Chapter Twenty-seven
On Saturday night, Mia and Roman drove to the Lambs’ lake house. There was valet parking out front and the wait staff met them with champagne and canapes before they’d even had a chance to follow the path around the side of the house to the tent out back. It seemed Jennifer and Thomas didn’t want anyone to be deprived of food or drink at any point during the party, even in the minuscule space of time between handing off their car and walking through to the back lawn.
They made their way toward the sound of music then stopped at the corner of the house and surveyed the party spread out before them. There was one large tent and two small ones situated on the sprawling lawn. In the main tent, a five-piece band played in front of an empty dance floor, but Mia imagined once everyone had mingled and become sufficiently lubricated by alcohol, it would be packed with gyrating bodies.
Steps away was the narrow shore of the lake with the water stretching all the way to the horizon. The sun had already set, and the sky had gone to hues of pink and orange. The water was serene, the waves lapping gently against the land.
She couldn’t help sighing. “Wow. Talk about a perfect venue. How the hell did they pull off a party of this scale on less than a week’s notice?”
“Money and connections.” He glanced around, his eyes flicking over each small group of guests. “Not too many people here yet. I’d say maybe forty so far.”
“The party was such short notice it might end up being a small affair. Look, there’s Jennifer.”
She pointed to the smaller tent on the right where Jennifer was standing beside a table of food and talking to one of the servers.
They wove through the tables set with soft pink tablecloths, each anchored by a crystal vase containing a single, large sunflower. Jennifer spotted them immediately and she gave a brief wave.
“Oh, good. You’re here. I’m so nervous my stomach is queasy,” she said, pulling at the front of her pink silk dress. “I feel like something awful is going to happen.”
You and me both, sister, Mia thought. Her senses had been pinging ever since Eliza issued the strange invitation.
“Let’s just stay calm and wait and see,” Roman said. “Scott still hasn’t reached out to you since Mia and I met with him yesterday?”
Her eyes clouded over and her mouth turned down. “No. In fact, he won’t return any of our calls. I can’t believe that mousy little girl told on us.”
“You mean Kerry?” Mia asked.
Jennifer stabbed a finger in the air. “Yes. How dare she. It’s simply none of her business.”
“I guess she was looking out for Eliza,” Roman said.
“I know. Still, the timing couldn’t have been worse.” Jennifer sighed. “Well, what’s done is done. I’m hoping Thomas and I can have a candid discussion with Scott tonight. Maybe now that he’s had time to digest everything you told him, he’ll be more open to the possibility he needs to step back from that awful woman.”
“Maybe. But I wouldn’t get your hopes up. He didn’t so much as waver yesterday,” Mia said.
“How’s Thomas handling things?” Roman asked.
“Okay, I guess. We both want tonight to be over with. I’ve never actively hated planning a party more than I have this one.”
“You did an amazing job and in such a short time. I’m impressed,” Mia said.
“Thanks.” Jennifer blew out a breath and squared her shoulders. “Well, I’d best get back to it. Let me know if anything comes up, won’t you?”
“Of course. You’ll be the first,” Roman said.
During the next half hour, the party began filling in as more guests arrived and the sound of chatter rose accordingly. When twilight descended, the property became fully illuminated. Along with the usual patio and pool lights, string lights had been placed along both fence lines, around landscaping foliage, and outlined the small pool house. The bulbs shone a soft blue while the pool glowed green. To Mia, it made the grounds seem magical.
Roman and Mia got a glass of ginger ale and club soda, respectively, and wandered near the tables outside the main tent, catching snatches of conversations. There wasn’t much information to be gleaned. People, being people, mostly talked about themselves and very little chatter was focused on Eliza.
For several minutes, Mia let down her defensive mental barriers and took it all in. She turned to face a small group of twenty-something guys.
“See over there?” Mia tipped her head discreetly. “They’re Scott’s friends from his company. They’re not into Eliza at all. One of them just said how she may be hot, but she’s too mean for Scott. And the short guy thinks she’s after him for the money.”
“Good job, babes,” Roman said, taking her hand. “But don’t keep yourself open for too much longer. You know it’ll cost you and we have this whole party to get through.”
“You’re right. Hey, isn’t that June from Scott’s office?”
Roman followed her gaze and nodded. “Yep. That’s her. Should we say hello?”
“Maybe later, because the happy couple have just arrived.”
They turned to face the house and watched Eliza sashay across the lawn in a filmy, cream-colored slip dress. Her hair had been styled into an updo and flowers were clipped at the base while just a few curly tendrils framed her face.
She looked young and innocent, and very, very beautiful. It was suddenly hard to imagine this was someone capable of cold-blooded murder on top of everything she’d done to them in the last few days. For a split second, Mia couldn’t help wondering if they were wrong about Eliza.
But then, looks can be deceiving, can’t they? And didn’t I give off the exact same vibe all through my scamming and stealing years? Mia thought.
Eliza carried JP in her arms. He’d been dressed in a tiny jacket and bow tie and looked, in Mia’s opinion, absolutely precious. She set him down at her feet. The Min Pin was clearly more at ease in a large and noisy gathering of humans than he was meeting a single dog, and he sniffed at the grass then wandered toward one of the servers with a tray of bacon-wrapped dates and goat cheese.
Scott followed a few paces behind. He wore a dove grey suit with a white collared shirt and no tie. His hair had been styled so that tufts at the top of his head stuck up in a casually artful way. His smile was huge and his eyes stayed glued to Eliza.
Many of the guests surged forward to surround her. Scott managed to slip in and wrap an arm around her shoulders as though claiming his prize. She snuggled against him and gazed up adoringly.
Mia and Roman edged closer. Jennifer crossed the lawn and joined Thomas where he stood chatting to several guests at the edge of the seating area. More people arrived from the side of the house and gathered on the grass or wandered toward the main tent.
“Congratulations,” one woman said to Eliza. “Oh, look at that ring. It’s beautiful.”
“Wow. So impressive,” another gushed.
“I know. Scott definitely swept me off my feet,” Eliza said, beaming from ear to ear then gazing back up at her fiancé.
The four men Mia had mentally eavesdropped on came over and one of them gave Scott a playful punch on the arm.
“Nice blowout, bro.”
Scott, his hand now resting on Eliza’s forearm, turned and smiled at them. His face may have been long and narrow but there was something very appealing about the symmetry. Mia studied his soft brown eyes and sculpted lips.
“He’s probably not what Eliza would consider hot, but he’s still decent looking,” Mia said in an undertone.
“Should I be jealous?”
“Ha. You know I only have eyes for my Italian Stallion.”
Eliza caught sight of them and smiled hugely. “I’m so glad you could make it.”
Mia’s back went ramrod straight. “Let the games being,” she said in an undertone to Roman before stepping forward. “Me too. Quite the party.”
Scott turned and his smile fell away as he studied Roman. “I’d hoped you wouldn’t come.”
“I make it a policy never to turn down an invitation to a fancy shindig.”
The group around Eliza had mostly drifted away by now except for Scott’s four friends. He turned back to them and Eliza homed in on Mia. “We should grab a table. I’m definitely going to need some chair time. These Pradas are the cutest things ever, but my feet are already screaming like little babies.”
So, they were pretending that one of them hadn’t spent the better part of the week launching a multi-pronged attack against the other one. Fine. Mia could play along.
She glanced down at the beautiful strappy cream sandals with skyscraper heels. “I hear you, sister. I decided on flats for that very reason.”
Kerry materialized through the crowd, filming the party on her cell. She stumbled when she saw Mia and Roman, and the hand holding the phone dropped to her waist.
“Hey, Kerry. Great to see you again. It’s been too long,” Mia said brightly. “That dress is such a pretty color on you. You look really nice.”
Kerry’s gaze flicked away from them, and she glanced uncertainly at Eliza.
“Did you get me and Scott walking across the lawn?” Eliza asked her friend.
“Yeah, most of it anyway. What else should I video?”
“Everything. Duh. You know I like having lots of B roll stuff. I never know what’ll work until I start editing the video. Mia and I are going to grab a table. Get some footage of us chatting and then make sure you’re standing by. You’ll know when it’s time,” Eliza said.
“Sure. Of course.”
Kerry melted away, her phone once again in front of her while she walked slowly around the grounds.
“I guess being an influencer is a full-time job and then some,” Roman said.
“Sure. But when you love what you do, it doesn’t feel like work.” She tipped her head and studied his face for several beats. “Wow. In person, you’re really good looking. Even better than the picture on your website.”
“Thanks. Though you don’t say it like a compliment,” Roman said.
“Just stating a fact. And Mia’s seriously gorgeous. You’re quite the couple. She’s all fiery beauty and you’re dark and smoldering sex,” Eliza said, glancing from one to the other, then shrugged.
“What are we doing here, Eliza?” Roman asked.
“I thought you might like a night out. The Lambs know how to throw a party and it’s the perfect place to pick up some new clients. If I were you, I’d start handing out cards, because this case you’re on right now, the bust-up-the-Eliza-and-Scott-wedding case, it’s ending tonight. So go on and mingle while Mia and I have some girl time.”
Eliza tucked her hand in at Mia’s elbow and towed her toward a table on the far side of the seating area and closest to the lake. Carefully arranging her skirts, she perched on one of the chairs and Mia followed suit. Roman watched them go then positioned himself at the side of the tent where he could keep an eye on their table.
Meanwhile, Mia reached out with her mind but couldn’t get a solid read on Eliza. Her energy was chaotic. Super charged. Then Eliza smiled, her face lighting up like she held the secrets to the universe. Mia’s stomach clenched. Her heart beat overtime.
JP came galloping toward his mistress with a big doggy smile on his face. Eliza scooped him up, being careful of her dress, before setting him directly on the table.
“It’s gonna make Jennifer’s eye twitch if she sees him on the table,” Eliza said with a chuckle.
When Mia held out her hand to the tiny dog, he approached eagerly and sniffed before dropping to his side and requesting a belly rub.
Eliza’s expression turned to wonder. “Okay. Wow. That’s weird. JP never lets anyone but me pat his tummy.”
Mia shrugged and softly stroked the Min Pin’s almost hairless belly. “I’ve always loved dogs. I think they can sense it from me.”
“He’s my first. I never even knew I wanted one, and then one night when I couldn’t sleep I found myself scrolling breeder sites. I was on a plane to Phoenix the next day, and the rest is history.”
“You know, if something were to happen to you—like going to jail, for instance—I wonder how JP will manage. I mean, have you made plans for a caretaker?” Mia asked.
The color drained from Eliza’s face and her eyes dropped to the dog who was still luxuriating under Mia’s hand.
“Are you seriously threatening my innocent dog?” she hissed.
“What? No. Of course not. I would never. It was just an idle thought, that’s all, and something for you to think about.”
Eliza reached out and carefully pulled JP away from Mia’s reach. With a gentle hand, she stroked his tiny head then glared across the table.
“Don’t you worry, little man. Nothing’s going to happen to your mama.”
She kissed his nose then shifted her attention to her microscopic cream clutch and retrieved something from inside a zipped pocket. She slipped that something on her finger. When she held her hand out, Mia’s eyes fixed on the platinum wedding band nestled so innocuously beside the diamond engagement ring.