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Synopsis
Investigating cold cases online from the safety of home is a harmless diversion for many true crime fans. But for one woman, it becomes a deadly game that’s all too real…
New York Times bestselling author Alexandra Ivy returns to Pike, Wisconsin, in her electrifying new romantic thriller for fans of Allison Brennan, Lisa Jackson, and Karen Rose.
An online crime-solving group is just the kind of adventure Bailey Evans needs. She loves her nursing career and small-town life, but her days are predictable. Her confidence bolstered by having her sheriff cousin Zac nearby, Bailey’s up for some innocent fun and intrigue… Until she starts receiving unnerving warnings: Once the game begins, there’s no backing out of The Murder Club. Then the game gets real…
First, Bailey is shut out at work after an elderly patient dies and leaves her a shocking inheritance. Then a priceless necklace from an anonymous source arrives in her mail—along with a bone-chilling threat. Determined not to involve expectant father Zac, Bailey contacts an expert appraiser: the charming Las Vegas businessman who’s never left her mind…
Dom Lucier knows real gems—and Bailey is the most precious thing he’s seen since they met at her best friend’s wedding. Returning to Pike to trace the jewelry’s bloody history, Dom helps Bailey kick open a murderous cold case. But as death and disaster escalate, they’ll need a new strategy to escape a killer who won’t be satisfied until the streets of Pike are soaked in blood…
Release date: February 20, 2024
Publisher: Zebra Books
Print pages: 400
Reader says this book is...: dark (1) entertaining story (1) thought-provoking (1)
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The Murder Club
Alexandra Ivy
Monday nights weren’t exactly bustling with activities in the small town of Pike, Wisconsin.
Okay, there weren’t any nights that bustled, but Mondays were the worst. The stores along Main Street had locked their doors at five o’clock on the dot, and the teenagers who’d gathered to watch football practice at the high school had long ago headed home for dinner. The only things open on Monday night were Bella’s Restaurant, a gas station, and the Bait and Tackle, a small bar squished between the dentist’s office and the laundromat.
The lack of entertainment might explain the bewildering question of why the Bait and Tackle was packed.
It certainly wasn’t the ambience, Bailey Evans wryly acknowledged, pushing aside her empty beer bottle, which floated on a ring of condensation. The narrow bar boasted a handful of tables and booths at the front with a scruffy wooden bar at the back. The paneled walls were covered with old-time tin signs, and the lights were hidden behind shades that had yellowed with age, creating a murky glow.
The bar wasn’t really Bailey’s choice for a night out, but her friend Kari Wentz had insisted that she needed something to lift her dark mood. They both worked at the local nursing home—Bailey as a nurse and Kari a part-time aide—and the older woman insisted that Bailey hadn’t been her usual bubbly self. After two days of nagging, Bailey had given into the inevitable.
It wasn’t like she had anything else to do, right? Ever since her best friend, Lia, had met Kaden Vaughn, a stuntman from Vegas, they rarely had time to hang out. Which was a shame. Lia would never have badgered her into going to the bar. She would have invited Bailey over to her apartment to watch sappy romance movies and eat homemade chocolate chip cookies.
The perfect evening.
“Another round?” Kari asked. The tall, solid woman had chopped her dark hair short after getting married and having kids. She’d also put on several pounds that she was constantly trying to lose by one wacky diet after another. This week was something to do with boiled eggs and spinach. Gross.
“Not for me, thanks,” Bailey declined the offer. “I need to get home.”
“Home?” Kari held up her sturdy arm, waving her wristwatch in front of Bailey’s face. “It’s not even eight o’clock.”
“I have to work tomorrow,” she said.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. You’re always working.”
Bailey shrugged. Her friend wasn’t wrong. “Someone has to pay the bills. And since I wasn’t born with a trust fund and my dogs haven’t hit it big on social media, despite being utterly adorable, that someone is me.”
Kari scrutinized her, starting at the brown hair that was pulled into a loose ponytail and the thin face that was dominated by a pair of brown eyes. Bailey hadn’t bothered to put on makeup, although she did change her usual scrubs for a pair of jeans and a light yellow sweater. That was as fancy as she got.
“Are you sure you’re not still upset about old lady Warren?” Kari pressed, her expression genuinely concerned.
Bailey sighed. She’d been devoted to Nellie Warren. The elderly woman had lived in the nursing home for the past five years and quickly become her favorite. Despite being crippled with arthritis, she had a quirky sense of humor combined with a down to earth common sense that allowed her to age with a unique grace that Bailey could only hope she could emulate.
“I’ll miss Nellie, but I’ve worked at the nursing home long enough to know that the residents have a limited time left in this world,” Bailey told her friend. “Although it was crappy that her son didn’t even bother with a proper funeral. The whole town would have gone to pay their respects, but I heard he had her body burned and tossed her ashes behind his lumberyard.”
“Typical.” Kari clicked her tongue. “That’s what happens when you have a kid when you’re in your forties. And an only child on top of it. The Warrens spoiled Gage rotten. It turned him into a selfish jerk.”
“A shame, but Nellie’s at peace.”
“So if you aren’t upset about Nellie, then what’s going on with you? Oh . . . wait.” Kari grimaced. “Please don’t tell me you’re rushing home to play that stupid murder game?”
A shiver raced through Bailey and she was suddenly glad she was surrounded by a bar full of neighbors. She’d impulsively accepted an invitation to join the Murder Club when she was sitting home last New Year’s Eve. She was bored and feeling sorry for herself and in dire need of a distraction.
At first she’d been enthralled by the thrill of searching through cold unsolved cases and trying to figure out whodunit. She might not be a detective, but her cousin was the local sheriff, and God knew they’d had enough murders in Pike to make every citizen a homicide expert. And honestly, she thought she was good at spotting clues that other people overlooked.
“No, I’m done with that. I closed my account last week.”
“I’m glad.” Kari lifted her beer in a small toast. “It’s creepy.”
“It was a way to pass the time,” Bailey argued. “Plus, the people I met in the chat room were interesting.”
“You mean people like Eric Criswell?”
Bailey pretended she didn’t notice Kari’s derisive tone. Eric was a fellow aide at the nursing home, but he didn’t mix easily with the rest of the staff. He was shy and awkward and routinely disappeared to play games on his phone. Most of the locals considered him an oddball, but Bailey felt sorry for the poor guy.
“He invited me to join, but that’s the only reason I knew he was part of the club. Everyone preferred to remain anonymous, and honestly, that’s what made it fun. You didn’t have any expectations or any pressure to try to impress anyone. I could just be myself.” Bailey shook her head. “But you’re right. It went from fun to creepy over the past few weeks.”
“What happened?”
“I started getting weird messages from the chat room telling me that I’d been chosen to play in a private murder club with a mysterious admirer.” She wrinkled her nose. “I tried to ignore them, but whoever it was remained persistent. They sent me invitations and links several times a day. In the end, I just wanted to be out of it.”
“That means you have nothing but time on your hands.” Kari paused, her brows lifting. “You know what you need?”
“A million dollars and an endless supply of doughnuts?”
“A man.”
Bailey rolled her eyes. How many times had she heard that precise phrase over the past five years? She’d just celebrated her twenty-eighth birthday, but the entire town was convinced she couldn’t be happy without a husband and a gaggle of children.
“It’s not the eighteen hundreds. I’m doing just fine without a man.”
“Aren’t you lonely?”
Ouch. Bailey flinched. It was a direct shot where she was most vulnerable.
“Sometimes,” she grudgingly admitted.
Kari scanned the crowded room, as if hoping a suitable man might magically be drinking beer at a nearby table. Surprise, surprise, she came up empty. Still, her stubborn expression warned that she wasn’t going to be deterred. Bailey grimaced. She knew what came next. Kari wasn’t the first friend to try to get her hooked up.
“Why don’t you try one of those online dating sites?” she demanded.
“Are you kidding? Absolutely not.”
“Why? My aunt just married a man she met online.”
“Your aunt has been married five times.”
“She’s not lonely.”
Bailey laughed. “Thanks but no thanks.”
“Fine.” Kari pursed her lips, mentally searching for another way to torment her friend. “Then let me give you the number of my cousin in Grange. Not that he’s husband material. I’m not sure how he makes his money, although I suspect it’s not entirely legal. But he’s been out of jail for over a year and . . .” The horrifying words thankfully dribbled away as something or someone behind Bailey captured the older woman’s attention. “Oh. Hello.”
“What?” Bailey started to turn her head only to freeze when Kari reached out to grasp her hand.
“No. Don’t look.”
“What is it?”
“A dream,” the woman breathed.
“I think you’ve had too much to drink.” Bailey tugged her hand free and turned to see who was causing her friend to act so weird.
Immediately she located the source of her enchantment. He was taller than most men in the bar, well over six feet and broad through the shoulders. His hair was cut short, but it glistened like gold in the dim light and his eyes were dark. Not dark like Bailey’s brown eyes. But the deepest midnight. Or pools of ebony.
He was wearing a flannel shirt to combat the crisp October air and a pair of jeans that clung to his long, muscular legs. He looked at home in the small bar, unless you took into account his deep tan.
Oh, and the fact that he was heart-stopping, mouth-watering, drop-dead gorgeous.
“You’re not dreaming,” she murmured, her heart skidding until it crashed against her ribs.
“Right? He must be lost. No man looking like that ever comes to Pike.” Kari paused before correcting herself. “Not unless it’s Kaden Vaughn.”
After nearly a year of living in Pike, Kaden Vaughn was still considered an exotic intruder. With his long hair, tattoos, and love of fast cars, he would always be different from the locals.
“You’re not wrong,” she told Kari. “It’s Dom Lucier. He’s a friend of Kaden.”
“You know him?”
Bailey’s gaze never wavered from Dom’s face. It was stunningly familiar despite the fact that it’d been several months since she’d last seen him. As if she’d spent the short time they were together memorizing each feature.
The thought was oddly disturbing.
“We met at the wedding,” she explained.
“You mean the super-secret wedding no one was invited to?”
It had been a source of unending annoyance to the citizens of Pike that Lia and Kaden had chosen a small, private ceremony on the land they’d recently purchased outside of town. They’d been expecting a lavish Hollywood blowout that would bring in celebrities rushing to the area.
Instead there were less than twenty people invited. Including Bailey as the maid of honor and Dom Lucier as the best man. The only outsiders were a cluster of paparazzi who had obnoxiously jam-packed the road leading to Kaden’s property.
“That’s the one.”
Kari clicked her tongue. “No wonder Lia didn’t want to share.”
“Lia wouldn’t notice another man besides Kaden if he stripped naked in front of her.”
“Darling, if that man stripped in front of me, I’d not only notice, I’d go up in flames,” Kari admitted.
“What about Martin?” Bailey teased, reminding Kari of her husband, who was currently at home with their kids.
“Martin who? Oh, heavens.” Kari released a nervous giggle. “He’s coming this way. Be still my heart.”
Bailey wasn’t worried about her skidding, crashing heart as she met the midnight gaze that locked onto her from across the crowded room. She was far more concerned she might faint as the air was ruthlessly squeezed from her lungs. Kari was right. He was weaving his way through the tables.
Directly toward her.
Dom Lucier barely noticed the throng of people who were stuffed in the narrow space. Not even when they stopped in unison to watch him walk toward the woman who’d lured him into the bar.
He’d been leaning against the building across the street, impatiently waiting for his dinner, when his gaze was captured by the sign painted on the front window. THE BAIT AND TACKLE. He assumed it was some sort of store to buy fishing equipment until he realized the place was filled with customers who were waving around beer bottles. He’d been about to turn away when he caught sight of a familiar face.
Bailey Evans.
Without hesitation, Dom had shoved himself away from the building and hurried across the street. He’d had every intention of looking up Bailey when he arrived in Pike. Not only because she was one of the few people he knew in town but because he hadn’t been able to get her out of his thoughts since returning to Vegas.
He’d spent the weekend of Kaden’s wedding performing all the traditional best man duties. Thankfully, that included spending time with the maid of honor. First there’d been the combined bachelor and bachelorette party that had been a casual BBQ at Kaden’s home. The fact that the sprawling house was still in the process of being built hadn’t detracted from the fun of playing yard games and toasting hot dogs and marshmallows over the bonfire.
Then there’d been the wedding rehearsal and dinner, and the actual ceremony, followed by a reception. And through it all Bailey had been at his side.
Warm and charming and completely at ease with herself.
When she was nearby Dom hadn’t felt like an outsider. She’d been so welcoming that he’d instantly felt like he was home.
And even after he’d returned to Vegas to run Money Makers, the pawnshop and restoration garage he owned with Kaden, she’d stayed on his mind. Which was only one of many reasons he’d agreed to come to Pike.
At last battling his way through the crowd, Dom managed to reach the small round table. He smiled, barely resisting the urge to push back the stray curl that brushed against her cheek.
They were virtually strangers, but the sensation that he’d known her all his life crashed through him.
“Bailey, this is a nice surprise.” He pitched his tone so it would carry over the noise of the bar, but not so loud the gawkers could overhear his words.
Bailey tilted back her head, her wide brown eyes glowing with a velvet softness. Was she pleased to see him? Damn. He hoped so. She was just as beautiful as he remembered.
Maybe not beautiful in the traditional sense. Her features were delicate, almost fragile, but her mouth was too wide for her thin face, and there were several freckles sprinkled over her cheeks. Still, it all somehow combined to create a vision that had haunted him for months.
“Hello, Dom.” She blinked as the woman across the table loudly cleared her throat. “Oh. This is my friend, Kari Wentz. We work together at the nursing home.”
Dom nodded toward the woman, who appeared to be in her midthirties. “Pleased to meet you, Kari.”
Kari flashed a mysterious smile. “Trust me, the pleasure is all mine.”
“Are you in Pike visiting Kaden?” Bailey asked, giving him the excuse to return his attention to where he wanted it to be.
“Not this time. We swapped places.”
“Swapped places?”
“Kaden is filming a new special for Do or Die.”
Bailey looked surprised. “Really? I thought he’d retired from his reality show?”
“He doesn’t do stunts anymore. Lia would kill him. But he still works on motorcycles. And he has a top-secret client who asked him to restore an antique bike.” Dom shrugged. “The specials always bring in a nice flood of customers to Money Makers.”
“I sometimes forget how famous he is,” Bailey admitted.
“Trust me, Kaden hates to be treated like he’s different,” he assured her. “But since he’s going to be stuck in Vegas for a few weeks and Lia traveled with him to plot an ambitious expansion of Money Makers, they needed someone to house-sit the animals.”
She frowned, as if bothered by his words. “They could have asked me. I would have been happy to help.”
He didn’t doubt her words for a second. He’d watched Bailey during the wedding, constantly moving to assist Lia or the other guests. She was the sort of woman who put the needs of other people before her own.
“I volunteered,” he admitted. “I haven’t had a break in five years. I needed to spend some time away from Vegas.”
“Five years?” She blinked. “You’re definitely overdue for a vacation. But . . .” She glanced around the shabby bar. “Pike?”
“It’s peaceful.”
“Another word for ‘boring.’”
“I’m okay with that.” Dom pulled out the nearest chair to Bailey and took a seat. “Can I buy you a drink?”
It was Kari who answered. “She’ll have a Moss Brothers.”
Dom had partied enough to recognize the name of most cocktails, but that was a new one.
He glanced toward Bailey. “Moss Brothers?”
“It’s a beer from a local microbrewery,” she clarified.
Ah. That made sense. He lifted his arm and motioned toward a woman with hair that she’d bleached to a brittle white. She was darting from table to table with a frazzled expression. He assumed she was a waitress.
As she scurried in their direction, however, he wasn’t so certain. Despite the heavy layer of makeup and the low-cut shirt that revealed her lush curves, she didn’t look old enough to be out of high school. Of course, he’d just hit thirty-five, he wryly reminded himself. Lots of women looked painfully young to him.
Once the waitress reached the table, Dom glanced toward his companions. “Three Moss Brothers?”
“Naw, just two. I need to get home.” Kari abruptly shoved herself to her feet, blowing a kiss in Bailey’s direction. “Enjoy.”
The older woman disappeared through the crowd and Dom turned his attention back to the waitress. “Two Moss Brothers.”
The waitress nodded and hurried away, leaving him alone with Bailey. Or at least as alone as you could be in the middle of a crowded bar.
Angling his chair to the side, he studied Bailey with blatant appreciation.
“It’s good to see you again,” he said. “I was hoping I’d run into a friendly face while I was in Pike.”
She smiled, but her fingers tapped a rapid tattoo on the table. Was she nervous? Dom didn’t know if it was a good or a bad thing. He was going to roll with good.
“You’ll soon discover that you’ll see everyone’s face in Pike. It’s too small to avoid people,” she warned him.
“Sounds cozy.”
She wrinkled her nose. “Sometimes too cozy.”
Dom had spent the past nineteen years living in cities. First Hollywood and now Vegas. Before that, however, he’d moved from one small village to another in France. He understood what it was like living in a place with neighbors who knew everything about everyone.
There was a loud cheer from the back of the room, no doubt in reaction to the football game that was on the large TV near the bar. At the same time, the waitress arrived at their table carrying a tray with two beer bottles.
“Here you go.”
Setting down a beer in front of Dom, the waitress turned toward Bailey even as her gaze remained locked on him in blatant curiosity. Predictably, her distraction led to disaster as she tipped the tray to the side, toppling off the bottle. Bailey managed to grab it before it could shatter, but beer sprayed over the table and into Bailey’s lap. The waitress gasped, her face turning beet red as she grabbed the towel she had tucked in her apron and tried to mop up the mess.
“Sorry, sorry.”
“No worries, Nicole.” Bailey grabbed the towel before the woman could cause more damage and sent her a reassuring smile. “I got this if you want to grab me a new beer.”
“Oh. Okay. Thanks, Bailey.” Nicole rushed away, obviously mortified by her clumsiness.
Dom’s attention remained fixed on Bailey as she calmly wiped up the beer before tossing the towel on the empty seat across the table and pulling a packet of wet wipes out of her purse.
“I can tell you’re a nurse,” he murmured in appreciation.
Bailey had mentioned her job when they’d been toasting marshmallows at the prewedding party. He’d already suspected that she worked in a career that centered on caring for other people.
She sent him a puzzled glance. “Why do you say that?”
“Dealing with a problem without making a fuss.”
She shrugged. “Nicole just started.”
“Not everyone is so forgiving.”
“Accidents happen.” She dabbed at her wet jeans before tucking the wipes back into her purse. Then, settling back in her chair, she sent him a wry smile. “And in her defense, I think she was distracted.”
She was clearly referring to the way the waitress had been staring at him. Dom hid a smile. Good. She’d noticed.
“I suppose a stranger is going to attract attention in Pike.”
“The attention wasn’t because you’re a stranger.” She wrinkled her nose as she glanced down at her damp jeans. “But I am going to have to take a shower when I get home.”
Dom’s interest in Bailey Evans had been stirred from the moment they’d been introduced and intensified during the wedding festivities. Still, he’d known there was a chance he would be disappointed when he returned to Pike. People were usually different at parties than their normal, day-to-day self.
But not Bailey. She was the same genuine, kindhearted woman he remembered.
Determined to spend the next couple of weeks getting to know Bailey better, Dom first needed to make sure that she wasn’t in a relationship. Lia claimed that her friend was single, but she also admitted that she hadn’t had much time to spend with her lately. It was possible that Bailey had started dating someone without Lia knowing.
“I think you mentioned that you live at your grandmother’s house?” he asked.
A cloud passed over the delicate features before she nodded. “Yes, she left it to me when she passed away a few years ago.”
“Alone?”
It wasn’t subtle. But Dom wasn’t subtle. His father was a charming, worthless con artist who wouldn’t know the truth if it bit him on the ass. Dom prized truth above all things.
“All alone.” She paused. “Unless you count Bert and Ernie.”
Dom’s stomach muscles tightened, as if preparing for a blow. “Friends?”
She snorted. “Two oversize black Labs who rule my life.”
He chuckled. “Two? You definitely don’t live alone. I envy you.” His words were sincere. When he’d lived in Hollywood he’d had a couple of stray dogs he’d taken in. They’d been great company, but they’d both been elderly and in rough condition when they’d found their way to his doorstep. He’d only had them a few years. “I’m staying in an RV behind the store. It’s fine for now, since it’s just me. But once I get settled in a real house I’m getting me a dog. I miss having one around.”
Nicole came scurrying back with the fresh bottle of beer, clunking it on the table before hurrying off with a harassed smile.
Bailey grabbed the bottle and lifted it to her lips. Taking a deep sip, she lowered the beer and eyed him with a curious expression.
“Are you out enjoying the local sights?”
He shook his head. “Lia insisted I had to try Bella’s pizza while I was in town.”
“She’s not wrong.”
“They don’t do delivery, so I decided to come in for a quick drink while I wait for my order.” Dom lifted his own bottle and took a deep swig. The cold, malty liquid hit his tongue with a refreshing undertone of citrus. Nice. He sent Bailey an appreciative smile. “Now I’m very glad I did.”
Bailey nodded. “The Moss Brothers brew a good beer.”
Dom leaned forward. “I wasn’t talking about the beer.”
It was no surprise to Bailey when she struggled to sleep. It’d been forever since she’d enjoyed a casual evening out with a guy. And never with a guy who made her feel . . . giddy. That was the only word that captured the breathless, dizzying excitement that bubbled through her like champagne. The last time she’d felt like that she’d been sixteen years old and Billy Roberts had invited her to the Homecoming dance.
Dragging herself out of bed at the shrill sound of her alarm, Bailey stepped into the shower despite the fact she’d washed off the sticky beer last night before going to bed. She needed something to wake her up and she didn’t drink coffee.
Once she was dressed in her scrubs, she pulled her damp hair into a messy knot on top of her head and moved into the kitchen to feed Bert and Ernie. The large dogs barked their approval, dancing circles in the small kitchen until they threatened to knock her down.
The house really was too small for such large dogs, but Bailey was willing to endure a few bruises. She adored the ridiculous duo.
Once she’d finished a quick glass of orange juice and the dogs had wolfed down their breakfast, Bailey opened the front door to send the pair to her next-door neighbor for the day.
In the beginning she’d tried to keep the exuberant beasts in her yard, but Dorinda Lyle was an elderly widow who assured her that she enjoyed having company. And to guarantee they made a mad dash to her house every morning, she kept an abundance of stuffed toys, treats, and beds that were specifically designed for aging dogs. Bailey counted her blessings they could spend the day being spoiled rotten.
Waiting until the beasts were safely tucked inside, Bailey grabbed her keys and headed out of the house. She got to the sidewalk as a sharp breeze cut through her scrubs. Crap. The October air had gone from crisp to cold. Returning to the house, she grabbed a cardigan sweater her grandmother had knitted for her shortly before she died and pulled it on. It was several sizes too large and starting to fray at the cuffs, but she loved it. She headed back out of the house only to spin around and rush back to the kitchen. She’d forgotten her phone.
It was her usual morning routine. Bailey told herself that she wasn’t scatterbrained, she was simply focused on more important things. Scooping the phone from the counter, she glanced at the screen, surprised to see she had a message. It was too early for a casual chat. It had to be something important.
She pulled up the text as she hurried out of the house.
The club is officially open. Ready or not.
Bailey frowned, reading the strange message a dozen times as she walked next to the railroad tracks that ran along the street in front of her house.
“What the hell?” she muttered, her feet carrying her toward the nearby nursing home without her having to pay attention to where she was going.
She’d made the same journey since she’d started working at the home part-time during the summer months. Back then, she’d needed the money to help pay for her nursing school tuition and had every intention of leaving Pike to work at a hospital in a big town. She’d had dreams of her own apartment, tons of friends who loved going out every night, and a big paycheck that offered her a comfortable lifestyle.
But ten years later, she was still making the same old journey, day after day.
Staring at her phone, she tried to make sense of the message. It’d come from an unfamiliar number, so she had no idea who’d sent it. But the fact that it referred to a game had to mean it had something to do with the Murder Club. And the only person who might have her phone number was Eric Criswell.
Was he the one who’d been sending the links to play a private game? Probably. She’d sensed that he’d developed a crush on her since he’d started working at the home. Maybe she shouldn’t be so friendly, she acknowledged with a sigh. Some men took it as an invitation she was interested in a relationship.
Reaching the L-shaped brick building on the edge of town, Bailey headed toward the wide porch that was covered with a low, fading awning th. . .
Okay, there weren’t any nights that bustled, but Mondays were the worst. The stores along Main Street had locked their doors at five o’clock on the dot, and the teenagers who’d gathered to watch football practice at the high school had long ago headed home for dinner. The only things open on Monday night were Bella’s Restaurant, a gas station, and the Bait and Tackle, a small bar squished between the dentist’s office and the laundromat.
The lack of entertainment might explain the bewildering question of why the Bait and Tackle was packed.
It certainly wasn’t the ambience, Bailey Evans wryly acknowledged, pushing aside her empty beer bottle, which floated on a ring of condensation. The narrow bar boasted a handful of tables and booths at the front with a scruffy wooden bar at the back. The paneled walls were covered with old-time tin signs, and the lights were hidden behind shades that had yellowed with age, creating a murky glow.
The bar wasn’t really Bailey’s choice for a night out, but her friend Kari Wentz had insisted that she needed something to lift her dark mood. They both worked at the local nursing home—Bailey as a nurse and Kari a part-time aide—and the older woman insisted that Bailey hadn’t been her usual bubbly self. After two days of nagging, Bailey had given into the inevitable.
It wasn’t like she had anything else to do, right? Ever since her best friend, Lia, had met Kaden Vaughn, a stuntman from Vegas, they rarely had time to hang out. Which was a shame. Lia would never have badgered her into going to the bar. She would have invited Bailey over to her apartment to watch sappy romance movies and eat homemade chocolate chip cookies.
The perfect evening.
“Another round?” Kari asked. The tall, solid woman had chopped her dark hair short after getting married and having kids. She’d also put on several pounds that she was constantly trying to lose by one wacky diet after another. This week was something to do with boiled eggs and spinach. Gross.
“Not for me, thanks,” Bailey declined the offer. “I need to get home.”
“Home?” Kari held up her sturdy arm, waving her wristwatch in front of Bailey’s face. “It’s not even eight o’clock.”
“I have to work tomorrow,” she said.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. You’re always working.”
Bailey shrugged. Her friend wasn’t wrong. “Someone has to pay the bills. And since I wasn’t born with a trust fund and my dogs haven’t hit it big on social media, despite being utterly adorable, that someone is me.”
Kari scrutinized her, starting at the brown hair that was pulled into a loose ponytail and the thin face that was dominated by a pair of brown eyes. Bailey hadn’t bothered to put on makeup, although she did change her usual scrubs for a pair of jeans and a light yellow sweater. That was as fancy as she got.
“Are you sure you’re not still upset about old lady Warren?” Kari pressed, her expression genuinely concerned.
Bailey sighed. She’d been devoted to Nellie Warren. The elderly woman had lived in the nursing home for the past five years and quickly become her favorite. Despite being crippled with arthritis, she had a quirky sense of humor combined with a down to earth common sense that allowed her to age with a unique grace that Bailey could only hope she could emulate.
“I’ll miss Nellie, but I’ve worked at the nursing home long enough to know that the residents have a limited time left in this world,” Bailey told her friend. “Although it was crappy that her son didn’t even bother with a proper funeral. The whole town would have gone to pay their respects, but I heard he had her body burned and tossed her ashes behind his lumberyard.”
“Typical.” Kari clicked her tongue. “That’s what happens when you have a kid when you’re in your forties. And an only child on top of it. The Warrens spoiled Gage rotten. It turned him into a selfish jerk.”
“A shame, but Nellie’s at peace.”
“So if you aren’t upset about Nellie, then what’s going on with you? Oh . . . wait.” Kari grimaced. “Please don’t tell me you’re rushing home to play that stupid murder game?”
A shiver raced through Bailey and she was suddenly glad she was surrounded by a bar full of neighbors. She’d impulsively accepted an invitation to join the Murder Club when she was sitting home last New Year’s Eve. She was bored and feeling sorry for herself and in dire need of a distraction.
At first she’d been enthralled by the thrill of searching through cold unsolved cases and trying to figure out whodunit. She might not be a detective, but her cousin was the local sheriff, and God knew they’d had enough murders in Pike to make every citizen a homicide expert. And honestly, she thought she was good at spotting clues that other people overlooked.
“No, I’m done with that. I closed my account last week.”
“I’m glad.” Kari lifted her beer in a small toast. “It’s creepy.”
“It was a way to pass the time,” Bailey argued. “Plus, the people I met in the chat room were interesting.”
“You mean people like Eric Criswell?”
Bailey pretended she didn’t notice Kari’s derisive tone. Eric was a fellow aide at the nursing home, but he didn’t mix easily with the rest of the staff. He was shy and awkward and routinely disappeared to play games on his phone. Most of the locals considered him an oddball, but Bailey felt sorry for the poor guy.
“He invited me to join, but that’s the only reason I knew he was part of the club. Everyone preferred to remain anonymous, and honestly, that’s what made it fun. You didn’t have any expectations or any pressure to try to impress anyone. I could just be myself.” Bailey shook her head. “But you’re right. It went from fun to creepy over the past few weeks.”
“What happened?”
“I started getting weird messages from the chat room telling me that I’d been chosen to play in a private murder club with a mysterious admirer.” She wrinkled her nose. “I tried to ignore them, but whoever it was remained persistent. They sent me invitations and links several times a day. In the end, I just wanted to be out of it.”
“That means you have nothing but time on your hands.” Kari paused, her brows lifting. “You know what you need?”
“A million dollars and an endless supply of doughnuts?”
“A man.”
Bailey rolled her eyes. How many times had she heard that precise phrase over the past five years? She’d just celebrated her twenty-eighth birthday, but the entire town was convinced she couldn’t be happy without a husband and a gaggle of children.
“It’s not the eighteen hundreds. I’m doing just fine without a man.”
“Aren’t you lonely?”
Ouch. Bailey flinched. It was a direct shot where she was most vulnerable.
“Sometimes,” she grudgingly admitted.
Kari scanned the crowded room, as if hoping a suitable man might magically be drinking beer at a nearby table. Surprise, surprise, she came up empty. Still, her stubborn expression warned that she wasn’t going to be deterred. Bailey grimaced. She knew what came next. Kari wasn’t the first friend to try to get her hooked up.
“Why don’t you try one of those online dating sites?” she demanded.
“Are you kidding? Absolutely not.”
“Why? My aunt just married a man she met online.”
“Your aunt has been married five times.”
“She’s not lonely.”
Bailey laughed. “Thanks but no thanks.”
“Fine.” Kari pursed her lips, mentally searching for another way to torment her friend. “Then let me give you the number of my cousin in Grange. Not that he’s husband material. I’m not sure how he makes his money, although I suspect it’s not entirely legal. But he’s been out of jail for over a year and . . .” The horrifying words thankfully dribbled away as something or someone behind Bailey captured the older woman’s attention. “Oh. Hello.”
“What?” Bailey started to turn her head only to freeze when Kari reached out to grasp her hand.
“No. Don’t look.”
“What is it?”
“A dream,” the woman breathed.
“I think you’ve had too much to drink.” Bailey tugged her hand free and turned to see who was causing her friend to act so weird.
Immediately she located the source of her enchantment. He was taller than most men in the bar, well over six feet and broad through the shoulders. His hair was cut short, but it glistened like gold in the dim light and his eyes were dark. Not dark like Bailey’s brown eyes. But the deepest midnight. Or pools of ebony.
He was wearing a flannel shirt to combat the crisp October air and a pair of jeans that clung to his long, muscular legs. He looked at home in the small bar, unless you took into account his deep tan.
Oh, and the fact that he was heart-stopping, mouth-watering, drop-dead gorgeous.
“You’re not dreaming,” she murmured, her heart skidding until it crashed against her ribs.
“Right? He must be lost. No man looking like that ever comes to Pike.” Kari paused before correcting herself. “Not unless it’s Kaden Vaughn.”
After nearly a year of living in Pike, Kaden Vaughn was still considered an exotic intruder. With his long hair, tattoos, and love of fast cars, he would always be different from the locals.
“You’re not wrong,” she told Kari. “It’s Dom Lucier. He’s a friend of Kaden.”
“You know him?”
Bailey’s gaze never wavered from Dom’s face. It was stunningly familiar despite the fact that it’d been several months since she’d last seen him. As if she’d spent the short time they were together memorizing each feature.
The thought was oddly disturbing.
“We met at the wedding,” she explained.
“You mean the super-secret wedding no one was invited to?”
It had been a source of unending annoyance to the citizens of Pike that Lia and Kaden had chosen a small, private ceremony on the land they’d recently purchased outside of town. They’d been expecting a lavish Hollywood blowout that would bring in celebrities rushing to the area.
Instead there were less than twenty people invited. Including Bailey as the maid of honor and Dom Lucier as the best man. The only outsiders were a cluster of paparazzi who had obnoxiously jam-packed the road leading to Kaden’s property.
“That’s the one.”
Kari clicked her tongue. “No wonder Lia didn’t want to share.”
“Lia wouldn’t notice another man besides Kaden if he stripped naked in front of her.”
“Darling, if that man stripped in front of me, I’d not only notice, I’d go up in flames,” Kari admitted.
“What about Martin?” Bailey teased, reminding Kari of her husband, who was currently at home with their kids.
“Martin who? Oh, heavens.” Kari released a nervous giggle. “He’s coming this way. Be still my heart.”
Bailey wasn’t worried about her skidding, crashing heart as she met the midnight gaze that locked onto her from across the crowded room. She was far more concerned she might faint as the air was ruthlessly squeezed from her lungs. Kari was right. He was weaving his way through the tables.
Directly toward her.
Dom Lucier barely noticed the throng of people who were stuffed in the narrow space. Not even when they stopped in unison to watch him walk toward the woman who’d lured him into the bar.
He’d been leaning against the building across the street, impatiently waiting for his dinner, when his gaze was captured by the sign painted on the front window. THE BAIT AND TACKLE. He assumed it was some sort of store to buy fishing equipment until he realized the place was filled with customers who were waving around beer bottles. He’d been about to turn away when he caught sight of a familiar face.
Bailey Evans.
Without hesitation, Dom had shoved himself away from the building and hurried across the street. He’d had every intention of looking up Bailey when he arrived in Pike. Not only because she was one of the few people he knew in town but because he hadn’t been able to get her out of his thoughts since returning to Vegas.
He’d spent the weekend of Kaden’s wedding performing all the traditional best man duties. Thankfully, that included spending time with the maid of honor. First there’d been the combined bachelor and bachelorette party that had been a casual BBQ at Kaden’s home. The fact that the sprawling house was still in the process of being built hadn’t detracted from the fun of playing yard games and toasting hot dogs and marshmallows over the bonfire.
Then there’d been the wedding rehearsal and dinner, and the actual ceremony, followed by a reception. And through it all Bailey had been at his side.
Warm and charming and completely at ease with herself.
When she was nearby Dom hadn’t felt like an outsider. She’d been so welcoming that he’d instantly felt like he was home.
And even after he’d returned to Vegas to run Money Makers, the pawnshop and restoration garage he owned with Kaden, she’d stayed on his mind. Which was only one of many reasons he’d agreed to come to Pike.
At last battling his way through the crowd, Dom managed to reach the small round table. He smiled, barely resisting the urge to push back the stray curl that brushed against her cheek.
They were virtually strangers, but the sensation that he’d known her all his life crashed through him.
“Bailey, this is a nice surprise.” He pitched his tone so it would carry over the noise of the bar, but not so loud the gawkers could overhear his words.
Bailey tilted back her head, her wide brown eyes glowing with a velvet softness. Was she pleased to see him? Damn. He hoped so. She was just as beautiful as he remembered.
Maybe not beautiful in the traditional sense. Her features were delicate, almost fragile, but her mouth was too wide for her thin face, and there were several freckles sprinkled over her cheeks. Still, it all somehow combined to create a vision that had haunted him for months.
“Hello, Dom.” She blinked as the woman across the table loudly cleared her throat. “Oh. This is my friend, Kari Wentz. We work together at the nursing home.”
Dom nodded toward the woman, who appeared to be in her midthirties. “Pleased to meet you, Kari.”
Kari flashed a mysterious smile. “Trust me, the pleasure is all mine.”
“Are you in Pike visiting Kaden?” Bailey asked, giving him the excuse to return his attention to where he wanted it to be.
“Not this time. We swapped places.”
“Swapped places?”
“Kaden is filming a new special for Do or Die.”
Bailey looked surprised. “Really? I thought he’d retired from his reality show?”
“He doesn’t do stunts anymore. Lia would kill him. But he still works on motorcycles. And he has a top-secret client who asked him to restore an antique bike.” Dom shrugged. “The specials always bring in a nice flood of customers to Money Makers.”
“I sometimes forget how famous he is,” Bailey admitted.
“Trust me, Kaden hates to be treated like he’s different,” he assured her. “But since he’s going to be stuck in Vegas for a few weeks and Lia traveled with him to plot an ambitious expansion of Money Makers, they needed someone to house-sit the animals.”
She frowned, as if bothered by his words. “They could have asked me. I would have been happy to help.”
He didn’t doubt her words for a second. He’d watched Bailey during the wedding, constantly moving to assist Lia or the other guests. She was the sort of woman who put the needs of other people before her own.
“I volunteered,” he admitted. “I haven’t had a break in five years. I needed to spend some time away from Vegas.”
“Five years?” She blinked. “You’re definitely overdue for a vacation. But . . .” She glanced around the shabby bar. “Pike?”
“It’s peaceful.”
“Another word for ‘boring.’”
“I’m okay with that.” Dom pulled out the nearest chair to Bailey and took a seat. “Can I buy you a drink?”
It was Kari who answered. “She’ll have a Moss Brothers.”
Dom had partied enough to recognize the name of most cocktails, but that was a new one.
He glanced toward Bailey. “Moss Brothers?”
“It’s a beer from a local microbrewery,” she clarified.
Ah. That made sense. He lifted his arm and motioned toward a woman with hair that she’d bleached to a brittle white. She was darting from table to table with a frazzled expression. He assumed she was a waitress.
As she scurried in their direction, however, he wasn’t so certain. Despite the heavy layer of makeup and the low-cut shirt that revealed her lush curves, she didn’t look old enough to be out of high school. Of course, he’d just hit thirty-five, he wryly reminded himself. Lots of women looked painfully young to him.
Once the waitress reached the table, Dom glanced toward his companions. “Three Moss Brothers?”
“Naw, just two. I need to get home.” Kari abruptly shoved herself to her feet, blowing a kiss in Bailey’s direction. “Enjoy.”
The older woman disappeared through the crowd and Dom turned his attention back to the waitress. “Two Moss Brothers.”
The waitress nodded and hurried away, leaving him alone with Bailey. Or at least as alone as you could be in the middle of a crowded bar.
Angling his chair to the side, he studied Bailey with blatant appreciation.
“It’s good to see you again,” he said. “I was hoping I’d run into a friendly face while I was in Pike.”
She smiled, but her fingers tapped a rapid tattoo on the table. Was she nervous? Dom didn’t know if it was a good or a bad thing. He was going to roll with good.
“You’ll soon discover that you’ll see everyone’s face in Pike. It’s too small to avoid people,” she warned him.
“Sounds cozy.”
She wrinkled her nose. “Sometimes too cozy.”
Dom had spent the past nineteen years living in cities. First Hollywood and now Vegas. Before that, however, he’d moved from one small village to another in France. He understood what it was like living in a place with neighbors who knew everything about everyone.
There was a loud cheer from the back of the room, no doubt in reaction to the football game that was on the large TV near the bar. At the same time, the waitress arrived at their table carrying a tray with two beer bottles.
“Here you go.”
Setting down a beer in front of Dom, the waitress turned toward Bailey even as her gaze remained locked on him in blatant curiosity. Predictably, her distraction led to disaster as she tipped the tray to the side, toppling off the bottle. Bailey managed to grab it before it could shatter, but beer sprayed over the table and into Bailey’s lap. The waitress gasped, her face turning beet red as she grabbed the towel she had tucked in her apron and tried to mop up the mess.
“Sorry, sorry.”
“No worries, Nicole.” Bailey grabbed the towel before the woman could cause more damage and sent her a reassuring smile. “I got this if you want to grab me a new beer.”
“Oh. Okay. Thanks, Bailey.” Nicole rushed away, obviously mortified by her clumsiness.
Dom’s attention remained fixed on Bailey as she calmly wiped up the beer before tossing the towel on the empty seat across the table and pulling a packet of wet wipes out of her purse.
“I can tell you’re a nurse,” he murmured in appreciation.
Bailey had mentioned her job when they’d been toasting marshmallows at the prewedding party. He’d already suspected that she worked in a career that centered on caring for other people.
She sent him a puzzled glance. “Why do you say that?”
“Dealing with a problem without making a fuss.”
She shrugged. “Nicole just started.”
“Not everyone is so forgiving.”
“Accidents happen.” She dabbed at her wet jeans before tucking the wipes back into her purse. Then, settling back in her chair, she sent him a wry smile. “And in her defense, I think she was distracted.”
She was clearly referring to the way the waitress had been staring at him. Dom hid a smile. Good. She’d noticed.
“I suppose a stranger is going to attract attention in Pike.”
“The attention wasn’t because you’re a stranger.” She wrinkled her nose as she glanced down at her damp jeans. “But I am going to have to take a shower when I get home.”
Dom’s interest in Bailey Evans had been stirred from the moment they’d been introduced and intensified during the wedding festivities. Still, he’d known there was a chance he would be disappointed when he returned to Pike. People were usually different at parties than their normal, day-to-day self.
But not Bailey. She was the same genuine, kindhearted woman he remembered.
Determined to spend the next couple of weeks getting to know Bailey better, Dom first needed to make sure that she wasn’t in a relationship. Lia claimed that her friend was single, but she also admitted that she hadn’t had much time to spend with her lately. It was possible that Bailey had started dating someone without Lia knowing.
“I think you mentioned that you live at your grandmother’s house?” he asked.
A cloud passed over the delicate features before she nodded. “Yes, she left it to me when she passed away a few years ago.”
“Alone?”
It wasn’t subtle. But Dom wasn’t subtle. His father was a charming, worthless con artist who wouldn’t know the truth if it bit him on the ass. Dom prized truth above all things.
“All alone.” She paused. “Unless you count Bert and Ernie.”
Dom’s stomach muscles tightened, as if preparing for a blow. “Friends?”
She snorted. “Two oversize black Labs who rule my life.”
He chuckled. “Two? You definitely don’t live alone. I envy you.” His words were sincere. When he’d lived in Hollywood he’d had a couple of stray dogs he’d taken in. They’d been great company, but they’d both been elderly and in rough condition when they’d found their way to his doorstep. He’d only had them a few years. “I’m staying in an RV behind the store. It’s fine for now, since it’s just me. But once I get settled in a real house I’m getting me a dog. I miss having one around.”
Nicole came scurrying back with the fresh bottle of beer, clunking it on the table before hurrying off with a harassed smile.
Bailey grabbed the bottle and lifted it to her lips. Taking a deep sip, she lowered the beer and eyed him with a curious expression.
“Are you out enjoying the local sights?”
He shook his head. “Lia insisted I had to try Bella’s pizza while I was in town.”
“She’s not wrong.”
“They don’t do delivery, so I decided to come in for a quick drink while I wait for my order.” Dom lifted his own bottle and took a deep swig. The cold, malty liquid hit his tongue with a refreshing undertone of citrus. Nice. He sent Bailey an appreciative smile. “Now I’m very glad I did.”
Bailey nodded. “The Moss Brothers brew a good beer.”
Dom leaned forward. “I wasn’t talking about the beer.”
It was no surprise to Bailey when she struggled to sleep. It’d been forever since she’d enjoyed a casual evening out with a guy. And never with a guy who made her feel . . . giddy. That was the only word that captured the breathless, dizzying excitement that bubbled through her like champagne. The last time she’d felt like that she’d been sixteen years old and Billy Roberts had invited her to the Homecoming dance.
Dragging herself out of bed at the shrill sound of her alarm, Bailey stepped into the shower despite the fact she’d washed off the sticky beer last night before going to bed. She needed something to wake her up and she didn’t drink coffee.
Once she was dressed in her scrubs, she pulled her damp hair into a messy knot on top of her head and moved into the kitchen to feed Bert and Ernie. The large dogs barked their approval, dancing circles in the small kitchen until they threatened to knock her down.
The house really was too small for such large dogs, but Bailey was willing to endure a few bruises. She adored the ridiculous duo.
Once she’d finished a quick glass of orange juice and the dogs had wolfed down their breakfast, Bailey opened the front door to send the pair to her next-door neighbor for the day.
In the beginning she’d tried to keep the exuberant beasts in her yard, but Dorinda Lyle was an elderly widow who assured her that she enjoyed having company. And to guarantee they made a mad dash to her house every morning, she kept an abundance of stuffed toys, treats, and beds that were specifically designed for aging dogs. Bailey counted her blessings they could spend the day being spoiled rotten.
Waiting until the beasts were safely tucked inside, Bailey grabbed her keys and headed out of the house. She got to the sidewalk as a sharp breeze cut through her scrubs. Crap. The October air had gone from crisp to cold. Returning to the house, she grabbed a cardigan sweater her grandmother had knitted for her shortly before she died and pulled it on. It was several sizes too large and starting to fray at the cuffs, but she loved it. She headed back out of the house only to spin around and rush back to the kitchen. She’d forgotten her phone.
It was her usual morning routine. Bailey told herself that she wasn’t scatterbrained, she was simply focused on more important things. Scooping the phone from the counter, she glanced at the screen, surprised to see she had a message. It was too early for a casual chat. It had to be something important.
She pulled up the text as she hurried out of the house.
The club is officially open. Ready or not.
Bailey frowned, reading the strange message a dozen times as she walked next to the railroad tracks that ran along the street in front of her house.
“What the hell?” she muttered, her feet carrying her toward the nearby nursing home without her having to pay attention to where she was going.
She’d made the same journey since she’d started working at the home part-time during the summer months. Back then, she’d needed the money to help pay for her nursing school tuition and had every intention of leaving Pike to work at a hospital in a big town. She’d had dreams of her own apartment, tons of friends who loved going out every night, and a big paycheck that offered her a comfortable lifestyle.
But ten years later, she was still making the same old journey, day after day.
Staring at her phone, she tried to make sense of the message. It’d come from an unfamiliar number, so she had no idea who’d sent it. But the fact that it referred to a game had to mean it had something to do with the Murder Club. And the only person who might have her phone number was Eric Criswell.
Was he the one who’d been sending the links to play a private game? Probably. She’d sensed that he’d developed a crush on her since he’d started working at the home. Maybe she shouldn’t be so friendly, she acknowledged with a sigh. Some men took it as an invitation she was interested in a relationship.
Reaching the L-shaped brick building on the edge of town, Bailey headed toward the wide porch that was covered with a low, fading awning th. . .
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