Page 16 of Magic Blooms
“New York."
O'Reilly crossed his arms over his chest and leaned in a bit closer. "Is that right? A city girl all the way down here. What exactly brought you all the way to Elyria?"
From the look in his eyes, I had a feeling he was asking his questions less because of the poor dead woman, and more because of a personal interest in me. I didn't want that either, but I supposed it was better than the alternative. I also noticed he’d asked an open-ended question that I couldn't just say “yes” or “no” to as instructed.
"Polly, are you getting these men's way?" Joshua boomed from behind me.
I never thought I'd be grateful to hear that gruff voice of his. "Oh, I was just leaving. O'Reilly here has a very important job to do," I said, smiling at him with a hint of flattery in my eyes.
Vilea, Elyria. Some things were the same on any world.
But if anything, O'Reilly became even more interested. "Polly. What a pretty name."
My first instinct was to correct him, but considering how Lorraine had seemed to want to keep me a secret, I held my tongue.
"Good luck,” I said as I backed away quickly and fell into step beside my rescuer.
As we marched around to the front of the house, Joshua moved fully into my personal space. He got as close as a person could without actually touching. "What in the heck do you think you're doing?"
I clenched my jaw and kept myself from saying anything stupid. "I was trying to stay out of the way. I thought that entrance wouldn’t be as busy. No one told me there was a body there."
He remained unconvinced. "Why can't you just go in the front door like a normal person?"
"Because I’m not a normal person!" I snapped.
I took a deep breath, making sure I lowered my voice so no one would hear. "This is not a normal situation for me," I reminded him. "I assume it's not a normal situation for you either, so I'd appreciate it if you would be a bit gentler with me."
A flash of guilt glinted in his sharp green eyes, telling me that perhaps I’d gotten through to him at least a little bit. Joshua sighed. "You're right. Understandably, I've been on edge all morning. Doesn’t mean I should take it out on you, though. Sorry."
I blinked in surprise. He’d just admitted he was wrong, and he’d done it so easily. I didn't remember the last time any man I knew had done that. Especially not one as big and commanding Joshua.
My mind flashed to Dante. How was it that I already felt I knew Joshua just as well as I knew my intended husband? Although the man before me had proven gruff and irritable, his heart was also kind and caring. His suspicion of me wasn’t because of anything I’d done, but more out of a desire to protect Lorraine.
Would Dante do the same in his place?
I’d never actually spent much time alone with my betrothed. We hadn’t had any real time to get to know each other. We knew we’d make a good match because of where we came from—but I knew very little about who he was, short of his constant stream of unwanted advice whenever he’d visited my family’s home. I knew his public persona, but he’d kept the intricacies of his heart a secret all this time.
"When you were here earlier, did you see anybody hanging around Fox’s End that didn't belong?" asked Joshua, pulling me off my discomfiting train of thought.
"I barely know who belongs here," I pointed out. "But no, I didn't see anybody who wasn't a guest last night."
I thought about it for a moment before continuing. "Lorraine mentioned the other inn owner, Gerry. Told me she doesn't get along with him. Do you think, maybe…?"
Joshua clenched his jaw and glanced over my shoulder, as though making sure we were still alone. "You’re right. I’ve learned to trust my instincts on some things, and I have a bad feeling about this one. I want to go and talk to Gerry before the police get to him. Try to get an honest reaction out of him and see if I can sniff out the truth."
Curious. I wondered if his instincts had anything to do with his magical abilities. "These instincts of yours... Did you have any about me?"
He narrowed his eyes, and I could practically see the walls going up. "No. You're just another one of Lorraine's weird friends or relatives or whatever you are."
I decided not to point out that he was also one of Lorraine's weird friends. I also didn't point out that I could tell he was lying. I just didn't know why he would bother to lie about that.
"If you let me drop off these bags and grab a quick change of clothes, I'll go with you to talk to Gerry."
He let out a sarcastic laugh. "No, thanks. I don't need your help on this."
"You might not need my help, but I’m much nicer than you, and I'm sure Gerry would talk more, if he didn't feel like he was being threatened. Besides, I figured you'd want to keep me close anyway."
"Why would I want to do that?" He raised an eyebrow.
