in the process. Luckily, there was no awkwardness between us and he kept me posted on how much he missed his girlfriend Autumn, who was away at camp. “You should have seen Detective Heather trying to be motherly. If Barry and Heather do get together, I think Jeffrey is going to find that boarding school is in his future.”
We’d reached the small café and it was pleasant to walk into the cool interior. It was bright and airy inside and filled with plants. Almost all the tables were full with a combination of people stopping in after their morning exercise walk and the people who used the tables as their office. Dinah placed our order and I found a table.
Imagine my shock when I realized Adele was at the table behind us. She had her back to the room and was bent over, focusing on something. A mug and plate with a residue of breakfast sat across from her and I guessed she must have been eating with Eric. I tried to see what she was doing, but she had herself positioned so that whatever it was was completely hidden.
Dinah came to the table a moment later and I gestured toward Adele. Dinah was still standing and tried to look over the top of Adele’s head, but it didn’t work and my friend sat down.
The door whooshed open and I automatically looked up. Stone Thomasville came in with three men who had the same streaked hair and tanned skin and followed him like disciples. I admit that I stared at Stone for a moment. He had the kind of looks that made you do that.
“Should we invite them to sit with us?” Dinah asked, noting that all the tables were full.
“I do have to ask him about something,” I said. Adele heard us talking and turned around in her seat. She followed my gaze and saw who we were talking about, as Dinah went over to invite him to join us.
“What’s going on? Who’s he?” she asked quickly stuffing something in her tote bag. I told her he was Kelly’s brother and then asked what she was being so secretive about.
Adele hesitated. “Can I trust you?’ she asked, glancing around furtively.
“Adele, I had you over for French toast. Just you and no one else. You said after that I was your best friend. You can trust me.”
Adele did another sweep of the room and then took out a skein of worsted weight acrylic yarn and a size K hook. She’d made a foundation row and on top of it she started another stitch. She wound the yarn around the hook a bunch of times and picked up another loop. “Watch this,” she said. “She began to pull the hook through all the loops. For a moment it went okay, then the whole thing started to unravel. “It worked before,” she said in a frustrated tone. “I almost have the bullion stitch.”
“I promise I won’t tell CeeCee you haven’t mastered it yet, but you have to give her the things Kelly made. They are Kelly’s last creations and she meant them for the fair. You can’t leave them stuffed in one of the yarn cupboards.”
“Just give me a little more time. Please.”
I hadn’t realized Dinah was standing right behind me until I took a step back and almost fell over her. Stone grabbed me just in time.
He thanked us for the offer of sharing our table, but said he and his group were just picking up something to eat in the car on the way to the beach. “Dan tried to push some cereal on me. It probably tastes fine,” Stone said rolling his eyes. “But the name—Corporal Crack?” He gestured toward the group. “Some old surfing buddies and I are hitting the waves.”
“Ahem,” Adele said and, when I didn’t immediately react, she poked my shoulder.
I introduced him to Adele and she threw her arms around him. “I’m so sorry about your loss. We were like blood sisters, only it was yarn, but for we crocheters, yarn is even thicker than blood.” As soon as she started talking about her cop boyfriend and that she knew who had really killed his sister, I stepped in.
“This place is full of ears,” I said to Adele in a pointed tone.
“Pink, you’re right.” She narrowed her eyes as she surveyed the customers in the restaurant, focusing on the two prop guys eating breakfast sandwiches. She hugged a surprised-looking Stone again. “I just want you