“Let me get this straight: Since we started dating a few weeks ago, you’ve renovated a hotel, joined a reunion committee, and set up a multi-day get together with a former roommate I knew nothing about. What else have you done?”
She shrugged. “Just the usual—manned a flight to Mars, passed the Olympic torch, finished and defended my dissertation. Grunt work, really.”
“My girl is busy and important,” he said.
She picked up his hand and wound their fingers together. “Did you think anything less than dire necessity would keep me away from you these last few weeks? I told you I’ve been busy, but I find that I’m never too busy for you,” she said. She set their trash aside where he wouldn’t see and be distracted by the mess and slid her arms around his neck. “What should we do tonight?”
“I brought my running shoes.”
“I’m not sure where to go with that.”
“I thought we could go for a run,” he suggested.
“Oh.” So far she had skated by without jogging together, but Jason had been steadily increasing the pressure.
“Everyone in this town has seen you run but me. Why is it such a big deal?” he asked.
“You are an athlete. You can’t imagine what it’s like for the other half.”
“Lacy, it can’t be that bad. What do you think is going to happen? That I’ll be so repulsed by the sight of you sprinting that I never want to touch you again?”
“In a word: yes.”
“To spend an hour in your head would be worth any price.” He put his arm under her knees and tugged until she was slouched against the arm of the couch. “Since there’s no way to figure your thought process, I’m going to have to indoctrinate you to my way of thinking.”
“Do what you feel you must,” Lacy said.
“I can’t tell you how amazing it feels not to be looking over my shoulder every few minutes. How long are your grandparents going to be in Florida?”
“I don’t know. Mom is pretty freaked about Riley. Grandma and Grandpa are trying to talk her down. Could take a while.”
“I’ve never been more thankful for your mother’s high-strung nature,” Jason said.
“You’re the first and only person who has ever said that,” Lacy said. The almost painful thudding of her heart hadn’t abated even a little once they started dating. It was almost deafening now as he smiled and advanced.
The door slammed and they sat up. Riley stalked into the house. Lacy’s bedroom door opened and slammed. The front door opened again and Tosh stormed in. “Riley, get back here. We are so not done talking.” He waited a minute to see if Riley would magically heed his call and appear. When she didn’t, he sank to the sofa beside Lacy, his posture an odd mix of anger and defeat. “Your sister is insane.”
Lacy sat up and pressed her fingers to her temples. “Must force back ‘I told you so.’ Fighting hard…losing…”
“I’m serious, Lacy. What am I supposed to do with that?” He waved his hand toward the silent bedroom.
Like teenagers in the throes of their first romance, Tosh and Riley had been alternately passionately fighting or passionately making up the last few weeks. Lacy had never seen Tosh with a woman besides herself, so she didn’t know if his behavior was normal. Riley, however, was suddenly acting like a different person. “And I’m serious, Tosh. I am not getting involved. Believe me when I tell you that Riley would not appreciate me being on your side.”
“So you’re on her side?” Tosh asked.
“I don’t have a side. I’m so far removed from the situation that I’m not even Switzerland. Call me Siberia. Ask Jason.”
“I’m sitting here staring at the wall. How did I get sucked in?” Jason asked.
“Statistically speaking, out of everyone in this room, you know how to handle Riley the best,” Lacy said. She also knew he had an opinion. He had suffered in silence the few times Riley and Tosh had been inflicted on them since their quickie marriage, but she could tell by the disapproving expression on his face that he was holding back.
“I don’t give unsolicited advice,” Jason said.
Tosh dropped his head to his hands and leaned forward onto his knees. “Just tell me because apparently I am pathetic and desperate enough to take advice from anyone now.”
“All right, here goes,” Jason said. He shifted so he could see around Lacy, not that it mattered because Tosh didn’t look up from his view of the carpet. “The few times we had the utter misfortune to be subjected to you two lately, I’ve actually been impressed that you haven’t caved. I didn’t see that coming. Frankly, I thought she would tumble you like a steam shovel, so kudos for staying strong. In fact, do more of that. Riley is a drama monster, and she gets worse if she’s fed regularly. She needs to be deprived of drama. Go. Make her come to you.”
Tosh sat up with an expression of one who was being thrown a lifeline but not sure if he was allowed to take it. “Giving in hasn’t felt right, but it would be so much easier.”
“Give in now, and you’ll spend the rest of your life doing it. I’m about to say something really sexist here.” He reached over and pressed his palms to Lacy’s ears. “Riley is like a wild stallion that has never been saddled. Break her now, or spend the rest of your life being bucked.” He dropped his hands and bestowed Lacy with a sheepish smile.
“All right,” Tosh said. He stood and stumbled out of the house like a man in a daze. Lacy thought he was the one who was near breaking.
“Pathetic loser,” Jason muttered.
“So, Riley’s like a stallion that needs to be broken,” she said.
“Here we go,” Jason said.
“What’s your take on me?” She crossed her arms and leaned back to watch him squirm.
He didn’t squirm, though. “Baby, when it comes to us, you’re the one holding the whip.”
“Jason, if suaveness were an art form, you would be Renoir.”
He reached for her and tucked her close. “How long do you think your sister is going to be holed up in your room?”
“Until she realizes that no one is coming to get her, and then she’ll make some noise.” As if on cue, something connected with Lacy’s door and shattered. “Hopefully that was the glass of water I left on my nightstand and not the antique jewelry container my grandma gave me for Christmas.” She sighed and wriggled free of his embrace. “Don’t move. I’ll go try and get rid of her.”
“Hurry,” Jason urged. “Your grandparents aren’t going to be in Florida forever. Even as we speak, your grandfather may be poking a voodoo doll with my face on it to make sure I leave soon.”
She was chuckling as she breached the border of her room, but her laughter died as she saw her antique jewelry dish in Riley’s hand. Rushing forward, she pried it free before Riley could test its strength against the door. “Riley, stop breaking my things.”
“I can’t break my things because they’re not here,” Riley said.
“Don’t break any things.”
Instead of arguing, Riley flopped on her stomach and cried. Lacy reached out a tentative hand to pat her back, but Riley shoved her away and burrowed under the covers. Lacy bit her lip. No doubt about it, her sister had lost her mind. She had been avoiding her the last few weeks, not only to give her space and time to adjust to her marriage, but also because she was afraid of the ugly feelings simmering deep inside. She knew Riley had only married Tosh for the money. How long would it be before she sprung that on him and asked him to bail her out? Of course Tosh would, and then what? Would the quickie marriage be over? Riley would no doubt go back to where she came from or start over somewhere else. Tosh would be the one left behind, broken-hearted and illused.
“What’s the problem?” Lacy tried. Besides the fact that you married a stranger to get your hands on his fortune.
“He’s being so unreasonable,” Riley said. Her voice was muffled by the pillow and covers surrounding her face.
“How so?” Lacy asked. She was trying to stay neutr
al, but her first instinct was to take Tosh’s side. Of the two, Riley was the one far more likely to be unreasonable.
“He wants us to live like paupers,” Riley said. She rolled over and used the hem of Lacy’s sheets to scrub her wet nose.
Note to self: change the sheets, Lacy thought. “What do you mean?”
“What do you mean what do I mean? He doesn’t want to buy anything.”
“Riley, you know Tosh tries to live on what the church pays him. How would it look if the pastor of a small church lived in a mansion and drove a Bentley?”
“Okay, I get that, but he takes it too far. He wants us to live in his apartment. It’s tiny and horrible.”
Lacy couldn’t disagree there. While it had been okay for a bachelor, it was small and rundown. She wouldn’t want to live there either. “Where do you want to live?”
“I want to live in Peacock Acres,” Riley said.
Peacock Acres wasn’t the nicest neighborhood in town, but it was close. The mini mansions were reserved for commuters who made their money in the city but preferred country living. “Peacock Acres is expensive,” Lacy pointed out.
“I want a house,” Riley cried. “I hate that apartment. There’s no room for me, and it’s ugly.”
“I think I might have an idea,” Lacy said as she tried to work through the plan her mind was quickly formulating. “I have yet to give you a wedding present. I’ll give you Barbara Blake’s house.”
Riley sniffled and blinked. For once she didn’t look adorable when she cried. Her eyes were puffy and red as if she had been crying a lot lately. “Barbara’s house?”
“It’s on the small side and needs some updates, but I think Tosh would be willing to pay for those if the house were free. Maybe his family would be willing to do it for you.”
“I haven’t met his family yet. They’re going to hate me,” Riley said, and then she started to cry all over again.
“Riley, this isn’t you. Everyone likes you.”
She shook her head. “No, his church hates me. His family is going to hate me, too. I can already tell.”
Lacy grasped her shoulders and gave her a little shake. “Stop. You are Riley Steele, er, Riley Underwood.”
Her mini pep talk only made Riley cry harder. “That’s the worst last name in the world. I sound like a funeral home. Just leave me alone so I can go to sleep.”
“No. Riley, you can’t stay here. You are married now. Go home to your husband and stop running away every time you have a fight.”
“There’s nowhere to go in that apartment,” Riley moaned. “Not even a closet. I hate it there.”
“We can move you to Barbara’s place as soon as possible,” Lacy soothed. “You can oversee the remodeling and decorating.”
“Redecorating?” Riley said. She sat up and sniffed.
“Yes, loads of it. The whole house needs done.”
“Redecorating is fun,” she said.
“See? You have lots of work to do. Everything is going to be okay, but you need to go home. Talk to Tosh, tell him about the house, see if you can work out a budget for the remodel.”
Her sister’s expression darkened at the word “budget,” but she didn’t argue. Instead she slid off the bed and stood. She took a step toward the door, but Lacy stopped her. “Maybe you want to pop into the bathroom and freshen up a little before you go,” she suggested. Riley was a mess.
Riley nodded. Lacy followed her to the bathroom and watched while she splashed her face and reapplied some makeup. She ignored her hair which was a grave error because it sprung all over her head like a billboard for Crazytown. “Let me fix that for you,” Lacy said. She gathered her sister’s hair in a ponytail and secured it at the nape of her neck. “There you go.”
“Are there cupcakes?” Riley asked.
“Grandma left some,” Lacy said.
Riley followed her to the kitchen. Lacy showed her the cupcake stash and watched in horror as Riley picked up the entire container and tucked it under her arm. “Thanks,” she mumbled, then she let herself out without a word to Jason.
“What was that?” Jason asked.
“That was the version of Freaky Friday where my sister and I trade places. Seriously, I don’t think those cupcakes are even going to make it to her apartment. I’ve never seen her like that.”
“You would think that marrying a stranger you barely know for money would have a happier ending,” Jason said.
“I know, it’s almost like that wasn’t a good idea or something,” Lacy agreed.
Jason patted the couch beside him. “Where were we?” Lacy sat, and his phone buzzed. She knew by his expression as he reached for it that it was work and the news wouldn’t be good.
“Let me guess: you have to go,” she said.
He nodded. “I’m sorry. There’s a warrant-related standoff. Hold my place. We’ll pick it up where we left off.” He kissed her, and then he was gone. Lacy sat on the couch feeling bored and bereft with no Jason, no Tosh, no grandparents, and no cupcakes. In desperation, she frantically searched the cupboards for a snack. Finding nothing suitable, she settled on a container of chocolate sprinkles.
Armed with sprinkles and a spoon, she nestled into the couch for a long night of infomercials.
Chapter 2
Three days later, Lacy was helping Riley and Tosh move into Barbara Blake’s house when a surprise visitor showed up.
“Keegan,” Lacy yelled. She dropped her box and rushed forward as Keegan stepped from the apartment. “I didn’t know you were coming.”
“Neither did I. We’re all very last minute and spontaneous in this family, apparently,” he said. Her feet left the floor as he gave her a bear hug. “You’re looking even more gorgeous than I remember. How is that possible?”
“I was thinking the same about you. What is the likelihood that the Catholic church will let priests marry?”
“If you’re asking, then I’ll work on it. I mean peace be with you, my child. I’ve got to work on my response to you. By the way, rumor has it you’re dating the surly cop now. Is he as friendly as ever?”
“He’s a great guy who only has an adverse reaction to Underwoods,” Lacy explained.
“How odd,” Keegan said. “So, I guess we’re sort of related now. I did not see that coming.”
“I don’t think Nostradamus could have seen this coming,” Lacy said.
“Maybe. He was pretty good at calling disasters,” Keegan said. “Do you think Tosh is acting sort of…?”
“Crazy,” Lacy finished. “Riley, too. You don’t know her, but this is definitely not her at her finest.”
“I’m glad I’m at the point in my training where I’ve already learned how to administer last rites. I think they’re both going to need it by the time this is over,” Keegan said.
“Are you just here to help them move?”
“No, I am the official family envoy, sent to check out Riley and report her level of insanity back to the rest of the family.”
“Hold off on that,” Lacy said. “You’re really seeing her at her worst. She’s usually crazy, but in a different kind of way, the kind that makes men want to buy her pretty things.”
“Duly noted. I’m also heading up the home renovation team. I have some cousins and some of our crew coming in. We’re going to knock out the project in less than a week. The happy couple shouldn’t be here, but I don’t think it’s a good idea to send them back to that rat-trap apartment together.”
“They can stay at the hotel. Riley will want to be there for the reunion anyway, I think. Who knows anymore? Anyway, maybe it will be like a little honeymoon.”
Before Keegan could reply, there came the sound of shattering glass and Tosh yelling. “Riley, that came this close to hitting me in the head.”
“I’ve always had bad aim,” Riley screamed. “Next time I’ll hit it for sure.”
“Honeymoon, yes. I should probably go drag them to their corners,” Keegan said. He turned and went inside.
Lacy focused on drudge work to avoid the temptation to get involved. Keegan was at his most diplomatic and soon had everyone on peaceful terms once again. How long it would last Lacy didn’t know and tried not to care. None of my business, she reminded herself, although she did have to insert herself into the scene in order to suggest moving to the hotel during the renovation. Riley perked up a little at the mention of the reunion.
“I forgot about the reunion. Will you go?” Riley looked up at Tosh with big eyes.
“Well, yeah, if you really want me to,” he answered. “Do you?”
“Yes,” she said.
Keegan and Lacy exchanged a look. “Spooky,” Keegan mouthed. Lacy nodded her agreement. Riley sounded uncertain and Tosh belligerent. What was going on with them? Had Tosh learned about Riley’s money situation already? Did he resent being saddled with her? That might explain his behavior, but not hers. Something was up with them, and Lacy couldn’t figure it out. The temptation to stick her nose into their tempestuous relationship was strong and becoming stronger. She had to resist. Nothing good would come out of sticking her fingers in their mess.
“I should go. I’m meeting Kimber,” she said.
“I was hoping we could hang out,” Keegan said. Don’t leave me alone with them, his eyes pled.
“Maybe later,” Lacy said. “I promised to meet Kimber as soon as she gets into town.” She kissed Keegan’s cheek. Tosh regarded her with sullen eyes. Previously, she would have hugged him goodbye. Those days were over, at least for a while. He had moved from best friend to brother-in-law with no transition, and the shift felt awkward. She didn’t plan to hug Riley, but the plan changed when Riley grabbed her and held on tightly. Lacy gave a few halfhearted back pats and exchanged another look with Keegan, but Keegan had no idea how out of character this was. When was the last time Riley had given her a real hug? Probably sometime around her fourth birthday. “I’ll see you,” she added. “Call if you need anything.”
Class Reunion of Murder Page 2
