The Kiss

"IS he always like that?", Josh asked Madisyn. They had gone round the whole town, and now they knew most of the people, the important ones, and how they lived their lives.

They ended back at the pub where they met last night and Ian was chatting animatedly with Rohan, the pub owner, who happened to be the sheriff's cousin.

Josh had told them that both Robin and Rohan didn't get along after Robin's wife had left. Ian seemed interested in this and for the first time since they started the trip, he left them alone.

"Chatty? He tends to act like that most times. He can be fun too.", she said.

"I was going to say interrupting.", he said and she chuckled. "What? I mean this is the first time he's left us alone since we started.", Josh said, masking his frustration.

"He can be like that. It's like his intuition.", he said and Josh just gave her a confused look.

"Make me understand how.", Josh said.

"Well, he's just being cautious. There was a murder here and anyone could be the killer. The person could be hiding in plain sight or could have left but either ways, we have a duty to find them.", she explained.

"He can be scary sometimes.", Josh said and she knew he was referring to Ian. So she rolled her eyes.

"Don't mind him so much.", she said.

"He makes it feel like we're on a date but your overprotective father decided to tag along.", Josh laughed but she just smiled, one that didn't reach her eyes.

"Don't worry, that can't happen, because I don't have a dad.", he said and he gave her a look. Pity, maybe.

"It's cool though. I never knew him so...", she paused. "He left my mum when she was pregnant with me. Later, my mum got married to a man with two daughters. They were bitches but I lived. They always said I didn't behave like a girl and I was tomboyish 'cause I didn't really have boyfriends.", she said.

"That must have suck.", he said. "How did they take the news about you becoming a detective?", he asked and she chuckled.

"Oh, they didn't take it well at all. They wanted me to do something more feminine, but it's what I wanted to do so they couldn't stop me.", she said.

"You sound stubborn.", he smiled and she did too.

"Oh I can be.", she said and they both laughed.

"Why didn't you tell me Sarah was your girlfriend?", she asked after a while and he looked at her.

"He told you right.", he said instead.

"Well yeah. I'm not mad though.", she said and waited for his reply.

"I was at the pub so I could forget. I had been in my house since the incident but my mum said I should go out. So I did.", he said.

Madisyn felt pity for him but she didn't want to show it. She knew some people didn't like pity from others and he could be one of them. She placed her hands on his and he looked at her. She gave him a comforting smile.

"Is there anyone you can think of? Even if it's some baseless suspicion, you could be right. We've had cases like that.", she said.

He thought for a while before he spoke.

"There's Sidney.", he started.

The principal whose necklace was found at the crime scene, interesting. She thought.

"There was a time Sarah embarrassed her at her school. Sarah used to drop off Betty, Robin's daughter (Madisyn nodded) at school. She found out Betty was being bullied so she kinda scolded Sidney publicly and you know how school kids can be shitty.", he said.

"Tell me about it."

"We were once there weren't we.", he joked and they both laughed.

"But then Sarah realised it was a bit over the top so she went to apologise, and when Sidney didn't accept she kept bothering her. She said she would forcibly be nice.", Josh laughed a little.

"She also had a similar issue with Gwendolyn.", he said.

"Gwendolyn, the uh...",

"Owner of the register."

"Oh yeah. I'm still new to this.", she said. "But what was it about?", she asked.

"When we started dating, she had put stuff in the paper and made Sarah look bad or you can say desperate."

"Desperate?", she asked.

"Yeah. So about a week before she was murdered, she had an intense argument with Gwendolyn.", Josh said.

"What was it about?", Madisyn asked.

"I don't know, I wasn't there and she didn't want to tell me about it. Though her friends might know why.", he said.

"Any other person?", Madisyn asked.

"Um. No, I don't think... Oh wait. Irene.", he said, saying her name with disgust.

"Irene.", she said mimicking his tone. "Who is she?", Madisyn asked.

"She's a slut. She's the wife of my... the mayor's advisor.", he said.

"Oh. Why her?", she asked.

"Because if there's anyone Sarah hated it was Irene, and the feeling was mutual.", Josh said and at this, she got more interested.

"Sarah hardly hated anyone. It was her nature to be kind and loving. So when she told me about Irene I didn't believe her. Though, they rarely met so we hardly discussed it. I don't even know if her friends knew.", he said.

"Hmm. What was the issue?", she asked.

"Everyone knows Irene cheats on her husband, and publicly. But when Sarah heard of this she reprimanded Irene. Irene didn't like this but continued. So one day, while I was with her. She told me that she knew why Irene was cheating on her husband and so she said she would tell Irene to stop and if she didn't, she would tell everyone.", he said and Madisyn gave him a puzzled look.

"So did she tell Irene what she knew", she asked.

"That's the thing, the day after she went to tell Irene. She discarded it, she never told me what it was or even if she confronted Irene.",

"Wow. That's something. But you have nothing to back that up.", she said and he shook his head. They were silent for a while.

"You know what, let's talk about something else.", he started.

"Hmm. Okay.", she said setting aside her detective side. "Tell me something about you. And not just the usual, I like this or I don't like that. I want to know something tangible.", she said and he smiled.

From the bar table, Ian watched them when his conversation with Rohan had died down. Rohan noticed the way he looked at her.

"Is she your girlfriend?", he asked.

"Huh?"

"The redhead you came in with?"

"What, no. She's my partner in crime more like my partner in solving crime.", he chuckled but Rohan didn't say anything.

"Plus, she doesn't have boyfriends. She's had like how many, three, two, one.", he said and shrugged.

"Why's that?", Rohan asked.

"Don't know. She says she's picky, something about boyfriend material.", Ian said.

"Or she's waiting for the right guy to notice her.", Rohan said and Ian looked at him.

"What do you mean?", he asked.

"She seems interested in you. I don't know if it's obvious but I sure noticed it. And I know you also do. Maybe, you're just realising or you haven't yet.", Rohan said simply, like he was talking about serving beer.

"I've worked in this bar for a long time. I'm very experienced in noticing people.",

Madisyn interested in me?!, Ian thought.

He looked at her. Josh was talking to someone who was passing by so at that moment she turned and locked eyes with Ian. But before he could deduce anything from her look, she turned to Josh who was smiling at her.

"Have you asked her?", Rohan said.

"No.", he said sounding like it was something he never thought of doing.

"Maybe you should.", Rohan said.

He faced his drink and immediately gulped it down and ordered another one.

"Should I be worried?", Rohan asked.

"No she's driving.", he said.

So even if Madisyn didn't want to drive, she had to. Because at first Josh offered to drive her home but once she saw that Ian was drunk she declined and instead had to drive Ian home.

By the time they reached he was asleep. She tapped him to wake up.

"Are we back already.", he slurred.

"Yeah, now c'mon.", she said and helped him out of the car. They walked to the motel with his arm over her shoulder, using her as support.

"You had a fun time with Josh right.", he said and she smiled remembering all they had talked about.

"Yeah. He's nice and easygoing. He's a good conversationalist.", she said as they neared his room that was beside hers. She checked his pockets and brought out his keys.

"Why are you smiling like that?", he asked as she was unlocking the door, him resting on it.

"How?",

"The way you smile when you talk to me.", he said.

She rolled her eyes and opened the door, causing him to stumble into it.

"You're drunk and you're saying silly things. Plus you won't remember what you do now by tomorrow.", she said and dropped the key and faced him.

"Oh really. Then remind me about this.", he said and before she could ask what he meant, he grabbed her wrist and sharply pulled her towards him making her hands flatten on his chest and then he kissed her.

She was shocked at first by the action of his soft lips on hers but slowly, she kissed him back. Her hands bunched up his shirt and she pulled him closer deepening the kiss.

One of his hands cupped her cheek and the other circled her waist pulling her closer to leave no space in between. Her hand went up and tugged at his hair as his lips left hers and went to her neck.

The sound of her moan brought her senses back and she immediately pulled back. He was drunk, this wasn't right.

He gave her a confused look. He wanted to say something when she turned away and left.

》》》》》

Pablo decided to meet up with Lisa. They were both free on Thursday afternoon. Raven said she was tutoring someone and Miles had to work.

They were both seated at their regular booth when Ana came to take their orders.

"Would you take your drinks now or are you waiting for the others.", she said referring to Miles and Raven.

"You can bring it now.", Lisa said and Ana left. Not long after she came back.

"Aren't the others coming?", she asked as she dropped their drinks.

"No, they aren't.", Pablo said.

"Hmm. So it's just both of you then. Okay.", she said and gave Pablo a questioning look, but that just made him confused.

"Okay, she's weird.", Pablo said after she left.

"C'mon, she's not. Miles is her friend and so was Sarah.", Lisa said.

"Yeah and so.", he said sipping his drink.

She looked at him as he sipped on it, he had always been doing so since he was a little boy. He would rather sip than just drink. She chuckled and he looked at her.

"What?", he asked.

"Must you sip on your drink?", she asked.

"Well yeah. I get to savour it that way.", he said.

"Savour? It's a drink, not a food.", she said and laughed.

"First you didn't like my music style now it's my drinking style.", he huffed.

"I'm not complaining.", she laughed. "Anyways it's kinda cute.", she said and he just shook his head.

"Girls and the word cute. How can a man be cute?", he asked rhetorically and she laughed.

"I don't think a man would constantly sip on his drink. So if it's a beer, what, you'll sip on it too, like it's some tea.", she said and laughed.

"Yeah yeah, whatever.", he said. "Anyways you said you wanted to tell me something.", he said.

"Oh yeah. Did you know Miles was sleeping with Irene?", Lisa whispered and Pablo spat his drink back into his cup. He looked at it with disgust and set it aside before his eyes widened back at Lisa. He was not expecting that of all things.

"Say what now?"

"His uncle had punched him because he walked in on them together.", she said.

"But isn't she, his aunt?", he asked still shocked and Lisa nodded.

"Wow, I didn't know about that. I mean, sheesh!", he said and ran a hand through his hair and Lisa looked at him. She liked it whenever he did that. But she couldn't tell him that. He was her best friend how would he take that?

"Wow. That's something.", he paused. "Okay I'm not supposed to tell you this.", he said and discreetly checked if anyone was listening. He caught Sandra a table away, he gave her a stern look but she returned it with a smile.

He turned back.

"Sandra is not so far from here.", he said to Lisa.

"Urgh. Is that what you wanted to tell me?", she asked.

"No I..."

I would ask of you to please keep what you saw between the three of us, that's including Gwendolyn. My wife can't know about this, Carter's words echoed in his head.

"What did you want to tell me?", she asked. But he decided not to and instead said something else. Something that was also on his mind ever since they got to know of the items found at Sarah's house.

"I think it's time we check Sarah's house."

When you saw the title of this chapter which of these pairs did you expect?

Josh and Madisyn

Ian and Madisyn

Pablo and Lisa

Be honest ;)

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SJ💝