Thirty-Two and a Half Complications
Page 37
- Background:
- Text Font:
- Text Size:
- Line Height:
- Line Break Height:
- Frame:
“I don’t know why we’re wasting our money on good steak,” Ronnie grumbled, but he cast an ornery grin at his pretty wife. “It ain’t gonna stick around in your stomach long enough for us to get a good return on our investment.”
“Ronnie!” Neely Kate gasped.
Mason kept his left arm around me, but held his right hand out to Ronnie. “You must be Ronnie. I’m Mason. I’ve heard wonderful things about you from your wife. It’s nice to finally meet you.”
Ronnie shook his hand, looking nervous at first—a common reaction for those who knew that Mason was the ADA—but more at ease as Mason spoke. “Nice to meet you too.”
“Do you have reservations? If not, you two are more than welcome to join Rose and me. Our table should be ready any time now.”
Neely Kate beamed. “We’d love to.”
Seconds later, the hostess called Mason’s name and after he told her that our party had grown by two, he waved for our friends to precede us. He leaned down to whisper in my ear, “If you wanted to have a double date with Neely Kate and her husband, you could have just told me.”
I leaned back, my eyes wide as I searched his face. “I…”
“But then you already knew that, which tells me that you’re up to something. I plan to take my time interrogating you later.” His voice was deep and full of innuendo. “So think about that while we’re at dinner.”
I flushed with anticipation.
A grin spread across his face. “Now let’s go eat with your friends.”
“You really don’t mind?”
“Why would I? After Jeff…” His voice trailed off. “Let’s just say I could use more friends in Henryetta.”
We sat in a booth and looked at the menus. Mason mentioned ordering a bottle of wine, then glanced at Neely Kate. “I’d almost forgotten you can’t drink in your glowing state.”
“I’m going to have to remember to call it that,” Ronnie joked, winking at Mason. “When she’s hanging over the toilet for the tenth time for the day.”
Mason’s smile fell slightly. “Rose had said you were having a hard time of it, but I didn’t realize it was that bad.”
Neely Kate waved her hand. “It’s nothing I can’t handle. Although I do confess I miss wine.”
Mason lifted his water glass. “To a healthy baby and a bearable pregnancy.”
We all lifted our water glasses and clicked them together while Neely Kate shot me a glance.
Hopefully, that toast wasn’t applicable to me.
“I’ll skip wine tonight too, Neely Kate,” I said. “I don’t want to tempt you with mine.”
Mason shot me a glance, but he didn’t seem overly curious. Despite my worries about tonight, we weren’t big drinkers.
The waitress came and took our orders, calling Mason “Mr. Deveraux” in a flirty tone, but he ignored it, focusing his attention on me and our guests. We were halfway through dinner—Neely Kate having eaten half of her steak—when a perplexed look crossed her face and she set down her fork and steak knife.
“Rose, I need to go to the bathroom. Do you want to come with me?”
It would take a dead person not to realize she wanted me to come for some reason. “Sure.”
Ronnie turned to his wife, worry in his eyes. “Are you feeling okay? Do you need to go home?”
She gave him a smile, but it was forced. “I’m fine. We’ll be right back.”
Neely Kate and I were both sitting against the wall, so the men had to slide out of the booth to let us out. When we were in the hall, and out of their hearing, she grabbed my arm. “We’re not really goin’ to the little girls’ room,” she said, her voice giddy with excitement. “You’ll never guess who’s here!”
“Who?”
“Samantha Jo Wheaton’s ex.”
My eyes bugged out and I glanced around. “Where?”
Her fingers dug deeper into my forearm. “Sitting at the bar. I saw him walk through the dining room toward the bathroom. He might be able to give us some answers about whether she needed money.”
I cast a wistful look toward the bar. “I know they had an inside person, and Mr. Sullivan’s lookin’ pretty guilty, but I hate pinning it all on him with nothing but circumstantial evidence.” I was worried about Mason’s reaction if he found out what we were doing, but I wanted to investigate all angles. It was worth the risk. “We need to talk to him.”
“I. Know.” Her eyes widened and she enunciated the two words as though I was a small child. “Which is why I came up with an excuse for us to leave the table.”
“Is he still in the bathroom?”
“Nope,” she said smugly. “He’s back at the bar. Come on.” She led the way through the back entrance to the bar so the guys wouldn’t see where we were going. I wouldn’t know Samantha’s ex from any other men in the room, but Neely Kate headed straight over to one of the guys at the bar. He was trying to talk to a woman who clearly wasn’t interested. “Let me handle this one,” Neely Kate whispered when we were several feet away.
“Okay.”
Neely Kate slid into the empty barstool next to the guy. Now that we were closer, I had a better look at him. His longish dark blond hair was slightly greasy and his face was covered in dark stubble. The dark circles under his eyes hinted that he’d been drinking since the beginning of happy hour, not that Jasper’s had one. In fact, Jasper’s seemed much too upscale for him with his Alan Jackson concert T-shirt, dirty jeans, and cowboy boots.
“Ronnie!” Neely Kate gasped.
Mason kept his left arm around me, but held his right hand out to Ronnie. “You must be Ronnie. I’m Mason. I’ve heard wonderful things about you from your wife. It’s nice to finally meet you.”
Ronnie shook his hand, looking nervous at first—a common reaction for those who knew that Mason was the ADA—but more at ease as Mason spoke. “Nice to meet you too.”
“Do you have reservations? If not, you two are more than welcome to join Rose and me. Our table should be ready any time now.”
Neely Kate beamed. “We’d love to.”
Seconds later, the hostess called Mason’s name and after he told her that our party had grown by two, he waved for our friends to precede us. He leaned down to whisper in my ear, “If you wanted to have a double date with Neely Kate and her husband, you could have just told me.”
I leaned back, my eyes wide as I searched his face. “I…”
“But then you already knew that, which tells me that you’re up to something. I plan to take my time interrogating you later.” His voice was deep and full of innuendo. “So think about that while we’re at dinner.”
I flushed with anticipation.
A grin spread across his face. “Now let’s go eat with your friends.”
“You really don’t mind?”
“Why would I? After Jeff…” His voice trailed off. “Let’s just say I could use more friends in Henryetta.”
We sat in a booth and looked at the menus. Mason mentioned ordering a bottle of wine, then glanced at Neely Kate. “I’d almost forgotten you can’t drink in your glowing state.”
“I’m going to have to remember to call it that,” Ronnie joked, winking at Mason. “When she’s hanging over the toilet for the tenth time for the day.”
Mason’s smile fell slightly. “Rose had said you were having a hard time of it, but I didn’t realize it was that bad.”
Neely Kate waved her hand. “It’s nothing I can’t handle. Although I do confess I miss wine.”
Mason lifted his water glass. “To a healthy baby and a bearable pregnancy.”
We all lifted our water glasses and clicked them together while Neely Kate shot me a glance.
Hopefully, that toast wasn’t applicable to me.
“I’ll skip wine tonight too, Neely Kate,” I said. “I don’t want to tempt you with mine.”
Mason shot me a glance, but he didn’t seem overly curious. Despite my worries about tonight, we weren’t big drinkers.
The waitress came and took our orders, calling Mason “Mr. Deveraux” in a flirty tone, but he ignored it, focusing his attention on me and our guests. We were halfway through dinner—Neely Kate having eaten half of her steak—when a perplexed look crossed her face and she set down her fork and steak knife.
“Rose, I need to go to the bathroom. Do you want to come with me?”
It would take a dead person not to realize she wanted me to come for some reason. “Sure.”
Ronnie turned to his wife, worry in his eyes. “Are you feeling okay? Do you need to go home?”
She gave him a smile, but it was forced. “I’m fine. We’ll be right back.”
Neely Kate and I were both sitting against the wall, so the men had to slide out of the booth to let us out. When we were in the hall, and out of their hearing, she grabbed my arm. “We’re not really goin’ to the little girls’ room,” she said, her voice giddy with excitement. “You’ll never guess who’s here!”
“Who?”
“Samantha Jo Wheaton’s ex.”
My eyes bugged out and I glanced around. “Where?”
Her fingers dug deeper into my forearm. “Sitting at the bar. I saw him walk through the dining room toward the bathroom. He might be able to give us some answers about whether she needed money.”
I cast a wistful look toward the bar. “I know they had an inside person, and Mr. Sullivan’s lookin’ pretty guilty, but I hate pinning it all on him with nothing but circumstantial evidence.” I was worried about Mason’s reaction if he found out what we were doing, but I wanted to investigate all angles. It was worth the risk. “We need to talk to him.”
“I. Know.” Her eyes widened and she enunciated the two words as though I was a small child. “Which is why I came up with an excuse for us to leave the table.”
“Is he still in the bathroom?”
“Nope,” she said smugly. “He’s back at the bar. Come on.” She led the way through the back entrance to the bar so the guys wouldn’t see where we were going. I wouldn’t know Samantha’s ex from any other men in the room, but Neely Kate headed straight over to one of the guys at the bar. He was trying to talk to a woman who clearly wasn’t interested. “Let me handle this one,” Neely Kate whispered when we were several feet away.
“Okay.”
Neely Kate slid into the empty barstool next to the guy. Now that we were closer, I had a better look at him. His longish dark blond hair was slightly greasy and his face was covered in dark stubble. The dark circles under his eyes hinted that he’d been drinking since the beginning of happy hour, not that Jasper’s had one. In fact, Jasper’s seemed much too upscale for him with his Alan Jackson concert T-shirt, dirty jeans, and cowboy boots.
