“Your talents are wasted here, gorgeous,” Paul said, gracing the waitress with a smile that usually got him everything he wanted. She took the bait, of course, smiling back at him with what she must have thought was a sexy, come-hither smile. Two Sisters’ Diner was smack in the middle of Evers, Texas and Mark and Paul had learned that people liked to chat with newcomers in small-town diners.

The waitress’s efforts to capture his interest were interrupted by a very bright head of red hair and a disembodied voice that must have gone with the head. That head seemed to bob as the voice spoke.

“It’s not her talent. All she does is deliver the food and pour the coffee. I’m the one does all the cooking here.”

The waitress rolled her eyes. “She likes to think people come for the food, but it’s the coffee. And, I’m the one that makes the coffee. My own special blend I mix from five different roasts.” She smiled her leering grin again. “I’m Gina. That’s just my sister, Tina.”

Paul held in a laugh and raised his coffee mug. “It is really great coffee,” he whispered, with a wink, milking her flirtatious nature for all it was worth. He was ready to get this job over with and he had a feeling this lady could help him. Working at the diner in town, she’d likely know everything that happened in this town and everyone who came through it.

“Everyone knows it’s the coffee that keeps people coming back to a restaurant,” Mark agreed.

“So,” Gina asked, “what brings two gorgeous men like you to our town? You visiting family? Couldn’t keep away from the hottest hot spot this side of Dallas? What is it?” she asked with a grin and a flirty flick of her very wide hip.

Mark and Paul both laughed, but it was Mark who answered. “Nah. We’re on our way to Austin to see some friends, but we heard an old friend of ours was visiting out here. We thought we’d try to stop by and see him on the way.”

“Huh. That would make three visitors all at once if your friend’s here. That’s more than we’re likely to get the rest of the year,” said Gina.

“Well, we struck out. We thought we’d be able to get in touch with him, but it turns out he’s not answering the phone and we’ve got to keep moving,” Paul said.

And, she fell for it.

“Who’s your friend? Maybe I know him?”

“Josh Samuels.” Paul saw the flicker in her eye as soon as he said the name. Honestly, she wasn’t very good at hiding it. “He’s a doctor. We worked together at a hospital up in Connecticut, but we moved on to another facility. We were hoping to catch up with him. He’s a good guy.” Paul finished the spiel but he could see she was gearing up for denial.

Gina pursed her lips and shook her head. “Never heard of him. And, I usually know most people that come to town. Everyone passes under this coffee pot at one time or another. If anyone’d know him, it’d be me.”

She was working too hard at the denial. Paul thought about asking about Laura, but a slight shake of Mark’s head warned him not to. Mark was right. If they let the waitress think they were leaving right away, she might not raise any alarms. If they pressed by asking about Laura, she might just run right on out and tell Josh and Laura they were searching for them. The last thing they wanted to do was push Laura further underground at this point.

“Well, it was worth a shot,” Mark said and pulled two tens out of his wallet and tossed them on the table. “We’ve got to get moving anyway. We’re due in Austin this evening.”

“Well now, you boys have a good visit in Austin,” she said, all smiles again as they headed for the door.

Mark and Paul walked out of the diner and crossed the road to where they’d parked their car.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone downshift so fast in my life,” Mark said.

“Yup. She knows exactly who the doctor is and probably knows who Laura is, too. We can lay low for a few days, see if we can find out anything. Maybe check into a hotel and see if we can get anything out of the staff?”

Mark didn’t seem to be paying any attention to Paul. He was staring at a large truck idling in front of Jansen’s Feed and Grain. There were sheets of glass strapped onto special racks, and the side of the truck read Barrett’s Commercial Greenhouses in big lettering.

“Thinking of buying yourself a greenhouse?” Paul asked, the sarcastic edge in his tone plain.

Mark cocked his head as they watched a man from Jansen’s talk to the driver of the truck, gesturing down the road as if giving directions.

“Didn’t Alec say Laura had a huge greenhouse in her backyard? That she spent a lot of her time in it?” Mark asked.

Paul shrugged. “Yeah, but could it really be this easy?”

“Got nothing better to do than follow a greenhouse. We don’t have any other leads, and we have to get something before Alec Hall decides we’re not worth paying anymore.”

Paul dropped the keys to the rental car into Mark’s hand. “Lead the way.”