Out of Mind by Stella Cameron Read Free Book Online Page A

she said, competing with a lot of noise at Chris’s end.
    That was something she had not told Ben. Her job tonight was to play the hostess and nothing more. Not even hand out canapés as he snidely mentioned. Cleo Brandt had called at the last minute and sounded embarrassed when she said Willow didn’t need to worry about anything but making sure the evening went smoothly. In other words, Mean ’n Green hadn’t gotten the most lucrative parts of the event.
    “Why wouldn’t they want us to do everything?” Chris asked.
    Willow’s patience thinned. “I don’t know the answer to that. You know we’re picking up all the business we can right now. We can’t be picky.”
    Chris was quiet for a few moments, then he said, “No. I just don’t like it if I think you’re being taken advantage of, boss.”
    She smiled. “Thanks. We’ll try to watch each other’s backs. But that wasn’t why you called.”
    “There’s that yellow tape stuff everywhere,” Chris said. “The whole place is off-limits unless you’re a cop or something.”
    The Brandt job receded from Willow’s mind. “What place?”
    “Where I’ve been watering the inside plants tonight. I took a break to get some dinner. I was only gone forty-five minutes or so, and when I got back, everything was nuts. I want to know if I should go under the tape and finish the job. I still got to fertilize. I’ve got a key.”
    “Are you talking about the dance hall on South Rampart? Where the woman lives upstairs?”
    “Surry Green. She’s some sort of actress. Complains about the music all the time like she didn’t know she was renting over a dance hall. We do her shopping and take care of her plants. She’s got hundreds of them. You can’t move for the palms in there.”
    “There’s crime scene tape all around, you said?”
    “Yeah.”
    “The dance hall is taped off?”
    “That’s what I said. Must be trouble in there. Cop cars all over the place.”
    “You left in the middle of a job to get dinner?”
    “I knew you’d say somethin’ about that,” Chris said. “She was all in a twist because she had a date. I asked if she’d rather I went in after she left and she said, yes, to give her some time. Should I go up the side stairs anyway? She’ll be apoplectic if she gets home and I haven’t finished.”
    “ No . The plants can wait. Call her later and explain.”
    “Gotcha.”
    Willow smacked off the phone. There had been occasions when Chris had taken duty too far. At least he’d called and given her a chance to stop him this time.
    The cell rang again.
    “Hey, Chris,” Willow said. “What’s up now?”
    “Something bad, I think. One of those coroner’s vansis here. Just a minute.” He spoke to someone in the background then said, “Let me find out what they’re saying now. I’ll call you back.”
    Willow moaned with frustration, then felt the rig swing awkwardly behind her and collide with the curb. She looked over her shoulder and slammed on the brakes. The trailer teetered toward the sidewalk.
    “I hate this whole day,” she yelled, jumping clear.
    Ben jumped, too, just in time to stop the almost stationary death trap from finishing up on its side.
    He had to make this look good.
    Willow tore off her helmet and prepared to watch a total disaster. At least no one was going to get hurt. Would the bank give her a loan if she explained her run of bad luck?
    She let her arms fall to her sides.
    The trailer, still balanced on two wheels, rocked back and forth in a “shall I fall over or not?” way. Her load of supplies must have shifted, although it had never happened before.
    An urge to help right things wasn’t a good idea, she knew that.
    The trailer stopped, stood completely unmoving on those two wheels, then dropped, quite slowly, to settle on all four again.
    Willow stared, her heart beating too fast. The phone was ringing again, but it took her so long to make herself move that it stopped.
    Finally, she rushed to the