Chapter Thirteen
Chapter
Thirteen
Dread filled my veins like slow-setting cement. I numbly accepted Mrs. Nagy’s effusive thanks and listened to Agnes’s assurances to her that Zoltán’s legal problems were practically already solved now that I was on the case.
I returned to my apartment in a daze, not realizing until I stood in the middle of the kitchen that I was clutching the slightly damp blush-pink towel to my chest like it could somehow save me from the ridiculous promise I’d made to my sweet neighbor.
“What the blankety bleep have you done, Emersyn?” I asked myself out loud.
“Sounds to me like you secured our first case.”
I whirled around to see Wyatt standing in the open doorway.
What was it with this guy and doorways? If there was an open one, he seemed to be in it. Filling it with his tall, sculpted frame.
“Our case?” Had I really heard right?
“My name is on the business cards,” he pointed out.
“They’re fake business cards! It’s all fake!” I was getting dangerously close to shrieking.
“I’m not fake,” Wyatt said, the picture of cool composure. “I’m pretty sure you’re not. And you did tell Mrs. Nagy we’d help her husband. Are you going to break that promise?”
I’d reached my limit for the day. Maybe for the week. I needed time to think, to sort out…everything.
Still clutching the towel, I said, “I need time. And space.”
Wyatt didn’t budge. “Meaning?”
“It’s not you. It’s me.” That was probably true.
He raised an eyebrow. “Are you breaking up with me?”
“We’re not together,” I pointed out.
“Exactly.”
This conversation was not helping my muddled and overwhelmed state.
He must have caught on to that, because he finally vacated the doorway.
Once out in the hall, he turned around. “I’ll let you know if I come up with any leads.”
“Sure. Okay. Thanks,” I said on the off chance that my agreement would send him on his way.
Thankfully, it did.
I shut the door and locked it for good measure. I hoped I’d now seen the last of Wyatt.
Well, the sensible, wise part of me was hoping. And maybe that was a very small part of me, but it still existed somewhere deep inside.
“Forget about him,” I muttered to myself.
Easier said than done, perhaps, but I was going to give it my best shot.
While I cleaned up the mess of wet towels on the kitchen floor, I considered my next move. As foolhardy as it was for me to promise to help Mrs. Nagy and her husband, I’d made the commitment and absolutely could not go back on it. So now I had to figure out how to solve a murder.
Easy peasy lemon squeezy, right?
I preferred the romance genre when it came to books and movies, but I’d watched a couple of reruns of Bones with Jemma a few years ago.
Of course, I’d mostly watched for David Boreanaz, not the plot.
And come to think of it, I couldn’t remember how they’d solved any of the crimes except that they’d used some fancy-schmancy scientific techniques that were way out of my league.
Maybe not so easy peasy then.
Even though I still had no idea how to clear Mr. Nagy’s name, the next morning my day got off to a decent start.
Bright and early, I applied for the job at the local clothing shop after finding the posting online.
As I was in the midst of doing that, I received invitations to interviews for two copywriting positions I’d applied for.
That buoyed my spirits. Copywriting wasn’t my dream career, but I had experience in the field, and I wasn’t about to be picky at this point.
After walking Livy to school, I spent the rest of the morning preparing by looking up practice interview questions on the Internet and coming up with answers that I hoped sounded intelligent. Then I donned a pantsuit, made myself presentable, and rode the subway into Manhattan.
I arrived fifteen minutes early for the first interview, with butterflies dancing in my stomach. Not the pleasant kind that I got when I encountered Wyatt or Bodie but the sort that made me want to throw up. Nevertheless, I took some deep breaths to center myself and walked into the office.
Five minutes in, they revealed that they wanted someone who could work overtime—in the office—on evenings and weekends, with little to no notice. As soon as I mentioned that I had a child in my care, the interviewers lost interest in me.
I told myself that the next one would go better. I showed up ten minutes early for that interview, only to be told that they’d already offered the job to another candidate but would keep me in mind for any future openings.
I absolutely did not cry when the receptionist gave me that news, but my eyes burned as I trudged back to the subway station, thinking of my dwindling bank account and how I was going to take care of sweet Livy.
Could I ask my parents for financial help?
Sure, but that would earn me a lifetime of disapproval from my mom.
I would do it for Livy’s sake, but only as a last resort.
I honestly didn’t know what I was doing wrong. Every time I tried to get my life back on track, I discovered that those tracks were broken or washed out or didn’t exist at all.
I clamped my eyes shut as I sat on the train. No crying. No pity party. Optimism was the way to go.
I cast around in my mind to find a positive thought.
At least I had time to figure out how to keep my promise to Mrs. Nagy now?
Sure, I’d go with that.
Except, by the time I got back to the Mirage, I still had no idea how to fulfill that promise.
As I approached the building, I checked the time on my phone.
My heart lurched when I realized that school was already out for the day.
Then I remembered that my parents were picking Livy up at the elementary school and taking her to their place for the weekend.
The panicked fluttering in my chest morphed into an ache.
Being my niece’s full-time caregiver had definitely required some adjustment, but it hadn’t taken me long to get used to having her around.
She’d been living with me for eleven months now, and whenever she spent a night or two away, I felt like an integral piece of me was missing, like there was a gap in my soul.
She’ll have fun, I reminded myself.
She’d be happy and well cared for, and my parents needed time with her as much as she needed time with them.
Besides, I could use the weekend alone to apply for more jobs and figure out how the heck I was going to keep my promise to Mrs. Nagy.
Maybe the police would figure out their mistake, release her husband, and drop the murder charge before the weekend was over, but I couldn’t count on that happening.
As I walked through the front door of the Mirage, I was contemplating a Google search for tips on solving murders.
I reached into my purse for my phone, but then all such thoughts flew off into the ether when I saw Wyatt walking my way, carrying a peachy orange box that I immediately recognized as coming from Agnes’s bakery, Tasty Buns.
“If there’s chocolate mousse cake in that box, you could be my hero,” I said as we met in the middle of the lobby.
He opened the box to reveal half a dozen scrumptious-looking mini cherry cheesecakes. “I’m destined to disappoint.”
My mouth watered at the sight of the desserts. “Hardly.”
When I raised my eyes to Wyatt’s, my stomach did a funny flip-flop that had nothing to do with cheesecake.
I cleared my throat, trying to do the same to my suddenly fuzzy brain. “Are you here to see me?”
“Actually, that’s a bonus. I had a meeting with Agnes about the security system for her bakery.” He nodded at the box in his hands. “The consulting job comes with some perks.”
The elevator doors parted, and Bitty Dover stepped out with Leona Lavish, who wore a floor-length, sparkling black gown and what looked like several pounds of glittering costume jewelry. Bitty, on the other hand, wore a demure gray-and-white dress with a pink cardigan and a single strand of pearls.
“Emersyn!” Bitty waved at me like I might somehow miss seeing her there. “Just the person we need to talk to.”
“Agnes told us that you’re on the case, and we have intel to share,” Leona added as they hurried across the lobby toward us.
Well, Bitty hurried while Leona sort of glided with her chin up and her chest thrust forward, like she was making a grand entrance onstage.
That’s the way she walked pretty much all the time.
“I see you’re dressing the part,” Bitty said with approval as she took in the sight of my pantsuit. “My dear cousin Princess Di always said that’s the first step to success.”
I looked down at my clothes and was about to explain that I’d come from unsuccessful job interviews, but Leona didn’t give me a chance.
She’d already turned all her attention to Wyatt.
Frankly, I was surprised that she’d noticed me at all, and I definitely wasn’t surprised when she took hold of Wyatt’s arm and pressed her ample bosom against it while gazing up at him with her false eyelashes fluttering wildly.
“And who’s this?” She practically purred the question.
Wyatt smiled, and he did a good job of it, but I still suspected that he’d forced the expression. “I’m Wyatt.”
Once again, he supplied no last name. What was up with that?
“The private detective!” Bitty exclaimed with delight. “Agnes told us that you run the PI agency with Emersyn.”
“That’s not quite—” I tried to say, but Leona cut me off.
“Darling, you can be my private eye anytime,” she said to Wyatt in a sultry voice.
“You have intel?” he said, a little louder than necessary.
Bitty nodded. “About Freddie. We figured you’d want to know if he had a beef with anyone.”
“Absolutely,” I said, as if I’d planned to ferret out such information all along.
“Leona and I heard Freddie arguing with Rosario López a few days before he died,” Bitty divulged.
Although I wouldn’t have thought it possible, Leona pressed herself even more snugly against Wyatt, forcing him to shift the bakery box to one hand. “That’s right. We did.”
“What were they arguing about?” Wyatt asked.
He took a subtle step back, but Leona moved with him, all the while stroking his biceps.
“We’re not sure,” Bitty replied. “We heard their raised voices but couldn’t make out any actual words.”
“How often do you work out, darling?” Leona’s voice dripped with desire.
Although I was tempted to gag, it pleased me to see a slight crack in Wyatt’s composure. He shot me an alarmed glance before regaining his laid-back, confident demeanor.
“Had they argued before, to your knowledge?” he asked Bitty, ignoring Leona’s question.
“I’m really not sure,” Bitty admitted. “And I’m sorry, but I’ve got to run. I’ve got a dental appointment.”
With a wave, she pushed out the front door.
Leona ran a finger down Wyatt’s chest. “How about we go up to my apartment, and you can conduct a very thorough investigation?” She followed the suggestion with an over-the-top wink.
Wyatt stepped back and raised his hand to cover a cough, which I suspected was itself a cover for nearly choking.
I took pity on him then. After all, he’d helped me out three times. The least I could do was save him from Leona’s clutches.
“Sorry, we’ve got plans.” I grabbed Wyatt’s arm and yanked him over to the elevator with me.
Luckily, the doors parted as soon as I pressed the button, and I quickly jabbed first at the number three and then at the Close Door button.
Leona clutched one hand to her chest and raised the other to get our attention. “I’ll ride with you!” she cried, a frightening sort of desperation in her violet eyes.
She was two steps away when the doors closed.
“Oh, thank God.” Wyatt shoved the bakery box at me. “Here. Take all the cheesecakes as a token of my gratitude.”
I removed one mini dessert from the box before pushing it back into his hands.
“Consider us even.” I took a bite of heavenly cherry deliciousness and let out a moan of pleasure, nearly sagging against the wall. Agnes and her daughter were baking magicians.
I was about to take a second bite when my eyes met Wyatt’s.
The heat in his gaze nearly stopped my heart.
I licked a bit of cheesecake filling from the corner of my mouth before realizing what I was doing. Wyatt’s eyes tracked the movement. My fingers dug into the soft dessert, and I had a sudden urge to lift those cheesecake-covered fingertips to his lips.
The elevator dinged, and the doors parted.
Theo was stationed right outside with her arms crossed over her chest. She fixed me with a cool stare and said, “It’s about time you showed up.”