Murder and Salutations (Book 3 in the Cardmaking Mysteries) Read Free

swatted my hand, and the entire table
laughed. “If I can’t handle it, you’ll be the first to know,”
Lillian said.
    I dug into mine, regretting the richness of
the dessert for just a second before I gave in to it. Jack had
outdone himself, and I knew everyone at that dinner would be
talking about the meal for weeks. I was just finishing my dessert
when I felt someone approaching me from behind.
    “ Jennifer, may I have a word
with you?”
    It was Greg Langston, and he was wearing a
tuxedo that made him look like a movie star. His tie perfectly
matched his deep blue eyes, and his normally wild blond hair was
tamed in place. I felt my heart skip despite the current state of
our relationship, and I tried my best to keep my voice level as I
answered. “I’ll try to find time for you later. I’d offer you a
seat, but we don’t have any extras.”
    His hand brushed my shoulder, and I felt a
tingle at his touch. “This is important.”
    I started to ask him what his definition of
important was when Savannah nudged my elbow. “Girl, go talk to him.
Don’t worry, we’ll save your seat.”
    I rolled my eyes at her, then stood up and
faced him. “What is it, Greg?”
    “ Can we step away from the
tables and talk about it?” he asked in that soft voice he’d always
used to get to me.
    Be strong, I told myself as I nodded my
acceptance. Greg and I might have looked like a perfect match on
paper, but we were constantly out of sync, and I couldn’t imagine
things getting any better between us. I was fully prepared to tell
him no again, because I could see in his eyes that he was going to
ask me out. My speech was all ready to deliver when he blurted out,
“I’m seeing someone new—someone important to me—and I didn’t want
you to hear it from somebody else first.”
    “ You don’t have to keep me
informed about the details of your love life,” I said, just a
little harsher than I’d intended.
    He started to frown, then said, “Jennifer, I
just thought you should know. I waited for you as long as I could,
but I never seemed to get anywhere with you.”
    “ Greg, I’m sorry, but there
was just no way it was ever going to work out for us.” There, at
least I’d been able to deliver part of the speech I’d been ready to
give. While I had been sincere when I’d said that Greg and I didn’t
have a future together, I still wasn’t all that sure I wanted him
dating other people. My own skewed sense of logic didn’t have to
make sense to anybody else. It was just the way I felt.
    I saw an attractive blonde staring at us,
tall and slim and rather elegant in a dress that perfectly matched
Greg’s tie. “You brought her here, didn’t you?” I asked.
    Greg looked over his shoulder, then waved to
the young woman in question. “Jen, you intimidate the daylights out
of her. It was all I could do to convince her to let me come over
here and talk to you.”
    I studied her again, then offered her a
friendly smile I didn’t feel. I intimidated her; I sincerely
doubted that. I knew I was cute enough, but no one would ever
mistake me for the beauty he was with.
    “ Tell her she doesn’t have
anything to worry about from me,” I said, then to my surprise, I
saw her start toward us. Suddenly my friendly smile wasn’t all that
friendly any more.
    Before I could make my retreat, she
approached and offered a slender hand to me. “Hi. You must be
Jennifer. It’s such a pleasure to meet you.”
    “ You, too,” I said, barely
managing not to mumble.
    Greg said, “Jen, this is Stephanie
Staunton.”
    I managed to nod as I heard a tapping on the
microphone on the stage. My friend Grady Farrar—who ran the best
hardware store in seven counties—was trying to get everyone’s
attention. “If you don’t mind, could everyone take their
seats?”
    Greg and Stephanie returned to their prime
position while I rejoined my table in the back of the room.
    Savannah said, “That did not look good,
Jennifer.”
    “ If it’s