Page 86 of The Secrets We Treasure

Chapter 20

It was a glorious morning, washed fresh and dewy from the storm the night before. The sun beamed happily in the azure sky, and there wasn’t a cloud in sight. The mansion was a polished jewel, glittering its magnificence as it sat perched on the gentle slope of land that afforded a brilliant view of the ocean. “If I ever wondered what my friendship with Laci was worth to her, I guess I know,” Treasure said sadly.

They were parked at a spot where the driveway met the road. Greer angled toward her, reaching for her hand. “It’ll be okay,” he said softly, stroking her skin with his thumb.

Tears pressed against her eyes, but she blinked them back, taking in a deep breath. “I guess I can’t fall apart now, can I?” She offered a strained smile. “We’re about to find out how good of an actress I really am.”

He searched her face. “Are you sure you’re up for this?”

“Yeah. I need closure.” It all still felt like a bad dream. “Do you think it was Laci’s background that set her down this path? Her dad loses his business, her mom leaves, her dad commits suicide.”

Disgust darkened Greer’s face. “None of that is an excuse for murder. Look at everything that happened to you. It made you a better person than you started out. Not worse.”

“You’re one of the best people I know and look at everything that has happened to you—losing Jordan and then Aimee.” She sucked in a breath. “I’m not trying to give Laci a pass. I just wish I understood.” Her throat constricted. “She was my friend.”

Greer’s eyes blazed. “No, you were her friend. She took your kindness and turned it against you, almost got you killed.” He gave her a long look. “You don’t have to do this.”

“I do,” she asserted. “I’ll be okay. Promise.”

His eyes flicked over her as a smile lifted a corner of his lips. “Well, you look beautiful, if that helps.” He caressed her jaw with the side of his finger, evoking tingles.

“Thank you.” The block of tension in her shoulders eased a fraction. She had to keep her focus fixed on not what she and Greer had lost but what they’d gained. She drank in the lines of his rugged face, savoring the warmth of his golden eyes. His curls were in full force today, tumbling in all directions. She touched the lock of twisted curls so low on his forehead that it nearly covered one eye. “I love you.”

“I love you more.”

A low chuckle rumbled in her throat. “No, you don’t.”

He laughed. “Ah, but I do because I’m bigger than you, meaning there’s more of me to love you.”

She knew what he was doing—teasing her to take off the edge of tension. It was working.

Greer glanced behind Treasure, immediately shifting into his Get it done mode. “Ian and his guys are in place. It’s showtime. You’ve got this.”

Nodding, she opened the door and got out, smoothing a hand over her dress. Normally, she carried her purse. She felt naked without it. She moved past the half dozen or more golf carts lining Laci’s driveway. Treasure suspected that Laci might be entertaining. Perfect.

Making sure to keep her posture erect, Treasure walked up the steps to Laci’s house, her heeled sandals clopping on the wood. She pressed the doorbell. Several seconds later, Sterling answered.

“Good morning,” Treasure began pleasantly, thinking of Madeline Chasing. All she had to do was act as Madeline would—confident, graceful, but a tad presumptuous and a smidgen catty.

“Good morning,” he repeated. “Are you here for the book club meeting?”

She winked. “Sure am. I have a surprise for Laci.”

“I’m sure she’ll love that,” he said hospitably, his expression suggesting he couldn’t care less. “They’re in the garden room.” Treasure felt a dart of sympathy for the guy. He had no idea his brother had been arrested and wouldn’t until the events of the next several minutes played out.

“How nice,” she drawled, laying on her Southern accent. “I’ll just head in that direction.”

He dipped his head in the same mildly patronizing manner that had caused her to link the two brothers before turning on his heel and retreating.

As Treasure strode through the cavernous house with all its trappings, she couldn’t help but think of the Sermon on the Mount where Jesus taught, “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust do corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal. But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”

Her mind caught on the word treasure. She flinched remembering that her mother said her name helped to remind her and Oliver of what was truly important.

Treasure heard the chatter and laughter of the well-dressed women before she saw them. She clenched her hands, taking in a short breath. If ever she needed grace and refinement, it was now. She stepped into the room.

Laci looked up, her jaw dropping to the floor.

“Surprised to see me?” Treasure asked cheerfully.

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