Free A Lover's Vow by Brenda Jackson Page B

won’t let up until Dad gives the word. I was followed to work this morning.”
    â€œSo were we,” Jace said, “so stop whining. We need to let Dad work this out for himself. But regardless, we will reopen the case, and I think he knows it. He’s worried, and he has every right to be. Let’s give him the rest of the day, and if we don’t hear from him by then, we’ll go to Delvers tomorrow.”
    Both Dalton and Caden nodded their agreement.
    * * *
    â€œWell, I must say, Jules, it sounds like you and Shana had a very interesting night,” Ben Bradford said, leaning back in his chair at the kitchen table.
    Jules had just finished telling him everything, including the fact that for the past month Sheppard Granger had assigned bodyguards to protect his sons. The ex-cop in Ben thought the three guys were pretty good if they’d gone undetected until now. And he wasn’t surprised it had been Jules who’d figured out Dalton was being followed. He knew she was good at what she did.
    â€œYou should have seen Shana’s face when Quasar admitted to having gone to South Africa with them on their honeymoon,” Jules said, grinning.
    Ben didn’t say anything as he took another sip of his iced tea. He knew Jules was trying to bring a little humor to the situation, but she knew as well as he did that if Sheppard Granger thought his sons needed protection from professional bodyguards, then things must be pretty serious. It didn’t help matters that by being married to Jace, Shana could also very well be caught in the line of fire.
    â€œI wonder who doesn’t want Sheppard Granger’s case reopened.”
    He met Jules’s gaze. He knew that she was doing more than wondering. Her mind had already dissected every piece of information she had heard last night, and in addition to that, she intended to do her own research. This time she was driven by more than mere inquisitiveness—her sister might be in danger.
    â€œI don’t know,” he said, placing his glass of tea aside. Having one daughter who could possibly be in danger was bad enough. He didn’t need two.
    â€œYou researched the case, right, Dad?”
    Yes, he had done his research when he’d known Shana was marrying Jace. He’d known Jace’s father was in prison for killing Jace’s mother and wanted to know more about it. “Yes, and it seemed pretty cut-and-dried. Sheppard Granger’s fingerprints were found on the murder weapon, and he and his wife had been having marital problems. There was even evidence presented that he was having an affair...although no other woman was named. All they had to go on were hotel receipts.”
    Jules rolled her eyes. “Circumstantial evidence. Why wasn’t that part thrown out of court?”
    â€œNot sure. His attorney should have been on top of his game. Doesn’t sound like he was.”
    Jules nodded as she took a sip of her lemonade. “The issue of Sheppard Granger’s replacing his attorney with Carson Boyett did come up last night. She admitted Mr. Granger felt that Jess Washington, his previous counsel, didn’t do a good job representing him at the trial. And now it seems that Mr. Granger is wondering whether it was intentional, since Vidal Duncan, the man who tried to kill Jace not long ago, was the one who recommended Washington.”
    Ben stood to take his plate to the sink. “Under the circumstances, I would wonder the same thing.”
    Jules nodded as she ate the last of the fried fish her father had prepared for their lunch. It had been close to three in the morning when everyone had finally left Dalton’s condo. Instead of driving home, although it was only another ten miles, she’d come here to spend the night, only to find her father had spent the night elsewhere. Since she had a key, she had let herself in and used the guest bedroom as usual.
    She glanced over at her dad. He was