Rose smiled at her sister. Maggie was such a vital, happy pregnant woman, so unlike most of the women she'd seen off the streets at the clinic. But it didn't help anything to think about that now, she thought. It was time to be happy for Maggie.
"Going shopping for baby things sounds like fun. But I'm not wearing these sandals. Let me put on my sneakers and we can go." She turned to leave the room and then whirled back around. "Hey, wait a minute. Beth, when I talked to Ben he said they were doing a run-through. Shouldn't you be there?"
"Not today. William said they'd do scenes without me today. I wanted to spend some time with you."
Rose felt overwhelmed. She went to Beth and hugged her.
"Thank you," she whispered.
Then she felt Maggie hugging her from the side.
"We love you, Rose, and we missed you," Maggie said.
"You're making me cry!"
"I'm making myself cry," Maggie said, sniffing.
"You two," Beth said in a shaky voice. "Stop it!"
Rose started to laugh, and Maggie began to giggle, and the three of them held onto each other laughing, and nobody cared if some tears fell, too.
* * * *
Ben felt pleased about the work of the morning. As he left the Playhouse in a group of other actors for lunch, he didn't even notice his guards. He was chatting with Lucretia when Suzanne was suddenly there, right in front of him.
"Ben! Let's go have lunch," Suzanne said.
Ben saw Lucretia stiffen beside him.
"Hello, Suzanne. I'm not free for lunch."
"Okay then, dinner. I'll make you a fabulous—"
"Suzanne, we are not dating. Like I told you in L.A., I don't want to see you again."
"You were just mad that I called you too much," she said with a wide smile. "But I knew you'd get over that."
"No, I didn't get over it. There is nothing between us, Suzanne. You and I are finished. You need to leave Sully Point and go back to L.A., now."
He watched as she flinched at his words. Her face and body went still as a statue.
"Suzanne, did you hear me?"
She said nothing for a full minute. Finally, she said, "I heard you."
There was no tone in her voice, nothing to read on her face, just emptiness. He didn't know what to think, but then she turned on her heel and left, walking away at a rapid pace.
"What was that all about?" Lucretia asked, her eyes alight with curiosity.
"Lucretia, I'd appreciate it if you didn't mention anything about this around town. Suzanne is a problem person in my life right now, and that's all I'm going to say."
Lucretia stared at him for a moment. "You look...scared. This is more than what you are telling me, I see that now. I won't mention it to anyone."
"Thank you very much. Let's get lunch. I'm buying," he said with a smile at her and a sense of relief. Maybe Suzanne would leave. Maybe it was all over. With a lighter heart, he headed toward Deb's Deli.
He didn't see Suzanne staring at him intently from inside the shop he and Lucretia were passing.
* * * *
"It sounds like you did the right thing, Ben. I'll talk to you later."
Ed Carter put his cell phone down on the large dark granite island in the kitchen. He had been having lunch with Sophia when the call came in.
"Well? Is it over?" she asked.
"Don't know yet. Now we wait, and see how she reacts. He told her it was over between them, and asked her to leave town."
"Hmm. Maybe that will end it. I don't like this Ed, and I worry about Rose. You're sure they had been together last night?"
Ed rubbed a hand over his face. "Sophia, I told you. It was plain as day that they'd spent the night together. Plus, the looks on their faces every time they made eye contact, believe me, they're in love."
"I'm just surprised because Rose hadn't been seeing anyone, and then boom, she's in love."
"Looked like the real deal to me," Ed said. He took a big bite of his sandwich made of roasted turkey, cranberry sauce, and lettuce on multigrain bread. He'd have preferred white bread, but lately Sophia was only buying multigrain for everything.
He enjoyed their new life in Sully Point. It was an easy place to live in and make friends. He'd gotten used to the pace of life here surprisingly quickly. They'd moved to Sully Point from the Adirondack Mountains, and he could admit that the mountains had been too quiet for him. He liked town living, and this town was small enough that he could get to know everyone, without all the hassles of a big city. He'd had enough of that being a cop in the city.
It felt a bit strange to step into those shoes again, to brush up on his old detective skills. Yet, he could feel it in his bones, that feeling he used to get on a case right before they found another murder from the same killer...the feeling that something bad was coming and he couldn't stop it.
He hadn't told Rose or Ben that he'd asked for some people to follow Suzanne. He knew it was important for them to keep tabs on her movements. He'd met the guys who'd be working that part of the job, and they seemed qualified. They had the kind of faces that could vanish in a crowd. After hearing Ben's news, he was very glad he'd told Sam to pay whatever it took to get the extra men to keep track of Suzanne.
"I'm going to ask Rose over for tea tomorrow afternoon," Sophia said. "I feel like I haven't really talked to her since she got back."
"Remember, she'll have her guards with her."
"Do I have to give them tea also?"
Ed chuckled. "No, dear. They'll stay outside." He pushed his empty plate away. "I'll be leaving in a bit to see the Sheriff. I want to keep him up to speed on this. Do you need anything since I'll be out and about?"
"How about you pick up a bottle of white wine to go with dinner tonight?"
"I'll stop by George and Al's to pick some up. What are we having?"
"Spanish-style baked red snapper, with mixed bell peppers and some sweet Vidalia onions and a bit of the wine you bring home, plus roasted red potatoes and a salad."
"Sounds scrumptious. One thing about living here that I love is having fresh fish so often."
"Which reminds me, since you're going to be out, you can pick up the fish order, too. I called the fish market this morning and told them what I wanted. They'll have it ready to go by three."
"Anything else?" he asked.
She gave him one of her special smiles, the smile he'd fallen for when he first met her so many years ago.
"No, darling, that's it. You planned to stop by Frank's store to talk about the barbecue, right?"
"Yes, I had that on my list. I'll take off then. Thanks for lunch." He stood up and gave her a hug and a kiss on the cheek as she was still sitting at the counter. "I'll miss you," he said.
"I'll miss you more," she said, smiling up at him.
As he left, he wondered just how many times they'd said those exact words to each other over the years. He wanted Rose to have those years, with Ben if he was the one for her. Every now and then it stunned him how lucky he'd been to find Sophia and have her love him. They'd been so different from each other, but it had just worked between them.
His phone rang.
"Hello, Ed Carter here."
"Mr. Carter, this is Wayne, one of the guards on Suzanne Hardtman. We lost her."
Chapter 6
Lucretia sensed something when she walked into her store, right before she heard a woman's voice.
"You can't have him!"
Then there was pain in her head and blackness.
* * * *
Rose was shocked when she heard Lucretia had been injured, and that her father was almost positive Suzanne had been the perpetrator. She'd returned from the shopping spree with Maggie and Beth to hear the bad news. Evidently, Lucretia had not shown up for the afternoon rehearsal. She'd told Ben she had to check on her store after lunch, so he'd left her there. William sent Ben to find her and he and his guards stumbled upon her in the doorway of her store.
After calling Doc Watson,
Rose was at least reassured that Lucretia would be all right. She was in the hospital but only for observation. She'd regained consciousness but didn't know who had hit her over the head. However, she did remember what had been said to her. 'You can't have him' pretty clearly indicated Suzanne was the culprit.
Ben wanted to come over, but Rose had insisted he follow their plan of meeting up at Maggie's house for supper. Ed had told Ben not to be seen going into Rose's apartment. She wondered how they would ever manage to be together as long as this Suzanne thing was hanging over their heads.
She put on a maxi skirt that was full and flowing in a gauzy turquoise material with a scoop-necked fitted top of an abstract print with turquoise, coral, and white. She liked the see through material of the butterfly sleeves, and added a set of colored bangles on her wrist. Wedged espadrilles were the final component of her outfit and as she swirled around in the mirror, she decided she felt ready to see Ben. Leaving her hair down and loose was still a novelty to her, and she used a couple of combs on the sides to keep it out of her face.
Mel was waiting for her by the front door. He and his partner had not been happy about the trip to the mall for baby things. Too many people and too many places for someone to hide meant that the bodyguards had stayed close as she shopped.
Rose put on her sunglasses and tucked her wallet and phone into a small clutch purse.
"I'm ready to go," she told Mel.
He nodded and opened the door, and she walked out. They were met at the bottom of the stairs by Owen who had the car waiting.
"I'll drive, Miss Carter," he said. "Just in case."
"In case of what?"
"In case we're followed and need to get away fast."
"Oh." She got into the car's backseat and Mel sat up front next to Owen. They told her they planned to be outside during the visit.
She had never been to Maggie and Eric's house and loved the old Victorian look on the outside. Once indoors, she was surprised at how open it seemed.
"We knocked down some walls," Maggie said, as Rose stood staring around the open space of the living room.
"I'm impressed," Rose said.
"Come on back to the kitchen. Ben's already here."
Rose couldn't stop the smile spreading across her face and she hurried after Maggie.
The kitchen was big, but had a comfortable feel to it, like it belonged in some huge old farmhouse. Ben was talking to Eric, standing by a wall with a pizza oven in it, and he turned when Rose entered the room, as if drawn by a magnet.
He left off talking in mid-sentence, rushed over to Rose, and gathered her up in his arms.
"Rose. I'm so glad to see you," he murmured into her hair, as he hugged her tightly against his body.
"Ben." It was all she said. The feeling of being in his arms was like coming home. She felt herself relax for the first time since hearing about Lucretia.
After a moment or two, she felt his arms loosen from the hug and she pulled back. Glancing up at his face, she frowned.
"You look worried. Has something else happened?"
"We just heard that the security team still hasn't located Suzanne."
Maggie tapped a spoon against the glass of water she was holding.
"I declare this a Suzanne-free night. Let's talk of other things, and not that wretched person. I want to get to know Ben, and I want you all to know Eric. There's nothing any of us can do about Suzanne, right?"
Ben nodded, and so did Rose.
"Okay then. This is a Suzanne-free zone, starting now. Is the food almost ready, Eric?"
As Maggie turned to go to her husband at the oven, Ben gave Rose a quick peck on the lips. She smiled at him and was happy to see him smile back at her and the worry recede from his face.
"I was just telling Eric about my grilling technique for delicious chicken breasts for the barbecue. The trick is in when exactly you put the barbecue sauce on them on the grill," Ben said. "So they don't burn."
"I love barbecued chicken," Maggie said. "And barbecued ribs. And...pretty much anything off a grill."
"From what I heard from Frank, we're going to have a whole series of grills out at Sam's house," Eric said. "He plans on us grilling everything. So far I've heard him mention steaks, burgers, chicken, ribs, and then later on, fruit."
"Just how many people are expected at the barbecue?" Rose asked.
"Well, the whole family and extended family will be there. It comes to twenty-two people I think. I'm not sure if he's asking any other friends to come in addition to family."
"I guess I'll need to make a really big salad then," Rose said.
"Wait till you see that bowl Beth is bringing to you to use. Lots and lots of lettuce in your future."
Rose laughed. This was much better than talking about Suzanne.
A knock on the door announced the arrival of William and Beth.
"Finally!" Maggie said as she opened the door.
"Sorry, time got away from us," Beth said, when they walked into the kitchen.
"I'm starving," William said. "And hello Rose and Ben."
"Let's all move to the table," Eric said, carrying a large casserole dish of lasagna out of the kitchen to the dining room table.
Rose saw that there was bread on the table already, with a big bowl of Waldorf salad. Maggie brought a dish of steaming hot broccoli. They all sat down and Ben took a sip of his drink.
"What is this?" he asked, holding the glass up to the light. "It's lighter than tea, refreshing...do I taste lemonade?"
"Yes, it's Frank's lemonade tea," Maggie replied. "You put a small can of frozen lemonade concentrate in with a gallon of tea."
They ate lasagna and praised Eric's cooking ability.
"I only know how to make four things. But those I can make really well," he said, his face somewhat red.
"You should see, on my laptop," Maggie said, "he put all my recipes into this database. We have a smart refrigerator that records when anything is used, and the same with the pantry. You just swipe the scanner code on this gizmo before using anything. Then when I don't know what to make for dinner, I ask the computer to suggest something based on what food ingredients we have in the house. It's awesome!"
"Wait—you're saying that your computer knows what food you have? Like it could generate a shopping list for you?" Ben asked.
"Oh, yes. It does that every week. We have a system worked out with the local grocery store where the computer sends the order to them and they deliver it to us. Although, sometimes I just take the list with me and go to the store because I like getting out and seeing people."
"Is it true that you're developing an artificial intelligence, Eric?" Rose asked.
He nodded. "I'm working on the idea."
"But your house is...smart?"
"Yes, but that doesn't mean the house can think. Not yet, anyway," Eric said.
"Each room responds to voice commands. You know, like lights on or lights off," Maggie said and the lights in the room went out.
They all laughed as she sheepishly said, "Lights on!"
"We did forget something, though," Eric said. "Background music, slow jazz, on."
Rose liked the soft tones coming from hidden speakers. As she listened to Eric and Maggie listing more things the house could do, she realized they'd left that Victorian exterior on purpose, almost as a joke.
William and Beth discussed the L.A. housing market with Ben, since it looked like they might be spending time out there on a movie. Ben promised to give them a list of the best realtors, along with the best restaurants.
The topics the group talked about ranged all over. At one point, they had a discussion about the use of human chips. Rose was in favor of them because each person's chip could contain all their medical records, but Ben was wary of the idea that something would be implanted into his body. Eric was for it, but Maggie wasn't sure. William thought it sounded efficient, but Beth sided with Ben on it being creepy.
Rose almost blurted out something abo
ut medical records that would have clearly shown she was a doctor, but she held back at the last second. She realized that pretending to be a model was a silly thing to have done. Now, though, she wasn't quite sure how to tell Ben the truth.
"Let's wait to have dessert until we've walked around some, and shown you all the rest of the house," Maggie said.
They went upstairs and saw the bedrooms, a sitting room, and the nursery. The nursery was filled with boxes of furniture and other baby items.
"Maggie, I'll come help you sort all this out. I don't want you to overdo," Rose said. "How about tomorrow?"
"Okay, cool."
Eric showed them how the voice command system worked in the bedrooms, controlling lights, heating and cooling, music, and even whether or not the curtains were drawn or open.
Downstairs they headed out to the back of the house which opened into an addition onto the house that was Eric's lab. Rose and Ben entered and then just stood staring. William and Beth chuckled knowingly.
It was like an electronic funhouse. There were computers everywhere, of various sizes and shapes, many with covers off. Rose noticed immediately that there was an air filtration system in place, gently blowing, that was keeping dust out of the room.
Eric took them over to one corner where a robotic arm was resting in a metal holder. Eric flicked on a computer nearby and pushed some keys and suddenly the fingers of the robotic hand moved.
Rose jumped and Ben gasped. There was something about seeing those metal fingers moving, mimicking human fingers...mimicking life...that shook Rose to her core. It was...eerie.
Eric was smiling as he looked at them. Maggie looked a bit bored by the display. Rose was not surprised by that. Maggie had been into science fiction since she was a kid, and it must seem commonplace to her. But she was surprised at her own reactions. She gave a quick smile to Eric, but was still feeling a bit disturbed inside by seeing the hand, which was strange. She was all for the new bionic hands that were helping amputees. But she wondered how she'd react to a full-bodied robot that could walk and talk. Maybe she wasn't quite as ready for the future as she thought.
They ended up back inside at the rustic kitchen table. Maggie brought out her chocolate cake.
Love Imagines (Sully Point, Book 6) Page 10
