Searching for Winslet (Fallport Rescue Operations #5)

Chapter 11

CHAPTER ELEVEN

“Let me get that.” Jett took the wine bottle from Renee’s hand.

“Thank you.” Renee smiled. “So, how are you liking Fallport?”

“I love it here,” Jett said as he stabbed the cork with the screw thing and twisted. While he loved a good glass of wine, he never understood this corkscrew thing. It made no sense to him, and it was a total pain in the ass. “I’ve only been here a week, but I couldn’t be happier.”

“You might go running out that door after this conversation.” She handed him a decanter. “Seven days and you’re already mixed up with someone I’ve known since grade school.” She arched a brow. “I might not be Winslet’s best friend, but I’m one of her longest friends, and we have some interesting, shared history.”

He pounded his chest. “So I’ve heard.”

“Oh, really. And which part are we referring to? Because whatever my idiot husband has said, I’m sure that’s not what I’m talking about.” She waved her hand before picking up a full glass of wine. “Chuck enjoys shocking the few men who openly date Winslet. He cares a great deal for her, and so do I. So, if he can throw them off-balance, which helps gauge what their intentions are or aren’t, he’ll bring up the fact they dated. Or mention one particular thing. It’s ridiculous.”

Jett wasn’t sure if he was supposed to respond. And if he was, what the appropriate response should be. He respected and valued Chuck as a co-worker and a new friend.

His wife seemed lovely. A little rough around the edges, but so was Winslet.

He managed to wrangle the cork out of the wine bottle and poured it into the decanter.

“Cat got your tongue?” Renee asked.

He chuckled. “I’m usually quick-witted, but you’re the one throwing me off-balance.”

“I see.” She leaned against the counter and smiled. “Well, I guess Chuck and his little hints at their past dating life didn’t make you jealous or scare you off.”

“Nope, but he only hinted. Winslet went into more detail than I ever needed to know.”

“Good grief.” Renee smacked her palm to her forehead. “But again, that’s not what I was referring to and while I have the same sarcastic flair as my darling husband, I go about vetting people a little differently.” She lowered her chin. “While Winslet and I were close growing up, we had a short period of time where we wanted to throttle each other. Actually, we did get into a fistfight.”

Jett chuckled. “Oddly, I think I might have enjoyed seeing that.”

“Men. You’re all the same.” Renee shook her head. “I won’t get into the sordid details as to why. It’s old news, gossip, and frankly, shit she’s not going to want me going on about.”

He swallowed, wishing wine had been in his throat. Or maybe a good shot of whiskey. “Why do I get the feeling I’m about to be interrogated worse than I was with Chuck the last few days at work?” He cocked his head. “Because all he really did was harass me and told me I better not hurt her, or he’ll come for the metal in my body with a chainsaw.”

“So, you are really dating in the truest sense of the word.” She folded her arms across her chest.

“I’m not sure Winslet would call it that, but I would.” He honestly had no idea how Winslet would define what they were doing outside of having great sex. She had slept at his apartment for the last three nights and she would do so tonight. That was if he didn’t put his foot in his mouth.

“To make a long story very short. Winslet and I went through something pretty traumatizing. It nearly destroyed our friendship.” She pointed her finger toward the sliding glass doors. “If it weren’t for my husband, I don’t know if our friendship would have survived the drama. But it did and she was a bridesmaid at our wedding. We consider her to be family. For whatever reason, Chuck thinks you’re the greatest thing since sliced bread.”

“I kind of have a bro crush on him too.” That wasn’t a lie. He and Chuck had hit it off from day one.

“Tell me something I don’t know.” Renee laughed. “It’s hard for both Chuck and me to watch Winslet aimlessly wander through her life acting as if she’s happy with how it turned out. We know her and we know the kind of walls she’s got built up. When she lets someone in, she lets them in so deeply they hold the power to crush her?—”

“I’m sorry. I have to stop you.” Jett understood Renee’s concerns. If he were on the other side of this, he’d be doing exactly the same thing. “We’ve been seeing each other for a week. While I care about her, seven days isn’t a very long time. That said, I have no intention of hurting her.”

“If you had let me finish my statement, you’d understand that I’m less concerned about her, since her heart is already on the floor from something else I’m not going to get into with you, and I’m more worried about your feelings.”

“Ah. I see.” Jett ran his fingers through his hair. “First. I know all about what happened. And second, I’m a big boy. I absolutely know what I’ve gotten myself into.”

“Are you sure about that?” Renee waggled her finger. “Not many men have loved Winslet. Off the top of my head, I can only think of one who actually truly, honestly loved her for exactly who she is.”

“My knowledge of her past relationships is limited to your husband, Harvey, and the person to whom we will not speak of. So, I have no idea who you’re talking about.”

“This is going to sound weird coming from me, but Chuck is the only one who loved her for her. Now, he loves her like a sister. They’ve always had a unique bond. Harvey never understood. I think he was jealous of it.”

“And what about you?”

Renee tossed her head back and laughed. Loud. “Good Lord, no. I was the third wheel all through their relationship. They just weren’t meant to be and when they broke up, they were able to remain friends. I love that about those two. They wish nothing but love and happiness for each other. But you’re missing my point.”

“Which is?” Jett wasn’t sure he wanted to hear this.

“Chuck tells me you’re an incredibly logical man.”

“He calls me Mr. Spock at work. I hate it.”

“Well, I want you to process this, especially since you know what happened.” She sipped her wine. “She didn’t go into that last relationship thinking it would be forever. She hasn’t done that since Harvey.”

“She’s not doing that with me.” His heart thumped in his chest like a caged animal. “I’m not doing that.”

“Maybe not. But you’re both swimming in the deep end of the pool.” She waggled her finger. “Without life jackets, I might add. For Winslet, that’s a fight-or-flight place to be. You need to be prepared for that.”

“I have a question for you,” Jett said. “Why do you feel the need to tell me this?”

“Because I like you. My husband adores you. And because you’re perfect for Winslet. But when she…”

The sound of the sliding glass doors opening interrupted Renee.

Jett turned his head.

“What on earth have you two been chatting about?” Chuck waved his hand, letting Winslet in. “We’re dying of thirst out there.”

Jett snagged the decanter and filled everyone’s wineglasses. “Oh, we’ve been discussing how you have a man crush on me.”

“I heard everyone at the ranger station is calling the two of you Jeuck.” Renee bent over, placed her hands on her knees, and burst out laughing. “I should have made Jell-O for dessert. That way Winslet and I could watch you strapping men wrestle in your boxers.”

“Babe, that’s just gross.” Chuck snagged a glass of wine and wrapped his arm around Renee. “That visual only works when it’s two women.”

“I will have to agree with Chuck on this one.” Jett found himself smiling from ear to ear. “And that’s partly because I’ve seen him in his boxers. Not something I want to see again.”

“Oh, the things that are going on inside my head.” Renee tapped her temple.

“You’re weird.” Chuck kissed his wife’s cheek.

“Why is it strange for women to fantasize about two men?” Winslet leaned into Jett, and he looped his arm around her tiny waist. “But so totally normal for guys to get all hot and bothered about wanting to watch two girls go at it?”

“Seriously? We have to answer that question?” Jett asked.

“Yes,” both women answered simultaneously.

“I thought the conversations I had with my sister were odd.” Jett lifted his wine and took a nice long sip. “Especially when she started dating my best friend and coming to me for advice. Or condoms.”

“I look forward to meeting you sister,” Renee said.

“Come on. Let’s take this back outside.” Chuck opened the sliders. “You should have been around when we were all in high school. Or when we came home from college during the summers. We did some pretty crazy shit. But the best was when we’d sit around playing truth or dare.”

“The only problem with that was all of us would almost always take the dare.” Winslet laughed. “At one point, we have all streaked through the town.”

“My sister’s husband dared me to do that once. Only, I got caught.” Jett eased into one of the chairs at the table. He hadn’t had this much fun with a group of people in a long time.

Too long.

“I was sixteen and my mom had to come to County and pick me up. She read me the riot act at the station, but the second we got in the car, she turned her head, laughed, and told me how I wasn’t as bright as my father because he never got caught.” Jett looped his arm over the back of Winslet’s chair and toyed with a few stray strands of hair.

“Did you ever do it again?” Winslet asked.

“I never got caught.” He winked.

Jett’s phone vibrated in his back pocket. He pulled it out, glanced at the screen, and mentally groaned.

“Are you going to answer?” Winslet leaned closer, glancing over his shoulder.

“Nope. I thought it might be my mom calling me back, but it wasn’t.” Jett didn’t know why he felt the need to qualify all of that. Perhaps it was because he’d received a call from another woman. It didn’t matter that it was his ex-girlfriend, and he’d already told Winslet she’d been reaching out.

He just didn’t want to do it in front of their friends.

Their friends.

That should feel funny, but it didn’t. And he did consider Chuck to be a close, personal friend.

However, he had no desire to deal with Becky. Not now. Maybe not ever. Granted, just a few short days ago, he was willing to entertain a phone call. Hell, he wasn’t even sure he was over her.

But today?

She was his past.

Winslet was his present.

And he’d like her to be around more than a few months.

A thought that utterly terrified him. His chest tightened as if a boa constrictor had wrapped around his body. Evelynn had always accused him of falling in love hard and fast.

He couldn’t deny it.

And he’d been in love three times, if he counted Piper, which he did.

It couldn’t be happening again.

Winslet gently touched his wrist. “She’s been calling and texting. Don’t you think you should respond? Maybe something happened.”

“We don’t mind if you take a call,” Chuck said. “You can step into the kitchen for some privacy.”

Jett sucked in a deep breath. Becky was the last thing he wanted to deal with right now. He knew what she wanted. Evelynn had filled him in on that.

Before Winslet had turned his world upside down, he might have had some unresolved feelings about his past.

That was no longer the case.

In the last few days, he’d come to realize it wasn’t that he’d been harboring a desire to have Becky in his life, but a need to reconcile what had happened. He’d done that by accepting he only served a single purpose in Becky’s life.

He could no longer be that man.

For anyone.

Which stirred something else in his heart. He knew Winslet liked him. Even cared for him. And Winslet wasn’t using him in the same vein as Becky. Or even Kiki. Jett wasn’t Winslet’s savior. Not in the same way because Winslet had a strong sense of who she was and what she wanted. Her main issue was a shift in her core fundamental goals in life—which had always been to have a family—but she shoved them deep in her soul to protect herself.

She could no longer do that, and Jett understood.

But if he was being honest with himself—he wasn’t in that same space. Having a partner? He believed he could do that. But kids? He wasn’t sure. He’d given up that concept when Kiki had left, and he hadn’t thought too much about it since. His career had been his life.

But now he had more balance. His sister. His parents. They meant more. Well, they always did. But even those relationships had suffered because of his commitment to the military. He also had a better handle on what relaxation meant.

However, he wasn’t sure all that added up to being a good father.

The real question was, why was he even thinking about it?

“You need to talk to her,” Winslet said. “Clear the air. Not just for her, but for you. Too many things were left unsaid.” She squeezed his hand. “I know it’s hard, but I also know you want to put it in the past once and for all. If you don’t, it’s always going to haunt you.” She lowered her chin. “Just like I’m going to have to face Shamus on Monday and have that hard conversation.”

Damn woman had a point.

“Not to be a nosy bitch, but what and who are you talking about?” Renee asked, leaning forward and resting her elbows on the table. “You don’t have to answer, but this is a safe space. We only gossip among ourselves.”

Jett really loved Renee and Chuck’s odd sense of humor. “To make a very long story short, my ex-girlfriend has been reaching out a lot lately. It comes on the heels of the government declassifying some information about the helicopter crash that nearly killed me and the rescue mission me and my team were on. It wasn’t much information, but it does discuss her brother’s death and how he was killed by the enemy hours before we were attacked. I was told a few months after the incident that we would have been too late. That my friend had already been dead before a single shot had been fired at me. But I couldn’t tell that to Becky. I would have been court-martialed.” Jett closed his eyes, taking a moment to collect his thoughts and rein in his grief.

So much carnage. So much pain. He could still hear the screams and smell the burning flesh of his friends. He remembered crawling on his belly, barely being able to breathe, much less use his legs, trying to get his buddies to safety while they took on heavy fire and more bullets ripped through his body before darkness overtook him.

He blinked.

Winslet inched closer. Her arm wrapped around his waist like a warm fleece. There was no look of disgust or even shock or pity on her beautiful face. Only kindness and caring.

And sadness.

Same with Renee and Chuck.

He wasn’t used to this from anyone other than those he served with and his family.

Normally, war stories terrified people. They gasped. Or retreated at the horrors.

Or worse, tried to act as if they understood, when even he didn’t—and he’d lived it.

“Becky is reliving Justin’s death all over again. They were very close. The hard part is he was one of my closest friends. It’s how Becky and I met. And she blamed me for him dying. That I somehow didn’t do enough.” The words tumbled out of his mouth so fast he couldn’t stop. Winslet had heard it all before. But it felt good to say it again. To purge. To understand his dynamic with Becky.

With women in general.

“I remember when Zeke got the call about what happened to you. He bugged out of town so fast it made our heads spin,” Chuck said. “He said they had to revive you, twice.”

“That’s what I’m told.” Jett nodded. He tried to never focus on that. He was vertical. He was breathing. And he was damn fucking grateful. “The thing is, she’s reaching out because I’m a connection to her brother. Not because she wants anything to do with me.”

“Are you sure about that?” Renee asked.

“Yes,” Jett said. “My sister had an interesting conversation with her, and it all comes back to my friendship with Justin. And the fact that she and I were a couple when he died.”

“It goes deeper than that.” Winslet pursed her lips. “You helped her through her darkest hour. She’s looking for that same kind of comfort. While I believe she’s toxic, I still think you should have a conversation with her.” Winslet ran her hand up and down his back. “You cared about her once. Hell, you still care about her. But this chat would be about you, not her.”

“Maybe. But it’s not going to be tonight.” He leaned in and kissed Winslet’s cheek. “Time to change the subject.”

“How about we talk about Cooper Wilks and the fact that he’s been showing up at the police station every single day, bugging the shit out of Chief Hill and Weston. He’s demanding an arrest.” Chuck raised his glass, shaking his head. “Girl wonder over here hasn’t even identified the bones yet.”

“Not actually my job.” Winslet laughed. “But we should know who she is by Monday, and I ran into Cooper yesterday. It was not pleasant.”

“I saw him at the coffee shop this morning.” Chuck ran his hand over his mouth. “He rambled on for twenty minutes about how he knew his wife hadn’t run off with Marcus.”

“Yeah, well, he doesn’t believe my grandfather killed his wife either.” Winslet twirled a piece of hair between her fingers. “He’s had a few strange theories over the years, but it always comes back to my dad.”

“Why does he believe your father killed his mother?” Jett asked. “I still don’t understand that one.”

“There were some inconsistencies in her dad’s story,” Renee said.

“The timeline is a little off.” Winslet snagged her glass and took a gulp. “There was a report of gunshots being heard in the middle of the night. My father never heard them. The police found that to be suspect since he was asleep in the house. And then there was the dried blood on his clothing. People thought that was off. But he had no motive to kill his mother.”

“I’m going to play devil’s advocate here and ask a question that might get me in the doghouse, but did he know about the alleged affair? Or fight with his parents about something? And did they do a gun residue test?” Jett asked.

“To answer the first couple of questions, my dad admitted he’d heard a rumor, but it wasn’t about Sarah and his father. It was about his mother and uncle. And Xavier is still kicking. Though, he’s in a home and has dementia, so he wouldn’t be much help today. As far as fighting goes, he never mentioned anything about that,” Winslet said. “My father failed the residue test.” She raised her hand. “But he’d been at the gun range the day before with my grandfather. There were eight witnesses to that. My father was ruled out ten hours after they brought him to the station and while rumors fly about that every once in a while, it’s pretty much defunct.”

“You’re not starting to believe that her dad could have murdered her grandfather, are you?” Chuck cocked his head.

“It’s not that, especially if there’s no motive.” Jett leaned back. “I spent a year between hospitals and rehabs. One of the things that got me through was watching true crime shows. Ever since then, my mind goes to weird places.” He ran his fingers through his hair. “Weston asked me once if I wanted to peek through his files. I might do that. Maybe my weird, twisted mind can help.”

“Not if you’re going to go slinging your accusations at my dad.” Winslet poked her finger at his shoulder. “He might be a cheating prick, but he’s no murderer.”

“I’m not looking to do that, just trying to help solve the case.” Only, her father was an interesting angle.

Damn, he was an asshole.