Sofia and briefly thought of saying yes just to throw her off my scent, but then what if that put Sofia in danger? What if she wanted to do away with her to get me to herself? Fuck.
“No, that’s my brother’s woman. I’m just helping pick out paint for our apartment.”
“Your apartment? You all live together?”
“Well, it saves money. I could move out, but I want to help them out while they get ready for the baby to come.”
I closed my eyes, irritated that I had just let it slip that I had money. Stupid, stupid, stupid!
“That’s so sweet. You’re a very nice brother.”
“Yeah, one of seven.”
“Seven? Wow, your parents must have been either very excited to have kids or—“
“Don’t say it,” I cringed. I had already heard it before, how they were so horny. I didn’t need to hear it again.
“I’m—“
“Lorelei,” I said, before I could think better of it.
Her eyes went wide and wary and she pulled her hand back. “How did you know my name?”
Shit, how did I know her name? Goddamnit, I sucked at this in person investigation stuff. That’s why I stuck to computers. I was good with the virtual world, but I sucked at the in-person investigations. I should have had one of my brothers here. They would know what to do.
“Eric!” I shouted too loudly. “Uh…my brother, Eric, mentioned having a house to renovate for a woman that moved into town. Lorelei,” I chuckled nervously. “And new people in town are few and far between. Wild guess,” I laughed again.
She looked like she wasn’t going to buy it, and my mind started spinning on all the different ways I could get Sofia and I out of the store safely. Did she have a gun on her? Maybe poison? No, that was ridiculous. She would have to offer me a drink first, and then mix in the poison. Plus, she didn’t actually have a drink on her, which meant she would have to buy one. Then she would have to find a way to mix the poison in without me seeing, which could be complicated. Or was it? If she was a black widow, maybe this was second nature to her.
“—doing a great job on the design.”
I shook my head, confused since I missed everything she had just said. “Sorry, what was that?”
“I was saying that I’m glad I found your brother. He’s already doing a great job on the design. My house is in tatters, so there’s a ton of work to do.”
I nodded, way too much for it to be normal. I had to stop myself from nodding. Just stop doing it. Fucking stop! I finally got my head to sit still on my shoulders. She was staring at me now like I was a fucking psycho, and maybe I was. I was standing here looking like a lunatic in front of a gorgeous, yet very deadly woman. Well, that was still up for debate. Shit.
“So, are you doing all the work yourself?” I asked with a croak.
“No,” she laughed. “Remember? I said I hired your brother?”
I smacked myself in the head with a doh. “Right. Gotcha. I bet it’s a great house.”
“It is. I mean, it doesn’t look like much right now, but it’s going to look great when it’s done.”
“I’m sure it will. I’d love to see the before and after.”
“Really?”
Her eyes lit up and I realized that I had just fallen into her trap. Her web. Oh, God, she really was a black widow, and I had just invited myself along to be killed.
“You should come out some time and take a look at it. I would love some input from another male perspective. Your brother is all about making it my own, but I wouldn’t mind a second opinion on some things.”
“You know, I’m not really a design expert or anything.”
“No, but I heard how you helped your sister-in-law make the decision on paint. It was very clear and thoughtful. It made sense. I would love for someone to come out and do that with me. I wouldn’t feel like such an idiot when I talk to your brother.”
“Oh, he’s a good guy. All you have to do is tell him you need help and he’ll do it.”
She took a step toward me, her lithe body moving in such a way that made me feel like prey. I took a step back, but she kept moving forward. “I want a second opinion.”
I swallowed hard as I bumped up