Page 66 of Hold a Candle

“The hayloft? It’s been a long time since I had a lass in the hayloft,” he teased. “Do we need to bring anything on a stake out? I think we’ve been cleaned out of biccies and pastries unless we could find Delilah’s stash. For all I know though, she may have thrown it away.”

Pauley chuckled and stood up. “Just a thermos of coffee, a blanket, and some high-powered night vision binoculars.”

Jamie grabbed her hand and pulled himself up. “The hot coffee and a blanket I can get my hands on, not sure about the binoculars.”

“I’ve got the binoculars covered, I always carry a mini pair in my bag,” she replied, digging in her shoulder bag and producing them.

Jamie inspected them. “Is this standard issue? It looks too professional to be, but ye never know.”

“Nay, of course not,” she scoffed. “I just like to be prepared, especially since most stakeouts are at night.”

“Is yer gut still telling ye more trouble is coming?” Jamie asked, looking around.

Pauley considered his question. “Not exactly,” she hedged. “I guess I’m like Darro at the moment. I don’t feel a sense of urgency, just uneasy. It’s hard to identify exactly where it’s coming from on a night like tonight. Ye wouldn’t believe the stories that come in from the road constables on All Hallow’s Eve. The streets are like a different world, and the citizens are completely crazy with all kinds of reports. It can be very difficult to discern what’s real and what isn’t when they report some of the things they’ve seen.”

Jamie nodded. “I can believe that. It’s been crazy around here, and I’m already wondering if my senses haven’t been playing tricks on me. But since ye are obviously in no mood to sleep, and neither am I, let’s get yer stakeout going. Mayhap we can find something to pass the time in between surveying the landscape.”

“Like what?”

“How long has it been since ye had a tumble in the hayloft?” he teased, waggling his eyebrows.

Pauley’s chin lifted and sparks lit up her eyes. “If it was any night but tonight, I’d take ye up on that, Mr. MacNamara.”

He waggled his finger at her and tsked. “I already know one activity we’ll be engaged in. Ye forgot my name again so ye’ll need a reminder.”

“I deny that,” she protested. “Don’t ye remember that when someone uses yer full name ye might be in trouble? When my dad used to call me Pauley Sueann MacBride, I knew I was in fer a lecture, or maybe more.”

“Ye didn’t use my whole name though,” Jamie pointed out with his evil grinchy grin. “Ye just wanted to see if I was paying attention.”

Pauley huffed, but her lady parts were already warming up. She didn’t know whether to be glad he knew that, or be forewarned.

She could do with a bit of slap and tickle, anything besides this suspended in the macabre feeling. It was as if everything, human, animal, and nature alike, were all holding their collective breath.

Just waiting.

Chapter 16

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