Page 28

You might catch more flies with honey, but who wants flies?

T he next morning Uncle Troy had left for work by the time Meg got up. Her mom texted her, asking if she was coming to Sunday school. Mom followed up that text with a single word. Please.

Meg got dressed, and before she left, she took Watson out. “I won’t be long, and we’ll go over to Aunt Melody’s for lunch, so you can play in the backyard.”

Watson didn’t look amused. Her dog was used to her being around.

She’d gotten him right after the start-up went belly up.

Then she’d moved in with Romain, so he’d always had someone around.

Between disappointing her mom and disappointing Watson, she’d err on the side of keeping her mother and current employer happy.

Besides, she had health insurance because she worked for the bookstore.

Those kinds of things are important for a functional adult.

Today she wore one of her sundresses instead of pants.

She told herself it was because of the heat rather than the look her mom had given her outfit last week.

Meg wondered if she’d ever stop wanting to please her.

Her dad? He’d broken that bond by moving out and remarrying.

Meg knew that relationships were kept alive by the actions of two people, but he’d taken the steps that had forever broken the marriage.

Like what Romain had done to her. Just before they were supposed to say, “I do.”

Overthink much? She was doomed to be single.

After taking Watson back to the apartment, Meg set out on foot for the church. The first to arrive, she waved as her mom pulled her sedan into the parking lot.

And got the look.

Okay, so a sundress wasn’t good enough, either. Mom was going to have to deal with Meg’s current wardrobe. Meg hugged her after she got out of the car. “Thanks for the reminder text this morning.”

“I should have suggested a different dress.” Mom rubbed the spaghetti straps of Meg’s dress between her fingers. “This looks a little skimpy for church.”

Then when Meg didn’t answer, Mom pulled a sweater out of the car and put it into Meg’s hands. “Here. Wear this. If I know Tina, she has the air turned up to Arctic blast level. You’ll be freezing minutes after you step inside.”

Meg wanted to believe that the sweater was to keep her warm, but it was Mom offering it. She decided to avoid the fight and put it on. The smell of Chanel No. 5 surrounded her. “Thanks. So where is Sunday school class?”

“Your class is in room three. I’m in the kitchen.” Mom locked the car and hurried to the church door. “Come on. I’ll show you.”

“I thought we were going to the same class,” Meg called after her as she tried to keep up.

As Mom opened the door, she turned and pushed a strand of hair out of Meg’s face. “Don’t be silly. You’re in the single young adults class. I’ve heard there are some nice young men in there that, if you’re convinced Romain is out of the picture, you should consider.”

“Matchmaking on a Sunday morning? Isn’t that un-Christian-like?” Meg grumbled as she followed her mother into the church.

Turning faster than Meg thought possible, her mom leaned in and whispered, “Having a life partner isn’t an evil thing. I don’t know why you’re so against either letting Romain apologize or finding someone new for your life.”

“I guess I’m still traumatized from your divorce from Dad,” Meg snapped back. She regretted the words as soon as she saw them hit her mom.

“Felicia, I’m so glad to see you and your lovely daughter today.

” Pastor Sage walked up, and Mom’s face went from murderous to angelic in two-point-three seconds.

“Meg, I take it you’re here for the young singles group.

We’re meeting in room three today. We have a special speaker on the joy of being single in a couple-based world.

Next Saturday we’re taking a trip to Seattle, to Pike Place Market, for lunch and shopping. You should come with us.”

“I’m sorry. I work on Saturdays.” Meg smiled as she started walking with the pastor to the hallway where she’d find room three. “I’m looking forward to the speaker. I need some suggestions on things to do besides work.”

Meg turned back and saw her mother watching her walk away. The conversation wasn’t over, that was certain, but at least she had a reprieve until after service, and maybe until after dinner at Aunt Melody’s. If Meg was lucky, she could run to work and delay the conversation even longer.

One way or another, her mom was going to explain the divorce to her, again.

She didn’t care, except when her mom insisted that Meg needed a man in her life.

A relationship. Time to settle down and make babies.

Meg didn’t even have a real job yet. Having a family would need to wait.

At least until she found the right man. And this time, she wasn’t going to settle for someone who only looked good on paper.

She settled into a metal folding chair and smiled as Pastor Sage introduced her to the ten people already seated in the classroom.

All women. Young single men didn’t seem to know about this group, no matter what her mom had heard.

Dalton was working the early shift. A lot of the men at the bonfire were probably still in bed from last night’s barhopping.

Not that she was interested in finding a soulmate from that group.

As the speaker was introduced, she thought about who her perfect man would be. What he’d be interested in. What he’d like to do. And, most of all, how he’d treat her.

When she was done, she realized the man her list described looked a lot like Dalton.

As they walked out of the room to go to the chapel for services, a woman stopped her. “Hi. I’m Irene. I saw you at the bonfire with Dalton the other night. Isn’t it crazy that someone killed Robert Meade? I hated the guy, but, wow, he’s dead.”

“I’m Meg.” She blinked as she took in the question that the small blonde had thrown at her. She’d noticed her in class since she was the only one who had been taking notes during the speaker’s presentation. “Are you a local? I don’t think I recognize you from school.”

“My folks moved here when I was a senior. I hated it, so I begged to be kept at a boarding school in New Hampshire. I went to college at Bryn Mawr and then came home for the summer. I’ve been working in Seattle since, but housing prices are crazy expensive in the city, so I’m living back home again.

” She glanced over to where a couple of class members were standing and talking to Pastor Sage.

“Do you want to get coffee sometime? I work at home on Mondays.”

“That sounds great.” Meg needed to open up her friend group.

And it would keep her mom from saying she wasn’t open to new experiences.

And maybe Irene had information about Robert Meade.

Okay, so that sounded wrong. Maybe Irene could help her get a different perspective on life on the island as a young adult.

“What about tomorrow at ten at A Taste of Magic?”

“I’ll see you there.” Irene waved at her mother. “Sorry. She must want to talk about something. Probably about my breaking curfew last night. You’d think I was sixteen rather than twenty-five.”

As Irene left, Meg made her way into the chapel. Her mom was already sitting in their pew, her Bible open. Meg sat next to her and leaned close. “I’m sorry I pulled the divorce card. I’m fine right now, but I’m not looking to jump into something else. I’ll know when I meet Mr. Right.”

“Your aunt Melody tells me the same thing. To leave you be. I know how long it took her to find Troy. I don’t want you to be lonely.” Mom squeezed my hand. “Do you want to grab lunch after this? I’ll buy.”

“We’re not going to Aunt Melody’s?” So much for her plan to talk to Uncle Troy.

“She and Troy are attending a show in Seattle. She insists he takes at least one afternoon off during these investigations for them,” Mom said as she closed her Bible. “How did you like your class? Oh, it looks like Pastor Sage is starting.”

The announcement of the opening hymn kept Meg from explaining that the class would be better described as for single young females. But she’d leave that alone. If her mom thought she was surrounding herself with eligible bachelors, that wasn’t her fault.

At least she was getting lunch out of the deal.

* * *

Glory reported that she’d been busy that morning with walk-ins from the ferries, but during Meg’s shift, Sunday at the bookstore was dead.

She had done all the busy work, even neatly stacking all the mailings in boxes to make it easier to transport them to the post office tomorrow.

She texted to see if Mom wanted her to stop by the bookstore and take them to the post office Monday morning, but she must have been napping, as she didn’t answer.

Meg would call her tomorrow if she didn’t hear back.

It was almost five, and Meg had nothing to do. She pulled out the folder with her assignment from her backpack and, using her laptop, made plans on how to kill the imaginary George, who she’d found out was cheating before their wedding.

The writing went fast, even with her needing to check the internet for times, places, and effects of different poisons.

By the time Dalton and Natasha showed up with Chinese food, she had the assignment done and printed out.

She’d paper-clipped it to the assignment page and saved the file to her laptop.

Leaving Natasha to watch the bookstore, she hurried out to walk Watson for a few minutes.

“I’ll walk with you,” Dalton said as he took Watson’s leash.

They didn’t talk for a bit, not until they got off the crowded street and started up the hill toward the residential section of town. She glanced at him. “You know I can walk the dog by myself.”

He laughed as he looked at her. “I like walking Watson. It indulges all my ‘I want a dog’ feelings without having to get a dog of my own.”