Page 18 of Silent Threat
Cole was her patient. Annie was going to help him. Then, when he left Hope Hill in a few weeks’ time, she was going to forget about him.
Chapter Five
Tuesday
“READY?” KELLY SMILED.She was dressed in a purple sateen sheath she’d called urban aubergine, and silver stilettos, as if she were heading to a cocktail party instead of hanging out in a construction zone. Her hair and makeup soared to new heights of overdone, but maybe that kind of thing played best for the cameras. “Is this the most exciting thing we’ve ever done or what? Everybody we know is watching.”
Annie could have done without being reminded. She was tricked out too, so over-the-top she could be an announcer at the Hunger Games. She had barely recognized herself in the mirror when the stylist—one of Kelly’s friends—was done with her. She wore a tight, black strapless bodice, a red ballet skirt and, of course, heels—because nothing said house renovation like broken ankles.
You don’t have to enjoy this. You just have to survive it.
And hopefully not go bald in the process. Her hair had enough product in it to grout the kitchen backsplash. Her outraged eyebrows were plucked within an inch of their lives. And her makeup was exaggerated enough to scare a teenager out of her goth phase. Almost as overdone as Xane’s the last time Annie had seen him in concert.
“Ready,” Annie said carefully so as not to crack the thick layer of lipstick on her lips.
All right, fine.She was a little excited. She glanced around.God, let this work.
David Durenne, the producer, was watching Kelly with rapt interest, but Kelly didn’t notice. Which probably meant he was a nice guy.
The family love curse was pretty widespread. Kelly was expanding her Realtor business because her loser ex had successfully sued her for alimony. Ricky had cheated on her then left her, and now Kelly had to support him financially while he frolicked around with his cliché twenty-year-old hairdresser.
If there was a loser jerk within a hundred miles, one of the Murray women found him. Guaranteed.
The producer held up a finger, his eyes going unfocused as he listened to the bud in his ear.
“Hold on,” he said. “We have a thirty-second delay. Weather update. Tropical Storm Rupert was just upgraded to a hurricane. It’s making landfall in Kingston, Jamaica.” He frowned as he listened. “Might come up the Eastern Seaboard.”
Before Annie could worry too much about it, the man began counting back on his fingers.
“Five, four, three, two, one.”
The cameras began rolling.
“Good morning,” Kelly cooed. “I am Kelly Murray, and this is my cousin, Annie. Two savvy single ladies doing business. We’re going to show you today how to double the value of your real estate property for sale.”
Annie barely flinched at the wordsingle. Totally expected it. She held on to her pleasant, neutral expression as her cousin went on about the importance of picking the right location when thinking about flipping.
“So tell us about how you created a sanctuary for those poor darling animals.” Kelly held her smile for the count of three, then turned it all off.
“They’re cutting in the footage we shot of the llamas earlier.” She grabbed her compact from her back pocket to pat more powder on her face. “People want a personalized story.”
Done with the compact, she stashed it away and pulled out a travel-size can of glitter hairspray. She fluffed Annie’s hair with one hand and sprayed with the other.
While Annie tried to choke as quietly as possible, her cousin flashed a look of approval. “There. You look like a lady. You never know who might watch this thing. Maybe we’ll catch the eye of a hot doctor or a sexy lawyer. You have to look like the kind of wife a professional man would want.”
“Coming back in five, four, three, two, one,” the producer called out as the hairspray disappeared.
Kelly turned on again, flipping the beauty-contestant switch that Annie decidedly didn’t have. They had very different upbringings. Not Kelly’s fault. Resenting her for it would be stupid, and Annie didn’t. Yet she was aware of an emotional gap between them.
“Unfortunately, as you can see, the house is in rough shape,” Kelly said.
The cameras panned around.
Kelly had actually made the mess on purpose. The place looked like a dump. Annie tried not to wince at the thought of the whole town seeing her like a slob, a borderline hoarder.
“Especially the kitchen.” Kelly led the way. “And your dream is one big open space, right?”
No.Annie wanted to leave the walls where they were. But her cousin insisted that the show would work best if the difference betweenbeforeandafterwas dramatic.
