Page 42 of Jack

“Ty picked her up?”

“I guess.”

“Can you give me his contact?”

Ethan pulled a phone from his pocket, scrolled. “Give me your number, I’ll text you.”

Jack had pulled out his phone. Rattled off the numbers, and Ethan thumbed in the message.

Jack’s phone dinged.

“We done?” Ethan reached for his joint.

Harper felt woozy, so hopefully, yes.

Jack gestured to her and headed for the door as Ethan lit up.

“No business card, nocall me if you think of anything?” Harper said.

“I’m not a PI.” He held the door open. “Besides, what would said card say? Professional nice guy?” He smiled then.

She rolled her eyes. “So, we talk to Ty?”

“After we stop at the market. I need to talk to Gordo Martin about Aggie camping out in his lot.”

Aggie?

He wove his way from the snowclad neighborhood to Main Street, then over to the market. A renovated school bus, painted white, sat in the lot.

He parked next to it.

She got out. “So, this is Aggie.”

“Sweet Aggie,” he said, putting his hand on her hood. “I had this crazy idea to fix up a schoolie the summer after law school. Not sure why.” He went around and unlocked the door. “Want a tour?”

Really?She followed him up the steps, past the driver’s seat, and paused, a little undone.

Look who has a decorator’s touch.It was the perfect man cave, with a leather sofa and an oversized flatscreen that hung from the wall over a long butcher-board countertop. A farmhouse sink, low white cabinets opposite the black leather sofa. A dishwasher, a clear corner cupboard that held jars of spices as well as dishes, a stainless steel fridge, and an electric stove.

“My office is in the back, along with the bathroom, the shower, and my bedroom.”

“This is incredible, Jack. And here I felt sorry for you, living in a bus. I imagined an old mattress on the floor, a small tin-can fire.”

“Definitely less maintenance.”

“Missed opportunity, I think.”

He laughed. “She looks humble on the outside, but inside, she’s all state of the art. I keep tinkering, but yes, she’s home.” He ran a hand over the butcher-block counter. “I did her wrong by stopping in Iowa.”

“What’s in Iowa?”

“Oh, my lawyer, and manager. Husband-and-wife team. They find work for me, handle any legal issues, and do some online hunting when I need it. Sort of my backup.”

So, not the loner she’d thought, either.

“I need to run inside the market and talk to Gordo.”

She headed out, and he shut the door behind her. “Want something?”