The Jeweler by Anderson Beck

Author:Anderson, Beck [Anderson, Beck]
Language: eng
Format: epub, azw3
Publisher: Omnific Publishing
Published: 2014-11-24T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twelve

GINGER AWOKE THE NEXT MORNING to a gray spring day. Molly had texted the night before, and Ginger knew she’d expect a full report—any moment now, though it was far too early.

Ginger heard Molly let herself in the front door. “Hello?” she called from the living room.

Ginger looked at the dog at the foot of the bed. “Are you gonna get that?” Zoë lifted her muzzle in polite interest, opened one eye in the direction of the front door, and relaxed again.

“Some watchdog,” Molly said as she entered the bedroom. She wore beaten-up jean shorts and a thin button-up shirt that smelled like the damp rain outside. “Aren’t you a layabed. Not hung over, are you?” She offered a coffee. Molly was living clean these days, having sworn off alcohol and pot and chocolate, and talking a lot about farm to table and slow food and vegan living. Coffee she couldn’t let go of, though. Molly had her limits.

Ginger crinkled her nose in distaste. “I’m not in the mood for coffee, I’ll tell you that much.” She sat up and took the newspaper from under Molly’s arm. “I don’t know. This doesn’t feel like a normal hangover. My stomach is rumbly, that’s it.”

Molly looked dubious. “You are hung over. That guy tried to get you drunk.”

“He’s Fender, not ‘that guy.’ And I was the one encouraging the tequila shots, not him.”

Molly straightened up, sitting tall on the bed. “He put the moves on you, didn’t he? Did you punch him? You’re supposed to go for the eyes. Gouge ’em good, right in the eyeballs.” Molly was apparently visualizing the attack, gouging the air with enthusiasm.

“Oh, Molly. He kissed me. That was it. It was great. I had a nice time, except for the puking part.” She rubbed her complaining stomach. “But I still feel crappy.”

There was a silence. Molly pretended to look at the paper for a moment. Then she put a small hand on Ginger’s elbow, gently. “It’s guilt, isn’t it? That’s why you’re tied in knots.”

“No, it’s not that. It can’t be. It felt so right last night.”

Molly stood and paced the bedroom in thought. She paused, facing the bed. “It’s one of two things. A, you’re just not ready. Or B, something about it isn’t on the up and up. Is there anything about the guy that’s fishy?”

Ginger combed at Zoë’s tail with her fingers. “That’s what it’s about, I bet.”

Molly brightened. “See? I knew I got a weird vibe off of him when I met him. What’s the deal? What’s wrong with him? Is he an ex-con? Although I think that’d be kind of cool. I once dated a guy who was supposedly a fugitive. Turns out he had a couple outstanding parking tickets, pretty boring.”

Ginger broke in. “No, Molly, honey, no. I haven’t been on the up and up, and I bet that’s why I feel so crummy about last night.”

“What?” Molly sat on the bed again.

“I haven’t told him about Brad—about dating Brad, or about his death.

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