Framed Shadows: Shadows Landing #6 Read online

  Paxton felt his brow crease as he looked down at Tinsley. “That’s what you think I think of you?”

  “You told me so yourself.”

  “I admit that’s what I first thought, but it took all of twenty seconds to throw that impression out the window. Tinsley,” Paxton said, stepping close enough to her that she had to tilt her head back to look up at him. He reached out and gently clasped her upper arms, almost willing her to believe him. “The only reason I don’t want you involved is that it’s dangerous. I don’t want anything to hurt you, ever. I think, I know, you’re perfectly capable of pulling this off. You’re one of the smartest people I know. I just couldn’t live with myself if you were hurt in any way.”

  Her mouth opened, then closed, then opened again. “Oh.” Then the stubborn look was back. “I still want to do it.”

  Paxton’s mind went through all the scenarios until he landed on one he could live with. “Fine, sell the painting. But you just hired a new employee. You won’t be alone for one minute. Deal?”

  The bright smile Tinsley showed him warmed his heart. He wanted more—more smiles, more Tinsley. No, what he wanted was his old job in Atlanta. Wasn’t it?

  Tinsley watched Paxton leave and immediately went to paint. Emotions swirled like the colors on the canvas. She understood Paxton now. He was like her cousin Ryker. Ryker had changed so much after what happened all those years ago. He didn’t share his thoughts or feelings. Instead he thrived off living in the shadows as someone so tough and powerful that no one dared to cross him. Well, except the family. They still teased him. And they still loved him. And they still waited for that day the old Ryker would come back.

  It was the same with Paxton. Underneath that gruff voice and hard stare was a kind heart who wanted to protect the innocent, just like Ryker. Everything made so much more sense now.

  Her painting became less chaotic as she smoothed out the rough edges and added just a hint of lightness to the darkness. She stepped back and smiled at herself. She knew what she was dealing with now, and she almost felt sorry for Paxton. Almost.

  Day after tomorrow, their adventure would start and she’d find a way to slip in under Paxton’s defenses so she could get to know him. It was a desire that took root in her heart and wasn’t about to let go. She needed to be the one who saw the real Paxton because she had a feeling when she did, it would change their lives.

  She’d give Paxton a couple of days to get used to the town and the gallery. Then she’d call Maurice and tell him they had a buyer. It was the perfect plan.

  Tinsley took a deep breath and looked at the clock. The sun had set long ago, but she’d been lost in painting. Time ceased to exist. She had a finished painting and, hopefully, with her emotions on the canvas, she had a full night’s sleep ahead of her, too.

  “You think it’s a good idea to bring Tinsley in like this?” Paxton asked Peter as he shut down his computer for the night.

  “I do. She knows the art business better than anyone. If the thieves look into her, she’s legit, and she’s so sweet no one would guess she’s helping gather evidence to take them down. Plus you’ll be there to keep her safe,” Peter reassured.

  Paxton shook his head. Peter wasn’t supposed to let a civilian consultant help. It was Paxton’s last shot at keeping Tinsley out of the operation. “Would you let Karri help in this situation?”

  Peter shrugged. “Karri doesn’t know anything about art so I don’t think she’d be very helpful.”

  “You know what I mean.”

  “I do, and that makes me curious as to why you equated Tinsley to my long-term, very serious girlfriend.” Peter crossed his arms over his chest and waited for an answer. When Paxton didn’t answer, Peter grinned. “You like her. Unbelievable. I thought you couldn’t stand her.”

  “She’s a distraction and I don’t plan to be in Charleston long enough to be distracted.”

  Peter snorted. “Sorry, Pax, but you’re not going back to Atlanta. I know you think you will, but the writing is on the wall. You’ve been kicked out of VGTF permanently. This is your life now.”

  Paxton muttered a curse word under his breath. He wasn’t going to give up. That promotion should have been his. “It doesn’t make sense. I was closing in on the biggest up-and-coming gang leader on the Eastern seaboard. That promotion was mine.”

  “Maybe you pissed off the wrong people.” Peter paused before asking, “Is it really so bad here? You’re not getting shot at . . . well, that often. You have a pretty awesome boss. Plus, now you can have the girl. Think about it. I’ll see you in the office tomorrow to get everything ready for you to take to Shadows Landing. Goodnight.”

  Paxton leaned back in his office chair. Was it so bad to be in Charleston? The food was outstanding. The people were laid back. There was no confusion over which Peachtree Street to go down. But he’d built his entire career around being the biggest, baddest undercover agent around. He knew gangs backward and forward. He lived and breathed their way of life, their criminal activities, and their rivalries. He did it all to make the country safer. He enjoyed the intellectual challenge aspect of art crimes, but he wasn’t advancing himself here.

  Although, he could have the girl.

  6

  Tinsley turned on the soft music in her gallery as she got ready for the day. Paxton would start working for her tomorrow morning and today she was going to make a list of things she needed to be done.

  With a smirk to herself, she got to work on the list. Changing the hard-to-reach light bulbs. There was a crack in the back wall that needed a touchup. Tinsley tapped her pen to her lip and wondered how Paxton was with plumbing. Oh, she knew he thought he was coming in here as a sales associate, but she had a better idea.

  The bells above the door chimed, drawing her from her thoughts. She sat at the sales table in the back of the room that afforded her a view of the entire gallery. No, no, no. What was Maurice doing here?

  “Mr. Smith,” Tinsley said, standing up. “It’s a pleasure to see you so soon. What can I do for you?” Tinsley’s eyes went to the second man who entered. She recognized him as Maurice’s partner that day in Ellery’s gallery. Only, like Maurice, he’d received a makeover.

  Maurice smiled and stepped forward to shake her hand. “Tinsley, meet my brother, Murray, and please call me Maurice.”

  Tinsley shook the man’s hand, but he didn’t speak. Instead, he deferred to Maurice.

  “Have you heard from your private buyer?” Maurice asked.

  “I’ve sent the information to her and I’m just waiting to hear back. She was very interested.” Tinsley tried to smile as if she were excited. It was one thing when she was here with just Maurice, but now she was outnumbered. If things went badly . . .

  “Excellent. I told Murray I had faith in you and we’ve decided to sell some more paintings to hire an additional nurse for our grandmother. Would you be up for that?”

  “Of course,” Tinsley said as her heart galloped in her chest. More stolen art? How much more? Maybe Paxton was right. She was getting in dangerous territory here.

  “Murray,” Maurice motioned and Murray walked out of the gallery. Maurice turned back to her and smiled in a way that made her a little nervous because she felt as if he were testing her. “Now, some of these we’ve had appraised, but I’d like your take on them. I feel like we’re a lot of old families—asset rich, cash poor. I hate to part with them, but it’s the only way to pay for things.”

  Tinsley nodded. “You’re not the first to hire me for that very reason. I’ll do what I did the last time. I’ll tell you the range you can expect to get for them. I may have to do a little research. As much as I wish I knew the value of every painting ever painted, it’s not always the case.”

  The door opened and Murray came in carrying two portfolio cases. “Where should I put these?”

  “Right here,” Tinsley said as she moved to clear off the desk. Murray set them down and stepped back. Tinsley tried not to shake as she reached
out to slowly unzip them. The instant she saw the first painting, she knew she was in deep.

  Tinsley slipped on the protective white gloves she kept in her desk and carefully moved the paintings to examine each of them. It was strange holding the art she’d just seen in the FBI files. Now she just needed to pretend to have never seen them before.

  “Your grandmother has an exquisite collection. I know some of these off the top of my head, but if you give me a moment, I can give you a range for the others.” Right now all Tinsley wanted to do was get to her phone and text Paxton.

  “Tell us what you know right now. Then we can fill out the paperwork while you do your research,” Maurice told her. He tried to make it seem like a suggestion, but she knew it wasn’t.

  Tinsley looked from one painting to the next and told him what she knew of them. A couple of them she pretended not to know so it wasn’t obvious she had literally just read about them in the FBI files.

  “Excellent,” Maurice said, satisfied after Murray gave a slight nod of approval. “We’d like you to sell these. Price them to sell quickly, but don’t give up too much money. Nothing is too good for our grandmother. We want her to have the absolute best care.”

  “I’m honored you’re entrusting me with this. I’ll do all I can to get the best possible price.” Tinsley handed the paperwork to Maurice and he handed over the forged provenances. “I’ll make a copy and then get to work on the research. Feel free to take a look around the gallery while you wait.”

  Murray looked down at his watch and shook his head. “We can only wait ten minutes. We have to get to work.”

  “Do you two work together?” Tinsley then realized she shouldn’t have asked criminals what they did for a living. “I don’t know if I could work with my brother.” Tinsley gave a little giggle and saw the men relax. Yup, sweet, unassuming Tinsley is all everyone ever saw.

  “It has its moments,” Murray said as Maurice filled out the paperwork.

  “I bet. I’ll be right back,” Tinsley said as she headed straight for the back office. She had just put the stack of papers onto the auto feeder when Murray filled the doorway. Tinsley wanted to curse because she’d been about to reach for her cell phone when the large shadow filled the room.

  “Did you go to college for this stuff?” Murray asked as Tinsley was forced to take a seat and start the research on the couple of pieces she’d pretended not to know.

  “I did. I just love pretty things and nothing is prettier than art.” Tinsley felt stupid even saying it, but it was clear Murray was scoping her out. The last thing she wanted was for him to become suspicious of her. “I’m also an artist. That’s my main focus. I paint.”

  “Then how do you have these private contacts?” Murray asked, not being able to hide the suspicion in his voice.

  “If you can think of a cause, I’m on a charity for it. Being a debutante opens up a world of networking. Shadows Landing is too small to have a come-out, but I came out in Charleston and am very active in the charity scene there. You wouldn’t believe the contacts I have just from the garden club,” Tinsley told him with a conspiratorial wink. She saw Murray nod his head and then look back down at his watch. “So, what do you see for the two paintings?”

  Tinsley looked down at her computer. “Both would sell from fifteen to twenty thousand.”

  “Good. We have a deal then, Miss Faulkner. My brother said he was happy with your knowledge and contacts. If you can sell the Castille this week, we have a lot more art for you to sell. You may be a painter, but we can make you very rich as an art dealer.”

  Tinsley stood up with a smile and smoothed her skirt down. “I look forward to it. I have no doubt I can sell that painting by then. What other art would you have for me?”

  “Our grandmother’s entire art collection. She was an avid collector. Maurice and I don’t know much about it. If it can help pay for her care, we’d rather sell it.”

  “I’m happy to help in any way I can.”

  Maurice appeared then with the signed contracts. The paperwork was concluded and before Tinsley could even reach for her cell phone, Murray and Maurice were gone.

  Tinsley’s hands were shaking with adrenaline and nerves as she picked up her phone and sent a text to Paxton. How fast can you get here?

  Paxton texted back immediately. I can be there in thirty if it’s an emergency. Otherwise I’ll be there tomorrow morning.

  Tinsley walked out into the gallery and snapped a picture of the paintings and sent it to him. She didn’t have to wait long for Paxton’s text. I’ll be there in two hours. Know of a place I can stay for the next while?

  Tinsley put her finger on the phone and was going to suggest her place only to start and stop typing no less than five times. I’ll ask around.

  See you soon, beautiful.

  Tinsley stared at the text for way longer than she should. Then, taking a deep breath, she locked up the gallery and hit up the lunch crowd across the street at Harper’s bar.

  She had thought of the apartment above the bar, but Harper’s bartender, Georgina, was living there. Then she thought of Trent’s house, which was near hers. He’d moved out and into a home he’d bought with his wife on the other side of town. However, Karri Hill, Peter Castle’s girlfriend, was renting it. Her cousin Ryker had a guesthouse, but that would take a lot of bribing and threats to get. The last option was the Bell family. They had an old family mansion that they had turned into a bed and breakfast.

  Tinsley pushed open the heavy wooden door to the bar and was immediately overcome by air conditioning and the smell of freshly fried food. It made her mouth water as she looked around the bar.

  “Howdy, Miss Tinsley,” Gator said. He was a mountain of a man in overalls and a South Carolina COCKS hat. He was aptly named, considering the man was the town’s alligator removal expert.

  “Hi, Gator. Have y’all seen any of the Bells?”

  “Gage is right over there,” Gator answered with a nod of his head.

  Gage and Maggie Bell were the children of the owners of the bed and breakfast. Gage was named after a twelve-gauge shotgun, and Maggie’s full name was Magnum. Their parents were avid shooters and Gage and Maggie had followed in their footsteps. Maggie was an Olympic silver medalist, and Gage had made the men’s Olympic team, but placed fourth in shooting.

  Tinsley walked around the corner of the wall and found Gage sitting at a tableful of men. Several were in their early twenties to Gage’s mid-twenties. Then there were a couple of men who looked to be in their thirties and finally a man who looked to be in his forties.

  “I’m sorry to interrupt,” Tinsley said, coming to stand near Gage.

  “Tinsley, no apology necessary. Guys, this is my friend Tinsley Faulkner. She’s the artist who owns the gallery across the street. Tinsley, these are my Olympic teammates.”

  “Oh, wow. It’s nice to meet y’all.”

  “Maggie and I are hosting the men’s and women’s shooting teams this week. We’re getting in a ton of practice at the estate and then time for team building,” Gage said proudly.

  Tinsley smiled at the men even as she felt herself groan inwardly. “I take it you’re all full up for the week then?”

  Gage’s smile fell. “Not a couch to spare. I’m sorry, did you need a room?”

  “Yes, but don’t worry about it.”

  “I’ll text you some B&Bs that are in Charleston.”

  “Thanks, Gage. Y’all have a great retreat week.”

  Tinsley walked back to the bar and pulled herself up onto the worn barstool. She sent a text to Ryker but didn’t hold out hope that he’d agree. He was very guarded about his privacy. He’d let Trent’s wife, Skye, stay in the guest house. But that was an anomaly. And just as she thought, she got a text back from Ryker that simply said No.

  “Here you go, Miss Tinsley,” Skeeter said from the stool next to her. He slid a shot glass toward her. Tinsley looked down at it and back up at Skeeter. He was a skinny guy who wore clothing two siz
es too big for him. “You look like you need this.”

  “Skeeter, it’s too early for vodka.”

  “Georgie,” Skeeter called out as the young bartender came over with a beaming smile that seemed way too happy, considering her living in the apartment upstairs was causing Tinsley the pain she was in right now. “Orange juice, please.”

  Georgina poured a glass and handed it to him. Skeeter poured the vodka into it. “There. It’s one of them fancy mixed drinks now.”

  Tinsley laughed. What else was she to do? In less than two hours she was going to tell the man who burned up her dreams that he was going to be staying in the bedroom next to hers. She wasn’t going to sleep again until Paxton Kendry was out of her house. Even then it was debatable, considering the way he took over her dreams.

  “Thanks, Skeeter.” Tinsley took the drink and chugged it down.

  She slid from the barstool and pulled her shoulders back. She was walking into war. Not with the thieves, but with her heart.

  7

  “What do you mean I’m staying at your place?” Paxton asked again. He’d been working for the past hour setting up hidden cameras in the art gallery when Tinsley dropped that little bomb. It wasn’t bad. In fact, it was an answer to his prayers. However, he had a case to solve and lying in a bed just one thin wall away from Tinsley—who made him question everything he thought he knew about his life goals—wasn’t going to make things easy.

  Tinsley plastered on a smile that was way too perky to be real. “The B&B is all filled up for the week. The Olympic shooting team is there. It would be unpatriotic to kick them out. The only other place is my house. I have a guest room. It’s not like we’d have to share a bed.”

  Paxton raised an eyebrow and watched as Tinsley turned bright red. “That’s too bad. Are you sure you have the spare room available? I don’t mind doubling up.”