Golden Lies - Barbara Freethy [129]
"Yes," David said without hesitation. "I'm sure of it."
"Then that leaves one dragon missing. If Ned had a dragon and Grandfather had the box, then it stands to reason that Lee Chen had the other dragon. I think it's time you and Jasmine had a talk. And Alyssa, too," she added. "We'll need everyone to get to the bottom of this."
* * *
Riley didn't sleep all night, considering the options available to him. After leaving the Hathaway house, he'd gone to the police station but hadn't gotten beyond leaving messages for the officers investigating the robbery. He'd gone home, tried to sleep, but gave up as the sun rose.
Getting out of bed, he went on a grueling bike ride around the city, watching San Francisco come to life. It was the day before the Chinese New Year he realized as he passed by traffic control officers putting up signs and roadblocks for the parade that would begin at five o'clock in the afternoon. Tonight all of Chinatown would celebrate the dawning of a new year.
He wished he could feel a sense of hope and wonder, that he could look forward to a new year filled with good fortune, but he couldn't feel any of those things. He'd left them behind in the Hathaway mansion. He still couldn't believe Paige had stood up for her grandfather. The old bastard was a liar. That was obvious to anyone. But no, not Paige. She still couldn't see past her last name. Well, why should he have expected it to be any different? He knew who she was. He'd known all along. He'd just forgotten for a while.
Lost in her arms, in her kiss, in her body, he'd forgotten pretty much everything. Even now his body was hardening at the thought of her, which was damn uncomfortable considering he was riding a mountain bike. But the pain in his body was nothing compared to the pain in his heart. He'd let her in. And she'd hurt him. When was he ever going to learn to stop believing in fairy tales and happily ever afters? They didn't happen to guys like him. They never had, and they never would.
He pedaled harder, keeping his head down, his heart racing, his mind occupied so he wouldn't have to think. Somehow he ended up at his grandmother's house. He got off the bike and walked up to the front door. It was almost eight now, and he suspected his grandmother was already up and making coffee for whichever one of the three musketeers had spent the night on her couch. He could probably call them off now. He suspected Wallace Hathaway had been behind the burglary. He'd probably been looking for the other dragon, the one still missing.
Bud opened the door for him. "Riley. Saw you coming. Anything wrong?"
"No," he lied. "How's my grandmother?"
"I'm fine, honey," Nan said as she came down the hall from the kitchen. "And while I've enjoyed having the company of Bud, Charlie, and Gilbert, I think their wives would be happy if you ended this assignment."
"I was just thinking the same thing. You can go on home, Bud. Thanks for your work."
"Are you sure it's safe now? I don't want to leave Nan in any danger."
"I think she'll be all right, and I'll keep an eye on her."
"I'll be fine," Nan said with a firm tone.
Bud grabbed his jacket and headed out the door without any more encouragement. Riley followed his grandmother into the kitchen. "Is that bacon I smell?"
"Yes, it is. Take a seat. Do you want eggs, too?"
Riley sat down at the kitchen table as his grandmother put a plate of bacon in front of him. "This is plenty."
"You look like you sweated off enough calories this morning to eat whatever you want. Don't tell me you rode that bike of yours all the way over here?"
"Okay, I won't tell you."
Nan sat down across from him. "'What's wrong?"
"Everything," he said heavily.
"It's Paige, isn't it? I knew you liked her."
"Yeah, well, it doesn't much matter."
"Why not?"
"It's a long story, but let's just say that Paige will protect