I waved my hand, dismissing her concerns. “Things are fine. I guess I was just thinking of my grandma and all the trouble she dealt with.”
Maria nodded, opening her mouth to respond, but the bell over the door interrupted her. We both jumped a little, startled by the sudden noise. I tried to switch gears back to professional mode as I glanced over at the newcomer.
“Welcome to Woods Crossing…”
The words died in my throat. Jo stood on the threshold, looking down his nose at us, his head tilted at an arrogant angle. My jaw clenched tightly, my hands balling into fists.
“What are you doing here?”
Maria’s eyes went wide with shock as she looked between the two of us. Jo sauntered in, looking at the items on display with disdain as he went. I nearly kicked him when he picked up a candle in a glass jar, tossed it up, caught it, then put it down.
He directed his gaze at me, a challenge in his eyes. “You’re not going to get very far with your business if you treat your customers that way.”
I crossed my arms, my lips pulling down into a fierce scowl. “I highly doubt you’re in here to shop.”
He raised an eyebrow as he fixed his stare on me. I noticed for the first time that he had brown eyes with a sort of amber ring around the pupil. They struck me as oddly familiar, though I couldn’t say why.
Shaking the thought away, I pointed to the door.
“The last thing I need is an investigator sniffing around. The shop hasn’t even been open a week ,and I don’t want you driving off my clientele.”
Jo held up his hands and looked around the room, his expression a mock of inquiry. “What customers are you talking about? I only see three of us in here.”
I nearly stomped my foot but caught myself just in time. I knew he’d only suspect me more if I gave in to my temper, but the man had a way of dancing on my last nerve.
“Just get out of here, please.”
He held up a small bottle and assumed an innocent expression. “But I need my weekly supply of rose and peppermint perfume.”
The side of my mouth twitched up traitorously at the unexpected humor. I pushed it back down into a deep frown, refusing to let him know he’d affected me in any way.
“No amount of rose and peppermint could make you smell good.”
To my complete surprise, he raised his hand to his mouth, obviously trying to stifle a laugh. It came out anyway, a hearty chuckle that made his eyes sparkle. “That was the worst comeback I’ve ever heard,” he wheezed.
I looked away, heat rising in my cheeks. He seemed to make a game of seeing how badly he could humiliate me. Straightening up, I faced him and crossed my arms over my chest.
“What do you really want, Jo? I’m tired of being harassed in my own store.”
He put down the perfume bottle and turned to me, crossing his arms, his mirth evaporating.
“What do you think? I came to ask about Theresa. I’m running into a lot of dead ends, and I wanted to know if you could remember anything else about the lunch you had with her.”
I felt a smug sort of satisfaction at his words. I hadn’t gotten anywhere on the case, and it sounded like he hadn’t either. And he was supposed to be some fancy pants investigator.
With a caustic shrug, I turned away and moved behind the counter. “I’ve told you everything I can remember. I don’t know what you think talking to me will accomplish. I didn’t kidnap her, and I can’t just make her reappear.”
Maria cleared her throat loudly, startling me. I turned to see her looking at me, her face a brilliant shade of red. Somehow, I’d forgotten she was even there.
“I need to go, but um…call me if you need anything, okay, Sage?”
I blinked a few times, trying once again to shift mental gears. “I’m so sorry, Maria. Thanks for coming by. Maybe we can hang out sometime.”
She flashed a brief, tense smile at me, then at Jo. “Sounds great. I’ll see you later.”
I bowed my head and put a hand to my forehead as she left. I didn’t think I could be any more mortified. She’d probably never come in here again, thanks to Jo. When I turned my gaze back to him, he stood unmoving, staring back at me. I closed my eyes briefly and let out a long sigh.
“Look, I wish I could help more. I really do. Theresa is my friend, whether you believe that or not. I’ve been trying to find her, too.”
He jammed his hands into his front pockets and stared down at the floor, the tips of his ears turning red.
“I’ve got to find her,” he murmured. “I have to. It’s important.”
His words were few, but they felt heavy, weighted with some emotion I couldn’t identify.
Did he have some sort of connection to Theresa? Had they dated or something? That might account for the intensity of his investigation and the foul mood he always seemed to be in.
“I get that. I’m worried about her, too.”
I let out a small sigh, trying to figure out how to impress upon him that I was not the culprit. I got an idea, though it didn’t appeal to me at all. I couldn’t think of anything else, though, and I was desperate for him to leave me alone.
“Look, what if I buy you lunch?” I offered. “Will that convince you that I’m not the bad guy?”
Jo looked up at me, his face once more contemptuous. “So are you telling me that you’re a nice girl villain?”
“What in the hell is a ‘nice girl villain?’”
He shrugged. “You know, the villain who pretends to be nice to the protagonist, only to reveal themselves at the end for the bad guy they really are.”
