Laina Turner - Presley Thurman 02 - Necklaces & Nooses Read Free Page A

groceries and toilet paper, not high- end dresses that cost more than the average person made in a week.”
    “Okay then. I need you to walk me through the entire day at the  boutique .” He emphasized the word, making it clear he thought I was nuts. “Through, well, until you called 911.”
    “Didn’t we already cover this?”
    “Yes, but… just humor me okay?” He flashed that smile again, and I couldn’t help but give in. Not that I had much choice, but he made it seem much more palatable.
    “It was just Solange and I working all day, and we both got to the boutique around 9 a.m. We open at nine and close at six, Monday through Saturday, closed on Sundays. We often stay later than six in the store to process shipments and do the behind the scenes work. We received a shipment of jewelry from South America, where we get most of our jewelry. Which was the only delivery we got today.  Solange left about eight, and I stayed to about nine finishing up.
    “Really, South America? Why there?”
    “Why do you think? Cost! It’s less expensive to make there. The labor is much cheaper than here, and yes, I know people aren’t always happy about manufacturing overseas, but it’s a fact of profitable business, Solange would say.”
    “Wouldn’t India or Vietnam be cheaper?”
    Obviously, Detective Landon knew nothing about jewelry. “Not for the kind of merchandise we carried. It’s very high-end with real metals and gems, not plastic and nickel. South America has the best quality of the merchandise we need.”
    “Ahhh, so you got a shipment. Do they come every day on a regular schedule?”
    “No. We order as we sell, so sometimes we might get one or two shipments a week during peak times, like around holidays. But during slower times, we may only get one a month. It really depends. We have a very exclusive clientele, and we often custom order pieces, so we don’t carry a large run of any one SKU.”
    He looked at me blankly.
    “Where do you normally shop?” I asked him.
    “In Banana Republic or Gap.”
    That explained a lot. “Okay, both those stores usually carry several quantities of each size within a style. They sell on mass quantity. At Silk, we may only have a couple of sizes in each style available, so we often custom order special pieces for customers. It makes us seem much more exclusive that way.”
    “Ah, I get it. Does the same person bring your shipments?”
    “No. It’s UPS usually, and so it just depends on who is working the route. We usually have the same few drivers, but no one consistently.”
    “So after that, what did you do?”
    “We unpacked some of the shipment, put what we could on the sales floor, and by then it was time to open the store. Once the store is open, it is pretty routine. Wait for clients to come in and cater to their every whim.” I must have had a tone when I said that because Detective Landon looked at me with raised eyebrows.
    “The clients aren’t fun?”
    “Ha.” I snorted. “Some of them are, but most of them are demanding and high maintenance. Oh, and convinced they are a size four when they are clearly a tad bigger than that. I have learned to be very tactful in this job.”
    “Then why work there?”
    “The discount.” I didn’t hesitate with that answer. Solange, for all her faults had impeccable taste in apparel and accessories. We would get things in that I would see and wonder what on earth was she thinking, but then she would put it together in an amazing outfit. She was also generous, as we were able to get everything at cost plus ten percent for shipping.
    “That makes it worth dealing with the high maintenance ladies?”
    “Absolutely, Detective Landon!”
    “I said call me Willie.”
    “Okay. Willie.” My, but he was cute and sweet. Not what I would normally think of as cop traits.
    He leaned back in his chair and took off his sport coat and rolled up his sleeves. I noticed he had sleeves under his sleeves. Tattoo sleeves. Wow, not