Page 47 of Road Queens
“They can be the greatest sheets in the world—”
“They are.”
“—but you’re putting them on a pile of garbage.”
“You’re a pile of garbage,” he muttered, because he was still half asleep, and it was the best he could do.
Dinah snorted. “That’ll teach you to stay up half the night making eight kinds of custard.”
“Four. And that’s not why I was up late. But thanks for reminding me I’m out of bittersweet chocolate.” He sat up, scratched his head, yawned. “Guess who I’ve been hanging around with all—”
“Amanda Miller.” He was surprised into a temporary silence, broken by his sister’s giggle. “Well, yeah! Who else? She knows you’re an obsessive horndog, right?”
“I have thus far hidden that aspect of my personality,” he lied loftily.
“My ass. So, what? Did you run into her in midstalk? Please tell me you’re not calling from a lair you made in her attic.”
“I ran into Cassandra Rivers,” he replied. “Who’s in some trouble. I got a tip-off from Dora Schoen that Cassandra was a person of interest in a murder, so I’m trying to help them—”
“Them? You’re talking about OpStar! Are they getting the band back together?” Her pure delight came through every syllable.
“No, I don’t—I mean, I’m not sure what their plans are. Y’know, after.”
“After ...?”
“After my investigation wraps.”After we find out whether Cassandra Rivers killed anyone. After we find out who did. After everyone goes back to their lives. Including me.
“So keeping half an eye on them all these years has paid dividends.”
“I’m not sure ‘dividends’ is the word we’re looking for here. And yeah, I’ve kept my ear to the ground.” He heard his tone shift from sleepy to defensive and made a mental note to tone down the whining. “Why wouldn’t I? I just want to be there for them the way they were for you.”
“No argument on my end, big brother.”
“I’m your little brother. By two years, if my math is right.”
“Your math is fine, and you act like a big brother, so that’s what I call you. So who’d Cassandra kill? Sorry, sorry, who did sheallegedlykill?”
“Someone who deserved to die.”
“Oooooh, cryptic.”
“But I don’t think she did it.”
“Even more cryptic.”
“It’s too soon to—I mean, I’ve got some investigating to do. Which I’ll be working on the second I get out of the shower. They all love your curd and jellies, by the way.”
“Good thing, since I just sent Amanda a box of cranberry-rosemary.”
“And me, too, right?” he whined.
“You hate cranberriesandrosemary.”
“Right, so make mine lemon. Or blood orange! That was really good.”
“Blood oranges are tough to come by this time of year, but I’ll keep an eye out. Anything else for you this morning?”
“Give my niece a kiss and my brother-in-law a firm handshake. Or vice versa; what do I care? Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to launder my sheets and replenish my homemade ice cream supply. And investigate a murder.”
