Deadly Reunion Read Free Page B

want you to stay away from me.”
    His lips flattened. His chest swayed back from me. He took a step backward. “I’ll abide by your wishes.”
    “Good.”
    “I’ll see you.” He gave me a brief nod. His gaze slid to my classmates, and he strode away.
    Sue tugged on my arm. “Who is that?”
    “He’s a hunk.” Jane still eyed him.
    Tetter’s forehead wrinkled. “Cealie, he wanted to marry you, and you turned him down?” She sounded more interested than critical.
    A white-haired couple gave me severe looks, like I’d committed the worst sin.
    I led my classmates away from that nosy judgmental couple. We gathered in an open area near the casino. Slot machines dinged and screeched. Dealers’ voices carried. This was what I wanted, except for the smoky odor. Noise was better than quiet places where strangers heard every word. Nobody else needed to know about Gil and me.
    My classmates’ piercing gazes all targeted me. Everyone waited for an explanation for my rude behavior.
    “His name is Gil Thurman.”
    “Sounds good. Where did you meet him?” Jane asked.
    “At one of his restaurants.”
    “ One of his restaurants?” Sue said.
    “The one in Vicksburg, Mississippi. We were attracted to each other.”
    Sue nodded, apparently satisfied with my answers, but then glanced around as though looking for someone.
    “And then you fell in love, and he asked you to marry him.” Tetter stated major events from my life as though teaching how to construct a declarative sentence. I’d recently had to remind the latest hire in my copyediting agency about such things.
    Tetter waved to get a passing waiter’s attention. His tray held stemmed glasses of the day’s Rumrunners special. Only Tetter bought a drink, signing to charge her card.
    “So then you came on this cruise with us,” Jane said.
    “Yes, but Gil and I have gotten together in different places where he has restaurants.”
    Sue shook her head, nose in the air. “You’re wrong to do that. You must have led the man on and made him believe you loved him and wanted him, and then you turned him down like that.”
    “We’ve have had lots of wonderful times together. But I told him from the beginning that after I lost my husband, I realized I’d lost myself. I felt paralyzed, like half of a broken easel. The strongest section was gone. I could barely stand on my own anymore. Gil is so sure of himself. I needed to find Cealie again. I’m still trying to rediscover myself and can’t give in when I’m getting so close.”
    Tetter, with eyes forlorn, nodded.
    “I wish you would have introduced us,” Jane said.
    “Sorry. It didn’t seem like the time.”
    “I’m going to play the slots,” Jane said and headed into the casino.
    “I’m going to my cabin.” Sue walked away from us.
    I took a breath. I’d had enough censure for one day. And I struggled with my feelings. I wanted to be with Gil, wanted him much more than these high school friends. But he’d betrayed me. He promised he’d let me go on and finish doing my thing and finding myself. And then we might be together for good.
    But he’d lied! Instead of letting me go off with friends, he’d found out where I was heading and followed me.
    I needed to get away from my problems. Now I had Tetter alone. Tetter, who’d been bubbly and open and such fun in school, seemed so troubled I couldn’t think about myself. I touched her hand. “So how are you?”
    “I’m good. How are you?”
    “Fine. Tetter, how are you really doing?”
    Her eyes widened. “I’m going to find Jane.” She scuttled into the casino.
    I sank into a cushioned lounge chair. Had she confided in Jane but didn’t want to discuss her troubling situation with me?
    People walked past, people who laughed. Mostly adults, some with children. Everybody else was with someone.
    I stood and trudged about, spying people going in and out of shops. Some carried purchases. Already? I stepped to the railing and peered below. The source