by Amber Crewes
Meghan stepped in front of the door. “Who are you?”
The girl blinked. “I’m Sarah, Kayley’s intern,” she explained, her eyes wide. “Kayley? Did you want me to cancel the meeting?”
“No,” Kayley said through gritted teeth. “The meeting is still on.”
“It’s not,” Jackie told Sarah. “Sarah, what’s the deal with the barn? The event barn?”
Kayley pointed at Sarah. “Don’t say a word.”
Meghan held out her phone. “See that man in the picture on my phone, Sarah? He’s my boyfriend, and he works for the police. Tell us, or I am giving him a call.”
“What? Don’t do that! I’ve only worked here for three weeks. I’m just a college student. I don’t want to be involved in any trouble. The barn is a project Kayley is working on. She’s trying to get the owner to sell it to her for a lowball price. She wants to add it to her portfolio to get back at the owners. She says they are nasty ladies who have given her trouble.”
Kayley narrowed her eyes at Sarah. “That is enough.”
Meghan smiled at the young woman. “Thanks for the information. You’re free to go!”
Jackie folded her arms across her chest. “Anything you want to say to us now, Kayley?”
Kayley rolled her eyes. “Fine,” she huffed. “I tried to sabotage the barn. I tried to buy that place at the auction, and somehow, I lost in the bidding war.”
“I can’t believe this,” Meghan groaned. “You did all of this because you lost the barn at an auction?”
Kayley leaned back in her seat. “I’ve always been a sore loser,” she admitted, tossing her hair behind her shoulders. “When I didn’t make the varsity cheer squad my senior year, you should have seen the little plan I had to get back at the coach…”
Jackie scowled. “I can’t believe you did all of this. This is unbelievable, Kayley.”
She raised an eyebrow. “You’re not going to get the police involved, are you? Can we just put this behind us now that you know the truth? You know I’m not a bad person…”
Meghan shook her head. “We can’t just let this go, Kayley,” she said matter-of-factly. “You’ve cost our business a lot of money, and you’ve made things extremely difficult for us. It’s hard for a business to gain traction in its first few months, and you’ve stolen a lot of our success.”
Kayley faked a yawn. “That’s sad,” she sneered. “But at the end of the day, I have to look out for myself. I had to do what I had to do; I couldn’t have a rival event venue in town. I am in charge of renting event venues for this agency, and I was not going to let some stupid barn ruin what I have going here.”
“You’re going to pay for this,” Jackie told her.
“Or what?”
Jackie nodded at Meghan, and she removed her phone from her jacket. “We have it all on tape, Kayley,” Meghan explained. “The part where you admitted to sabotaging us, the part where you were dismissive during our confrontation, and even the part about your little plan to get back at your cheer coach when you didn’t make the squad. We have all of it recorded, and unless you think of a way to fix things, we are going to hand this over to the police.”
Kayley’s face paled instantly. “You’re bluffing.”
“I’m not,” Meghan said as she dangled the phone in front of Kayley’s face. “And if you think I am, just try me.”
Before Meghan knew it, Kayley had lunged for the cell phone. “Give me that!” she roared as she scrambled for the phone. “Erase that recording immediately!”
The phone fell on the ground, and Meghan dove to collect it. The two women fought for the device, and Meghan cried out as she felt Kayley’s hands tug on her hair. “Let go of me!”
“Let go of the phone.”
Jackie swung into action and joined the fight, reaching for the cell phone that had slid across the floor. “Meghan, stay where you are,” she ordered as Kayley grabbed a fistful of Meghan’s wavy hair. “I’m going in for it.”
Jackie crawled to the corner and grabbed the phone. Kayley shrieked. “Give it to me, or else.”
“Or else, what?” Meghan asked furiously. “I have half a mind to call the police right now. You tackled me and pulled my hair, Kayley. You can’t just do that. That is assault. And I have a witness.”
“Two witnesses,” Jackie corrected as she waved the phone in the air. “You accidently switched the audio recording over to a video, Meghan. This entire scene is on tape. I don’t think Chief Nunan will be thrilled to see a grown woman, a prestigious member of this community, hurling herself toward Detective’s Irvin’s girlfriend in hopes of stealing her phone, do you, Kayley?”
Kayley’s face darkened. “What do I have to do to make this go away?”
“I’m glad you’ve decided to cooperate,” Jackie smirked as she lowered herself into Kayley’s leather desk chair and put her feet up on the desk. “Meghan? What do you think about all of this?”
Meghan sighed. “This entire situation doesn’t thrill me,” she began. “And I wish my head didn’t hurt as much as it did from having my hair torn out, Kayley.”
Kayley narrowed her eyes and tried to interrupt, but Meghan continued. “We know you have a son to support. We understand that you are a single mom, and that you need to make a living. We’ll make a deal with you. If you stop these antics immediately, we won’t go to the police. But….we expect you to make ten client referrals to us in the next month. If at least four clients book the barn, we’ll consider this settled.”
“Four? How am I going to do that?”
Meghan smiled. “You’re a smart woman, Kayley. You’ll figure it out.”
Kayley folded her arms across her chest. “And if I figure it out, you won’t hold this…incident…against me?”
“Nope,” Jackie answered. “You follow through with your part of our deal, and we will make sure that we forget about this whole thing.”
“And the recording? The video?”
“It will be erased,” Meghan assured her. “As long as you meet your end of the deal.”
Kayley pursed her lips. “Fine,” she whispered as she looked down at the floor. “I’ll make it happen.”
“That’s what we were hoping to hear,” Jackie grinned. “We’re glad you can see things from our perspective.”
Kayley grimaced. “I will have my intern begin the referral process tomorrow. I have some potential clients in mind.”
“We can’t wait to hear from them,” Meghan chirped as she rose from the floor and dusted off her pants. “Jackie? I think our business here is complete.”
Jackie and Meghan sauntered out of the real estate agency with smiles on their faces. “We did it,” Meghan exclaimed, pumping her fist as they walked outside into the brisk nighttime air. “I can’t believe it. We did it.”
“I told you my plan would work,” Jackie said victoriously. “We have her confession, and we have her word that she is going to get in line and help us promote our barn. I would say it was a successful evening.”
“Agreed,” Meghan replied. “Now, let’s just hope that the mystery of Jodie Abbott’s death is solved soon. That would make everything much better.”
“How so?”
Meghan raised an eyebrow. “Whether or not Kayley is meddling with our barn, until we know the truth about the killer, our barn will be associated with Jodie’s death.”
The color drained from Jackie’s face. “Do you really think so?”
“I do,” she confirmed. “Until we know who the killer is, we are still going to be connected with her death.”
“We can’t have that dark cloud hanging over our barn,” Jackie said in horror. “What are we going to do? I thought all of our problems would be solved once the sabotage issue was finished.”
Meghan shook her head. “Not quite yet,” she told her. “For now, I think we need to keep our eyes and ears open for any clue about Jodie’s death. The truth is with someone, somewhere in Sandy Bay, and we have to keep our eyes wide open.”
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br /> 19
T he next morning, Meghan felt more at ease than she had in nearly two weeks: Kayley’s meddling had come to an end, and she had Jack in her dining room, happily eating an early breakfast at the bakery. She had made a special batch of orange French toast, and he was shoveling it into his mouth as though he had been starved.
“This is divine, Meghan,” he praised her as he wiped away a drizzle of syrup from his lips. “You have a gift for breakfast….and lunch…and dinner…and okay, all treats!”
“That’s the best compliment I’ve heard all day,” she teased as she reached across the table to stroke his cheek. She was relieved their quarrel was behind them; she hated fighting with Jack, and it was truly sweet to have him back in her dining room for breakfast.
“Did I tell you there was a break in the case?” Jack asked, his face dark.
Her eyes grew as large as quarters. “What is it?”
“The results of the lab testing came back. They proved negative, meaning there isn’t evidence to connect the gun at Frank’s house to the bullet in his wife.”
“That’s wonderful news for Frank,” Meghan said gleefully, clapping her hands in delight.
“However,” Jack continued, his face grim. “Chief Nunan wants to proceed with charging Frank. She says there is enough circumstantial evidence against him. I think she’s going to charge him today.”
The front door opened, and Meghan stifled a sneeze as Noah strutted in. “Meghan,” he greeted as he leaned down to kiss her on the cheek. “I’ll only steal you for a moment. I wanted to come in and speak with you regarding the film?”
Meghan raised an eyebrow. “I told you that I would get back with you, Noah.”
He shrugged. “I don’t want to wait around when I know your answer will be yes,” he said with a toss of his hair. “Abby Regan wants to come in and shadow you.”
“Abby Regan?” she asked in disbelief. “The famous actress?”
“Academy-Award winning famous actress? Yes, that’s her. She and I are having conversations about the film, and she is my first choice to play the lead role. She wants to come to the bakery and see what it’s like. What would you say to hosting her? I would pay you, of course.”
Meghan nodded. “My staff does like the idea of doing the film,” she admitted. “I can’t believe how quickly you’ve come up with Abby Regan. You’ve driven this thing so quickly. I guess I can’t say no to an Oscar winner, can I?”
Noah grinned. “I’m glad you see it my way,” he praised. “Detective Irvin, what perfect timing to find you here. I will need to have police presence around during Abby’s shadowing times, along with the actual shoot of the film. Can you have some of your people here?”
Jack narrowed his eyes. “I’ll see what I can do,” he grumbled. “Meghan? I have to go.”
“I’ll walk you out,” she said as she rose from her seat. “Noah, please excuse us.”
They walked outside in silence, and Meghan took Jack’s hand. “What was that about?” she asked. “You really gave him the cold shoulder.”
“I’m just not a fan of those Hollywood types. That guy is a rat, and his cologne smells like new money...”
“That means you wouldn’t have liked me before I moved to Sandy Bay,” Meghan teased. “I was a Hollywood girl for a minute.”
Jack stared into Meghan’s eyes before planting a kiss on her lips. “You weren’t a Hollywood girl,” he murmured. “You were always meant to be my girl.”
Three hours later, Abby Regan strolled into the bakery. She was petite, with red bobbed hair and a smattering of freckles across her nose. Her bright green eyes were kind, and Meghan hoped they would get along. “Abby? I’m Meghan Truman, the owner of Truly Sweet. It’s a pleasure to have you here today.”
Abby smiled warmly. “Thank you for agreeing to host me,” she replied. “I know it isn’t easy having people in your way, and I truly appreciate your time. Noah had me fly up from Los Angeles this afternoon, and I apologize this is all a bit last minute…”
“It really isn’t a problem,” she assured her. “I am happy to have you.”
“You are too kind.”
“What a sweetheart,” Meghan thought to herself as Abby looked around the dining room, placing her white suede purse on one of the white iron tables. “If only everyone in Hollywood were as nice as Abby. I’m excited to have her around the bakery for filming.”
Abby was sweet and humble, and Meghan took to her immediately. “I’m happy to have you here,” she told her as she offered Abby a gluten-free mocha muffin. “I lived in Hollywood for a bit and pursued an acting career. It never really took off, but I enjoyed my time in LA. The weather is certainly nicer there than here in Sandy Bay.”
“We do have nice weather in LA,” Abby said as Noah rushed in behind her. “Hollywood is a nice place. The people aren’t always the nicest, though; that’s why I occasionally enjoy shooting films and shows outside of LA. It’s nice to get the feel of a small town, you know? People being friendly, birds chirping, that kind of stuff.”
“You’ll definitely get the small town feeling here,” Meghan informed her. “Sandy Bay is a place where everyone knows everyone. Most people have lived here forever, and they know everything about each other. You can always count on seeing someone you know when you walk about town.”
“That sounds lovely,” Abby gushed. “The LA types can be so aloof and competitive, and I’m looking forward to spending some time here to shoot the film.
Noah cleared his throat to catch Meghan’s attention. “Meghan, hey,” Noah greeted her. “I know it’s a little last minute, but Abby was able to make it up here today. I brought some of the guys to do some screen tests here at the bakery, too.”
Meghan laughed. “You sure move quickly,” she stated as Noah nodded impatiently.
“There’s no time to dally in Hollywood,” he said dramatically.
“But this is Sandy Bay,” Meghan teased.
Noah raised an eyebrow. “It is,” he agreed, his voice revealing his annoyance. “But for now, we will pretend like this is Hollywood, especially since we have the gorgeous Abby Regan here.”
“Got it,” Meghan replied.
“Let’s get to work, people!”
Over the next hour, Meghan watched as Noah placed cameramen all over the bakery. He endlessly ordered them around, and Meghan was annoyed with his bossiness. He snapped at a young cameraman, but before Meghan could interject, her phone rang.
“It’s Frank,” a male voice said as she answered. “I have something to say about the case. You and Detective Irvin are close, and I want to make sure he knows this.”
“Frank?” Meghan whispered. “What is it?”
“This might not matter,” he began cautiously. “But the day Jodie died, I remember someone dashing past me. Actually, a few people jogged past me. But this person sprinted past me, and I had a sneezing fit because of their awful perfume or cologne. It smelled terrible.”
Meghan’s heart began to pound in her chest. “Their cologne smelled terrible?”
The front door opened. Jack walked inside. “Frank, hold on a moment…”
“Hey!” Noah screeched as Pamela walked into the dining room holding a tray of cookies. “Get out. We’re doing screen tests in here, and you can’t be in the background.”
Meghan grabbed Jack by the elbow. “We need to talk,” she whispered. “What are you doing here?”
“I left my wallet,” Jack said as he looked under the table and retrieved his black leather wallet. “Here it is, thank goodness. What’s up? You look upset.”
Meghan’s dark eyes widened, and she glanced at Noah. “I think there is another suspect you need to check out before you charge Frank, babe,” she told him.
“Who?”
Meghan jerked her head. “There. Him. Noah.”
20
T he bride’s dress was stunning, and Meghan could hardly tear her eyes away from it; it had thin straps that accentuated the bride’s nar
row shoulders, and it hugged her body like the embrace of a lover. The material was made of cream colored lace, and the bottom of the skirt flared out. The bride’s sandy-blonde hair was covered by waist-length lace veil that matched the patterns of the dress, and her groom’s eyes filled with tears as she floated down the aisle in the event barn.
“Our second wedding is off to a great start,” Jackie whispered to Meghan, and they discreetly high-fived as they watched the ceremony from the loft.
“Let’s hope it ends better than the last one,” Meghan teased.
The ceremony ended, and the two women went downstairs to assist with the reception. Meghan and Jackie, both dressed in tea-length black dresses, had made themselves available to help with anything and everything the wedding coordinator needed. So far, he had not asked a lot of them, and Meghan felt as though she were simply a guest at a beautiful wedding.
“Everyone, give a round of applause for the bride and groom!”
Meghan beamed as the couple marched onto the dance floor. The groom wrapped one arm around the bride’s waist while taking her hand with his other hand. A classic rock song came on, and the audience applauded as the couple broke out into a waltz.
“They must have taken dance lessons,” Jackie whispered to Meghan as the couple glided past them. “Look at that waltz! I would lose count if I had to do a dance in front of so many people.”
“I’m sure you would be fine,” Meghan replied. “Didn’t you do a first dance in front of the crowd at your wedding?”
Jackie’s face darkened. “I don’t like to talk about my wedding,” she hissed as the couple twirled on the dance floor. “But if you must know, we eloped, and our first dance was alone on the beach.”
Meghan’s stomach churned. She hadn’t meant to upset Jackie by referencing her wedding; Jackie was now divorced, and Meghan knew that any mention of her ex-husband frustrated her friend. “I’m sorry,” she murmured as she took Jackie’s hand and gave it a squeeze. “I didn’t mean to bring him up.”