Diamond in the Rough (Kate Rosetti, #8) by LaManna Gina

Author:LaManna, Gina
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: janet evanovich, humor, romantic comedy, cozy mystery
Publisher: LaManna Books
Published: 2022-12-16T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 14

I walked into Bellini’s and came face to face with my cousin Angela. She took one look at me and wrinkled her nose.

“Yeah, I’ll grab you that margarita,” she said without preface.

I headed to the usual table I shared with the girls. I had beaten the other three women to the restaurant and was first in the booth. As I slid off my coat, Angela appeared with a drink.

“I gave got you an extra-large. Size upgrade on the house,” she said. “Looks like it was that sorta day, huh?”

“That’s one way to put it.”

“Sorry, hon. Anything I can do?”

“Bring me a straw?”

“You got it. Drown your sorrows on me tonight.”

Angela snapped her gum and plunked a straw in my drink. Then she turned tail, the frosted tips of her hair flicking back and forth as she sashayed away. I waited a suspiciously long time for the other girls to arrive. I was well and truly feeling the buzz of my margarita when Melinda showed up.

“Asha called me.” Melinda’s hair fell in soft curls over her shoulders. She shrugged deeper into her powder blue peacoat. Her cheeks were a picturesque rosy from the cold.

“I figured.” I patted the seat next to me. “Everyone else is late.”

“The other girls aren’t coming.” Melinda remained standing.

“But Asha said—”

“I know; she told me. She called me first, and I requested to meet with you alone.”

“Should I be concerned?”

“Come with me for a drive,” she proposed. “I thought we could have a conversation just the two of us for old times’ sake.”

I shrugged on my jacket and gave her a grateful smile. “You do know me the best.”

I threw some money on the table, took one last sip of my drink, and climbed out from the booth. I followed Melinda to her newest lease, a sparkling white BMW that matched her pristine, furry, white gloves. We climbed inside. The car and seats were still warm from her drive over.

As Melinda took off, I didn’t ask where we were going. She didn’t seem particularly sure herself. We just cruised around with no destination in mind. It took several minutes for her to speak first.

“I know we’ve both been busy lately,” she said finally. “I know we haven’t spent as much time hanging out just the two of us as we used to.”

“It’s not your fault.”

“I know it’s not.” She gave a short laugh. “You share the blame with me.”

“Touché.”

“But you know I care about you, Kate. I love you like a sister.”

“You really don’t have to do this. I’m sure Asha made it sound like I was having a midlife crisis or something, but I’m really not. I’ve just got a lot on my plate.”

“That’s fair, but it doesn’t mean you can’t talk to me anyway.”

I didn’t particularly want to have that sort of a conversation, but Melinda didn’t seem keen on driving me to my house. She didn’t seem keen on stopping the car at all, and I suspected she’d sort of commandeered my freedom by trapping me in her BMW until I spilled my secrets.

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