by Arlene Kay
Now I knew for certain what I’d always suspected. Jem Russell’s demise was more than a prison brawl. Deming and probably Bolin had seen to that. As Jem the ultimate pragmatist once observed: Those are the breaks.
I could live with that.
Deming caressed my cheek. “I knew I didn’t deserve you, couldn’t bear to face you. That’s why I took off and dated those vapid, rich girls. To torture myself.”
Anika had said something like that. “Don’t take Dem seriously, dear. He’s punishing himself. He’ll come to his senses. I know my son.”
“Some torture,” I said. “You could have dated ugly girls, you know, instead of goddesses. They were all amazing.”
He grabbed my backpack and pulled me to him. “They weren’t you. Nobody even came close.” Deming forced me to meet his eyes. “Tell me how you feel once and for all. I’ll abide by anything you say. Just tell me. Is it possible? Could you still love a man like me?”
It was now or never, do-or-die time again. I’d been granted another chance for happiness. Time to risk everything, go for broke, and damn the consequences.
I swallowed hard and summoned my courage. “CeCe knew us better than we knew ourselves. All those years of fighting each other, resisting the truth. Wasted time.”
“You married that creep,” Deming spat. “I . . . that day was very painful for me. I didn’t understand until later. It sent me into a tailspin. Glenlivet and Mozart. They were my therapists.”
“As I recall, you were no hermit. You had a different girlfriend every week. CeCe told me.”
Deming hung his head. “I read all your books. More than once.” He rubbed my hand against his cheek. “Stop stalling. Tell me now. I can take it.”
Our sidewalk drama drew stares from several pedestrians. I motioned to Deming and tried to pull away.
“Tough,” he said, thrusting out his chin. “I’ll stand here all night until you answer me. I have nowhere special to go.”
I pointed toward the lights of Beacon Street where CeCe Swann had lived and loved. “Could I love a man like you? Not any man. Just you. Come home with me, Deming. Never leave again.”
His face brightened as if the sun had bathed us both in happiness.
We strolled through the Common, hand in hand, walking toward our future.
(Please continue reading for more information about the author)
Readers’ Guide
The Boston Uncommons Mystery Series.
SWANN DIVE
1. Cecilia Swann appeared to lead a charmed life, but despite having brains, beauty and money to spare, she was no stranger to tragedy. Do we often assume that celebrities and prominent people have it all?
2. CeCe and Deming shared a special bond. Are twins particularly attuned to each other? Does this intensify the pain when one of them is lost?
3. The power of loyalty, friendship and family is the major theme of SWANN DIVE. Discuss how this influenced the quest for truth in the death of Cecilia Swann?
4. Despite coming from a middle-class background, Eja Kane is not intimidated by the Swanns’ enormous wealth. What does that say about her character?
5. Most portrayals of middle-aged mothers-in-law are less than flattering but Anika Swann is gracious, beautiful and brave. How does the relationship between Eja and Anika add another dimension to this novel?
6. Deming Swann is a complex, passionate character whose strengths and weaknesses are not dissimilar to Mr. Darcy’s in Pride and Prejudice. Discuss this.
7. What unites Eja and Deming and what threatens to tear them apart?
8. Lieutenant Euphemia Bates and Dr. Jake Harris are both strong, smart people of color. What was your reaction to these characters? Does ethnic/racial diversity in a novel heighten the experience for readers and reflect the world as it is?
9. Bolin and Anika Swann have an intense, loving marriage with an erotic edge. What does this portrayal suggest about them and their relationship?
10. Justice is often an ambiguous term. Did you agree with the outcome in SWANN DIVE?
Coming Next
MANTRAP
BOOK TWO, THE BOSTON UNCOMMONS MYSTERIES
(Available July 2014)
Does a victim’s character predict his murder? MANTRAP, the mystery series explores the nature vs. nurture debate and the enduring power of love amidst violence.
Dario Peters, avid cyclist, ardent environmentalist, and heir to a munitions fortune lives the dream, until a nasty spill on a Cape Cod bike trail ends his life. Everyone calls it a tragic accident—except Persus Cantor, Dario’s doting grandma. When psychic Merlot Browne brands it foul play, Aunt Pert begs amateur sleuths Deming Swann and Eja Kane to find Dario’s murderer. Despite misgivings, grumbling and elaborate excuses, Deming is pressed into service. After all, Pert is his mother’s favorite aunt, and family comes first. Eja embraces the challenge. As a mystery writer all deaths seem suspicious to her and she leaps at the opportunity to spend time on a majestic Cape Cod estate with her sizzling fiancé.
Bayview, a tranquil seaside village, is seventy miles and several decades removed from bustling Boston. Residents treasure tradition and family values, two things that Dario Peters openly renounced. Case in point was his marriage to Paloma, a study in excess with body parts as suspect as her lineage. Dario’s scheme to rezone staid Bayview into a cycling paradise was another venture that riled locals and investors alike. In old Cape Cod, low-end tourists are a burden to be endured not encouraged.
About the Author
Arlene Kay is a mystery writer with a dark past. In another life, the author of INTRUSION, and DIE LAUGHING, was a Senior Executive with one of those alphabet agencies that strikes terror into the hearts of all Americans.
Since moving to Cape Cod, she abandoned government work to craft fiendishly clever mysteries with a touch of mayhem and a splash of romance. Her previous works include five novels in the Grace Quinn/Patrick Fong mystery series.
She recently completed SWANN DIVE and MANTRAP; the first two books in her new Boston Uncommons Mystery series featuring two intrepid sleuths who live the good life while vanquishing criminals in the very blue state of Massachusetts.
arlenekay.com
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