Adrian’s scowl quickly disappeared and was replaced by a toothy smile. His beady eyes lit up with interest. “How is Summer doing? I heard a rumor she’s expanding her studio. She has a lot of potential. Come on in. Would you like a coffee or something?” He gestured for Kelly to come into the office.
“No, thank you. I apologize for showing up without an appointment.”
Inside the inner sanctum, Kelly’s gaze swept over the average-sized office with a view of the parking lot and a mall off in the distance.
A collage of framed photographs featuring Adrian with C-list celebrities hung on one wall above a seating area. The two leather chairs and sofa looked brand new. As did the highly polished desk. The space was streamlined and professional but had a staged look to it.
She couldn’t help but wonder how much work actually got done there.
“Not a problem. Please, have a seat.” Adrian walked around the desk while Kelly settled on a chair in front of the desk. His smile was still in place. He reminded Kelly of a street vendor selling knockoffs. “Summer has a great studio. And unlimited potential. I’ve been trying to make a deal with Summer for a long time, so I’m glad she’s sent you to…”
“I’m sorry. It looks like I wasn’t clear. Summer hasn’t sent me here.” Kelly hoped her uncle’s wife would never go into business with the guy sitting across from her. She wondered how Tawny had partnered with him. Tawny was a smart woman. And the vibes he was sending were slimy and untrustworthy. She had a sudden urge to take a hot shower as soon as she got home.
“Oh, I see. Then why are you here, Miss Quinn?” Adrian’s sly smile vanished as he clasped his thick fingers together and waited for an answer.
“I own a consignment clothing boutique, and the resale market is hot. Actually, hot is an understatement. It’s on fire. What I’d like to do is expand, but I really don’t want another brick and mortar location. Instead, I’ve been thinking about creating an online business. Women would sign up for a subscription box of clothing curated especially for them from resale shops all over the country. Before taking over the boutique, I was a fashion buyer.”
She believed there were several things challenging her idea to make it profitable. The first was logistics. She would need a warehouse of some sort to receive consigned clothing, prep the merchandise for sale, and then ship the boxes. Next, she’d need a much bigger staff than she had now and that meant a larger payroll. The list went on and on. But since she wasn’t there to make a deal, it didn’t matter how many holes her idea had.
“You want to send people used clothing on a subscription model? That’s a thing?”
“Yes.” The more she thought about the idea, the more intriguing it became even though she had no clue how to make it work. She guessed that’s how Tawny felt about her online fitness business and what led her to Adrian.
* * * *
“Huh.” He drummed his fingers on his desk as he appeared to consider the idea. Shoot. That wasn’t the outcome Kelly wanted. She already had too much on her plate, and he wasn’t definitely someone she wanted to work with. For one thing, he may have murdered his previous partner.
“Sorry, but fashion isn’t my area. I’m all about fitness.” He pointed toward the framed photographs of his business associates on the credenza. There was a photo of him and Tawny. It looked like they were on a television set. She guessed they were doing promotion for PBF.
Kelly nodded. “You have quite a reputation in the fitness field. You’ve launched many successful fitness businesses. From what I hear, you were behind the launch of Tawny’s PBF program. The photo of the two of you, where was it taken?”
“A TV studio. We planned on doing an infomercial.”
“Wow. How expensive is one of those to produce?”
“Well, you can’t make money without spending it.” He followed up his financial advice with a smarmy chuckle. She wondered whose money he was using to pad his bank account. “Look, I’m sorry, hon, that I can’t help you with your business idea. Good luck with it.”
Hon? Did he really call me hon?
Kelly tamped down her annoyance. Schooling him in twenty-first century etiquette would get her tossed out in a nano-second. Instead, she forced a smile.
“Thank you. I guess I’ll have to continue looking for an adviser. Or, a business partner like you were with Tawny. She was lucky to have someone with your experience working with her.”
“If I do say so myself, I do bring a lot to the table. Now, if Summer would like to go into a partnership, I can take her one-studio Pilates biz nationwide and have her streaming into hundreds of thousands of homes like that.” He snapped his fingers.
“I’m sure you could. One thing you definitely brought to the table for Tawny was the ability to put out fires. Like those lawsuits against PBF.” When Kelly worked at Bishop’s, it was her job as the assistant buyer to make sure small issues didn’t morph into big disasters for her buyer.
Adrian stiffened and he raised a palm. “What’s going on? Why are you really here? Do you even know Summer or Tawny? Wait. It doesn’t matter. If you’re here for a refund, you’ll have to go through the website we created for the process. Yet another thing we did out of our own pocket to show we are legitimate. Though by the looks of you, it appears the program worked.”
Kelly tilted her head. “Thank you…I think. And, no, I’m not here for a refund. I haven’t purchased PBF.”
He widened his hands in a questioning gesture. “Then, why are you here? Oh, don’t tell me you’re a reporter? If so, I don’t have any comment.”
“I’m not a reporter. I knew Tawny and would like to find out who killed her. Her husband said he didn’t know of any enemies except maybe for the customers who felt cheated by her. And just before she died, she had suspicions of some irregular accounting. Since you were her business partner…”
Adrian jabbed a finger at Kelly. “Hold on there. Hold on there right now. I’ve already talked to the police. Answered all their questions, which forced me to miss a lunch meeting to sign on an up-and-coming fitness star. Now, with all this publicity around Tawny’s death…it’s not good for my business.”
His voice was loud, and his nostrils flared while his dark eyes bulged. Alarm should have sounded in Kelly, but instead, she was still curious about why he was so defensive. What was he hiding?
“Aside from the refunds that have been requested, you and Tawny were facing lawsuits. Those can be bad for business too.”
“They’re nonsense lawsuits and will be tossed out.”
“Won’t that take time? Cost you money? Are you going to settle them? Then what happens next? Do you dissolve the company and move onto the next great fitness star?”
Adrian chuckled, but it wasn’t jovial. “Most gals would have high-tailed it out of here by now. But you? You got guts, hon. It’s admirable. Even so, I’m not at liberty to share my plans with you, but I am looking at all available options.”
Kelly nodded. “Tawny’s murder has given you options.”
Adrian slammed his hand on his desk, startling Kelly and making her jump.
“Listen, lady, I don’t know what you’re thinking coming here, but let me give you a piece of advice. Mind. Your. Business.”
Kelly’s cell phone buzzed, notifying her of an incoming text message. Her nerves were jumbled by Adrian’s outburst, so pulling out her phone from her purse wasn’t close to being smooth. It fell to her lap, and grasping it with her shaky hands was a challenge.
“Apparently, you’re a busy lady. You can show yourself out.” Adrian shifted and pulled a handkerchief out of his back pants pocket. He blotted his creased forehead as Kelly stood and darted out of the office. She didn’t stop moving until she was inside the elevator heading down to the main floor.
During the ride down to the lower level, she checked her phone and saw the message was from Serena.
> Come over. We need to talk.
Kelly finished her text before the elevator door opened to a group of professionally dressed women.
Can’t. I need to get back to the boutique.
She made her way through the crowd and headed for the exit.
Kelly sent her text and stepped out of the building. She welcomed the fresh air. Inside, Adrian’s office was stale and suffocating, especially at the end of her visit. His rage seemed to have sucked most of the air out of the room.
“Miss Quinn.” Detective Wolman approached with a grim look on her face.
Kelly quickly rethought her relief of being outside. Running into Wolman was going to be as unpleasant as her visit with Adrian.
“What are you doing here?” Wolman asked after she stepped up onto the sidewalk. The concrete path wrapped around the front of the building, bordering evergreen shrubs and tired looking mulch.
“I came to talk to Adrian Chase.” Being honest and direct was the best policy with the detective. Or the fastest way to get arrested. Kelly wasn’t sure which. Too late now since she blurted out her reason for being at the corporate park.
Wolman stared at Kelly and chewed on her lower lip. It appeared to Kelly the detective was struggling to maintain a professional demeanor.
“I didn’t see the harm in talking to him.”
“No, of course, you didn’t. You didn’t stop to think your interference could cause a killer to walk free.”
“By talking to him?”
“Yes, by talking to him. You’ve probably agitated him, which means he’ll be less willing to talk me.”
“He said he already talked to the police.”
Wolman took a step forward. “You think we talk to persons involved in a murder investigation only once?”
“No…I’m sorry…I never intended for—”
“You didn’t because you don’t know what you’re doing. This is my last warning, Kelly. Stay out of my case or I will arrest you, and this time you won’t be out in an hour without being charged with a crime. Do you understand what I’m saying?”
Kelly nodded. “I do.”
Wolman stepped around Kelly and headed for the main entrance.
Kelly didn’t look back; she propelled herself forward, hoping she hadn’t messed up the investigation.
By the time she reached her Jeep, her phone had buzzed. Serena had texted back.
We have a deal. Don’t be long.
Just like old times. Kelly sighed as she dropped her phone into her purse and backed out of the parking space. She was back on the highway and heading to Serena’s house. She’d find out what Serena wanted, and maybe break their deal. There was no doubt in her mind Wolman would follow through with her threat to arrest and charge her. She didn’t need a mug shot plastered all over social media. No one ever looked good in them. Nor did she need Pepper having to bail her out. Definitely not a situation she wanted to happen. Facing Pepper after being arrested was scarier to Kelly than facing a murderer. A lot scarier.
* * * *
Kelly jabbed at the doorbell. She was there for a command performance for her fashion majesty. One thing the two of them would get straight was that Kelly wasn’t at Serena’s beck and call. Nor would she stand out in the cold. The temperatures were dipping again. A radio news show meteorologist tossed around the “s” word—snow. Snow, rain, any type of precipitation was the last thing her roof needed. She jabbed at the doorbell again. Her patience was wearing as thin as a pair of Spanx leggings.
The door opened, and a bored-looking Serena greeted her. She made a show of glancing at her vintage Rolex.
“There was traffic on the highway. May I come in, or do you want to have this discussion out here on your front step?”
“Aren’t you a little petulant thing today? I’m not sure why you sound so perturbed. I’m the one accused of murder.” Serena turned and walked away, leaving the door open.
As if Kelly needed the reminder. Had Serena not been arrested for the murder, she would be back in the city, terrorizing a new crop of assistant buyers. Kelly entered the house and closed the door behind her.
“What’s so important that I had to drop everything?” Yes, it felt like old times. Serena snapping her fingers and Kelly jumping.
Entering the living room, Kelly reminded herself it would be for only a few days. At least, she hoped so. What if no other viable suspect surfaced? What if they uncovered no other evidence to cast a shadow of doubt on Serena’s guilt? What if Serena remained in Lucky Cove throughout the whole messy trial? She needed to corral her racing thoughts of doom and gloom before her head exploded.
“Kelly, are you listening to me?” Serena had settled on the navy sectional with a glass of wine in her hand.
Dressed in sequin pants, a silky halter-top, and bejeweled mules, Serena looked like she was ready for a cocktail party, not for a night of being housebound in a town lacking a fabulous zip code.
“What? Sorry. A lot is going on.”
“Tell me about it.” Serena lifted the glass to her barely nude lips and sipped. Her natural look was far from effortless. With the aid of fillers, patience and a lipstick that cost three digits, she’d created a subtle yet bold statement.
Kelly worked her lower lip. She hadn’t even applied a swipe of lip gloss since leaving for the bank earlier.
“You know, Serena, everything isn’t about you. Sure, I’m not accused of murdering someone.” At least not this time. “But I still have problems.” One of them is you.
Serena lowered the glass from her mouth. “Being arrested for murder and facing God knows how many years in prison away from my daughters isn’t a problem. It’s a nightmare. It’s terrifying. It’s all I can think about. It’s taking every ounce of strength I have not to break down.”
When Serena put it that way, maybe Kelly was being too tough. Her shoulders slumped. Her visit needed a reboot. She walked to the sectional and sat, not too close to Serena but not too far away. There was always a delicate balance when it came to personal space with the Dragonista. Kelly gave herself a mental shake. She needed to stop referring to her former boss by that derogatory nickname.
“I’m here now. What can I do for you?” Kelly eyed the bottle of wine. She could use a glass or two. But Serena didn’t look like she was about to play hostess anytime soon. Which was fine because it was too early in the day for her to indulge.
Serena sighed. “It seems my assistant has fallen and broken her ankle, so she’s unable to come out to this God-forsaken place.”
The wheels started turning fast in Kelly’s head. She’d agreed to help clear Serena’s name. Nowhere in the agreement was there a clause for her to be Serena’s Gal Friday.
“While I’m here, I have to work, and I need an assistant.” Serena sipped her wine. “You’ve worked for me before. Well, not directly for me. But close enough.”
Kelly opened her mouth to protest but was cut off by the ringing of the doorbell. Serena looked at her expectantly, but she had no intention of answering the door. This wasn’t her home, and she wasn’t Serena’s employee. Finally, after another chime of the bell and a stare down, Serena huffed and stood.
She marched out of the room, leaving Kelly feeling a little victorious. She never had the nerve stand her ground with the powerful Serena Dawson. Not until that moment.
Maybe coming back to Lucky Cove and taking over her granny’s business had given her self-confidence the boost it needed. Feeling proud of her personal growth, she leaned back into the cushions and surveyed the room.
Pretty nice digs.
Gleaming hardwood floors, interesting artwork, and spectacular furniture that Kelly couldn’t imagine ever being able to afford.
A buzzing noise drew her attention to the spot where Serena had just stood from. The culprit was a cell phone. Not just any cell phone. Serena’s was encase
d in a ridiculously expensive phone case. The price tag was over seven hundred dollars. Kelly knew because she drooled over it whenever she spotted it on Instagram. Still, she shook her head. Why would anyone pay so much money for a phone case?
Then again, Serena was probably gifted it from the designer. One of the perks of Serena’s title.
She glanced up to check on Serena, who was still out of sight at the front door, before she reached for the phone and turned it over. The text notification said AC.
She grabbed the phone and pressed the home button, and the main screen came up. She was amazed Serena didn’t have a passcode. If she did, it probably would have been six-six-six. Ugh. She gave herself another mental shake. She needed to be nice.
She tapped on the messaging app first to read the string of text messages.
Call me ASAP. Had a call. Getting too risky.
Who was AC referring to? She continued to read the messages from AC.
Reporter snooping around. Need to fix.
Kelly read Serena’s reply.
Don’t panic. Let me see what I can do. Name?
AC replied an expletive and then added:
Ella. I’ll take care of her.
Kelly’s heart thumped. Was AC Adrian Chase? Could Serena and Adrian be involved? She did a mental scan of the collage of photos on the wall in Adrian’s office. She hadn’t seen Serena in any of them, but they could still know each other. She needed to stop focusing on how the two of them knew each other and focus on Ella. She could be in danger. What was Ella doing poking around Adrian? Had she gotten a lead about the possibility of him engaging in financial fraud? Had Tawny gone to her with her suspicions?
Focus, Kell. Deep breath.
Kelly’s ears perked up at the sound of the front door closing. She tossed the phone back on the sofa cushion and sprang up. She had a bunch of questions for Serena, but first, she needed to check on Ella.
How to Frame a Fashionista Page 16