Deadly Notions - By Elizabeth Lynn Casey Page 0,23
a moment she simply breathed in his nearness, allowed it to bolster her spirits as much as possible. “Wait! How was your dinner with Beth?”
“It was okay,” he said. Ever so gently he stroked the side of her face with his hand in a gesture she’d grown to love. “It would have been better if you’d been there with us.”
“She might have been surprised if I was.”
His hand stopped. “Why would you say that? She knows about you.”
“To hear her talk she doesn’t.” The second the words were out she wished she could recall them, the general sentiment sounding almost bitter.
“When did you see her?”
She told him about meeting his college sweetheart at Debbie’s Bakery just that morning, describing, in detail, the things that had been said. Including the part where Beth seemed clueless as to Tori’s place in Milo’s life.
When she was done, he simply scratched his head. “I don’t know, Tori. Maybe she was more distracted than I realized last night when we met. I mean, she was all keyed up about everything from some deal she’d just ironed out to the new company name she needs to design into a logo and how all of that is going to take her to the top. Maybe she was so focused on that she didn’t really listen to the things I had to say.”
“Maybe.” She grabbed his hand in hers and rubbed it against her cheek until he took over on his own once again. “Or maybe she just wants you all to herself.”
He laughed. “Not likely.”
She sat up straight, unsure of the tone in which his words were spoken. Had she heard disappointment? Or wishful thinking? Or was her imagination in hyper I’ve-been-hurt-by-love-before mode? “Wh-what’s not likely?” she stammered.
“That I’d ever let that happen.”
“No lingering feelings? No haunting what-ifs?”
“None.” His hand dropped to her shoulders and squeezed. “How could there be when I’ve got someone a gazillion times better?” His back pocket vibrated against the sofa, making them both jump. “Hey now, who on earth would be calling at this hour?”
“You could answer it and find out,” she teased.
“Good idea.” She nestled into the crook of his arm as he flipped open his cell phone and held it to his ear. “Milo here.”
A woman’s voice fairly purred from the phone, filling the miniscule gap between them. “It’s Beth. I wanted to call and tell you what a lovely time I had with you again tonight, Milo.”
He turned his head and whispered a kiss across Tori’s forehead. “Uh, me, too, Beth. It was great. We’ll have to do it again sometime soon . . . when Tori can join us.”
“Tori?”
“My girlfriend. I told you about her last night and you met her at Debbie’s Bakery this morning. In fact, I’m here with her now.”
“Oh.” Silence followed only to be cut short by a giggle. “My timing never was very good, was it, Milo? Remember when I called you on your wedding night?”
Tori tilted her head upward to meet his gaze. His nod confirmed the woman’s words. “You’re fine, Beth.”
A long sigh emanated from the phone. “I’ve been working on my company’s new logo ever since I got back to my room. And you know what? I think I’ve finally found the perfect font for the P and the C. Which is great because all that’s left then is the overall color scheme.”
He leaned his head against the sofa, his breath warm against Tori’s head. “I’m sure you’ll get it.”
“I need to get it perfect. So the clientele associates the company’s name every time they see these—” The giggle returned. “Oh, look at me. I get so excited talking to you, Milo, that I almost let the cat out of the bag. And I can’t. Not yet, anyway. Everything needs to be just perfect before I do.”
A thought struck Tori and she met his gaze again. “Her company does something with pageants, right?” she whispered.
He nodded.
“Does she know about what happened to Ashley Lawson?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know.”
“Know? Know what?” Beth interjected through the phone.
“Tori was wondering if you knew a woman named Ashley Lawson?”
When there was no response, he pulled the phone from his ear and checked the screen. Realizing they were still connected he held it loosely to his ear once again. “Beth? You there?”
“I’m still here.”
“Did you hear my question?”
“Uh, no, I’m afraid I didn’t. There was a—a sound out in the parking lot just now. I guess I was distracted.”