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Maddy giggled. “Okay, enough, you fiend. Are you two ready for your tour?”
Caro couldn’t believe this was happening, but it looked like they were, indeed, about to get a private tour of this incredible place. Stunned, she grabbed Mick’s hand. Her mouth opened, but she didn’t really know what to say.
“What?” he asked, obviously knowing what she was thinking. “You think I can’t remember what you like to do? You’ve been working hard. You needed some downtime.”
“But this…good Lord, I expected a movie. A Cubs game or something.”
Mick’s face suddenly appeared woeful. “I tried but my buddy was using his box seats tonight. This was definitely my second choice. Make sure you wake me up if I fall asleep in front of some picture of white-haired dead guys.”
She giggled, knowing he was pulling her leg. “Cretin.”
“Remember,” Maddy said, watching them with an interested expression on her pretty face, “I have to stay with you, but you’re welcome to visit any public area you like.”
Caro nearly shook with anticipation. Beside her, Mick drew in a long, resigned breath. “Okay, let’s go. It’s gotta beat the black velvet Elvis collection in Al’s Diner.”
“Caveman.” This time the insult came from Maddy.
As they walked toward the first gallery, Mick dropped his arm across Caro’s shoulders. “I have only one request. Can we start with the guy who painted all the naked women?”
Caro and Maddy exchanged a look.Men.
“Fine with me,” Caro said. “To the naked women wing.”
Maddy gave her a conspiratorial look. “Oh, I think I have just the artist. He’ll really appeal to Mick’s taste in women.”
Mick grinned. “Sounds good.”
“Right this way,” Maddy said, “to the Rubens area.”
Caro snickered and Mick whistled as they made their way through the silent building. With each step, Caro stayed close by his side, feeling happier than she had in a long,longtime.
JACEY BELIEVED SHE and Digg had done a pretty good job of hiding the fact that they were becoming…friends. Friends, that’s all. They ran together, they talked, end of story. No physical contact had happened whatsoever.
Which totally sucks.
No, it didn’t. She didn’t need to go getting involved in a relationship with Mr. Perfect. Hut he was all wrong for her.
Digg was clean, neat, respectful and polite. Jacey didn’t care how she dressed or what her apartment looked like—unless her mother was coming over, in which case she threw away the mountain of Thai carryout boxes. She’d never been accused of being respectful, and politeness didn’t get you ahead in Hollywood.
Politeness sure hadn’t earned her her first shot. No, that had been pure blackmail. “Thanks, Dad,” she muttered.
Once she’d found out who her real father was, she’d shown up on his doorstep and asked for a job in lieu of seventeen years of child support. Hadn’t he been surprised. She had to hand it to him—he’d come through, and not just to avoid child support. She believed him when he said he’d never known about her and would have gladly supported her growing up.
Burt Mueller, her dear old daddy,likedhaving his unacknowledged daughter around, so he’d helped her get her first job. And she’d proved her worth, operating on several of his TV shoots.
Killing Time in a Small Townwas the first time she was working with someone else. She liked it, but she missed her eccentric—aww, hell,crazy—father.
“Here all alone?” a woman’s voice said, interrupting her quiet moment in the parlor of the inn Saturday night. She looked up and saw Mona. The woman gave her a smile, then quickly glanced around the room. “You’re not, uh, with someone?”
“Who would I be with?”
Mona gave a delicate shrug then sat down on an empty chair. “Well, you seem to be spending a lot of time with Digg.”
Jacey stiffened. “We’ve gone running a few times.”
“Running,” Mona said with a slow nod. “I see.”
The mousy female wasn’t looking so mousy now. Instead, she looked rather catlike as she considered her next words. “You know, there’s been some talk. About you, a member of the crew, possibly helping someone figure out this mystery.”
