Chapter Twenty-One
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It was a gorgeous morning and it didn’t have anything to do with Dizzy’s night with Easton. Not at all. It was simply the weather, cool and crisp.
And the amazing night she’d had with Easton. There. She’d admitted it. Now she was beginning to understand why Leann was always in such a great mood, happy, smiling, and humming. Dizzy wasn’t a person who hummed as she went about her errands but today she was doing it, and it was all Easton’s fault. At this rate, she’d be singing arias in the frozen food section of her local supermarket.
Which was where she was now, standing in the baking aisle picking out chocolate chips. She’d grabbed a bag of semi-sweet but she was thinking she might want bags of dark and white chocolate as well. She’d already thrown brown sugar and flour into her cart along with a pound of butter from the dairy aisle. Easton had a sweet tooth and she was planning to make him chocolate chip cookies this afternoon while he was at the office. All she needed was a couple of steaks and she’d be set. Turning to head to the back of the store, Dizzy froze as her cart almost bumped into someone standing directly in her path.
Trip Stanford.
Why isn’t he at work? It’s too early for lunchtime. And why is he smiling at me? It’s creepy.
“Dizzy, I didn’t expect to see you here.” He peered into her cart while she tried not to let her shock and horror show. He was the last person she wanted to be around or talk to. “Looks like you’re baking again. You definitely have a reputation as one of Tremont’s finest cooks.”
What do I say to a killer when he compliments me?
“Yes, I am planning to bake today,” she finally managed to say, proud of herself that she sounded almost normal, although she was sure her face was white as a sheet.
“Cookies or cake?” he asked, still surveying the contents of her cart. “When the weather is nice and the windows are open I can sometimes smell your cookies all the way to my house.”
“Cookies,” she croaked, her calm veneer beginning to crack. The longer she was standing next to him the worse it was. The images from that terrible night came rushing back, crowding out normal thought processes. All she knew was that this man had killed a woman with his bare hands. Then he’d acted like nothing had happened.
Straightening, Trip smiled but to Dizzy it looked slimy and contrived. Not natural and easy. “Delicious. I think my favorite dish you make is pot roast though. You made it the other night, didn’t you? With carrots, potatoes, and homemade dinner rolls.”
She had but how did he know? He couldn’t have smelled it because she didn’t have the windows open that night.
Unless he’d been watching her. Looking in the windows? Was he so confident now that he was taunting her? What an asshole.
A shudder ran through her and her fingers tightened on the handle of the cart until her knuckles were white. She was determined that this murderer wouldn’t see any visible reaction to his words.
“I make it quite a bit. It’s an easy dish.”
“Dizzy? There you are. I thought I’d lost you. Are you ready to go?”
Easton’s younger brother Carter was suddenly standing next to her, and Dizzy couldn’t imagine being happier to see anyone than she was right now at this very moment. Taking a calming breath, she forced a smile to her face.
“I think we got separated in the produce section but I’m glad you found me. And yes, I am ready to go.”
Somehow Carter had insinuated himself between Trip and Dizzy. She could almost breathe normally with him standing there.
“Excuse us,” Carter said to Trip, not waiting for any acknowledgement. He simply commandeered Dizzy’s cart and started pushing it in the opposite direction while keeping a casual hand on her shoulder. They were in line at the cashier when he finally spoke again. “Are you okay?”
“I am now,” she replied, palpable relief running through her veins. She hadn’t realized how tense she was until she wasn’t anymore. “Thank you, by the way. He was trying to engage me in conversation. Why, I don’t know.”
They didn’t speak anymore as Dizzy’s groceries were rung up and then Carter helped her load the bags into the back of her car.
“If you don’t mind I’ll follow you back to your place.”
She didn’t mind in the least, although the trip was only a mile and a half. They were pulling up in her driveway in less than three minutes. Carter offered to help her unload her haul and she accepted gratefully. Honestly, she didn’t want to be by herself. She’d thought it would be okay in the daylight when Trip was at work but she wasn’t too proud to admit the encounter had shaken her.
When she’d put the last of her groceries away, she still wasn’t quite ready to be alone yet.
“How about a cup of coffee?”
“I wouldn’t say no.” Carter sat down at her table and she bustled around the kitchen, starting another pot and placing some cookies on a plate. These were a batch of oatmeal she’d made three days ago and there weren’t many left after Easton had found them in the pantry. “How long had you been talking to Trip when I walked up?”
Sighing, she sank into the chair opposite, propping her chin up with her hand. “Not long. A few minutes. It was so creepy. I was picking out chocolate chips and then I turned around and there he was. Just like in one of my nightmares.”
“What did he want?”
“That I don’t know. He made a comment about my baking smelling so good when the windows are open. Oh, and this was weird…he mentioned that he liked the smell of the pot roast I made the other night, but I didn’t have the windows open. So how did he know? Is he watching me?”
Carter’s jaw was tight and she’d bet anything that his teeth were gritted together. She’d seen Easton do the same thing when he was pissed off.
“He might be. It sounds like he’s trying to intimidate you, Dizzy.”
“Why?” she asked. It didn’t make any sense. “Everyone believes him and no one believes me.”
“We believe you, and I bet he knows it. He may be confident right now but there has to be a part of him that’s sweating inside. Even if he thinks you’ll let it go and give up he has to know that the Andersons won’t.”
Standing, she poured two cups of coffee and added cream and sugar to hers but Carter took his black. She’d made it enough times at Sunday dinner to know. Easton took his with one sugar, no cream.
“For someone who’s scared he doesn’t act it. He seems pretty sure of himself. It’s like he knows he’s got off scot free.”
Carter shook his head. “He’s scared. Trust me, he’s shaking in his boots. That’s why he’s keeping tabs on you. This is far from over and he knows it. Right now, it’s all about intimidation. Seeing if he can get you to drop the whole thing and change your story. He might not have acted frightened when he talked to you, but he was definitely pale when I showed up.”
“Can I say thank you again?” Dizzy sighed, sipping her coffee. “I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t been there.”
Chuckling, Carter helped himself to a cookie. “You’d be just fine. You’re an honorary Anderson, after all.”
That was sweet but she wasn’t sure it was true. She also doubted Tami and Louis would be happy hearing that news.
“I wonder why he was in the grocery store in the middle of the day. Shouldn’t he be at work?” Another thought occurred to her. “Wait…shouldn’t you be at work too?”
Popping the last bite of cookie into his mouth, Carter nodded. “Technically, I am at work. I was just meeting with the owner of the store discussing some of the renovations they’re planning in the next few months. That’s when I saw you looking like you’d rather be having a root canal than talking to that bastard. As for Stanford, maybe he took a vacation day. He’s probably exhausted from hiding what a monster he is.”
“Just when I think this can’t get any more strange I’m proven wrong. If I were Trip I’m the last person I’d be talking to.”
If that sentence made any sense at all.
“That’s because you’re a nice person who wouldn’t hurt a fly.” Carter grinned as he stood, pushing back his chair. “Although if you want to give Easton a punch in the nose when he’s acting like an ass you’ll have me in your cheering section. Don’t let him push you around, Dizzy, or make you think you need to change who you are to be with him.”
“He hasn’t made me feel that way at all,” Dizzy vowed, making a cross-your-heart motion with her fingers. “He’s been great, actually. I’m seeing a whole new side to him. But I still wouldn’t punch him. You know that the Foster family are strictly pacifists.”
“You just say the word and I’ll do it,” Carter offered. “Now I better get back to the office or they’ll send out a search party for me. Seriously, Dizzy, call me if you need anything. Day or night. We’re here for you no matter what you need.”
She stood as well and gave him a big hug. “Thank you, Carter. The way your family has stood behind me these last several days has meant the world to me.”
“There was never a question that we’d do anything else.”
Buoyed by his certainty, Dizzy walked Carter to his truck and waved goodbye as he drove away. She’d been brought up not to care what people thought about her, but it did feel good to know that she had friends on her side. This was one of the big reasons she’d moved back to Tremont. She had good, loyal friends here, and she needed all the help she could get to find a way to prove what she saw that night.