Karen Whiddon - Colton's Christmas Cop

She shrugged. “I hired him and his performance has been...subpar. I’ve been doing quite a bit of documentation. As a matter of fact, next week I’d planned to place him on warning.”

“Would that affect his bonus?”

“Yes.” She frowned. “Do you think that’s why he’s doing this?”

“Anything is possible.” Again he studied her. Though she couldn’t read his expression, she thought she saw compassion in his gaze.

“It just seems a bit...excessive. This is business, nothing more. It’s not personal, but he’s making it that way.” She swallowed hard. “To be honest, I don’t think he has the technical skills to pull off something like this. Fake texts, an old video that he would have had to hack and doctor... There’s no way.”

“Interesting. Maybe he had a partner. Who else would have reason to want to ruin your life besides him?”

At first, the turn of phrase stunned her. But then she realized Hunter was right. This did feel like an attempt to absolutely ruin her life. “I don’t know,” she finally admitted. “I’m pretty focused on my job. I don’t have much of a social life.”

“What about enemies inside the company? Surely someone in your position has to have made a few.”

She shrugged, refusing to allow herself to feel embarrassed. “If I have enemies, I don’t know about them. Again, I tend to concentrate on work. I deal with the employees in a professional, businesslike manner. No one should have any reason at all to be antagonistic toward me.”

“Unless they’re wanting warm and fuzzy,” he said with a wry smile.

Straightening her spine, she eyed him. “I’m their employer, not their mother or friend. I learned the hard way there are some lines that should never be crossed.”

“Intriguing.” Clearly, he was waiting to hear more.

But she’d already said more than enough.

When it became apparent she wasn’t going to elaborate, he sighed. “What about your upcoming wedding? Is there anyone who might want to stop you from marrying Hamlin Harrington?”

His question made her laugh, though quietly. “Well, I did once overhear Hamlin’s son Devlin arguing with his father about marrying me. He seemed to think I wanted to wrest control of Harrington Inc., and destroy his entire future.”

Hunter didn’t blink. “And would you?”

“Of course not. I have enough responsibilities with my own company. Why on earth anyone would think I’d want to take on another is beyond me.”

“I see.” Still, he watched her closely. “How did Hamlin respond to his son’s accusations?”

“He brushed them aside, exactly as I would have done.” She allowed herself a slight smile. “He said I was gold.”

“Gold,” Hunter repeated. “As in a commodity rather than a person.”

“Or,” she interjected, refusing to frown, “something precious. I prefer to think of it that way.”

One corner of his sensual mouth quirked. “All right. I’ll keep looking into this.”

“Thank you.” As he turned to go, she grabbed his arm. “I really appreciate your help. This came out of left field and I’m still a bit shell-shocked.”

He looked from her to her hand on his arm. “No promises, Layla Colton. I’m not on anyone’s side. All I care about is finding out the truth. Here.” He dug in his pocket and extracted a business card, which he handed her. “If you think of anything else that might help, give me a call.”

Accepting, she slipped the card into her purse and thanked him.

Once more, he flashed a quick smile. “You’re welcome.” With that, he whistled to his dog. Ears cocked, Goose immediately went to Hunter’s left side. Even though he held the leash loosely, the basset stayed smartly in the heeling position as they went through the door and out into the parking lot.

Once they’d disappeared from view, Layla turned to head back upstairs. Right now, she felt like she couldn’t trust anyone. She wasn’t even sure she trusted Hunter. When he’d quit Colton Energy, he’d made no secret of how he felt about the company and what he’d called their greedy ways. He’d claimed the demands they placed on their staff came with a high emotional cost.

Interesting that Hunter had asked her if she had any enemies. It wasn’t until he’d gone that she’d realized she might actually consider him one.

Driving back to the station after leaving Colton Energy, Hunter considered the new information Layla had given him. While her wedding to Hamlin Harrington might be on hold—along with everyone else’s in town—the fact that a large sum of cash was involved was definitely news. If Fenwick Colton needed the money as badly as Layla claimed, he must be extremely riled up that this Groom Killer had halted the wedding.

Everyone on the police force, as well as most of the citizens of Red Ridge, had their own opinions about who might be the Groom Killer. Hunter also had his personal number one suspect, though he’d yet to voice his suspicions out loud. Maybe the time had come to do exactly that. What Layla had revealed provided yet another possible motive for Devlin Harrington to want all weddings stopped. Even if Devlin didn’t fit the profile 100 percent, Hunter still felt certain he had a strong motive.

Unfortunately, Hunter knew he might be the only one who suspected Devlin. Most cops instinctively trusted the criminal profile they’d been given by the professionals.

As well they should. Last month, RRPD officer West Brand had finished working on the profile of the killer. A ex-FBI agent who’d been undercover on the force until recently, West, along with his former colleagues at the bureau, had developed the profile, which indicated that the Groom Killer was male, white and single. Probably middle to upper class. Stocky build, not particularly attractive and a loner.

Unfortunately, there were a lot of men in Red Ridge who fit that profile. Devlin Harrington wasn’t one of them. Sure, he was male, white and single, and definitely upper class. And yes, he still lived in one of his father’s mansions. But there the similarities ended. Tall, muscular and golden, Devlin surrounded himself with his admirers. Everyone wanted to be with him, probably due to his money and his good looks, as Hunter knew without a doubt it wasn’t his personality.

Pompous, arrogant and sneering, Devlin looked down his aristocratic nose at those he considered beneath him. Which seemed to be just about everyone who wasn’t in his inner circle. Hunter himself had had several run-ins with the guy and personally couldn’t stand him. Which was yet another reason he’d kept his suspicions about Devlin to himself.

After all, there already was an official suspect—Demi Colton’s name had been spelled out in blood next to the first victim. That man, Bo Gage, had been her fiancé before he’d broken up with her in order to propose to another woman. It hadn’t helped that Bo and the Gage family had long been feuding with the Coltons. But the investigation had had unexpected results: Gages and Coltons falling in love. Bo Gage’s brother Detective Carson Gage had fallen for Serena Colton, whom he’d suspected of harboring Demi early on in the case. Now, a few other Coltons and Gages were keeping their romances on the down low until it was safe to announce their engagements. But some on the force still believed Demi could be the guilty party. She’d fled town. There was circumstantial evidence. There were witnesses.

And Layla’s father, Mayor Fenwick Colton, wanted Demi Colton brought to swift and immediate justice, maybe more than anyone—so that Layla could marry Hamlin for his money.

Hunter had long doubted Demi’s guilt, and he didn’t blame her for going on the run. His gut told him she was being framed.