Lavender Lipstick Lies: A Mystery of Makeup & Mayhem

Lavender Lipstick Lies

Mary Maxwell

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and
incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously, and
any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments,
events or locales is entirely coincidental.

© 2015 Mary Maxwell

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced,
stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means
electronic, mechanical, recorded or otherwise, without the prior permission of
the author except for the use of brief quotations in a review.

Chapter 1

“Welcome to Las Vegas!” I cheered
as our flight from St. Louis touched down on a sunny Thursday afternoon. “We’re
going to have the time of our lives!”

With my two best friends beside me
and one cheating husband hundreds of miles away at home, I was determined to
make the weekend trip to the Splendora Beauty Convention the beginning of my
new Happily Ever After.

It was the fifth year in a row that
Emma, Bree and I were attending the national meeting for the cosmetics empire.
We’d started as Splendora image consultants at the same time, and the annual
conference had become a tradition. Despite everything that had happened that
morning, I was determined to keep up appearances. After all, if I was a soon-to-be
single woman, I’d need to continue building my business with the tips and
techniques presented during the three days ahead.

“It
will
be the time of our
lives!” Emma echoed. “And the best convention yet!”

Bree nodded excitedly and squeezed
my hand. “Especially when you win Achiever of the Year, Abby,” she squealed.
“I’ve got a feeling that’s exactly what will happen at the banquet on Saturday
night!”

We discussed the weekend ahead as
the plane made its way to the terminal. Once we collected our luggage and boarded
the shuttle bus, I finally breathed a sigh of relief.

“Dinner tonight is my treat!” I
said. “I’m so lucky to have such good friends at a time like this. I want you
both to know how grateful I am!”

Emma cooed lightly. “Oh, sweetie.
We’re here for you!”

“Well, I couldn’t do it without
you,” I said, reflecting on the enduring friendships that started years before
in high school. “We’re three of the luckiest women in the world.”

“Absolutely,” Bree agreed.
“Together forever—through thick and thin!”

“I actually thought you might
cancel on us,” Emma said with a frown. “After the horrible stunt that your husband
pulled, it’s a wonder you’re not wallowing in an ocean of tears right now.”

“Well, I considered staying home to
sort things out,” I said as a vision from earlier in the day shuddered through
my mind. “But then I realized that I didn’t want to hear Robert protest his
innocence one more time, especially when the proof was right there before my
eyes. It seemed like a good idea to carry on with my plans and give us both
some time to think about everything.”

I still couldn’t believe what had
happened that morning. As we’d agreed, Emma and Bree came by to pick me up at six o’clock. I’d prepared coffee and buttery white chocolate cinnamon scones—another ritual
that started with our first Splendora conference—and we’d laughed and talked while
Robert ate his breakfast. After leaving at seven and heading for our flight, Bree
suddenly realized she’d left our airline tickets on my kitchen counter. Emma
quickly turned her car around, raced back to the house and pulled into the
driveway beside an unfamiliar bright red convertible.

Only twenty minutes had passed, but
I was stunned and horrified when I walked through the front door to find my
husband standing in our living room with a buxom blonde dressed in slinky black
satin lingerie. As I gawked in disbelief, the stranger suddenly grabbed her
trench coat and darted out the door. Even though Robert stammered a repentant
explanation, I left a moment later after reminding him that he’d just come
close to shattering the vow of faithfulness from our wedding six years earlier.

As I reflected on the sickening
betrayal, my heart began pounding furiously and beads of sweat glistened on my
forehead. A series of blurred images flashed in my mind: Robert and the blonde
together in our home; the sound of her laugh when she saw my face; the
seemingly nonsensical explanation my husband quickly offered. I was feeling
utterly overwhelmed by a swirl of emotions when I sensed someone tapping my
arm.

“Are you thinking about him again?”
Bree asked gently as the shuttle bus left the airport.

I blinked away the terrible vision
and fixed my eyes on her sweet grin. “What gives you that idea?”

“The sad look on your face,” she
said in a warm, consoling tone. “Your smile just vanished in a heartbeat.”

I nodded. “Yes, I was thinking
about Robert,” I confessed. “How can I not?”

“It’s a natural reaction when the
man of your dreams becomes your worst nightmare,” Emma said. “The same thing
happened to a woman who lives down the street from me. Leslie left the office
early one day because of a migraine, and she walked in on her husband with his
ex-girlfriend!”

“That’s horrible,” I said. “And
now, unfortunately, I know how it feels. I obviously interrupted them before
things got hot and heavy, but it sure looked like he was getting ready to cheat
on me.”

Bree looped one arm around my shoulders.
“We’re right here by your side,” she said. “And don’t you worry; we’ll make
sure you have the best weekend ever! You can deal with Robert and his two-faced
ways when you get back home on Sunday night.”

I managed a weak smile and nodded
in agreement. As the shuttle bus inched through traffic toward the hotel, I
joined in as Emma and Bree made a list of the things we’d do after the daily
Splendora meetings.

“How about some time in the spa?” I
suggested.

“That’s a great idea,” Bree agreed.
“A nice relaxing massage would be perfect.”

“I’d like to try roulette for the
first time!” Emma announced. “And I heard the Chippendales revue at the Rio is
worth every penny!”

Bree blushed. “I’m not so sure
Gregory would like me ogling a bunch of half-naked studs,” she said modestly.

Emma laughed and glanced around.
“Well, I don’t see him anywhere,” she giggled. “And you know what they say
about Vegas!”

As we continued snickering and
planning for the weekend, I heard a raspy voice over my shoulder making snide
remarks. When I turned to look, I saw Delia Broome, another Splendora
consultant from St. Louis. For some reason, even though she and Emma were friendly,
Delia had always treated me with disdain whenever our paths crossed at the
local company meetings. And now that I had been nominated for the annual
Achiever of the Year Award, it seemed she was glaring at me with greater
intensity than ever before. I smiled and gave her a wave, but she smirked and
turned away.

“Don’t look now,” I whispered to
Emma and Bree. “But my nemesis is a couple of rows behind us.”

Emma swiveled her head quickly
before turning back at me. “She’s not your archenemy, Abby. She’s just jealous
that you have two of the most beautiful best friends in the world!”

Another chorus of our cheerful
laughter filled the air as the bus arrived at the hotel. Since we were sharing
a three-bedroom suite, I offered to stand in the long line of guests at the
front desk.

“Why don’t you let me do that?”
Emma suggested. “As slowly as they’re checking people in, it may take an hour
to get our room keys. You two should go outside and have something cool to
drink by the pool. The bellhop can take our luggage upstairs, and I’ll meet you
outside as soon as I finish with registration, okay?”

“Are you sure?” I asked.

She gave me a playful shove. “Go
on! Get out and soak up the sunshine while you’ve got the chance! Since we
arrived a day early, we should take advantage while we can!”

Bree grabbed my elbow. “I’m in
favor of that idea!” she said brightly. “I saw a particularly cute guy heading
that way a second ago.”

“Well, doesn’t that figure?” an icy
voice rasped behind us.

I turned to find Delia staring
daggers at me again.

“One just caught her husband
cheating, and the other conveniently forgot that she’s married,” the slender
redhead snapped. “You’re like two immoral peas in a pod.”

Without missing a beat, I flashed a
big smile. “Welcome to Las Vegas!” I said in my friendliest tone. “Are you
ready for another great convention?”

She sneered, raising one eyebrow.
“You won’t be quite so happy when someone else is crowned Achiever of the
Year,” she hissed. “Or when I tell everyone that your fairy tale marriage
crumbled to dust this morning!”

Chapter 2

“
What
did you say?” My heart
lurched in my chest as I spun around.

Delia fluttered her pitch-black
false eyelashes. “You heard me,” she purred coldly. “I know all about Robert
and his early morning mystery date.”

I stared at her silently as my
knees trembled wildly.

“From the dish I heard,” Delia
added, “your husband’s new girlfriend is a pretty blonde with an hourglass
figure.” She brushed a few stray locks of crimson hair from her eyes. “And I
don’t think the Splendora Board of Directors will be too thrilled to hear that
news, Abby. You know that they don’t like the Achiever of the Year to be
tarnished with anything tawdry or scandalous!”

A million thoughts raced through my
mind as Delia finished her statement with a megawatt grin before turning around
and parading through the lobby on her blood-red high heels.

“What was
that
about?” Bree
said.

“I’m not exactly sure,” I
sputtered.

Bree frowned. “Well, how on earth
would she know about Robert already?”

I shook my head. “I have no idea,”
I said sadly, not wanting to speculate. “But I think it’s safe to say that
Delia Broome plays by her own rules. She’s been nominated four times for
Achiever of the Year, and hasn’t won yet. I think she’s more than a little
bitter about that. Maybe her strategy for this conference is taking things to a
whole new level of mean just to spoil my nomination.”

With a nervous chuckle and
concerned look, Bree led the way to the pool. We walked around the shimmering
azure water to a large covered seating area near the bar. It was early
afternoon; dozens of guests were frolicking in the water and soaking up the
warm sun beneath the cloudless desert sky.

“Let’s wait in the shade for Emma,”
I suggested. “I don’t want to overdo the sun on the first day.”

“Sounds smart,” Bree said. “Do you
want to sit at the bar?”

I glanced around until I spotted an
empty table with an umbrella near a pair of potted palms. “How about there?”

“Perfect,” Emma agreed. “I’ll go
order our drinks and meet you in a sec. What would you like?”

“A strawberry daiquiri would be
great,” I said. “It’s what I had the first time I came to Vegas. It’s kind of
my signature nostalgic drink whenever I visit now.”

“That sounds tasty!” Bree said. “Two
strawberry daiquiris coming right up!”

As I settled into a chair under the
wide striped umbrella, the warm breeze caressed my face. I leaned back and
closed my eyes, but the shocking image of my husband standing in our living
room raced through my mind again.

“Get a grip, Abby,” I whispered to
myself. “You’re a strong woman. Everything will work out, one way or—”

“Excuse me, ma’am?” said a deep
voice, interrupting my thought.

I opened my eyes to find a
breathtakingly handsome man standing beside my chair. He was dressed in the
hotel’s front desk uniform—green vest, starched white shirt, pleated black
pants—and he was holding a white envelope in his hand.

“Are you Abigail Miller?”

He flashed a bright smile that
perfectly accented his piercing blue eyes.

The question caught me off guard. I
didn’t know exactly how to answer, so I settled for a quick nod.

“This is for you, ma’am.” He held
out the envelope. “It was delivered to the concierge desk earlier.”

I took the envelope and thanked the
man. As he walked away, my mind reeled as I studied the front: MISS ABIGAIL
MILLER. Two things struck me instantly about the strange delivery. First, someone
had used my maiden name to address the envelope. The last time anyone called me
Abigail Miller was when Bree, Emma and I picked up their bridesmaid dresses
together. These days, I was Mrs. Robert Edison, and my friends called me Abby.
The second thing that I noticed was that my name was printed in what I
instantly recognized as Splendora Beauty’s most popular shade of lipstick: Lyrically
Luscious Lavender.

Without hesitating any longer, I
quickly opened the envelope, pulled out a sheet of folded paper and read the
message that was crudely printed in the same soft violet hue:

Winning comes at a very high
price.

Beware the Achiever banquet on Saturday
night.

My heart began pounding all over
again as I stared at the threatening note. I didn’t recognize the handwriting.
And there were no other telltale clues as to the sender’s identity. But the alarming
missive sent icy chills skittering down my back, leaving me feeling vulnerable
and jumpy. I quickly glanced around; the outdoor pool area looked harmless and
tranquil—cheerful guests lounging in the sun, a coterie of attractive hotel
employees serving drinks and snacks, a smattering of kids playing together
beneath the watchful eyes of a lifeguard.

And then I saw Bree heading toward
the table. She was smiling broadly and carrying two curvy hurricane glasses
filled with bright red frozen cocktails. Each drink was bedecked with a glistening
strawberry and a frilly pink umbrella. At first, I considered telling her about
the strange note. But then I looked at her carefree grin and decided to keep
the unsettling development to myself. There were hundreds of Splendora
representatives at the conference and it was entirely possible that one
misguided attendee was pulling a prank to try and force me to withdraw from the
Achiever of the Year competition. It had happened once before three years ago,
so I quickly hid the note in my purse just as Bree arrived at the table.

“I told the bartender to skip the
frou-frou,” she giggled, putting the daiquiris and two wrapped straws on the
table. “But he said it was hotel policy.”

I plucked the pink decoration from
my glass, removed the paper sleeve from a straw and took a tiny sip. The
frosty, fruity concoction was perfect. As the icy mixture melted in my mouth, I
felt the tension in my body begin to fall away.

“I wonder how Emma’s doing in
there.” Bree gestured across the expansive landscaped pool area toward the
glass doors leading to the lobby. “That was really sweet of her to volunteer
for the long wait at the front desk.”

“It was,” I said. “But isn’t that
just like her? She’s always doing nice things for everyone.”

Bree sampled her drink. “You’re
exactly right,” she said. “And I can’t decide who’s sweeter—Emma or this
awesome daiquiri!”