Meredith rolled over and gave her the stink eye. “Like Mr. Jenkins did a few years ago after his wife died?”
“Well, it did get him more casseroles from our local widows. He’s happily married now.”
“Great, even streakers find happy endings.”
Jill sat on her heels. She didn’t like the despair in Meredith’s voice. Damn Rick-the-Dick to hell for messing with her sister.
“Wait here a minute. I have something I want to give you.”
She raced across the hall to her bedroom, stubbing her toe on a hardcover of Black Hills. “Shit, that hurt.” Sifting through the necklaces hanging from a nail on the closet door, she untangled the one she wanted and raced back.
“Here,” She thrust it out. “I want you to have this.”
Meredith rose up to a sitting position, and Jill plopped down next to her.
“It’s made of crystals. I bought it from a local artisan in Aspen when I went skiing last winter.”
Since Meredith didn’t believe in anything supernatural, Jill didn’t mention the crystal’s power to heal. La Perla was a good start, but Jill thought Meredith could use an extra boost.
Meredith raised it over her neck. “It’s beautiful, Jillie.”
“Then it’s perfect, since you are too.”
Her sister’s head drooped. “Believe it,” Jill said, stroking Mere’s hair.
“I know, I know.”
She let the less-than-believable litany go. Meredith would get her groove back—just like Stella. “Okay, I need to focus on my pimp duties. Let me do some thinking while you settle in.”
“Thanks, Jillie. With your help, I think this might just work. Gosh, I missed you.”
“I’m going to find you a wonderful, hot, kick-ass man, Mermaid. And then you’re going to owe me for the rest of your life.”
Her sister touched the crystals on the necklace with shaking fingers. “What if I don’t find anyone?”
Her hushed whisper wrung Jill’s heart out like a dish rag. She gave her a saucy wink. “With me as your pimp, how could you not?”
Meredith’s mouth turned up at the corners. “Okay, Sista Pimp, get going.”
“Don’t try and be a rapper, Mere. It’s so not your thing.”
When she left the room, Meredith was still laughing.
The weight of Jill’s assignment hung on her like that thing an ox carried. What was it? Oh yeah, a yoke. She needed to find her big sister the perfect man. And after what she’d heard today in the coffee shop about the new arrival coming to town, she already had someone in mind.
Chapter 5
Tanner surveyed his Denver hotel room and threw his keys on the bed. After years of living overseas and being driven around, he was the one at the wheel. Even though it was a rental, his forest green Nissan Xterra had the new car smell. Funny how that lifted his spirits.
He dialed up his sister on his new cell phone.
Peggy answered on the fourth ring. “Hello?”
“Hey, there. It’s me. This is my new number.”
“Tanner! So you really are staying. I wasn’t sure.”
He walked over to the window and looked out. It wasn’t much of a view, but it was safe. A welcome change. “I can’t turn my back on David. Not when he’s finally getting his shit together.”
“So you’re sure this happened before he went to AA?”
“Yes. He told me the whole sordid story.”
The parallels between his brother and their father were painful. At least David hadn’t left his family. Tanner had to stick by him for that. He rested his head on the cold glass.
“It’s a fucking nightmare though.”
Peggy’s sigh was audible. “I don’t like what you have to do to this woman.”
His conscience was already having fits over Meredith Hale. He tried to block the phrase “innocent victim” from his mind. He rubbed his tired eyes. Wasn’t that why he hadn’t been sleeping?
“I don’t have a choice.”
“I’ll keep digging on Sommerville, Tanner. So far, everyone seems to think he’s a world-class asshole. He’s a big drinker, probably a functioning alcoholic, and a womanizer. But he’s spinning it pretty well. He says he found a higher purpose after his divorce. He’s been going to church, confessing his sins. It’s the standard redemption schtick these politicians pull.”
“It’s bullshit. Of course, with his money and the spin, he could win.”
“Yeah. Their divorce was pretty public. Meredith got herself a fat settlement.”
Tanner drew X-O game dashes in the fog that his breath left on the window. “Good for her.”
“She’s a fighter. Going to Sommerville’s rival paper was another nail in the proverbial divorce coffin. She won’t fall easily.”