console and pressed the specialized compartment release in order to retrieve her sunglasses. When Ethan didn’t answer her, she glanced his way as she swapped out her glasses, setting her regular ones inside her cup holder. “Earth to Ethan.”
“Yeah,” Ethan answered, finally looking into his side mirror before pulling away from the front of the hotel. “I checked in with Crest while you were getting ready. You look good, by the way.”
“You don’t look too shabby yourself.” Taryn noticed that Ethan had changed into a black short-sleeved shirt that contained a half collar and a pocket on the left side of his chest. He had also removed his leather holster in favor of a side one that fit securely to his jeans, and considering they were in Texas he’d probably fit right in with the local shit-kickers. His eyes were covered with black tinted sunglasses, so she couldn’t see what he was thinking or feeling. “Are you ready for tonight?”
“I have a list of questions for your aunt, just as I’m sure you do.” Ethan glanced at the dashboard where a built-in GPS was signaling them to turn right onto the main road. “You said Lisa is married to Gordon and their two children are grown and out on their own. Anything else I should know? Are we expecting her to have called the four surrounding counties to gather up the clan?”
“Not that I can think of. Aunt Lisa married into money and has always considered herself a little above the rest.” Taryn had kept herself busy by taking a long shower, but it hadn’t relieved any of the stress that had settled into her shoulders. She tried to rotate her neck, but the movement seemed to pinch a nerve in her left shoulder blade. “Her husband is some type of executive in an oil company. They make a nice living.”
“You said that after your grandparents passed away your dad and aunt only spoke on holidays. Anything to that besides busy lives?” Ethan asked, reaching over with his right arm to knead Taryn’s neck. She lowered her head and welcomed the relief his warm fingers provided as they massaged the fatigued muscles. “And did you ever keep in contact with your cousins?”
Taryn breathed deeply, loving the pressure that Ethan was placing on her neck. It dawned on her that he hadn’t done this lately when beforehand it was an automatic given. He knew that she always had trouble with her upper back muscles from the way she stared at her computer screens twelve hours a day. Before she could ask him why, he followed up his questions with another.
“Did they all come to your father’s funeral?”
“Hmmm,” Taryn responded, for that was all she could initially get out
Taryn finally arrived on the lower floor and walked off of the elevator, casually glancing around the lobby for anyone that shouldn’t be here. She would ask Ethan later tonight when they returned to the hotel if something was weighing on his mind. Right now she needed to keep herself alert. She returned a professional smile to the woman behind the counter and then proceeded through the main doors and out into the heat. The high seventies temperature sure as hell beat the fifty and sixty degree forecasts that the Twin Cities was experiencing. Ethan was parked right out front, so she took the five steps to where her Nissan was waiting and opened the door.
“Have you checked in with Crest?” Taryn asked, repositioning her holster and fastening her seatbelt. She stretched over and above the console and pressed the specialized compartment release in order to retrieve her sunglasses. When Ethan didn’t answer her, she glanced his way as she swapped out her glasses, setting her regular ones inside her cup holder. “Earth to Ethan.”
“Yeah,” Ethan answered, finally looking into his side mirror before pulling away from the front of the hotel. “I checked in with Crest while you were getting ready. You look good, by the way.”
“You don’t look too shabby yourself.” Taryn noticed that Ethan had changed into a black short-sleeved shirt that contained a half collar and a pocket on the left side of his chest. He had also removed his leather holster in favor of a side one that fit securely to his jeans, and considering they were in Texas he’d probably fit right in with the local shit-kickers. His eyes were covered with black tinted sunglasses, so she couldn’t see what he was thinking or feeling. “Are you ready for tonight?”
“I have a list of questions for your aunt, just as I’m sure you do.” Ethan glanced at the dashboard where a built-in GPS was signaling them to turn right onto the main road. “You said Lisa is married to Gordon and their two children are grown and out on their own. Anything else I should know? Are we expecting her to have called the four surrounding counties to gather up the clan?”
“Not that I can think of. Aunt Lisa married into money and has always considered herself a little above the rest.” Taryn had kept herself busy by taking a long shower, but it hadn’t relieved any of the stress that had settled into her shoulders. She tried to rotate her neck, but the movement seemed to pinch a nerve in her left shoulder blade. “Her husband is some type of executive in an oil company. They make a nice living.”
“You said that after your grandparents passed away your dad and aunt only spoke on holidays. Anything to that besides busy lives?” Ethan asked, reaching over with his right arm to knead Taryn’s neck. She lowered her head and welcomed the relief his warm fingers provided as they massaged the fatigued muscles. “And did you ever keep in contact with your cousins?”
Taryn breathed deeply, loving the pressure that Ethan was placing on her neck. It dawned on her that he hadn’t done this lately when beforehand it was an automatic given. He knew that she always had trouble with her upper back muscles from the way she stared at her computer screens twelve hours a day. Before she could ask him why, he followed up his questions with another.
“Did they all come to your father’s funeral?”
“Hmmm,” Taryn responded, for that was all she could initially get out
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