Twist of Faith by Ellen J Green

Author:Ellen J Green [Green, Ellen J]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781503949065
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Published: 2018-01-31T22:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 37

“Steve and Karen are coming over in about forty-five minutes, so, you know, if you want to shower, shave, change, fix yourself up?”

“Hmmm?” He’d been sitting for hours at his desk, just sorting details in his head. The blue outline of the hippo disintegrating in the flames. Evidence destroyed.

Juliette had costumed herself for this dinner party, he noted. Black cocktail dress—formfitting but not tight, upswept hair, her grandmother’s diamond earrings, though she still held her stiletto pumps in her hand and chose to shuffle around in her Ugg slippers. It should have set off alarms for him to be on his best behavior. She’d hired a caterer, who had been banging pots in the kitchen for at least an hour, borrowed her mother’s china for the table setting. Flower arrangements as a centerpiece.

“You’ve been in here all day, looking at those papers.” She clapped her hands two times. “Chop-chop, let’s get going. Get in the shower. Dr. Thomas is going to be here soon, and I want everything perfect.”

Dr. Thomas was a prospective employer, that much he knew. A partner in a lucrative orthopedic practice at University of Pennsylvania, with offices all over South Jersey. But the fact that she was calling him Steve and his wife Karen meant that she didn’t have too much to worry about.

“They’ve got an office in Chadds Ford. I’d love to live in Delaware County, wouldn’t you? Get out of New Jersey?”

He took a breath and looked up from his papers. “I work in Camden, that’s a bit of a hike. And no matter which office you see patients in? You’re going to be taking call and operating in Philadelphia. You’ll spend your life in a traffic jam.”

Her mouth turned down. “Do what I ask, please, Russell. Get a shower, dress in the dark suit I bought for you, be nice—be charming, even. Don’t talk about your cases or police work. Only if they ask.” She started to turn around but then had more to say. “Oh, and if they do ask, highlight the Prosecutor’s Office. The courts. The lawyers. ’Kay?”

“God, yes, Juliette. I’ll talk about my in-chambers meeting with Judge Clark just the other day.” He stood up. The comment was meant to be sarcastic.

“Is he a superior- or municipal-court judge? If he’s superior, then that’s okay.”

She scooted down the steps, so he couldn’t tell if she was being funny or obnoxiously pretentious. She’d forgiven him too quickly after the wedding-planner incident. He figured it meant either she’d found a way to speed-blast through her grudges or she was way too deep into the wedding plans and the idea of marriage to give up on him now. He was betting on the second, and it was giving him migraines.

He thought about Ava and how she might have reacted to this little dinner party, smiled at the thought of her messy house. He felt a slight punch in his gut. The more time that went by without finding her, the less certain he was that there was going to be a pleasant ending to the story.

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