Killing Katie (An Affair With Murder) (Volume 1) by B.A. Spangler Read Free Book Online

Katie had gone back to working full time as a business analyst and process owner for a big nonprofit firm. She always joked that for a nonprofit, they had more money to spend than most small countries. As for me, I stayed home. I didn’t get to trade in my mommy clothes for a slim-fitting pantsuit and tall, sexy heels. I didn’t get to plan out morning coffees and business lunches. Another pang of jealousy leaped up to nip at me. Although I was happy with living simply, the envy I felt at seeing Katie dressed up for work took me by surprise.
    I remember wanting to go back to work, however. I had planned to go back to work; Steve and I talked about it and had even set a date. But then Snacks came to us as a bit of a surprise, and I never gave work another thought. Not until now, that is. Not until the fear of losing Steve had become very real, very possible.
    For now, I’d at least dressed the part, deciding at the last minute to put together an actual outfit for lunch. And seeing how Katie killed it with her gray pantsuit and heels, I felt relieved that I had taken the extra time when picking out what I wanted to wear. I decided on a shorter skirt that rode high and let my legs show a little more than usual. Adding in a new pair of open-toe heels and a champagne blouse, I felt comfortable sitting across from her. Anyone passing by could easily have mistaken us as having a business lunch.
    As if she’d been reading my mind, Katie said, “Love your outfit.”
    “Yours too,” I answered, smiling.
    The conversation was starting to feel forced. That had never happened before. Conversation had always been easy—especially when we had still been on the same playing field, sharing the same mommy and husband woes. I watched her attack the screen on her phone again. She looked triumphant as she sent off another text or email. I could text Steve’s mom . . . maybe invent a reason to have her scold Snacks for me, but it just wouldn’t be the same thing.
    “I’m so hungry,” she said. “How about you?”
    “We’re at Romeo’s,” I answered with some sarcastic charm. “What do you think?”
    Romeo’s Café was our place. Once or twice a month, we’d try and meet without any kids in tow, hoping to catch up. Early on, there had been playdates, at least a half dozen a month, but we could never be ourselves during them—not like we used to be.
    “Work?” I asked while looking at the menu.
    “Work is good,” she answered, and then she lowered her menu. “But the men . . .”
    “Men?” I asked, raising my brow. “Do tell.”
    “Oh, it’s not like that . . . okay, well maybe just a little sometimes,” she answered. “But the flirting is innocent. What I mean is that they are so different now, a whole generation that I don’t even recognize. They . . . they seem so young.”
    “That’s because they are,” I answered without hesitating. I knew where she was going. I knew because I’d felt the same way. We weren’t young anymore. I could still turn a man’s head, and certainly Katie would give any man a reason to pause, but our days of getting away with thigh-high shorts and going braless had passed us by. Our bodies had changed as fast as a light switch—on and then off. Now we had to work a little harder. Prepare a little more. Men? And we’d both seen the way our husbands would sneak a peek elsewhere when they thought we weren’t watching. Did it bother me? You bet! Who wouldn’t want endless bounce in their tits and an ass that stayed firm forever?
    Age is a fickle bitch, and there is just no staying out of its way.
    A soft wind pushed a cloud out of the sun’s path and warm sunlight peered under the patio’s canopy. A sharp ray glinted off my knife and fork like a jewel, hitting my eyes before bouncing across from me. I followed the bright reflection to where it landed on Katie’s neck. The timing was simply eerie. It was perfect. My heart jumped. The sight in front of me was beautiful.