Edward frowned.
“The quicker you agree, the quicker I’ll be gone,” Thomas said, grabbing for the only bargaining chip he could think of.
“Come in,” Edward said gruffly. Turning his back on Thomas, he strode inside. He let go of the skunk, who darted out the door, much to Thomas’s relief.
Before Edward could change his mind, Thomas followed him in.
Order. That was the first thing that struck Thomas about his brother’s house. Though Thomas hadn’t been inside often, the clutter of the past had always surrounded him. It had been there as recently as June, when Jason had come home. Not even Clara’s cleaning had cleared up the mess inside. Until now.
“Place looks good,” Thomas said carefully.
“Clara enjoys puttin’ the candles and scented crap around the house,” Edward said.
Thomas nodded. “And cleaning?”
“Some of that was me. You know what they say. Out with the old.” Edward swept his arm around, gesturing to neat, almost empty shelves and tables. “You didn’t come here to talk about my house-keepin’. What do you want?”
Obviously Edward wasn’t going to offer to take Thomas’s coat. “I want to tell you…I’m sorry. For a lot of things.”
“Can’t change the past,” Edward said gruffly.
Thomas inclined his head, once again struck by his brother’s newfound focus.
A kernel of hope grew inside him that maybe he and his brother could come to an understanding. “I agree. But I’d like to change the future.”
“How? By going after Clara this time?” Edward, shoulders stiff, turned away and walked into the family room, placing distance between them.
“No, that’s not what I want,” Thomas said.
“Then what? You want to drive me insane by pretending you still want her?” Edward thrust his hands in his front pockets.
Thomas couldn’t believe the irony of his brother’s question. “I wanted just the opposite. You live with Clara. She cares for you and it’s obvious to me you care about her. You act jealous, but when it comes to admitting you two have a future, you run for the hills.”
Edward shrugged. “That’s my choice. It’s my life.”
“Well, I just wanted to push you in the right direction, that’s all. The other day, when you thought I was interested in Clara, you got all worked up. So I thought if I could get her to go out with me, I’d push you right into her arms.”
Edward turned to face him, disbelief on his face. “Are you sayin’ you aren’t interested in her?”
Thomas knew this moment was critical. Only the truth would win his brother’s trust.
Or turn him away forever.
Thomas couldn’t lie. So he opted for honesty. “I’m saying I won’t ever make a move on her.”
Edward narrowed his gaze. “You’re admitting you’re interested?”
Thomas drew a deep breath. “Only a dead man wouldn’t be interested. I’m saying she’s off-limits to me.”
A sudden flash of confusion crossed Edward’s face. “I don’t understand. Why are you here now?”
A lump rose to Thomas’s throat. His brother was so close to returning to full sanity, but the distrust he’d built up over the years was painful to watch.
To feel.
“I’m here because we’re getting older, Edward, and I don’t want to waste what time I have left estranged from my family, running from an ancient curse.” He drew a deep breath. “Do you?”
“I’m not running from the damn curse anymore. I’m on medication and getting healthy!” Edward spoke too loudly, too forcefully.
“Then why are you running from the one woman who loves you and could make you happy?” Thomas asked, raising his voice to match his brother’s.
Edward grew red in the face. “I’m not takin’ advice from you. I still don’t know if I can trust you.”
Those words took some of the bluster and certainty out of Thomas. “No, you don’t,” he agreed. “You’d have to take my word for it. And my word’s all I’ve got to give.”
Knowing he’d worn out his welcome, Thomas turned toward the door. “But if you don’t trust me, at least trust Clara. You deserve some happiness,” he said to Edward before letting himself out.
Only after he shut his brother’s door behind him did Thomas allow a lone tear to fall. Brushing it aside, he headed for his car, determined to take his own advice. For his son’s sake if not his own, he would try to make peace with the idea of Lauren Perkins and let go of the damned Corwin Curse.
CHAPTER TWELVE
LAUREN ENJOYED watching Jason work. Not just working with his hands, which of course was a sight to behold. But when he was mentally processing something and deep in thought, she could watch him for hours. His brows furrowed, his full lips pulled together, he alternated between tapping a pencil against the kitchen table and his right temple.
“What’s got you so frustrated?” she asked, almost afraid to break his concentration.
“I’m just going over the fire department’s report. Trying to figure out who was behind this. The local police are investigating, but it bothers me to wait for them. If you’d been in the house, you could have been seriously hurt. I want this bastard found.” Jason spoke through a clenched jaw.
His protectiveness warmed her.
“Anything interesting in the report?” she asked.
“The wiring was tampered with in a way that no one would know when sparks would catch. Just that at some point, they would.”
“So we can’t narrow down time, other than after the electrician signed off, right?” Lauren asked.
“Exactly.” He leaned back in the chair, kicking his legs out in front of him. “Which brings us back to my list of people with access to the house. It just doesn’t make sense to me that one of my guys would do this. What would they have to gain?” His frustration was obvious.
She lowered herself into a chair beside him. “Maybe it’s not one of your guys. Like you said, you hired other people who have been in and out of the house.” She rubbed her hands up and down her arms, chilled again by the thought of someone plotting against her.
“According to Mike’s quick check, none of my crew had any specific dealings with your grandmother or sister. Neither did their families, which in my mind clears them.”
Lauren nodded. “Agreed. Plus I trust your judgment. If you hired them, they must be good guys.”
He treated her to a wry smile. “Thanks for that.”
She shrugged, not wanting to make too much of her feelings for him. She was barely hanging on to her promise to keep him at an emotional distance. She’d already seen firsthand how impossible it would be to join their families in any way. And of course, once she sold this house, her life and career were in New York.
Lauren cleared her throat. “I called Sharon and ran the names on the list by her, too. She spoke to Richard, who as mayor definitely knows most families in town.”
He glanced at her. “Did she offer any insight?”
“Just that Richard plays poker with Gary Willet, the drywaller, and swears he’s a decent guy, a family man, and in poker his tells are always obvious. She said he couldn’t hide a thing if he wanted to.”
“Okay, that leaves the plumber. I’m still waiting for J.R. to call me back with information on him. And I’ve got Mike running a background check.”
As if on cue, Jason’s cell phone rang. He glanced down and grinned. “Bingo. It’s J.R.”
While Jason took the call, Lauren fed the cat and cleaned the coffeemaker, keeping busy until she heard him say goodbye.
“Well?”
“Not sure what we’ve got. Brody Pittman is a new employee. He also worked on Mrs. Hawley’s corroding pipes last week. He doesn’t know much about him. Oddly he hasn’t been able to get in touch with him since the fire here.”
Lauren frowned, unsure what to make of that. “He isn’t finished with the pipe restoration, is he?”