Marked Down for Murder (Good Buy Girls) (13 page)

Maggie, Claire and Ginger gasped as one. Max
looked up with wide eyes. “What? Is there a spider on me?”

“Max!” They wailed in unison.

He grinned, then he looked nervous. “Okay, you have to tell me if you think Bianca will like it.”

He popped the lid and Maggie felt her jaw drop. The others were silent as they took in the sight of the sparkly before them.

“Well, what do you think?” he asked. His voice was tense, as if he was fearing the worst.

“Oh, my eyes, my eyes,” Maggie cried as she threw up her hands to shield her view.

“All I can see are spots!” Ginger said. “It’s like staring at the sun.”

Claire laughed and reached forward to take the box from Max’s hand and look at the ring more closely.

“Max, it’s stunning,” she said.

Max met Claire’s gaze, and for just a nanosecond he looked wistful. Max had carried a torch for the librarian since she’d stepped into his life as a teen, but then he had met and fallen for Bianca, leaving his crush on the older woman behind. Maggie and Ginger exchanged a glance and she knew Ginger had noted the same thing she had.

“It’s perfect for Bianca,” Claire said. “She’s going to love it.”

“Thanks,” Max said. He grinned, and the moment between them passed like a whisper on the wind.

Maggie took the small box from Claire to see the dazzler more clearly. A large, round diamond was nestled in a ring of channel-set sapphires in a platinum band. It truly was magnificent.

She handed it to Ginger so she could see it, too.

“How did you manage to pay for that?” Maggie asked. “Sell a kidney?”

“Close,” he said. “I financed most of it, but I got the down payment by agreeing to become Blair Cassidy’s personal attorney.”

“Oh, wow, are you sure you wouldn’t rather give up a kidney?” Ginger asked. “If Bianca ever doubts your love for her, you can just trot out that little detail and all her fears will be laid to rest.”

“I had hoped you’d be willing to represent Summer if she needed it. Is that what Blair hired you for?” Maggie asked.

“No, she’s convinced Tyler killed Bruce despite his having an alibi, so she doesn’t think she’ll need me to represent Summer,” Max said and shook his head, letting them know what he thought about that. “What Mrs. Cassidy wants me to look at is her estate from Bruce Cassidy. Apparently, he kept all of the financials to himself, so she has no idea how much money she has or where it is or anything.”

“Ugh!” Claire shuddered. “That’s positively barbaric. I could never not know my finances down to the penny.”

Maggie and Ginger nodded. Maybe it was because she was a Good Buy Girl, or perhaps because she’d been on her own for so long, but either way, the thought of not being in control of her own money made Maggie queasy.

“Which is another reason I stopped by,” Max said. He turned to Ginger. “Since financial statements are not my area of expertise, I was wondering if you’d be willing to offer some insight?”

“Absolutely,” Ginger said without hesitation. “I’d be happy to help.”

Maggie opened her mouth to mention that Ginger had already started, but Ginger shot her a look that said “hush.” Maggie did.

“So, when are you going to ask Bianca to marry you?” Ginger asked.

“I thought I’d pop the question when I got home tonight,” he said.

“Tonight?” Claire sputtered.

“Just like that?” Maggie asked.

“With no candlelight dinner or flowers or anything?” Ginger asked.

“I kind of thought the ring was enough,” Max said. He looked put out. “You know, along with pledging my life to hers, like, forever.”

“For a man with all that fancy-shmancy education, you’re dumb as a brick in the romance department,” Maggie said.

Max gasped as if she’d slapped him. “Ouch!”

“Where’s the creativity? Where’s the thoughtfulness? Where’s the romance?” Maggie cried.

“Really?” a voice asked from the door. “I just got here. Can’t I even take off my jacket before I trot out the romance? And why is the door unlocked when we have a murderer running around?”

They all glanced over to see Sam shutting the door behind him.

“Sam, you’re just in time,” Claire said.

“Yes,” Ginger agreed. “We need a man to help us head off this disaster.”

Sam looked immediately alert. “Is there a crime happening?”

“No, but there will be if you don’t back us up,” Maggie said.

Sam looked perplexed as he sat down on the love seat beside her. He draped his arm around her shoulders and planted a kiss on her hair before he turned to Max.

“What did you do?” he asked him.

“What?” Max raised his hands in a gesture of innocence. “What makes you think it’s me?”

“You’re the only dude in the room; it has to be something you did,” Sam said.

Max heaved a sigh. He held out the box for Sam to see, and Sam gave a low whistle.

“You got that legit, right?” he asked. “I’m not going to have to haul you in for burglary, am I?”

“Yes!” Max said. “If you consider selling your soul to the devil legit. I even have the receipt. That’s not the problem.”

Sam frowned. “She didn’t say no, did she? A fine guy like you, she’d be crazy to turn you down.”

Max grinned, and Maggie leaned into Sam. She liked the way he made Max feel good about himself. Max hadn’t had a lot of that in his life.

“No. They’re saying my planned proposal lacks romance, creativity and thoughtfulness,” he said.

“Oh.” Sam puckered his lips. “What was your plan?”

“I was just going to lob it out there,” Max said. “And see how she answered.”

“Lob it out there?” Ginger asked.

“This isn’t softball,” Claire said.

“I have to give them that,” Sam said. “This is the big leagues. You need to make it memorable.”

“Aw, what?” Max asked. “But I’m no good at that mushy emotional stuff.”

“We’ll help you,” Maggie said. She reached over and patted his knee. “Maybe you should start by calling Laura. She and Bianca are friends; maybe she’d have some ideas for you.”

“Well, where am I going to keep the ring in the meantime?” Max asked. “If she finds it, it’s game over.”

“You can keep it in my safe,” Maggie said. “It’s bolted to the floor in back, and I’m the only one who knows the combination.”

“Okay,” Max said with a heavy sigh. He slapped the box into Maggie’s palm. He rose to his feet and they all joined him. “I was really looking forward to seeing her face, though. Are you sure I can’t—?”

“Yes, we’re sure,” Claire said. She turned to Ginger and Maggie. “Can you e-mail me our itinerary for shopping the sales? I need to get my game face on, and knowing our agenda will help. Shoot, maybe by then we’ll know if we’re shopping for pink or blue.”

“I’ll send it as soon as I get home,” Ginger said.

While Maggie went to lock up the ring, Sam let the others out. She was just closing the safe when Sam arrived in the break room with the tray of mugs and the pot of chocolate.

He began rinsing and washing at the small sink, and Maggie stepped up to help him. “I do love this domestic side to you, Sheriff Collins.”

“Maybe Max should propose while doing dishes,” he said.

Maggie laughed. She felt Sam watching her and turned to find him staring at her with an intensity that made her dizzy.

“Would that work?” he asked.

“I . . . uh,” she stuttered, and then she caught on that he was teasing her. She flicked her dish towel at him. “Quit messing with me.”

He turned away and began to hum while he scrubbed the last of the mugs, leaving Maggie utterly boggled. What had that been about? Did Sam want to get married? Oh no, did that mean he wanted kids, too? She supposed they should have
the talk
. If he wanted kids, then she really had to cut him loose. It just wasn’t fair to keep him from having his own family just because she’d already done the domestic diva routine.

She could picture him with a pretty young wife and their two kids, holding hands while they walked down Main Street as a cute family unit. The idea depressed her more than she thought was possible.

“Hey, you look like you just lost your best friend,” Sam said. “What’s the matter?”

She glanced up at him. His words were closer to the mark than he knew. Over the past few months, he really had become her best friend.

She shook her head. “Nothing. I’m just fretting.”

“So you need something else to think about,” he said. He wiggled his eyebrows at her. “I think I have just the thing in mind.”

With a laugh, she let him pull her into his arms. If she was going to have to let him go, then she was determined to enjoy every second she had with him now.

•   •   •

Maggie hurried into the Daily Grind for her afternoon
cup of go juice. She’d been fighting a case of the yawns and she knew the only thing that would fix it was a brisk walk in the February air followed by an extra large cup of Pete’s coffee.

When she stepped into the shop, however, she found Max and Ginger ensconced at a wall table with their laptops open and the table littered with muffin wrappers and ceramic mugs of coffee.

“Hi, guys,” she said as she approached. “Whatcha doin’?”

Ginger glanced up at her. Her eyes looked partially glazed and Maggie was sure it took her a second or two to place her.

“Ginger, it’s me, your BFF, Maggie,” she said.

Ginger rubbed her eyes with her fingers. “Sorry, I knew it was you. I just crawled out of a labyrinth of financials that are making my head ache.”

“Tell me about it,” Max muttered. “I think it’s time to call Sam.”

“Why?” Maggie asked. “Did you find something?”

Max and Ginger exchanged a look. It was a guarded look, as if they weren’t sure of how much to say. Maggie tried not to be offended, but she couldn’t help but feel a bit excluded.

“Tell him we’re going to need to talk to Blair,” Ginger said. “She must understand some of this.”

That was it. Maggie sat down. She was not moving until they told her what they’d uncovered. She’d go into full-on student protest limp body mode if she must.

Max nodded and tapped his phone. He raised it up to his ear. “It’s Max . . . Yeah, we found some interesting stuff . . . How do you feel about monthly deposits to an account in Switzerland?”

Max was silent for a long moment. “We’re at the Daily Grind. Yeah, she’d better come, too.”

Max put his phone down. “Sam is on his way, and he’s bringing Blair.”

Ginger looked pained but resigned.

“So you are officially working the case now?” Maggie asked her friend, trying to keep the jealous note out of her voice.

“Yes, Max asked Blair to give me broader access to their financials,” Ginger said. “It was a dogfight, but she finally agreed.”

“And thank goodness for that,” Max said. “You get this stuff so much better than I do.”

“And that’s saying something,” Maggie said. Ginger flushed with pleasure.

“I’m just happy to help,” she said. She glanced out the window that overlooked the town green. “I’ll do anything to help catch a killer on the loose.”

Seeing Maggie, Pete came out from behind the counter and approached the table. He was wearing his usual green apron with the shop’s logo on the bib, and his happy-go-lucky smile was firmly in place.

“I’ve got one for you,” he said. “What did one cup of coffee say to another?”

Maggie braced herself. Pete loved to tell coffee-oriented jokes, but you never knew how it was going to go. The only person who laughed every single time was Claire.

“No idea,” she said.

“Where you bean?” he asked. He busted out a belly laugh, which was contagious and made Maggie laugh harder than the joke had.

Ginger shook her head at him. “That was not any funnier the second time around.”

“Maggie laughed,” Pete protested. “And you should have heard Claire. She laughed and laughed.”

“That’s because she’s in love with you,” Max said. Maggie was pleased that he sounded so okay with it.

“Yeah,” Pete agreed, and the smile he gave them was blinding. “So, the usual high octane, Maggie?”

“Yes, please,” she said as she stifled a yawn. She had asked Mrs. Kellerman from the dry cleaner’s next door to watch her shop, and she really needed to get back, but she also wanted to see Sam, even if it was just for a moment.

Pete returned to his counter, and Maggie wondered if she should have asked for even higher octane, but she didn’t want to get the shakes.

“Late night last night?” Ginger asked her. Her voice was laced with innuendo, and Maggie felt her face grow warm.

“I had insomnia,” she said.

“Really?” Ginger asked. “I thought his name was Sam.”

“Good one!” Max snorted and held up a hand to high-five Ginger. When they were done laughing, Maggie gave him a frosty look.

“Just remember I am the keeper of all that sparkles,” she said. “You would do well to stay on my good side so I don’t shut you down.”

“Noted,” Max said, abruptly serious.

Pete returned with a large cup of coffee for Maggie just as the door opened and Sam entered the shop with Blair and Summer. Maggie hadn’t seen either of them since the unfortunate encounter in the front of the police station. She wondered if maybe she should have left while the leaving was good.