ILL-TIMED ENTANGLEMENTS (The Kate Huntington mystery series #2) Read Free

Kate thought for a moment. “I’d love to help but I don’t want to leave Maria alone with the baby that long. We’re talking a couple days here, to get up there and back. Maria’s English is so poor, if something happened, she wouldn’t be able to deal with it.”
    “I was thinking about that on my way over here. How would you feel about having Maria and the baby come stay with us while you’re gone? We can set them up in the spare bedroom downstairs. Samantha’s at loose ends at the moment. She’s been laid off from her summer job. I thought I could hire her to help Maria out. She’s had a few years of Spanish in school. And if they have any problems, Liz and I are just a phone call away.”
    Kate considered that plan. After a couple years of rebelliousness, Rob and Liz’s youngest daughter was headed into her senior year of high school and was maturing into a responsible young woman. But Sam at loose ends was probably still a scary concept for her parents. The arrangement Rob was proposing killed two birds with one stone.
    Still Kate was struggling with maternal guilt. The baby was totally comfortable with Maria now, she reasoned, and Samantha adored the little girl. Edie would certainly not be deprived of attention. Kate had to admit that her hesitation was more about her own resistance to being away from her little one.
    Then a countering guilty thought occurred to her. She never would have gotten through the months after Eddie’s death, not to mention single parenthood, without Rob and Liz’s support. She felt like they had adopted her into their family. And now they needed her help. How could she refuse?
    Kate had hesitated too long. Rob started to backpedal. “I’m sorry, Kate, I shouldn’t have asked this of you. It’s too much. I’ll think of something else…”
    “No, I’ll do it,” Kate quickly interrupted him. “I was feeling kind of bored lately anyway. This will provide a little change of pace for a couple days.”
    Just as Rob finished giving Kate the details of the plagiarism accusation, Mac appeared next to their table. He was a wiry man, a bit on the short side but with a ramrod straight spine, thanks to the decade he had spent as a Green Beret. A good part of his jeans and faded Army tee-shirt were covered by a grimy apron.
    “Here’s your crab cake and salad, sweet pea,” he said, using his childhood nickname for Kate as he placed a plate in front of her. “And for the gentleman, a pickle sandwich with crab cake garnish.” There was a twinkle in his blue eyes as he dropped a white paper bag in front of Rob.
    Kate snickered. Rob, the pickle addict, gave Mac a mock scowl.
    Standing up, Rob fished some bills out of his wallet to cover his share of the lunch tab. Then he leaned over and kissed Kate on the forehead. “Thanks a million, sweetheart. It’s a load off my mind to know Aunt Betty’s in good hands. If you run into any problems, call me.”
    Rob picked up the bag and headed for the door. “See ya later, Mac.”
    Kate’s catch-up-on-life chat with Mac was cut short by a loud crash coming from the kitchen. As he raced off, Rose dropped onto the bench across from Kate.
    “Where’d Rob go?” she asked, disappointment in her voice.
    “He couldn’t stay. Prepping for a big case,” Kate managed to get out around the bite of succulent crab cake she had just taken. She rolled her eyes in pleasure as she licked tartar sauce off her lip.
    “You know how I’ve been talking about quitting the force.” Rose was normally fairly reserved but today her chocolate brown eyes were sparkling with excitement. “Well, I’m gonna do it. I’m working on getting my private investigator’s license.” White teeth flashed, momentarily transforming her serious and rather plain features into a face a beauty queen would envy.
    “Wow!” Kate beamed back at her. “Have you turned in your badge then?”
    Rose shook her head. “Can’t yet. Need the income. But I’ve started my