Murder After Midnight

by Dianne Harman

  From across the dinner table, Jake took her hands in his. His shining blue eyes and earnest expression made no secret of his feelings for her. “DeeDee, I don’t want to scare you off, but I just want you to know how much you mean to me. I realize we haven’t been seeing each other that long, but I don’t believe in playing games. I’m not sure if I’m the marrying type, but if you don’t mind me sticking around, I’d very much like to see how things go.”

  DeeDee glanced at the black ring box laying open on the table. “I have to admit I was worried when I opened it,” she said cautiously.

  “In case I got down on one knee?” Jake grinned. “Your face was a picture. Actually, you had panic written all over it.”

  DeeDee flushed. She looked back at Jake, who still wore a bemused smile. Although she had a million thoughts going through her head, she wasn’t sure how to express them. The feelings she had for Jake were strong, and while she was sure she loved him, for some reason the thought of making a permanent commitment to him terrified her. She suspected she was afraid of it all going wrong and then losing him, although that was because of her own insecurities and not because of anything Jake had done.

  Jake’s eyes never left hers.

  “I’m not sure how to put this,” she said carefully, squeezing his hands. “I care for you very much. In fact, I,” DeeDee’s mouth went dry. She wanted to say, I love you, but she couldn’t get those three little words to come out of her mouth. “Um, what I mean is, you’ve been there for me every step of the way since I moved to Bainbridge Island after my divorce. If it weren’t for you and Balto, my life wouldn’t be what it is today.”

  Balto woofed at the mere mention of his name, and wagged his tail from his dog bed in the corner. DeeDee smiled and looked over at the black and white husky, glad for the momentary diversion.

  Jake’s eyes narrowed. “Go on, DeeDee,” he encouraged her.

  DeeDee inwardly cursed herself. Jake knew her so well. She was avoiding the truth, and he deserved to know how she felt about him. Why, at almost fifty years of age, was she afraid of exposing her true feelings to this man who had been there for her from the beginning, no questions asked? The fact that he was handsome, strong, and calm, not to mention a great kisser, was icing on the cake.

  DeeDee’s heart was pounding. Say it, she urged herself. There was so much she wanted to tell Jake she hardly knew where to start. Like how she thought she’d never love again after her ex-husband Lyle had left her. And how she sometimes felt guilty about being so happy, more so now that Lyle and his new fiancée had broken up. What she and Jake had was so precious she wanted to protect it, nurture it, and never let it be compromised.

  “When I came to Bainbridge Island I was excited about starting over,” DeeDee said. “Each of the little firsts I had to do as a single middle-aged woman were a big deal. ”

  “I get it,” Jake said. “Starting your own business is a pretty major thing.”

  DeeDee extracted her hands from Jake’s and topped off their wine glasses.

  “I guess Deelish has turned into something bigger than I ever expected,” DeeDee admitted. “Maybe I never thought it through properly, but certainly meeting you is one of the most important things that’s happened to me since I moved to Bainbridge Island. I guess there’s a part of me that doesn’t want to give up my newfound independence just because I met a guy.”

  A flash of hurt passed across Jake’s face, and DeeDee winced.

  “Sorry, that came out all wrong. What I mean is, I think I need to find a better balance. I don’t want our relationship to suffer because of my business, but I don’t want to give up Deelish either. Recently, with work and all of the other things that have happened, I’ve been feeling anxious because I’m being pulled in lots of different directions all at once. Does that make any sense to you?”

  DeeDee was referring to her sister Roz’s wedding just over a week earlier, when Roz’s husband Clark was implicated in the murder of his rich Uncle Vinny which occurred at the wedding reception. She’d been worried about her sister, the fact that Jake got caught up in the murder investigation because of his relationship with DeeDee, and the work commitments that her catering business had during the busiest time of the year.

  Jake rubbed his chin and stood up. “Here’s what I think,” he said, going around the table and pulling DeeDee’s chair out. He lifted both of their wine glasses and motioned toward the door. “Why don’t we go sit by the fireplace and talk about this some more. It’s two days after Christmas, and I hate to see you getting stressed out by our conversation.”

  “I have to clean up the dinner dishes,” DeeDee protested. “And Balto needs walking. ”

  Jake raised an eyebrow. “See what I mean? I can do all that later on. Now follow me. Consider that an order, Ms. Wilson.”

  DeeDee smiled and did as her former Marine Corps officer boyfriend directed. It didn’t take long for her to relax once she was cuddled up on the sofa with Jake’s arm around her and Balto at her feet. Flames danced and curled as the wood burned. The sound of driving wind and rain pelted the window panes from outside, creating a soft, soothing, rhythmic sound.

  “I’ll understand about the ring, if you don’t feel ready to wear it yet,” Jake said gently. “I don’t want it to be an issue, but it would make me very happy if you would keep it as a sign of my commitment.”

  “It’s not that,” DeeDee said, leaning her head on his shoulder. “It’s just…”

  Go on. I love you. Tell him.

  Jake waited for her to continue. And waited.

  “Oh, heck,” he said. “You don’t like it, is that what it is? We can go back and exchange it, if that’s the issue. No problem, DeeDee. Just say the word.” He bent down and kissed her forehead.

  DeeDee’s eyes brimmed with tears at the worry etched across Jake’s face. “You’re right, I don’t like it,” she teased, holding her hand out to admire the ring. “I LOVE IT!!!”

  She giggled while Jake pinned her hands down and kissed her on her lips. She felt herself sinking under the tender touch of his mouth on hers, and knew at that moment she would wear his ring for as long as eternity. There was no going back. This man was her heart, her soul, her forever. When they came up for air, it was Jake who spoke first.

  “I’m glad we got that settled,” he smiled, brushing a strand of hair off her face and tucking it behind her ear. “Because I have another surprise for you.”

  “Ooh,” DeeDee said, taking the opportunity of Jake freeing her hands to reach for her wine glass. “Go on. Are you going to tell me what it is?”

  She sipped the chilled sauvignon blanc, and watched Jake, whose face was twitching.

  “I can’t tell you for a few days,” he said. “You’ll have to wait a little longer.”

  “You’re enjoying teasing me, aren’t you?” she smiled. “So, when do I get to find out what this secret surprise is?”

  “New Year’s Eve,” Jake winked. “I’ve booked dinner at The Clamshell, the place we went on our first date, remember? All will be revealed then, I promise.”

  DeeDee’s face fell flat, and her hand flew up to her mouth. “Oh, Jake. I’m so sorry. I’ve been meaning to talk to you about New Year’s Eve, but with Vinny’s murder, and Christmas, I forgot. I don’t think I can make it.”

  Jake regarded DeeDee with a look of surprise. “You’re kidding, right? Oh, I get it.” His face brightened up. “Don’t tell me you’ve got a surprise planned as well?”

  DeeDee wanted the ground to open up and swallow her. She wasn’t sure if it was the heat from the fireplace, the wine, or a hot flash, but all of a sudden, her face felt like it was on fire. She knew she needed to tell him the truth.

  “I know we said we’d do something together on New Year’s Eve, but here’s the problem, a booking came in for Deelish, and I’ve kind of accepted it.”

  Jake paused. He did that thing where DeeDee knew he was trying to compose himself before he spoke. “I see,” he said, with a sound of dis
appointment in his voice.

  “It’s Dana Donnelly. She’s the one from the New Day NW television show,” DeeDee gushed. “She’s having a New Year’s Eve dinner party for fifty people. I thought it would be a good opportunity to make some high-profile contacts, then maybe I can start to concentrate on fewer, more highly priced events. What do you think?”

  “It sounds great,” Jake said, moving away from DeeDee on the sofa. “When were you planning on telling me?”

  DeeDee’s heart was pounding. Jake’s mouth looked grim and the earlier twinkle in his eyes had disappeared.

  “Dana called me about it last week, but what with the Roz and Clark situation…”

  “Last week?” Jake’s asked as he raised his voice. “You knew about this for a week and you didn’t say anything? That’s just swell, DeeDee, thanks a bunch.”

  “I thought you’d be happy,” DeeDee said quietly. “We’d talked about me cutting back on work, so we could spend more time together. I thought this would be a good way of achieving that goal.”

  Jake scratched his head and frowned. “Right. So you thought working on New Year’s Eve was a good way for us to spend more time together? Forgive me if I’m having a problem with that, DeeDee.”

  DeeDee reached out to Jake, who pulled away and shook her off.

  “No,” she pleaded. “I meant, in the future I can cut back. This is an awesome opportunity for Deelish. Can’t you see that?” It didn’t seem like Jake could. “Sometimes it’s worth making sacrifices now in order to get the rewards later,” she mumbled.

  “Since when did you become a mind reader, DeeDee?” Jake asked as he stood up. “Don’t you think this was at least worth discussing with me before you booked it? If it was such a big thing for you, why would you not want to share it with me? That’s the part I don’t get.” He strode across the room to the coat rack in the hallway, and started stuffing his arms into his overcoat.

  “You’re leaving?” DeeDee said, getting up from the sofa. “Can’t we at least talk about this now?”

  “Maybe it’s a little late for that, since you’ve already made up your mind about what you are going to do.” Jake sighed deeply and his eyes bored through DeeDee. “For what it’s worth, I think it’s a wonderful gig for you,” he said, his voice becoming softer. “But I wish you would have said something earlier, instead of making important decisions that affect both of us without consulting me. I suppose it’s better that you made your priorities about us and your business clear now, before…” Jake shrugged, his voice trailing off. “Never mind. I guess that doesn’t matter now.”

  DeeDee folded her arms. “Since when did my business concern you anyway? I can’t believe you’re overreacting like this. If you think I need to ask your permission before taking a catering booking, you’ve got another think coming, Jake Rogers.” DeeDee said as she glared at Jake, who started walking toward the door.

  “I’m going now,” he muttered.

  “Fine. Don’t let the door hit you on the way out,” DeeDee called after him.

  Jake opened it and turned back towards DeeDee. “If you want your independence that much, you just got it,” he said as he closed the door quietly.

  DeeDee stood there in shock, unable to believe what had just happened. She glanced at Balto, who was standing near the door, also looking bewildered. DeeDee came to her senses. “Did he just walk out on me?” she said to the dog, fuming .

  Running over to the door, DeeDee opened it and yelled out to Jake, who was walking down the steps of the porch, his hands in his pockets, and his head hunched down. “Hey, Jake, you forgot something.”

  Pulling the ring off her finger, she threw the gold and diamond band at his back. Standing in the doorway, DeeDee gasped as she watched the ring fly over his head and onto the grass in the darkness beyond.

  Jake never looked back. He just kept walking, got into his battered old jeep, and drove away.

  CHAPTER 2

  Sonia McNulty slid into the red leatherette diner booth seat as demurely as her tight pencil skirt would allow, and flicked some crumbs off the sticky tabletop. “You really do take me to all the best places in town, Bruce,” she snarled at her companion.

  Bruce Tarbert, Sonia’s agent, looked across the table at her over the top of the plastic-coated menu he was holding several inches from his face. “You’re late, Sonia. The special’s Chicken a la King, if you’re interested.”

  “I’m not.”

  Sonia looked at the menu. A waitress loudly chewing gum appeared at the end of the booth and was tapping her notepad with her pen.

  “You go first,” Sonia muttered to Bruce. Her frown was invisible due to the amount of Botox that had been injected into her forehead by her plastic surgeon. The words on the menu were swimming in front of her eyes. “I can’t understand this.”

  “It’s not in Japanese, is it?” Bruce said before giving his order to the impatient waitress. When he was done, the two of them stared at Sonia, who began to hyperventilate.

  “Do you have a Skinny menu?” she asked the waitress when she’d caught her breath.

  The waitress looked at her like she’d just landed on the planet earth from Mars and had two heads.

  “Whatever,” Sonia sighed. “I guess I’ll have a double cheeseburger, with crispy bacon, an extra pickle, with an order of French fries and onion rings on the side.” Sonia paused, glancing at the menu again. “Oh, and an Oreo Cookie Fantasy milkshake, and a slice of Mississippi Mud Pie, heavy on the whipped cream.” She figured she may as well enjoy her meal, before purging later.

  When the waitress had left, Bruce gave her a quizzical look. “Have you taken your medication today?”

  Sonia sneered at him. “Don’t act so concerned, Bruce. If you really cared about me, we wouldn’t even be sitting here. I should be spending the holidays with my family and loved ones.”

  Sonia suspected he knew she didn’t have any close family or loved ones, but at least he didn’t point it out to her. Her downtown Seattle condo may have been a showplace for fabulous furnishings, the latest gadgets, her walk-in closet full of designer clothes, and more red-soled Christian Louboutin shoes than she cared to count, but there was no one waiting for her when she got home.

  “Let’s cut to the chase,” she went on, without giving him a chance to reply. “My contract with the television station expires a week from now, and they still haven’t renewed. What’s the latest offer?”

  Bruce took a piece of paper from the pocket of his shiny suit jacket and slid it across the table. Sonia opened it and laughed hollowly. She mashed the paper into a ball and let it fall onto the tabletop.

  “You’ve got to be kidding me? That’s an insult.”

  Bruce tore open a pink packet of sweetener and poured it into the coffee the waitress had just set on the table with a splash. “It’s a good offer,” he said carefully, adding a packet of creamer. He stirred the coffee and wiped the spill caused by the waitress with some napkins from the metal dispenser on the table before staring back at Sonia. “It’s not great, but it’s not too shabby either. I think it’s the best you’re going to get, Sonia. Don’t be too quick to reject it in case it backfires on you.”

  The one thing Sonia knew about Bruce, her agent of ten years, was that he didn’t play games. He called a spade a spade and had always been straight with her about pay negotiation tactics. If Bruce was telling her to take the offer, she was ready to listen. He knew when his 10% cut of an offer she wasn’t impressed by was better than 10% of nothing.

  Sonia stirred her straw around in the milkshake. “You don’t think we can get them to go any higher, Bruce? I’m going to be on skid row January 1 st, if I don’t renew in the next week. The only reason I’ve stayed at the station this long is because I thought Dana Donnelly would have retired by now. Goodness knows she’s so rich she can afford to.”

  Bruce’s eyes followed a pretty blond seated at a nearby table. Sonia recognized her as being an intern at the television station, who was a
ngling for the regional weather presenter position. Much like herself twenty years earlier, the intern had been sleeping with all the right people to make sure she got the position she wanted. The problem, as Sonia had found out, was when someone else had already slept with all of the same people before you, and had beat you to the top entertainment presenter slot.

  Turning back to his client, Bruce spoke up. “Dana isn’t going anywhere, Sonia. She’s at the top of her game. The viewers love her, and the station’s ratings have never been higher. You can bet Dana’s going to milk that for as long as she can, and who can blame her. Besides, from what I’ve been hearing, she’s not as rich as you may think. In fact, she’s far from it.”

  Sonia’s ears perked up, “Really?” Any dirt she could pick up on Dana was music to her ears. Bruce didn’t make careless comments like the one he’d just made unless there was some truth to what he was saying, but she’d be surprised if he said any more about it. Bruce could be very close-mouthed when he felt it was in his best interest to do so.

  Bruce paused while their food was being served. “Let’s just say Dana’s downsizing. She and her husband have a big party coming up at their place on New Year’s Eve. From what I hear, it’s going to be the last bash at their huge pad on Bainbridge Island, which has quietly been on the market for some time.”

  “Oh, right,” Sonia said casually, hoping to wangle more information out of Bruce. “Are they buying some place nearby? With four kids, that won’t come cheap either.”

  Bruce grabbed a large handful of fries and dipped them in the pool of ketchup he’d squeezed into the corner of the red plastic basket they were served in. He pushed them into his mouth, the sound of his chewing grating on Sonia’s nerves. She couldn’t wait to get out of the cheap restaurant, so she could shower, change clothes, and get the smell of fried food off of her.

  Bruce wiped some ketchup from his mouth with a paper napkin. “They’re going to be renting, if you must know.” He tapped his nose with his forefinger. “That’s all I’m saying on the matter, so stop fishing, Sonia, but believe me when I tell you that Dana won’t be leaving the station any time soon.”