Truth and Dare by Candace Havens Page A

in Phosphor and had come from all over Texas to attend the Firefly Festival in town. She was usually a quiet observer in large groups, but the Randalls forced her to participate. She’d met a variety of aunts, uncles and cousins, and the anthropologist in her was fascinated by the family dynamics. They gave each other a hard time but there was also a lot of love.
    “Are you thinking about the case?”
    An older gentleman stood next to her and she searched her memory for his name. “I should be, but the science part of my brain is having fun watching the family dynamics here.”
    The older man chuckled. “I don’t know about any of them being dynamic, but they’re good kids.”
    Uncle Jake. She finally remembered his name. This probably wasn’t the right time or place but, more than anything, she wanted to ask him about Cade’s father. They were brothers and there was a good chance he might recall something important to the investigation. Just as she opened her mouth to ask him about the time before Joseph died, someone called out to her.
    “Hey, Curly, toss me one of those beers you brought,” said Logan Randall from his inner tube on the lake.
    Patience reached into the cooler for the beer and tossed it to him.
    “Whoa, good throw. She’s on my team for the softball game,” Logan announced.
    “That’s not happening,” Cade interjected. He’d been very protective of her since they arrived. He probably thought she would feel overwhelmed and on any other day he would be right. But his cousins’ good-natured ribbing made her feel welcome.
    “Fight ya for her.” Logan slid his expensive sun glasses up and winked at Patience. She couldn’t help but laugh.
    “Now, now, boys. No need to fight over fresh meat,” Kent announced from his inner tube.
    “Hey, watch it, Kent, or you’ll find yourself down at the other end of the river where the gators like to hang out,” Cade warned. “She’s not meat.”
    Kent dipped his ball cap toward Patience. “Apologies, ma’am.”
    Another female at the picnic besides GG, which the woman had insisted Patience call her, was the owner of the diner, Charli. Patience tried to help the women set up the food when she arrived with Cade, but they had shooed her away so he could introduce her to the rest of the family.
    Since they’d arrived, his arm seldom left her shoulders. At first she thought their lovemaking had been born out of their mutual pain, a one-time thing to comfort each another. Cade seemed to have other ideas about that. She’d wanted the man from the moment she’d met him. This kind of intimacy was new to her, and she wasn’t quite sure what to make of it.
    She’d dated, though not much in the last few years. But one-night stands with no emotional attachments were usually more in her comfort zone. This—well, whatever she’d shared with Cade—was different.
    She glanced up to find him watching her again with a big smile on his face.
    “What?”
    Before he could answer, GG ordered, “Cade, you and Logan arrange picnic tables so we can all eat together.”
    The other men pulled their floats and inner tubes up to the sandy beach and gathered around the table.
    It wasn’t long before stories about the cousins, including Cade, were flowing.
    Jarrod chuckled. “Hey, Cade, do you remember that time you came in with a handful of garden snakes and put them in the crisper to see if they’d hibernate? GG went to make a salad and it’s the only time we’ve ever heard her scream.”
    “Critters nearly jumped from the crisper they were in such a hurry to get out.” GG snickered. “Opened the drawer expecting to see celery, and you can imagine my surprise.”
    “I don’t blame you. I don’t mind snakes but to find one in the fridge would be disconcerting to say the least,” Patience agreed.
    “Cade spent four hours scrubbing every inch of the fridge with a toothbrush and cleanser,” Logan interjected. “I think he learned his lesson about outside