Total pages in book: 123
Estimated words: 115468 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 577(@200wpm)___ 462(@250wpm)___ 385(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 115468 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 577(@200wpm)___ 462(@250wpm)___ 385(@300wpm)
I’d never been fodder for the gossips of either town. Part of me resented it, and part of me almost…relished the feeling of stirring up comments of anything other than how so-called perfect I was.
Neither charge was accurate.
“I heard about your accident,” she said. “I see you’re no worse for wear.”
“No, just a fender bender. I looked down at my phone for just a moment and…” I shrugged and gave her my best bashful smile.
“Hmm. Yes, texting and driving is an epidemic these days. Do be more careful. Your parents would be beside themselves if you were injured.”
“I will. Nice to see you—”
Virginia Bellamy pulled on my arm when I tried to turn to walk away. “I wanted to mention something to you, Gage, as I’ve heard you’ve been seen keeping company with that woman working with Faith Lorenz.”
That woman.
“Her name is Aurora,” I said, feeling a sudden jolt of protectiveness that had a decidedly different feel than the concern over Blakely’s propensity toward speeding.
Mrs. Bellamy’s shoulders came back as if she’d heard the defensiveness in my tone. “Yes,” she said. “Aurora Castle. I recalled some things since she came to my home. She’s the spitting image of a woman who visited Calliope many years ago from somewhere up the coast, stirring up all kinds of drama at the Metropolitan Club. From what I remember, she had those men skinny-dipping in the club pool. Can you even imagine?” She made a sound of outrage in her throat.
I resisted the cringe that threatened to take over my face. Damn it. She’d remembered Rory’s mother. And if she made the connection, someone else might easily discover she wasn’t an art appraiser. Her cover would be blown, and she’d never be welcome in another Calliope home.
Plus, whatever else Rory’s mother had done while she was in Calliope, she hadn’t made friends of the wives of the founding members of the Metropolitan Club. Mrs. Bellamy could be a snooty old snob, but her opinion mattered in this town if you wanted to flourish in society. Still, I couldn’t help the snark that rolled off my tongue. “She forced them to skinny-dip? How did she manage that?”
“Lord only knows how those type of women weave their spells.”
Those type of women. Good grief. “Anyway,” I said. “Aurora’s from New York. She’s never been here before.” That last part, at least, was true. “The resemblance must be a coincidence.”
“I don’t think so,” she said with a decisive nod. “Those eyes are unmistakable. Like the Hale eyes. Once you see them, there’s no denying who you’re looking at.” She narrowed her own. “She returned the artwork I loaned her with a nice write-up on all four pieces,” she said. “But I’m not convinced there isn’t something untoward going on. Edna told me she trained under a Professor Hugo Dickstoker, but I haven’t found anyone by that name in New York, and some rather unsavory sites come up when I do a search.”
I made a small sound that was equal parts laughter and annoyance at this pompous meddler before covering it with a cough. “I believe Aurora mentioned that she didn’t study in New York. She trained overseas, but I can’t remember exactly where. Sweden…or France, or maybe…Transylvania.”
Mrs. Bellamy frowned, her eyes moving to the side. “Oh.”
I gave her a thin smile. “Anyway, I’m sure you have much more important issues to focus on, Mrs. Bellamy. I heard the Ladies League’s golf outing was a huge success and that you have another one coming up in the fall.”
She preened a little just as I’d known she would. “Oh, it was an extraordinary success. I took it over from Dottie Cavendish, you know, as she needed time to settle her,” she glanced around and then lowered her voice, “divorce. Anyway, we outdid all prior years, and I can’t imagine the board won’t transfer the event to me permanently.”
“Ah. Well, that’s…great. It was nice seeing you.” I turned, bringing my arm close to my body so she couldn’t reach out and grab me again, and walked quickly toward the door.
“You too, Gage,” she called. “Remember to be cautious with—”
“Virginia, hello!” I heard a female voice behind me say, and I hurried toward the door as Mrs. Bellamy began conversing with the woman who had called her name.
Well at least I knew that Mrs. Bellamy was suspicious of Rory’s credentials. If she was looking into the woman she remembered from years ago, then she was also poking into Rory’s background. Which meant we had to work fast.
I stepped out onto the street. Now that I’d gone out the front door, I’d have to circle all the way around the club to where the parking lot was located. I swore under my breath. I had a meeting in ten minutes.
When I got to the corner, I started to turn when I spotted a woman holding a gaggle of dogs walking along the path on the other side of the street. I stopped, a grin breaking out over my face. Rory. She stopped too, staring over at me, her mouth parted slightly and a look on her face I couldn’t read. She looked sort of sad, or worried or…I wasn’t sure. I moved toward the edge of the sidewalk, lifting my hand in a wave. She hesitated, but then transferred the handful of leashes into her other hand and waved back.