Golden Lies Read Free Page B

voice as he flipped the automatic car locks back down.
    "In a minute." He scanned the area with a practiced eye. Running his grandfather's security business for the past four years had made him appreciate details. He looked for something out of place. Someone sitting in a car. A broken light. A shadow that didn't belong. Everything appeared normal.
    "What are you looking for?" Millie Crenshaw asked, sitting forward in the backseat.
    His grandmother's best friend and next-door neighbor had come along for the tea and, like Nan, seemed more interested in what type of food might be served than whether they should actually consider selling the dragon to the House of Hathaway. Riley would have preferred more time to research the company as well as some of the other companies that had contacted them. But his grandmother had refused to talk to anyone else until after she'd had the tea that everyone in San Francisco raved about.
    "He's looking for bad guys," Nan whispered to Millie. "He thinks someone might try to steal the dragon from me."
    "I just think you should be careful," Riley said. "Despite the fact that the thing is ugly as sin, quite a few people seem to want it."
    "Isn't it amazing that it was sitting in your attic all these years?" Millie said. "I went down to the basement yesterday and looked through all our things. I'm going to make Howard take me to the show the next time it comes to town. You just never know what you have."
    "That's true." Nan cradled the dragon in her lap like it was a precious baby. "I don't think I ever saw this until a few days ago. The attic was Ned's place. He was always puttering around up there." She looked at her watch. "We're going to be late, Riley. I think we should go."
    "I'll carry the dragon, just in case."
    "Just in case what, honey?"
    "Whatever," he said cryptically, not wanting to worry his grandmother. Despite the fact that everything looked okay, his instincts told him something was off. He hoped he wasn't making a huge mistake by not following those instincts. He got out and walked around the car so he could open the door for his grandmother. As the women exited, Riley perused the garage, acutely aware of every sound.
    A car came around the corner, its tires squealing on the cement. He immediately threw himself in front of Nan, blocking her with his body. As the car sped by, he saw two teenagers in the front seat; they barely gave him a glance.
    "Good heavens, Riley," Nan said, straightening her dress. "You're strung so tight you'll snap if you're not careful. Maybe I should hold the dragon," she added, as he slipped it into a heavy canvas bag.
    "I'll take it. Let's go." He'd feel better when they were out on the sidewalk.
    Nan and Millie hurried along in front of him. They were both breathless when they reached the elevator that whisked them up to Union Square and the blessed sunshine.
    "Everything okay now?" Nan asked as they paused to get their bearings.
    "I wish you'd let me handle this on my own." He continued to look around as they made their way across the square.
    "And miss the tea? Not a chance." Nan smiled at him and stopped walking. "Now, tell me, how do I look? Any lipstick on my teeth?" She flashed him a perfect set of white teeth.
    "Beautiful," he replied. Nan was dressed in what she called her Sunday best, a navy blue dress, nylons, and low heels. Millie was a taller, more colorful version of his grandmother, dressed in hot pink pants and matching top, her bright red hair flaming in the afternoon sunshine. "You could both pass for at least sixty."
    "Oh, you're such a charmer," Millie said with a wave of her heavily ringed hand. "I don't know why you're still single."
    "Neither do I," Nan said. "I keep telling him I want to see some great-grandchildren, but he always pretends to be hard of hearing at crucial times. Isn't that right, Riley?"
    "What did you say?"
    "See," Nan said, exchanging a laugh with Millie.
    "Let's go." Riley led them around the corner, past Saks,