Golden Lies - Barbara Freethy [103]
"That's quite a leap. You got angry at me for making that same jump to your grandfather. We should be careful who we accuse."
"Agreed. But at least we're narrowing down the suspects."
"The suspects to what, Riley? Are we trying to figure out who set fire to the store fifty years ago? Or are we trying to figure out what happened to a dragon that disappeared last week?"
"That depends on whether that dragon ties the two events together."
"Which would take us back to the idea that the dragon might have been owned by the store at one point. You didn't like that scenario, remember?"
He tipped his head. "I still don't think my grandfather stole it. But I'm willing to keep an open mind on where it's been in the last hundred years."
"That's big of you."
"I also think that the fact that these three men knew each other at one point is somehow very important. They all worked at Hathaway's in some capacity."
"I agree," Paige said. "Maybe Alyssa or Jasmine could tell us about Lee."
Paige's cell phone rang as she finished speaking, and Paige had the eerie sensation that someone had been reading her mind. Her suspicion was confirmed when Alyssa's voice came over the phone.
"Alyssa," she said. "Riley and I were just talking about you. We found an odd connection between not just you and me, but Riley, too. Your grandfather's name is Lee Chen, right?" It suddenly occurred to her that Lee Chen was a fairly common name.
"Yes," Alyssa said. "Why do you ask?"
"We discovered that he worked at Hathaway's a long time ago."
"I just learned that as well."
"Riley's grandfather worked there, too. And, of course, my grandfather. They must have all known one another. I don't know what it means. It could be a small world, a really big coincidence, or a great lead. That doesn't narrow it down much, does it?"
"No, but perhaps we can narrow it down further," Alyssa said. "I spoke to Benjamin Fong again. He says his uncle has some information for us about the dragon. I'm meeting them in a half hour -- that's why I'm calling."
She was thrilled that Alyssa had thought to let her know. "I'd love to come with you. Riley would, too."
Alyssa hesitated. "I've been thinking about everything. I don't completely trust you, Paige. You might be trying to frame my mother for some sort of theft."
Paige's heart sank. Another distrusting soul. She seemed to be surrounded by them. She looked at Riley and caught him watching her with a thoughtful expression on his face. He didn't completely trust her, either. She would just have to prove herself to both of them. "I don't want to hurt your mother in any way," she said firmly, returning her attention to the phone call. "What's between my father and your mother is separate from all this. I want to know who attacked my father, and you want to protect your mother. We're on the same side. And we want to make sure no one else gets hurt. The only way we can do that is to find out what happened to the dragon, if we can."
"All right. Meet me at 3712 Stockton Street, Jimmy Lee's martial arts studio."
Paige ended the call and explained the situation to Riley. "We can go if we want," she told him.
"Of course we're going."
"You're loving this, aren't you?" She could see the sparkle in his eyes, hear the energy in his voice.
"I've always liked a puzzle, and this one is finally starting to come together." He stretched his arms up over his head, then got to his feet. "So, thirty minutes, huh?"
"Yes." She stiffened as Riley took a predatory step in her direction. "What are you doing?"
"I'm walking over to you."
"I can see that, but why are you—Oh," she gasped as his mouth pressed against hers in a crushing, passionate kiss. "You're never going to ask me first, are you?" she muttered when he let her catch her breath.
"Are you complaining?"
"Yes, I'm complaining. I've been here for almost an hour, and this is the first move you've made."
He laughed. "You never say what I think you're going to say." He swooped in and stole another kiss.
"We only