Cross-Stitch Before Dying Read Free Page B

tomorrow.”
    “Great. Of course, the studio will reimburse your travel expenses. You’ll be staying here with me, won’t you?” she asked.
    “As if I’d stay anywhere else,” I said.
    “I knew
you’d
be staying with me, but I wasn’t sure about Reggie. Do you think she’ll be comfortable here?”
    “I didn’t ask her, but I believe she’ll be perfectly comfy in the guest room. By the way, Ted and I had lunch with Reggie and Manu today. The two of them knew all about Sonam Zakaria and are looking forward to seeing the finished movie.”
    “That will certainly please Henry,” said Mom. “He’s been worried that a movie set in India might not play well in the United States. Naturally, I reminded him of the successful reception of
Slumdog Millionaire
.”
    “Naturally,” I agreed. “Reggie and Manu wanted to know who Henry cast in the starring role, and I had to admit I have no idea.”
    “Remember Babushka Tru from the sitcom
Surf Dad
? She was the youngest daughter.”
    “I remember that show,” I said. “She was so cute! Didn’t she go on to play in a couple of family films?”
    “She did. And then she got involved in drugs and made a mess of her life. She’s hoping this movie will be the blockbuster she needs to get back on Hollywood’s radar.”
    “Is she nice?” I asked.
    “I haven’t met her yet. I’m supposed to meet with Henry and the cast in the morning to discuss wardrobe.”
    “Well, good luck.”
    She huffed. “I might actually need it with this crew.”
    •   •   •
    As soon as I’d finished talking with Mom, I made travel arrangements for Reggie and me. We were going to fly out of Eugene. It would have been a little cheaper to fly out of Portland, but Eugene was closer. Besides, the studio could afford the extra couple hundred dollars we were spending on the flights, especially since we were flying in business class and saving them a bundle over what they were used to paying for first class. After making the arrangements, I sent a text to Reggie giving her the details.
    A customer came in and bought several skeins each of pale pink and white yarn. Her daughter was expecting twin girls, and she was knitting blankets for them. I congratulated her and gave her fifteen percent off.
    “It’ll be my gift to the babies,” I said.
    “Thank you,” the woman said. “I’m sure I’ll be back in to see you soon.”
    As she waved good-bye and left the store, I thought that if her daughter was anything like my friend Riley Kendall, the woman would be back in often over the next few months. I remembered how many things I’d made for Riley while she was pregnant with her daughter Laura. She’d commissioned me to embroider bibs, blankets, and even burp cloths. And I believe Riley enlisted every knitter in Tallulah Falls to knit white blankets for the child.
    Riley was one of the busiest attorneys in town. When she’d gone back to work after Laura’s birth, she had simply taken the baby with her. Since Riley’s administrative assistant was her mother, the situation worked out especially well.
    I was planning on calling Vera as soon as I got time, but then I looked up and saw her strolling through the door.
    “You must have ESP,” I told her, as she bent down to hug Angus.
    “Not ESP, dear. If anything, I have OLD. I can’t for the life of me remember how to make a Colonial knot.”
    When I first met Vera, she was a rather matronly, mousy-looking woman with a husband who’d never fully appreciated her. Since his death, she’d blossomed into a confident, self-assured woman. She dressed more fashionably, had added blond highlights to her brown hair, and had become a pro at makeup application. She was in her late fifties to early sixties, but her transformation had taken at least ten years off her appearance. She’d recently begun dating Paul Samms, a reporter for the
Tallulah Falls Examiner
.
    “Well, come and sit down with me, and I’ll remind you about Colonial