AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“What?” She shoves up in bed and tosses her blankets off. I don’t even have to see her to know. In my mind, I picture her pink streaks flicking into her eyes. Her ashy-blonde hair, flipping forward to sit on her shoulders. She’s sleeping in my bed, and probably wearing pyjamas she found inmycloset. “What secret?”
“Archer said I can’t tell you.”
“BUT YOU ALREADY TOLD ME THERE’S A SECRET! Don’t tell me there’s a secret, but not tell me what the actual freakin’ secret is, Mayet! What’s the secret!?”
“But I would be betraying my husband’s trust by telling you.”
“I will murder you dead and bury your corpse in the stinky end of the bay. Tell me the damn secret before I discover the power of teleportation and wring your damn neck.”
“Aubree—”
“Tell me! Tell me! Tell me! Tell me now!”
“Archer asked me to marry him.”
“He—” She stops on a choked gurgle that sounds almost painful and lumpy. “What?”
“Marriage.” I look down at the chunky diamond on my finger and ignore the fact only rich people buy diamonds this size. Notrich adjacent. “A down on one knee,will you marry me, kind of proposal.”
“But… you’re already married. This is a shitty secret to get me worked up about!”
“He wants to do a whole ceremony thing.” My heart gallops in my chest. Nerves firing inside my veins and leaving me almost giddy. “Wedding gown, Aubs. Officiant. That kind of stuff. He wants me to sayI doagain, to prove I do, in fact, want to be with him.”
“Well…” Underwhelmed, she flops back in bed and harrumphs. “That’s nice, I guess. Romantic of him, which I suppose is completely in character for the guy who tricked you into marrying him on his birthday. When’s the big day? We can go dress shopping when you get back. And Fifi can help too. Gowns and fancy attire are totally her thing.”
“That’s where the secret comes into play…” I grit my teeth and cast another look along the deck to make sure I’m still alone. “He wants to do it next week.”
“Next w?—”
“On this boat,” I clarify. “We can’t invite you, since we’re already out here on the water.”
“Wait. You?—”
“He knew you would have hurt feelings about not being included, so he told me not to tell you. But I wanted to tell you anyway because you’re my best friend, and I didn’t want to keep it from you.”
“But now I have hurt feelings! Dammit, Minka. Make him do the wedding back here in Copeland. Or New York. Or literallyanywhereexcept for where you are right now. I want an excuse to dress up too! I like heels and gowns and weddings. They’re romantic, and Archer Malone is the most romantic guy of them all, so missing out is sucky and not fair.”
“It’s too late.” I drag my bottom lip between my teeth and roll it. “He asked, and I already said yes. And because I told you when I wasn’t supposed to, you’re gonna have to pretend you don’t know.”
“Minka!”
“You can’t know,” I press. “You can’t tell the others. And you can’t tell him I told you.”
“This is why friends don’t keep secrets! Because you were too much of a pussy to keep the secret to yourself, you fobbed it off on me. NowIhave to keep the secret from Archer. And Tim. And Fletch. And Moo! What do we tell Moo, when we know she’s gonna wish she was flower girl again?”
“Did you seriously just call me a pussy?” Indignant, I hold my phone in a tight grip and reign inmyhurt feelings. “I am your boss, Doctor Emeri! You don’t call me?—”
“I am sleeping in your bed,Chief. I’m cat-sitting your slutty feline, and I’m your best friend. I didn’t call Chief Medical Examiner Minka Mayet a pussy. I calledyou,” she spits out, “my best friend and sister from a different mister, a pussy. Because you’re too much of a coward to tell Archer you spilled your guts, butnooooo, I have to keep all my guts wrapped up and in a non-spill sippy cup. And now you’ve gone ahead like a bonehead and agreed to a wedding all the way over there, knowing damn well I want to be there for it.”
“It’s what he want?—”
“You’re a pussy! And he’s a jerk. And I’m not pleased about this secret. I’m not pleased at all!”
“Where are you at on the Savese case?”
“Oh.” Her tone flips like a light switch, from venomous to sunshine and rainbows. “Arun Savese’s CO-Hb concentrations far exceed forty percent. Dude was a walking corpse. But the wife maintains innocence. Detective Fletcher has conducted interviews not only with Mrs. Savese, but also with theirneighbors and her colleagues. Unlike our lastmarried woman wanted to off her bastard husbandcase, these two are not struggling financially?—”
“Rich adjacent?”
