Chapter Eight
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Leaving her last night wasn’t easy. If he’d had his way, he’d have held her all night. But once he received that call there had been no option but to leave. No matter what was going on, he was on call, and when the hospital called he dropped everything. Cori understood and immediately sent him on his way.
It meant a long, sleepless night, and he still had to see his patients throughout the day. Logan couldn’t get her out of his mind. She’d been truly distraught, and they hadn’t had a chance to go into details. He wished he’d thought about asking to borrow the file so he could scan it and send it to Bennett. Instead, he was going by memory.
Normally that was all he required, yet her tears—her agony—had obliterated his ability to concentrate. He couldn’t even remember the man’s name who’d died. All he knew was it was her grandfather, and it still caused her pain.
Between patients, Logan had texted Cori and asked if he could pick her up at seven, and they could review the file. She’d agreed. What he’d failed to mention was he was taking her to his house.
“I don’t think this is a good idea.”
“Why is that? I’ve been to your home. Is it that odd that you come to mine?” Logan asked as they sat in the limo.
“I guess I just feel more comfortable at home.”
“You mean safer?” Cori nodded. Logan shook his head. “If I were out to hurt you, your place would have been just as easy. Trust me, Cori, tonight we’re meeting for one purpose only, and that is to review the file. I can’t make any promises regarding the next time I bring you here.”
He would honor his word for more than one reason. First, Logan was a gentlemen, and for the most part, his word meant something. Second, he really wanted to explore that file in detail. There was no way she went through such great lengths to uncover this story without there being some truth to whatever she suspected. If she believed her grandfather had been murdered, surely she’d taken her concerns to the police. Why me? What could I possibly provide to be her only hope?
Once they were inside, he decided to utilize the kitchen table to lay out what she had. Cori had compiled photos outside of what the police had. “Where did you obtain these?”
“My grandpa had given me a camera for my fifth birthday. I used to snap pictures of everything. Years later, I had the film developed and was surprised to see how much of it was of the vineyard.”
“I take it this is . . . was your grandfather?” He pointed to a man who appeared to be in his seventies.
“Yes. His name was Joe Sparks. He was a gentle giant. He came here in hopes of making a life for generations to come. In one horrible night it was all taken away. The only things left were my memories and these photos.”
“You’re fortunate to have those. I met my grandmother a few times. She was far from gentle. If anything, she hated us more than our father did.” He could tell Cori was shocked. “Don’t feel bad. We knew nothing different. The saying that you can’t miss what you don’t know is true.” Or so I keep telling myself.
He pointed to one picture. “What is this?”
“It was the wine cellar,” Cori replied as she picked it up and looked at it closely. “See this? All the bottles smashed on the floor?”
She handed him the picture, and he saw what she was looking at. Then he went back to the photo of the wine cellar before the fire. The bottles were on wooden racks, and he could see the year clearly labeled on the rack.
“Cori, look again. What do you see?”
“The same thing I’ve seen everything time I look at them. Years of work destroyed by the fire. What do you see?”
He looked at both pictures side by side. Although they were from different angles, they were of the same bottles. “The racks aren’t destroyed so how did the bottles break?”
“The report said the heat caused them to explode.”
“That would not explain why they’re on the floor. I’m not a scientist, but I’d like your permission to have my brother Brice look at these. He’d be able to tell you if their findings were accurate.”
“Logan, I don’t want anyone else knowing about this. I wasn’t even going to tell you.” He heard the panic in her voice.
“Don’t worry. I’m not going to tell him who or why. I’ll just show him the two photos and ask him how this could have occurred. He will be so busy providing his theory he won’t ask any questions. That would take the fun out of it for him.”
“But—”
“Cori. You asked me for my help. I believe your words were I’m the only one who can. Let me help. What harm can come from me borrowing two pictures for a night? I promise you I’ll have them back to you safely tomorrow.”
He truly wanted the entire file, but if she freaked out this much over two pictures, he was sure she’d shut down on that request. Besides the longer this took, the more time he could spend with her. And as long as they were talking about her grandfather, they weren’t talking about James. Or any Henderson.
“I guess it’s okay for one night. But please don’t tell him anything.”
“If you’d feel better about it, you can come with me.” Logan had no idea where the invitation had come from. He heard the words, but surely he didn’t ask her to meet with Brice. It was bad enough she’d already met Shaun and Morgan. What the fuck is wrong with me?
“I’d like that.”
Great. She agrees to the one thing I want her to say no to. Got to love women. “Okay. I’ll set it up. We normally meet at a bar not far from my office. Will that be okay?”
“Just text me the address when you confirm with Brice, and I’ll meet you there.”
He’d much prefer picking her up, but that wouldn’t make any sense since he literally could walk to the bar, and she wasn’t in the city.
They spent the rest of the night looking through the other details. Nothing else jumped out at him. Then again he wasn’t sure what he was looking for. What he did get was a good idea that she was the only one who believed her grandfather was murdered. He empathized with her. From what he’d seen she’d tried every avenue, and he really was her last hope. And I’m not sure I can help.
When he dropped her off at her apartment, he once again kissed her lightly. Even in that brief contact, he could feel the stress of what tonight’s endeavor had done to her. “Cori, don’t think about it anymore. We’ll meet with Brice. If there is anything odd, he’ll pick it up. And then we’ll know what to do from there.”
“And what will that be, Logan?”
“I’ll use every resource I have to find out the truth about what happened to your grandfather.”
Her eyes watered, and he knew he’d be lost if she started crying again. Thankfully she contained them. “No matter what the answer is, I know it wasn’t an accident. I just know it.”
She turned and walked into her apartment building. He knew if Brice said it was normal, it’d break her heart. And if Brice confirmed her suspicions, then the pain of reliving it was going to hurt her like hell. No matter what happens, I’ll be here for her. Someone has to be.
Cori tossed and turned. She’d never expected to be sitting with Logan discussing the fire. If anything she figured one day she would confront him with the proof that his father was responsible.
She was so conflicted about not telling him her suspicions. If Brice came back supporting her theory, was that the time to tell him? Should she wait until she had more information? And what was he going to think once she told him? It’d look like she used him and that wasn’t the case. Well, not totally.
Deception wasn’t the way her grandpa would’ve handled things. He was always upfront about his feelings and opinions. Logan had been so sweet and supportive. How could she not tell him everything? Her lack of sleep was coming strictly from guilt. Tomorrow, no matter what, she needed to come clean with him.
That was going to be hard because she knew he would never trust her again. Especially after I pleaded with him to trust me. She’d spent so long being angry and hating the Hendersons that she didn’t know any other way. Until she got to know Logan better. And once he started opening up about his feelings for the family, she started to see them in a way she hadn’t before. As people.
Sleep wasn’t going to happen for her, so she got up, showered, made coffee, and decided to work. No matter what was going on, she still had a job to do. Normally she dreaded doing it, but not after what Logan had said about her writing. She’d never felt much pride in what she was doing, but now she looked at it differently.
Her fingers flew on the keyboard, and the words flowed like never before. They weren’t just words but an extension of herself. Cori had put everything she had into this article. She gave it one last read through and smiled. Once again the subject matter made her grin, but the content was damn good. She not only did herself proud, but the women she’d interviewed as well.
Hitting send, it went off to her editor. Morning had come, and she felt so positive about the day. All of her work had been completed, so she was going to need to come up with something else to occupy her time until she met with Logan and Brice. Going back to bed was one option, but right now she was happy, and that seemed too good to waste sleeping.
She went back to her room and changed. Today she wasn’t going for a jog or anything else like that. Cori was going to take a drive and walk on the beach. It’d been so long since she’d done that. Right now she wanted to feel the warm sand between her toes, enjoy the sun beating down on her, and take deep breaths of the saltwater air as it moved against her skin.
When she headed out the door she knew one thing: today was a good day, and she was going to do everything she could to make it last.