Page 10 of Evidence of Secrets

It was one reason she was here.

How much theft could a restaurant handle before it went out of business? Who was stealing? And why? Was Laura on the take or stealing money? Jaimie didn’t think so, but she’d learned to never say never. Restaurants were an eternal spring of riches if you were a thief. So many ways to line your pocket.

As far as Jaimie was concerned, stealing and lying were way down there on the list of crappy things to do. Murder was worse, but she’d only experienced lying in her life. And that was enough.

“Jaimie, would you serve the people on the perimeter, please.” Crap. Laura had snuck up on her. Again. She needed to keep her head in the game. After she got home, which wouldn’t be until way after midnight, she still had work to do on her in-depth article.

The extra money Laura was paying her came in handy for gas and little things. Money she’d saved up from other freelance articles paid for rent.

She noticed Laura had walked over to a man standing with his back to the wall. They laughed and seemed to get along, and Jaimie wondered who he was. He seemed to know people here but wasn’t socializing. He was quite good-looking, too.

He looked like a bodyguard, all muscled, tall, and serious, but Jaimie knew Laura had hired no security for tonight. Although looking at the well-dressed crowd and the expensive auction items, a thief would have made out okay. The man kept his eyes on Laura, and Jaimie wondered if he would ask Laura out. She didn’t think the hunk Laura was with at the beach was a boyfriend.

As Jaimie looked around, she noticed a lot of bodyguard types here tonight. Not all of them were as big as the guy in the corner, but all were looking around—looking for danger. The danger could be right in front of them. No one ever noticed servers or workers. They blended into the woodwork.

Laura stopped at the bar. The bartender gestured, and they leaned over to talk. Laura splayed her fingers over her eye with one hand and shook her head. That discussion didn’t appear to be going well either.

“Thank you for helping tonight.” A small woman smiled at Jaimie. Her reddish-brown hair was pulled back into some elaborate bun at the back of her neck. She wore a short, gold sparkly V-neck dress that accented her brown eyes. Serious eyes.

“You’re welcome?” Didn’t the woman know this was her job?

“I’m sorry.” The woman rubbed her neck. “I’m Sam Knight, a friend of Laura’s. The shelter is one of KnightGuard Security’s pet projects.” She glanced around. “The fundraiser is to help women and kids who live at the shelter get a head start in life when they leave.”

“I knew it was for a shelter, but I didn’t realize it was one of your projects. I’m sure you’ll raise a lot of money.”

“We hope so. I know Laura is covering everyone’s salary tonight, but we appreciate you giving up a day off to help.”

Wasn’t that sweet. Most people never thought that even if someone was offered money, they might not want to work on their day off.

Sam waved her hand at a man across the room and walked towards him. Another good-looking guy. He bent down and kissed her cheek.

Jaimie laughed to herself. While she and her mother weren’t physically abused or homeless, money was always tight after her father abandoned them. More times than she could count, they visited the food bank and were grateful for what they received.

She’d come a long way from that little girl looking for handouts with her mom.

But she could still be jealous of Laura, who had it made. She was pretty, smart and a business owner.

But that wasn’t the reason she was here. Jaimie needed to get close to Laura and find out her secrets. Everyone had secrets.

CHAPTERNINE

The gusting wind whipped Laura’s hair across her face. She almost ran into a light pole.Damn, damn, damn.The day started crappy and was going downhill. She stopped under an awning, pulled out a hair tie, and secured her hair into a ponytail.

The Roasted Bean was a block away, and she didn’t want to miss meeting with Sam.

It would be embarrassing to be late on top of the news Laura had to give Sam.

Besides, Sam had to get to her office for a meeting, and Laura needed to return to the restaurant to start the roasted tomato and corn poblano soup for tonight’s dinner.

A clap of thunder startled her as she opened the door to the coffee shop, then it started sprinkling. Terrific, she left her umbrella in her car. What else could go wrong today?

Laura spotted Sam at a table by the window. Sam waved, and Laura walked over. Sam stood and hugged her.

“So glad you could make it. Are you exhausted after Monday night?” said Sam.

“Not so much. However, I’m glad it’s over. I think everyone had a good time.”

“I know I did. You outdid yourself.”

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