The handsome, smooth features lost their luster. “We’re all still stunned.”

“Was there anyone bothering her?” Alex asked.

“I never saw anyone creepy hanging around the track. I know her ex wasn’t thrilled with her. I think he keyed her car. I asked her about it, but she wouldn’t say. I think she was kind of embarrassed.”

Alex didn’t like David. The guy was a salesman; he sold whatever bill of goods suited him. Deidre was an adult and made her own choices, but David was the kind of guy who would have smelled her weakness and played on it. “You two were dating.”

“For about a month. Nothing serious. We were just having fun. But I liked her. I liked her a lot.”

“You two spend much time together?”

“We hooked up a few times a week. Her job kept her busy. Not unusual for her to cancel on me.” He shook his head. “Was this related to her job?”

Alex purposefully softened his expression with what he assumed looked like a sad smile. An icy stare didn’t foster trust in a witness. “That’s one of the theories.”

David leaned in. “Who found her?”

“A woman from your running group,” he said. “Leah Carson.”

“Leah? What was she doing at Deidre’s?”

“Trying to find out why she missed the morning run.”

David ran long fingers through his hair. “God.”

Alex studied him closely. “Did Deidre ever mention anything that made you think there was trouble in her life? Was she worried? Did she ever think anyone was following her?”

“No. No. She never wanted to talk about much when we were together. She liked a good laugh. And she liked the bedroom. Beyond that, we rarely had much to say.” He paused a moment. “That ex of hers might have been trouble.”

“You said she wasn’t worried about him.”

“She said she could handle him.” He slid his hand into his pocket. “Do you think it was him?”

Alex glanced past David to a credenza covered with photographs. One stood out. David standing with a pretty blonde. “Who’s that?”

David drew in a breath. “My wife.”

“Your wife? She know about Deidre?”

David shifted in his chair, tugged on the cuffs of his hand-tailored shirt. “We’re separated right now, but we’re trying to work things out.”

“What’s her name?”

“Alicia.” David glanced at Alex and very quickly added, “But she wouldn’t hurt anyone. She’s sweet. Maybe too sweet. But I love her. And besides, she’s been in New York the last month, visiting family. There’s no need to talk to her.”

“Not now.” Alex held his ground. “What do you know about Leah Carson?”

“Leah? She’s about the worst runner there is. I was shocked when Deidre invited her to the group. Why ask about her?”

“She and Deidre were friends.”

“Not exactly. I think Deidre kind of felt sorry for her. Leah is an odd duck. Keeps to herself. Beyond me why Deidre kept trying to take Leah under her wing. And it figures she’d check on Deidre. She’s a worrier.”

“Why’s that unusual?”

“Deidre doesn’t have . . . didn’t have a lot of patience for weakness. It’s why she left her husband. His drinking got to be too much. It’s why she’d have dumped me sooner than later. Leah had that wounded-bird kind of vibe. She told me Leah’s neighbors called the cops right after she moved in. Seems Leah was screaming. Told cops it was a nightmare.”

Nightmares. Defensive stab wounds. “She say anything else about Leah?”

“I asked her once what gives with Leah, but she said something about the sins of the past.”

“Sins of the past?”

“I know, it makes no sense. They only just met. But that’s what she said.”

“You didn’t press.”

“No. She had a way of distracting my thoughts.” He grinned.

Alex’s face turned to stone. “She strike you as the type that would bend the law?”

“Deidre? I don’t think she’d like it, but if push came to shove, sure, I think she’d do it.”

“She ever talk about doing anything shady?”

His spine stiffened, raising him up an inch or two. “No. She never talked to me about work or anything illegal. Shit, the last thing I need is to be an accessory after the fact.”

“All right.” Made sense that Deidre wouldn’t tell David about her work, or any off-the-books work. Made sense he wouldn’t push, unless he thought the information would be of use.

Alex handed David his card. “Let me know if you think of anything.”

“Sure.”

Outside, Alex pulled Ray-Ban sunglasses from his breast pocket and put them on. Deidre had alluded to sins of the past when Leah’s name was mentioned. What the hell did that mean?

Chapter Twelve

Wednesday, January 18, 4 P.M.

There had been no surgeries today and no afternoon appointments so Dr. Nelson told Leah to go home early. “No sense in both of us sitting around here,” he’d said.

She’d volunteered to stay, but he’d insisted she leave, promising her there’d be times in the future when she’d wish for the time off.

And so she gathered her purse and slid on her coat. Keys in hand, she headed toward her car. She’d just reached the car door when she heard the crunch of footsteps. Leah reached in her pocket for the Mace she always kept close as she whirled around. Alex Morgan didn’t flinch, but his gaze dropped to her hand, as if assessing the threat. She eased her thumb away from the Mace’s trigger.

“So how’re you holding up?” He waited for her gaze to meet his.

“Alex. What’re you doing here? You know Rick picked up Tracker today.”

Alex was silent for a moment. “I know. He texted. You always this jumpy?”

She scrambled through her basket of ready lies. “I’m the nervous sort.”

He moved slowly toward her, as if approaching a skittish animal. “You’re relaxed around the animals.”

“I understand them. It’s always black and white with animals.”

“But not with people.”

She arched a brow. “And you think people are black and white?”

He shook his head. “I know they’re not.”

She spoke metaphorically, universally, the way he was talking about her. He saw the grays and shadows that swirled around her like a second skin.

“I get the impression there’s a lot more to you than meets the eye.”

“I can promise you, I’m very boring.”

“You’re not boring.” He moved within inches of her, standing so close she could smell the scent of his aftershave mingling with cold fresh air.

She curled her fingers into fists tight enough to hide her scars. “What’re you doing here?”

A hand slid in his pocket, enough to push his jacket back and reveal the badge and gun behind it. “I did a little digging on you.”

She tightened her hold on her purse strap. “That so?”

“Your neighbors called the cops last month. They said you were screaming.”

She shook her head, remembering the cops pounding on her door. There’d been an officer to the right of the door, a hand on his gun, and two at the bottom of the steps. Another had been in the parking lot. “I have nightmares. They can be pretty bad.”

“Nightmares.”

“Nothing I talk about. I was in my kitchen eating ice cream when the cops arrived. It was embarrassing. I let them search the place because it was clear they were on edge when they arrived.”

“Nightmares.” He spoke the word again, as if he were dropping it into a file cabinet.

“Yeah.”

He waited a beat, but when she didn’t expand on the comment, he asked, “So what brought you back to Nashville? I don’t think we covered that on our . . . date.”

It hadn’t been a real date. She’d been on the verge of a panic attack when the text arrived. “I’m from Nashville. Went to vet school in Knoxville. Moved back for the job.”

“You always wanted to be a vet?”

“Yeah. I like animals. Trust them. Like you said, they relax me.”

“As opposed to people.”

“I didn’t say that.”

He folded his arms as he shook his head. “How’d you get the scars on your palms, Leah? You go out of your way to hide them.”