A Cry for Self-Help (A Kate Jasper Mystery) by Jaqueline Girdner Read Free Book Online Page A

book’s success.” He paused. “Guess maybe I did glare. And Gary. Gary was worried sick about Diana. This man who may have murdered his wife was going to marry his sister—”
    “Did you tell Gary all this?” I asked.
    Wayne shook his head. “Couldn’t decide what to tell him. Skyler had a fair trial. In fact, maybe he didn’t do it. Just because my friend thought so, doesn’t mean it was true. And Skyler did seem to have real affection for Diana.” Wayne stood up from the couch. “It’s been driving me nuts. Whether to tell Gary what I knew. He already hated Skyler. And he’d already made up his mind that Skyler killed his wife. Of course Diana didn’t believe it for a second.”
    Wayne threw out his arms in frustration, then dropped them again slowly.
    “And now the man’s dead,” he ended quietly.
    “And you still feel you owe Gary,” I said just as quietly.
    I wanted to scream at him to leave it alone. Sam Skyler was dead. Let the police take care of it. But I knew he never would. I probably wouldn’t either in his position.
    “Oh, sweetie,” I sighed.
    Then I just stood up and put my arms around him. And we held each other for a long, long time.
    *
    Sunday morning in bed, we were still holding onto each other. But I was having my doubts about Wayne’s investigating.
    If Gary Atherton really believed his sister’s fiancé had killed his wife, then why did he even care who’d killed Sam Skyler? If Sam Skyler had even been killed. Or killed his wife. The words he’d uttered to his attorneys were subject to more than one interpretation. And Wayne hadn’t even heard them himself, for that matter. Sam Skyler might have fallen by accident, just as his wife might have fallen by accident. Despite my friend Barbara’s psychic opinion. In fact, it was lucky Gary hadn’t been on the scene. Assuming Sam had been murdered, Gary would be prime suspect material if he’d been there.
    I moved my head higher onto Wayne’s warm shoulder, snuggling in. It wasn’t Gary who wanted to know who killed Sam Skyler. It was Diana. And as far as I was concerned, employee benefits didn’t extend to sisters, especially gorgeous, tantric yoga instructor sisters.
    “You know,” I suggested softly, “I’m not so sure Gary really wants you to investigate this thing.”
    Wayne’s warm body shifted abruptly. My head bounced lightly off his shoulder.
    “I think it’s really Diana—”
    Wayne untangled himself from my arms and legs and sat up, glaring.
    “Gary asked me to look into it, and I will,” he told me unequivocally.
    I rolled over and turned my back on the man I was supposed to marry, the hint of tears pressing against my eyes. This hadn’t been the way I’d planned to start the day. But lovemaking wasn’t looking like a very good possibility. Unless I gave in, told him he was right. But damn it, he wasn’t right. Maybe he’d told Gary he’d investigate, but Diana was behind the idea. Lovely, manipulative Diana.
    By the time Wayne and I were in Wayne’s Jaguar on the way to Yvonne’s place in Golden Valley, we had exchanged all of ten words. Ten short words. “Yes.” “No.” “Oatmeal?” “Ready?” That kind of thing. In the perfect mood for the next stage of our Wedding Ritual class. Wondrously, sumptuously sullen.
    Even at that, riding up Yvonne’s driveway managed to make me smile. Yvonne O’Reilley was an heiress. And oddly enough, a good businesswoman. Besides her wedding seminar business, she owned a company that wholesaled frozen vegetarian meals, and was part-owner of a computer astrology venture that was like going gangbusters. And those were just the businesses I’d heard about. She got the ideas, then delegated the parts that weren’t fun. And made money.
    If only my gag-gift business would work that way. But of course, it didn’t. If anyone was doing the fun parts, it was probably my warehousewomen. And they always got paid, even during the lean times, unlike myself. I closed