Sunrise in a Garden of Love & Evil by Barbara Monajem Read Free Book Online Page A

out.
    Andrea's voice rose in panic. "Oh, no! What if some fell on the lawn or in the house?"
    Her friend retrieved the photos. "I'll check everywhere. Once you're gone, I'll call my brother and fess up."
    "Not until I'm across the state line! What if he starts snooping and asks about me?" Andrea's red-rimmed eyes were drowned in tears.
    The friend shot a glance at Ophelia and back at Andrea. "Unlikely. He never talks to me unless he absolutely has to."
    "Anything I can do to help?" Ophelia asked.
    "No." The friend followed this hostile monosyllable with a grudging "Thank you."
    "I wish." Andrea gave Ophelia a wavering smile. "Your advice totally transformed my..." She mouthed "sex life" as she took the photos. "Come to think of it, Art, you should talk to Ophelia. About you know what. And you know who."
    Art stiffened. "You'd better get going." She stood away from the car, and Andrea drove off. Ophelia took a good long look at Art, who glared back.
    Perfect: a way to distract Gideon. With detective work, not sex.
    "You're being blackmailed. Both of you, right?"
    Gideon hung up the phone, picked it up again, dropped it back in its cradle and himself on the couch. The world slowed, stopped, and started spinning again. The right way this time.
    "She won't apologize," Violet had said. She had been dead wrong. And he had been right. For once, his instincts hadn't let him down. But then, where sex was concerned they never did. In that long moment when Ophelia stared at him before turning away, there had been heat in her eyes. She'd been trying for disdain, sure, but the longer she'd looked, the more the desire had come through.
    Hot damn, thought Gideon, but sobered himself immediately. This woman was nothing but trouble. He ran his fingers through his hair and tried to get his head straight. The yowling of the dogs penetrated his whirling brain. He let them inside and greeted them automatically, popped open a beer, and took a steak out of the fridge. Hot damn. He could use that kind of trouble.
    Whistling, he took the charcoal and the lighter onto the porch to start the barbecue. Take it slowly, he told himself. Check into the vandalism and the dead-cat thing. Find out who did what, and make sure neither happens again. Easy. Meanwhile, figure out what makes Ophelia Beliveau tick.
    While the coals heated, he cut a ripe tomato into thin slices and popped a potato in the microwave. He trimmed the fat off the steak and tossed it to the dogs. First things first, he decided as he laid the steak gently on the grill. He leaned against the porch rail and dialed the dispatcher at home.
    "Uh-oh," Jeanie said when she answered the call. She chuckled. "Hi, Gideon."
    "You set me up," he accused cheerfully. "I'll forgive you on one condition."
    "Ooh," Jeanie said. "Anything you like. Is Ophelia as sexy as they say?"
    "As who say?"
    "Her sister. The guys that hang out at Blood and Velvet. The lowlifes who write her number on men's room walls."
    "Jesus." He blew out a long breath.
    "Violet says that'll stop if she gets a man of her own. She says Ophelia projects too much if she's not getting any. So when Ophelia called, naturally the first person I thought of was you."
    "I hope you don't expect me to be flattered."
    "Oh, no," Jeanie laughed. "You may look like a romance hero, but you're actually a pain in the patootie. We want you defeated. Roped and tied and helpless."
    "I doubt if Ms. Beliveau's into bondage," Gideon said. "Listen, babe, did anybody follow Willy Wyler around?"
    Jeanie switched gears briefly. "Nope. He never showed up on the road to town, but I found out he has a gig at the Chamber tonight. Maybe he turned off through the golf course they're building or one of the ritzy new subdivisions out there. That's real close to Ophelia's. You're interested in her, huh?"
    "I'm sure every man who sees her is interested," Gideon said discouragingly. "She has a ton of sex appeal. Well, gotta go."
    "She won't give you the time of day, right?