AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Are you going to share?”
She took a sip of her tea and grimaced. “Well, that’s just it. The whole point was so we could see the presentation and learn a bit more about Margaret Smith.”
Dawson was thoughtful for a moment. “Well, I guess we did learn a little. I had no idea about all her charity work. And I’m glad that I know.”
“But that was it. That was the whole ambition of the evening.”
“And that isn’t enough for you?” He couldn’t help the hint of amusement in his voice.
She sipped the tea again and shook her head, taking a quick look around. “This is disgusting,” she whispered. “The tea at Mr. McNally’s was much nicer.”
“And probably ten times the price,” Dawson whispered in return.
She reached over and grabbed his coffee. “Agreed. But I also found out other things about Margaret Smith. Quirky things that only a friend would know.”
“Intriguing. Are you going to share?”
Piper kept her voice low. “You’ll like this one; she used to look after giraffes at the zoo.”
“What?” Dawson sat back in surprise. He started laughing. “Imagine that was a question on Jeopardy? What would be your chances of a guess like that?”
Piper automatically made the “wrong” noise, making a few heads turn toward them.
“What else did he tell you?”
She leaned forward again. “Well, it seems she did write other books, even though Ms. Travers told us differently.” Piper put her chin on her hand. “I wonder if she knew, or if only Mr. McNally knew,” she mused.
Dawson was more than a bit surprised. “She wrote other books?” He paused and then added, “Were they any good?” He signaled to the waitress for another coffee since he was never getting his own back.
Piper arched her eyebrows. She said not one, but two names. Both of well-known authors.
“No way.”
“Way.”
“What are we—fourteen?” He shook his head as he tried to process. “But I’ve heard of both of them. Aren’t they quite famous?”
“Apparently. I mean one is supposed to be Scottish, and the other supposed to be a man. There’s even a photograph.”
“Ever feel like you’ve been played?”
“Right now?” Piper picked another large forkful of cake. “Every. Single. Day.”
“So, what do we do now?”
“We do what we’re supposed to do—solve the fourth clue.” She wrinkled her nose. “I’m mad I forgot to ask how many there actually are. I’m not sure he would have told me, but it would have been worth a shot.”
Dawson looked at the dark night sky. “Do you want to go now, or wait until tomorrow?”
She sipped his coffee again as the waitress sat down another cup. “We seem to do better at solving clues at night. Why change things now?”
He looked down at his almost finished cake. “This is so bad—but I actually want another slice.”
“It’s cold out.” She grinned. “Maybe you need it to keep you warm and your blood sugar up.”
He groaned and took his last bite, starting on his coffee instead. “I’ll just watch you finish yours.”
“Like a Labrador?”
