Secrets Collide (Bluegrass Brothers)

voice?” Cole asked.
    “I did. He’s a goner,” Miles said as he tossed a chip onto the table.
    “I noticed whose phone call he didn’t take while he leapt to get Gemma’s call,” Cade teased as he placed his bet.
    “Please. She has nothing on Gemma,” Cy folded and stood up from the table.
    “Except she’s the highest-paid actress in the world,” Pierce snickered.
    “Gemma’s real; she’s not. Gemma’s also funny and braver than her any day. Miss Actress threw such a hissy fit when she had to pick up a snake for a scene, but Gemma . . . Gemma didn’t even scream when she was being chased and shot at by those thugs,” Cy told them. He respected Gemma and he trusted her. That’s more than he could say for any of the other women in Hollywood.
    “Let’s cut to the chase here,” Miles said as he won the hand, “you like her. Why aren’t you with her?”
    Cy looked down at his feet. It was embarrassing. “I don’t think she likes me. She doesn’t find ways to touch me. She doesn’t bat her eyes at me. She doesn’t try to find ways to spend time together,” Cy shrugged. “Doesn’t that just beat all? I finally find someone I like and she’s not interested.” The tightness returned around his heart and Cy felt his jaw tighten. He was lost again to the smothering feeling of his life.
    “Well, she called you, didn’t she?” Marshall offered.
    “Yeah, to tell me she found something. She’s been locked in her room for the past three days. I’m glad she sounded so excited. She’s been too hard on herself for not being able to contribute more.”
    “Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s see what’s she found.” Cole stood up and the rest of the table followed.
     
    Gemma was pacing the length of the front porch when she saw the line of cars pull up to the curb. Apparently poker night had moved to the bed-and-breakfast.
    “Oh my. I better put more cookies in the oven and get more snacks ready.”
    Gemma whipped around and saw a tuft of white hair hurrying inside. She hadn’t realized Miss Lily had been standing there.
    Cy’s truck was the first to park and she had to stop herself from running down the path in her excitement. She had worked all afternoon and evening on the first notebook, just finished it, and found a lead.
    Miles walked up the yard with his brothers, Mo, Ahmed, and Cole. “I hope you don’t mind that we all came. We were eager to hear what you had found.”
    “No, not at all. Let’s go into the sitting room. There’s enough room for everyone there," Gemma replied.
    Cy opened the door and Gemma gave him a smile. She had finally done something to help her sister and she could barely stop herself from jumping around.
    “Did you find Mr. X?” Cy asked, standing next to her while everyone else sat down.
    “No. But I did find something big. You know how I told you Paul Russell was going to pursue a seat in Congress to further Mr. X’s purposes?” She waited until everyone nodded. “Well, Gia found out who had been in that position before. And it’s huge. He totally got busted for a huge corruption/prostitution/murder thing a couple of years ago. Not only did I discover who it was, I found out he’s still alive and which prison he’s in.”
    Cy had a sinking feeling he knew who it was. “Holy shit,” he cursed under his breath. Everyone stopped and looked at him pointedly. They had all been thinking it, too. “Senator Bruce.”
    “How did you know?” Gemma asked, upset that they knew her big discovery.
    “Kenna, Dani, and Paige were the key witnesses in the trial of the men found guilty of those crimes. I was there as Paige’s bodyguard. Senator Bruce’s daughter is Will Ashton’s ex-wife and Kenna was the eyewitness to the crime that brought them all down. Bruce took a plea to avoid the death penalty and has never said a word about his involvement. We know nothing more than that,” Cy told her.
    “Yes, very uncharacteristically he hasn’t said a word about the crimes. Most people in his position write a tell-all book or sit down with a prime-time reporter to cry about a bad childhood or something that makes them appear the victim. But now it makes sense.” Cole was now sharing the same excitement she felt.
    “How so?” Pierce asked as he picked up a cookie Miss Lily offered.
    “If he was in the pocket of Mr. X, then he knows a single word would wind up getting him killed. He’s hoping Mr. X uses his influence to get him out of jail. But now