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“I love a real wood fire. As long as you don’t mind building it, I say, let it burn wood.”
He brushed off his hands and replaced the screen in front of the fireplace. “He used your gun,” Dan stated, looking right at Shelly.
“No. There’s no way. I keep it locked in a safe.”
“He must have found the combination to it, then.”
“I don’t believe he did it. What was his motive?”
“They were having an affair.”
She placed her glass on the coffee table and stared at the fire. “I don’t believe that. I don’t see Alan with that fat pig.”
Wincing, Dan looked at the fireplace, the flames catching the kindling, blanketing the split logs.
“I dated her, Shelly. I was serious about her, too. She’s not a fat pig.Wasn’ta fat pig.”
“Well, guess what, Dan? I don’t see you with her, either. What the hell was the attraction?”
“She was kinky in bed.”
“Ah! The root of all evil. How can any woman compete with the knowledge of a whore?”
Shaking his head, Dan asked, “Why the contempt?”
“You just told me the man I was engaged to had been having an affair with Lily Porter. What the hell am I supposed to act like? You tell me, Dan.”
He quickly went to her and sat down, embracing her. “I’m sorry. I forgot you were going to marry the guy.”
“You know what I think? I think Alan was trying to compete with you. First, he had the affair with your wife, and then after you broke up with Lily, he went to her. Where do I fit in?”
“You’re the equalizer,” Dan said, grinning.
Shelly felt like she was sincerely upset for the first time in weeks, her pain finding the appropriate outlet, and she cried on Dan’s shoulder. Why couldn’t she have done that in the first place?
The key was to stay calm, to focus her energy on Dan and keep her head down.
“That does it. I’m not going in to work tomorrow. I might take a leave of absence. I have so much vacation time accrued, I could take six months off with pay.”
“Do it,” Dan said. Then he looked around, as though hoping to change the subject. “I really like what you’re doing to my place. I want it to be your place, too.”
“You do? That makes me so happy. I love the beachy vibe it’s getting. Before it was…”
“I know, too brown.”
“Ha! Definitely brown. So, from this moment forward, I’m incognito.”
But not to the police. At nine o’clock that night, a knock on the door interrupted their evening. Dan went to the door. Henry Wong and another detective, Samantha Cordis, stood under the porch light. He didn’t seem surprised they were at his door.
“Hey, Henry.” Dan stepped aside.
“Miss Markham, Henry Wong, Samantha Cordis,” Henry said, handing a card to Shelly, who was sitting on the couch. “Could we speak with you about Alan Stone and the murder of Lily Porter?”
“Of course.” She looked up at him, wishing Dan would tell them to sit. When nothing was said, she nodded toward the kitchen. “Maybe the kitchen table is a better place to chat.” She rose from the couch, realizing she was wearing pajama bottoms. “I’d have dressed up if I’d known we were going to have company.”
No one said anything as they followed her into the kitchen.
“Anyone want coffee?” Dan asked.
