Dream Eyes

Gwen’s face. Judson moved slightly, just enough to get in the way of the blow. He absorbed the impact on one broad shoulder. The scary heat in the atmosphere escalated a couple of degrees.
    Nicole whirled and fled back to the van. She got behind the wheel and slammed the door shut. The vehicle careened out of the parking lot and shot off down the street.
    The disturbing energy dissipated.
    Gwen watched the taillights of the van until they disappeared. Eventually, she allowed herself to take a breath. Judson clamped a powerful hand around her arm and drew her out from between the parked cars.
    “Who was that?” he asked. He sounded very matter-of-fact, as if nothing out of the ordinary had just happened.
    “Nicole Hudson. She owns a florist shop here in town.”
    “I saw the sign on the van. She was Taylor’s lover?”
    “Yes. She blames me for his death. She never believed that he was a suicide. She thinks I killed him.”
    “I got that impression,” Judson said. “You have quite a reputation in this town, don’t you?”
    “You have no idea.”

Ten
    W hen Judson and Gwen walked into the lobby, Riley Duncan looked up from whatever he was doing at the front desk. He gave Gwen a stern frown.
    “Had a complaint from a guest on your floor, Ms. Frazier,” Riley said. “The lady in three-oh-five says your cat is bothering her.”
    Gwen frowned. “How could Max bother anyone?”
    “She said he meows loudly whenever someone walks past in the hall. I went up there to check and she’s right. I could hear him on the other side of the door. Three-oh-five says the noise creeps her out. She doesn’t like cats. She’s afraid the cat will get out of the room and trip her up on the stairs.”
    “I’ll keep Max away from her,” Gwen promised. “Once he knows I’m back tonight, I’m sure he’ll stop meowing. I think he’s having abandonment issues. Evelyn raised him from a kitten, and he doesn’t understand that she’s gone forever.”
    “Probably doesn’t like being cooped up in a hotel room, either,” Riley said. “Cats are territorial, you know. They don’t adapt well to new environments.”
    “I’m aware of that,” Gwen said. “But I couldn’t leave him out there all alone at the house. There’s no one around to feed him.” She cleared her throat. “I don’t suppose you’d be interested in adopting him?”
    “I’m not a cat person,” Riley said. “Take him to the pound.”
    He went back to his computer screen.
    Gwen and Judson went up the stairs. The meowing started when they reached the third floor. It reverberated down the hall. Gwen winced, took out her key and hurried forward. When she opened the door Max was waiting. He dashed through the opening.
    “Max, no,” Gwen said. “Come back. “
    Judson leaned down and scooped up the cat. “You don’t want to go running off like that, Max. She’s the one with the food. Not that you need any. You are a little on the hefty side. Do you lift weights?”
    “Evelyn said that he’s part Maine coon cat,” Gwen said. “Maybe a
lot
Maine coon cat.” She switched on the lights.
    Max twitched his ears, but he allowed himself to be carried back into the room. Judson set him down on the floor while Gwen closed and locked the door.
    “What are you going to do with him?” Judson asked.
    “Take him back to Seattle, I guess, unless I can convince someone local to take him in, which is probably unlikely. Max does not have what you’d call a warm and cuddly personality.”
    “He looks tough.”
    “He is tough. But Evelyn loved that cat. I’m not going to take him to the pound, and if I turn him loose back at the house, he’ll go feral. Cats that go wild don’t do well.”
    “In that case, it looks like you’ve got yourself a cat,” Judson said.
    “Probably.” She looked at Max. “Of course, if you take it into that blocky head of yours that you were born to be free, I promise not to stand in your way.”
    Max ignored her. He went into the tiled bath and took up a position next to his empty bowl. He glared at her from the doorway.
    “Okay, okay,” she said. She opened the minibar and took out the eggs. She cracked two into Max’s bowl. “But don’t blame me if you get too chunky to escape.”
    Judson went to the minibar. “How about a nightcap while we talk?”
    “Good idea. I could use a drink after that encounter with Nicole.”

Eleven
    S tart at the beginning,” Judson said.
    Gwen settled into the oversized wingback