Thirty-Five and a Half Conspiracies
Page 25

I opened my eyes, and a smile slowly spread across his face. “That sounds perfect.”
The emotions I felt from the vision lingered. “It wasn’t a regular vision, Mason.”
His concern was back. “Did something bad happen?”
I shook my head. “No. The opposite. Something good. I rarely have strong emotions in a vision—it’s only happened a few times—but this one …” Tears filled my eyes.
“Rose?” His hand cupped my face as his eyes searched mine. “What happened?”
“Nothing happened, it’s just … I could feel how much you love me.”
His face lit up, and he gave me a soft kiss, his lips lingering on mine for a long moment before he pulled away. “Then you know I’d do anything for you.”
I nodded, still feeling emotional.
“I’m going to take off soon, but I hope to be back by eight or nine tonight. Check in with me today, okay?”
“I will. You too.”
He kissed me again and smiled. “I love you, Rose.”
His words seemed so small in comparison to the emotions that had rushed through me in the vision, as if they were the tiny tip of an enormous iceberg. “I love you too.”
We left at the same time, and Muffy let us know her disapproval from the living room window. Before we got into our separate cars, Mason gave me a long, deep kiss.
When I got into town, my first task was picking up a burner phone at Walmart. I sat in my truck to set it up, then sent Jed a text. I also sent one to Skeeter.
Call and text me at this number. LB
I drove to the nursery next, steeling my back as I climbed out of my car. I had no idea what kind of reaction to expect from my sister. Lately, she was as mercurial as the Arkansas weather.
Anna, the new sales clerk, was watering houseplants. She gave me a blank stare when I walked into the nursery.
“Is Violet here?”
“No.”
When she didn’t volunteer more, I asked, “Do you know where she is or when she’ll be back?”
“Yes.”
“Okay …” I groaned. I could have forced the issue. I was her boss, after all, but I didn’t feel like having a confrontation right now, particularly not with an almost-stranger. I pulled out my real cell phone and called my sister. When she answered, I said, “Vi, I’m at the shop. Where are you?”
“I’m out.”
“I can see that. Will you be back soon?”
“Uh … not for a bit.” She sounded distracted.
“Okay. I guess I’ll see you later.”
“Okay.”
Violet was usually much coyer when she was hiding something, so I had to wonder what she was doing. Then it hit me. Hilary wanted Violet to decorate her baby’s nursery. I wasn’t sure why it bothered me so much. I’d given my sister my blessing. Maybe it was because the men who were colluding with Hilary had turned on me.
“I guess I’ll be goin’,” I said, heading for the door.
Anna didn’t say anything, and I suddenly got irritated. Why was I being made to feel like an intruder in my own business? “You don’t like me very much, do you?”
Her mouth dropped open, but she quickly recovered. “I’m not sure what you’re talkin’ about, Miss Rose.”
I considered pressing the issue, but I didn’t see much of a point. “Look, whatever you’ve heard about me is probably an exaggeration or an outright lie. I didn’t steal my sister’s inheritance and force her to work for me. And I’m not a badge bunny. Or whatever crazy rumor you’ve heard about me.”
She lifted her eyebrows in surprise. “I hadn’t heard any of those things, but I’ll keep that in mind should I hear them in the future.”
I left, wondering why it bothered me so much that this one woman didn’t like me. I was used to people treating me badly and thinking I was strange. Then again, maybe that was why it upset me. I didn’t want to go back to the way things once were—to being a dumping ground for silent disapproval. The new me wouldn’t take it. Still, I didn’t need to settle things with Anna right now. There would be time to sort it out later.
My lunch date with Neely Kate wasn’t for another hour, so I decided to drop by the landscaping office and check on Bruce Wayne. I parked my truck in front of our storefront. The front door opened just as I was walking toward it.
Kate Simmons walked out, and when she saw me, a sly grin spread across her face. “Just the person I was hoping to see.” She was wearing a canvas jacket, a tight pair of jeans, and army boots. Her dark hair was cut into a bob that barely brushed her shoulders and her previous blue streaks were now purple. If she was going for a look that was the antithesis of the rich and socially elite Simmonses, she had definitely achieved it.
I resisted the urge to turn tail and hide. “What can I do for you, Kate?”
“I think it’s the other way around, Rosie.”
My eyes widened.
“What?” she asked, shifting her weight to the side and pulling on a strand of her violet-streaked hair. “You don’t like the nickname?”
I crossed my arms. “What do you want?”
“What’s with the hostility? I was just checking on you. Making sure you survived your time in the big house.”
I shook my head. “You know, for someone who claims to want me to get back with her brother, you’re awfully adversarial.”