Page 11 of Family Jewels

“They made my drink completelywrongthe first time, so they had to make it again.” She shook her head and looked up at Joe. “And here I thought we were getting a little sophistication in our town. Just goes to show you that you can’t make a Coach purse out of a goat tail.”

Joe opened his mouth to say something, but he must have thought better of it because he closed it the very next moment. Smart man.

“Where’d you get the cute sleeve for your cup?” I asked.

She put a hand on her hip. “Funny thing. Bernadette said she’d give it to me if I promised to just take the too-hot coffee and leave.”

Joe shook his head, wearing an ear-to-ear grin. “I need to get back to work. I’ll see you ladies tonight.” Then he kissed Neely Kate on the cheek and headed across the street to the courthouse.

I couldn’t stop thinking about his lead on Ronnie. Had Ronnie really run off with another woman? Could Neely Kate handle it if he had?

Chapter 3

My stomach flip-flopped as I pulled my truck into the parking lot of the hardware store. “I’m not sure I should go in there.”

“What are you talking about?” Neely Kate said as she checked her lip gloss in the sun visor mirror. A light rain hit the windshield. “I thought we agreed to put that nonsense behind us.”

I pointed toward a particle board sign spray painted with something that looked like a rose with a poorly drawn face in the middle. A red circle surrounded the design, and the slash down the middle had been painted with particular gusto. “Then why isthatthere?”

“Oh, that was some of the kids they hired to take care of the greenhouse. They were just foolin’ around.”

“Is that supposed to beme?”

She returned her tube of lip gloss to her bejeweled purse. “Yeah, but it’s no big deal.”

“How can that be no big deal?”

“They made it back in March. It’s early June. They’ve totally forgotten about it.” She turned to look at me. “You’ve been wanting to paint the kitchen—how about we pick out a color while we’re here? They can’t get mad if you’re a paying customer.”

I had half a mind to stay in the truck, but truth be told, I didn’t trust her to talk to Raddy without me. I wanted to hear exactly what he wanted before we took the “case,” although it felt ridiculous to call looking for some jewelry a “case.” Then there was the fact that Raddy Dyer had apparently been involved in multiple domestic violence altercations. There was no way I wanted to work with him if he was a threat.

Neely Kate hopped out and popped open her umbrella. She came around to the driver’s side to share it with me, but I waved off her offer as I got out. A little rain couldn’t do much more damage at this point. Casting a glance around us, I asked, “Are you sure they’re open? There’s hardly anyone here.”

“Oh, everyone’s comin’ later. Their big sale starts at noon, which means now is the perfect time to talk to Raddy.”

We walked into the store, and Neely Kate collapsed her umbrella and shook off the water. I followed her down the lighting aisle and toward the back of the store. I kept my face down, hoping to keep a low profile, but no one seemed to notice me. In fact, I didn’t see anyone at all until we walked up to a guy wearing jeans and blue vest.

“Raddy Dyer,” Neely Kate said with a hint of attitude. “I heard you came by our office.”

I did a double take; this was Raddy Dyer? A bright orange shock of hair stuck straight up on his head, and he looked a little lost in his own store. He definitely wasn’t what I’d imagined.

“So does this mean you’re gonna do it?” he asked hopefully.

She nodded. “Of course we are.”

“Hold up,” I said as I stepped in front of her. “Not so fast.”

Neely Kate grabbed my arm and turned me back to face her. “Rose. What are you doin’?”

I pulled loose and looked Raddy square in the eyes. They were bright blue, and the contrast with his startlingly orange hair momentarily distracted me. Was it natural? I shook my head, then started my interrogation. “Whatexactlydo you expect us to do?”

Raddy glanced over his shoulder, then nodded his head sideways toward the back of the store. “We can’t talk here. We’ve gotta head out back.”

We followed Raddy until he stopped beside an end-cap display of PVC joints.

“What’s the big secret?” I asked, already deciding this case wasn’t worth all the cloak-and-dagger intrigue.

He leaned back and glanced over his shoulder down the aisle before straightening his posture. “No secret. I just can’t be seen talking to you.”