One of Six (Den Hollows #1)

21. Beatrice

21

BEATRICE

"Wait! Bea! Can we talk for a minute?" Atilio says as we reach the boat.

Essex's hand tightens around my waist before he lets go.

“Oh! Did I miss something?" Violet asks.

"Jailbait, mind your own business." Ridge tosses her over his shoulder.

"I'm wearing navy blue panties if you want to look."

Ridge stumbles a step and slaps my friend's butt. "Shut your filthy mouth."

She lifts her eyes to me and winks.

I shake my head and turn to Atilio. "We can talk while Essex goes and saves Ridge."

Essex laughs. "You owe me one, Mermaid Girl."

I hug Atilio and whisper, "I'm sorry..."

"Hey, I wanted to tell you we're fine. I'm glad you're with Essex. He's a good man."

I sigh. "Thank you for saying that. I was feeling guilty, but Essex... well, you know."

"He's got you." He gives me a sincere smile. "If you need help with anything, let me know, okay? You're part of the Redd family now. We take care of our own."

I lean into his arms for a longer hug. "Thank you!"

He chuckles. "You better go tell my younger brother to stop shooting daggers in my direction."

"I will." I give him a little wave as I join Essex on the boat. I notice Ridge and Violet sitting on the deck, ignoring each other. At least it will be quiet for a while.

I sit down in the shady part of the boat next to Essex. He has his laptop on his lap and is waiting for it to boot up. "What did my brother want?"

I rest my head on Essex's shoulder and say, "He wanted to make sure I knew there were no hard feelings. I did feel a little guilty, but nothing happened between me and him."

"I'm relieved he feels good about us." He looks at the other two. "What do you think of them?"

I snort. "I don't think Ridge knows if she's serious or not."

"Honestly, I can't decide either." Essex chuckles. "Forget her for now. Give me a name from the list?”

"Steven Gibbs. He went missing thirteen years ago. He's from Chattanooga."

“I’ve found him. He left on a business trip on a Thursday and was never seen again. Says he was going to Montgomery." Essex opens a new tab and uses an online map. "It's about a three-and-a-half-hour drive between the two." He goes back to the news report. "He has one sister. Or at least he did. I wonder what his job was?"

"A building inspector," I whisper. "Do you think he was on his way to inspect a Lincoln Construction project?"

"I guess he could have been. I mean, Chattanooga is on the Tennessee border, and then he could have easily been licensed in Alabama. Lincoln Construction is big in that state."

"Okay, let's put him on the list for more information."

I watch Essex type up some neat notes on Gibbs. "Next?" he smiles.

"Robert Tate. Disappeared twelve years ago. He's from... I don't know. I didn’t get that far."

He scrolls through a lot of things until he finds a link with the information we need. "This guy worked for your dad. He was a roofer. Went out drinking with friends. Didn't feel well, left early. Never seen again. His car was never found. He had a wife and three kids—four, six, and nine. Lived in Greenville, Alabama."

"Oh, those poor kids."

"Yeah. Next name."

"George Wilcox. Disappeared eight years ago. From Marietta, Georgia."

"Says he drove cement trucks and worked for Remington's. I've heard of them. Big construction company in Marietta. They’ve got trucks all over the place... Wilcox disappeared at a roadhouse. At least that’s where they found the truck. He never showed up."

"So far these people have all been in the construction business in some way. I feel sick at what is being revealed."

"Try not to think about it too long. Let's just get through the list."

I nod and agree. "Roscoe Dale. Disappeared eight years ago. Stone Mason from Lafayette, Louisiana."

"That's a long way to go considering the others were closer to home."

"Hmm. What else does it say?"

"Not much that I can see. He was married. No kids. Went out to get milk. Hasn't been seen since. This piece was written last year on the anniversary of his disappearance."

"I wonder why he's on the list. I mean, Stone Mason fits in with the other missing people, but he's an odd one because of where he lived."

"Let's move on."

"Peter Frederick. He was working for Lincoln Construction when he disappeared seven years ago. I remember him vaguely. He came by the house once or twice. He always wore a suit, so he must have had a management job."

"It says he disappeared on vacation in Miami. Frederick and another man, Vince, went to visit Peter's brother and his family. The family reported them missing. They'd taken separate cars for dinner. When they left the restaurant, only one car made it home. No sign of the other with Peter and Vince."

I rub my arms, feeling cold at what we're discovering. "That must be Vince Foyle. He also disappeared seven years ago. So, he disappeared with Peter. I don't remember Vince."

"Probably because Vince was Peter's partner, which means they were in a relationship. Vince was a lawyer."

"Wait! Now I remember. Peter was a lawyer too. Richard employed a couple of lawyers."

"Vince worked for his father. Foyle besides, these cover more of me than a bikini."

My friend knows exactly how alluring she looks leaning against the side of the boat in her navy bra and panties. They're almost transparent.

"Violet," I say, "Stop teasing, Ridge. Please..."

Essex pulls my hand away. "Nobody looks as good as you in your underwear, baby." He plants a quick kiss on my lips. "Violet, I know you enjoy teasing him, but a man can only take so much."

"Are you saying men are the weaker sex?"

Ridge growls and lunges at Violet. "You're going to get that spanking, I promised you!"

Her eyes widen as she squeals and moves toward her clothes. Ridge grabs her by the waist. "Bea," he shouts, "can Violet swim?"

Oh, dear. "She was on the swim team."

“Traitor!” Violet shouts.

Essex laughs and I grin as I watch them. Ridge pulls down his shorts and kicks them off. He then throws Violet into the ocean and jumps in after her.

"Ridge is in so much trouble." Essex laughs.

"You're right." I snort. "I don't remember what we were talking about."

"Carter. The FBI guy," Essex reminds me. "I'll get in touch with him later and let him know. Not much privacy here... My brothers will be joining us soon."

The words are barely out of his mouth when Atilio, Nico, Boone, and Galen appear. Violet screeches and all four move to look overboard.

"How will your friend react with five Redds in the water with her?"

"I guess we'll find out." I stand and hold out my hand to Essex. We join his brothers on deck and look over the side. One by one the others jump into the water.

"Hey Violet, I didn't know you were here," Galen calls out.

"That's because your brother wants to have his wicked way with me, so he resorted to kidnapping."

"Violet, would you like to come up here?" I ask, giving her a way out.

"The hell she is climbing out with those assholes looking at her body."

"You mean your brothers, Ridge?"

He gives me the stink eye.

"Why don't you join us, Bea?" Boone asks. "We can start those swim lessons."

Essex straightens up next to me. "I'm the only one who gets to see my girl in her underwear."

I grin at his possessiveness.

"Come swim with me, Violet." Nico offers. "You're much nicer to look at than my brothers."

"No touching!" Ridge declares. "Jailbait, you better behave yourself or I'll tan this hide!"

"You keep promising that! I'm waiting." Violet grins.

I turn my back on her and slide between the boat and Essex. I wrap my arms around him and enjoy the feel of him against me.

Essex nuzzles my neck and sighs. "I'm worried about you being in the house with Richard. Everything we've learned leads to him."

"He won't hurt me. Besides, my mother's funeral is tomorrow. He'll be on his best behavior for the townspeople."

"I wish I could be there for you."

"I do too, but not yet. I don't want them to focus on you and your family. Please tell me you understand that?" I cup his face, not wanting to hurt him.

"I do." Kissing my forehead, Essex laughs. "They're getting out of the water."

"Why is that funny?"

He turns me to face his brothers and my friend. I grin. Violet is being helped—more like pushed—onto the dock by Ridge. Even from here, I can see that her lacy underwear is transparent. My friend holds her head up and walks past the ogling men and climbs on the boat.

"Don't you dare look at her," I mutter to Essex.

He laughs and holds his hands out in front of him. "Baby, it's kind of hard not to look at her." He laughs. "I still love your body... Is your underwear transparent?"

I roll my eyes and walk over to Violet. "You!" I laugh.

Giggling, Violet says, "Mother always says that accidents can happen to anyone at any time, so you have to wear your best underwear." She shrugs. "It's fun to tease him.”

"Hmm, I can tell. Ridge, huh?"

"He's really sexy," she says.

"He can hear you,” Ridge interrupts, climbing aboard.

I cough and give him a chuckle.

Ridge keeps his eyes on Violet. To my surprise, once her dress is on, she takes off her wet panties and wiggles out of her bra. "That's better."

"Damn it, Jailbait," Ridge growls and jumps overboard.

Violet's eyes light up. "My work here is done." She giggles. "How long are we staying?" She picks up her underwear and lays them out to dry.

"We're going to Daisy's Diner, if that's okay with you both. They have a great lunch menu," Essex says.

"That's fine." I turn to Violet. "Please stop teasing Ridge while we eat."

She winks. "I'll behave."