Intercepted by Love: Part Six: A Football Romance (The Quarterback's Heart Book 6) Read Online Free Page B

Cade. “I can do all of the costume designs.”
    “And I can write the script,” Leroy chimed in.
    “We might be able to spare a set down at The Lakeside Theater,” Ronaldo added.
    “Lakeside Theater?” Andie asked. Was this why her friends were here in upstate New York? “What are you guys filming?”
    “Not filming,” Sylvia said. “We’re doing a series of plays for the summer. Ronaldo here’s designing the set.”
    “Set design?” Cade asked his friend. “I thought you were a producer.”
    Ronaldo’s lips pressed together, grimacing. “Doing penance. After my aunt found out about Dick and Barbara and their love child, you, she assigned me to revitalize the summer theaters in upstate New York. We have locations in Skaneateles, the Catskills, and here in Itasca. She’s always had fond memories of her summers as a child in New York.”
    “Ha, ha, more like it’s exile for you,” Cade said. Everyone knew how much Ronaldo loved the Hollywood scene.
    “Exile or not, this thing is happening,” Ronaldo said, puffing his chest. “Set the date, and I’ll plan the wedding for you two, as a present.”
    Cade’s eyes widened, and he stared at his friend and then at Andie. “You think?”
    “Um … well, it’s an attractive offer,” Andie said. “Except I haven’t set a date.”
    “Why not?” Sylvia looped her arm over Andie’s shoulder. “Cold feet already?”
    “She wants my mother to attend,” Cade said. “And no one knows where she is.”
    “You should find her then,” Ronaldo said. “That shouldn’t be too hard.”
    “Wait, whoa there,” Andie cut in. “Aren’t you working with the FBI? Do you know something we don’t?”
    “Not me, but my brother, Fernando. The FBI’s still very interested in Barbara Prescott’s testimony.”
    “I thought all the perps were caught,” Andie said. “Rob Cash is in jail, Roxanne has probation, Devon’s in jail, and Dick is dead.”
    “Oh, those were just the little fish,” Ronaldo said. “Itty bitty tiny minions. The real kingpins are much more mysterious. Fernando’s been tracing the money trail, and it’s all leading back to someone big in Los Angeles having to do with the revitalization projects and money laundering. Bribes are being paid to city council members and environmental impact reports are being fast tracked. Have you ever wondered how they were able to build a football stadium on Lake Hollywood? Anyway, there’s more at stake, including a big project on Griffith Hills and a new financial district. It might even mean leveling Chinatown and moving it south to Monterey Park.”
    Cade swallowed, shaking his head. “Wouldn’t it be dangerous for my mother to return if she was involved with these bad guys?”
    “We can fix that,” Ronaldo said. “Once she returns and fingers the bad guys, we can change her appearance and give her an entire new life, including a story for why she’s associated with you two and your babies.”
    Andie’s heart leaped at the chance. She’d do anything to redeem Cade’s mother and give her a new lease in life. She looked at Cade expectantly. “Isn’t this a good thing? We should do it.”
    Cade’s face turned grim, and he clenched his fists, blowing out a harsh breath. “Absolutely not. Wherever my mother is, let her stay away. If she’s safe, that’s all I care about. You guys can plan a wedding for Andie and I’ll go along with it, but keep my mother out of it. That’s non-negotiable.”

Chapter Five
    T he next day , Andie and Sylvia sat at a table on the wraparound porch of the Lakeside Café. The weather had warmed up into the mid-sixties. For upstate New Yorkers, it meant flip-flops, sundresses, and sandals. Sylvia, however, was huddled inside a warm sweater while complaining about the nippy breeze coming off the water.
    Cade had taken baby Bret for the day to let Andie have time to catch up with her girlfriend and show her the sights around Canandaigua Lake and Itasca