Free The Begonia Bribe by Alyse Carlson Page A

lists to double-check so Jake would get a complete list and compiled it. She printed it up and put it in her handbag. She looked at her watch and realized Annie might already be on the grounds and breathed a sigh of relief.
    She found Annie with a small group of girls who were having a water break. Annie was showing Lizzie how to aim her camera. Cam suspected it was a little painful to let a seven-year-old handle the $1,500 piece of equipment—the brand-new replacement for the camera that had recently met its ugly demise.
    Annie seemed to be taking it in stride, though, and Lizzie looked like she was in heaven.
    “Hey there,” Cam said.
    Lizzie pushed the camera back at Annie and rushed over to Cam, bubbling with excitement.
    “Annie let me take two pictures!”
    “That was nice of her. Did you tell her thank you?”
    “Thank you, Annie!”
    Lizzie hugged Annie just as the group was called back to walk through one of the routines.
    “You’re a saint,” Cam said.
    “I prefer goddess, if you don’t mind.”
    Cam smirked. “Fine, oh, anointed one.”
    “Anointing! Now there’s an idea. I think Jake needs to anoint me with chocolate.”
    “Well, I’m sure there’s nobody more deserving.”
    “Oh, stop it or I’ll start crying, then you’ll start crying, then we’ll be a big snotty mess.”
    “Fine. I have work to do anyway.”
    Annie punched her arm, and Cam went to check with Dylan. He was stashing the flowers they hadn’t managed to get planted in the back of a pickup parked on Williamson.
    “You all set?”
    “For now. I need to rest up because tomorrow I have both planting and lighting. We should finish the planting part, though, so that’s my only really long day.”
    “Lighting? Really? Well, we appreciate it.”
    “No problem.”
    Cam waved and turned to find Rob right behind her.
    “Who’s that again?” Rob’s narrowed eyes followed Dylan.
    “Friend of Benny’s.” Cam thought she might die under Rob’s questioning look.
    Rob stared. “I know
who
he is. What I meant was why does he seem to know you?”
    “I met him with . . . you know . . . last time . . .”
    Jake arrived then, at exactly the wrong time, and stuck his hand out for Cam’s list.
    “Listen, Jake,” Cam said, “I’ve been thinking about the lack of fingerprints. Telly gets gifts of liquor at his office. I saw one when I was there. Maybe that is how the poison arrived?”
    Jake narrowed his eyes and then nodded. “I’ll look into that, too.”
    Cam breathed easier, but Rob gave her a piercing look that let her know she just admitted to knowing this was murder.
    “I think since the pageant crew is on its own tonight—rehearsal’s over—I’m heading out with Jake now on this search for the mystery woman,” he said.
    He was avoiding her. Cam was disappointed but not surprised. She would have to think of a way to make it up to him.
    * * *
    I n an effort to make things right, Cam decided a partially home-cooked meal for Rob was in order. She walked north to Awful Arthur’s for an order of fresh crab legs to go. She had wild rice at home and salad vegetables in her garden. She thought she could make a nice meal.
    She called Rob as she walked home to convince him to come for dinner once he was done with Jake.
    “We are onto something. Can we make it seven?” he asked.
    “We can.”
    She put a bottle of white wine in the refrigerator to chill and picked lettuce, tomatoes, and a cucumber from her garden and washed them. Then she decided to use the waiting time to answer some emails and draft the first part of her press release on the talent portion. The talent competition wouldn’t be over until Thursday night, but she knew what each of the girls was doing, so there was no reason not to get started on the text.
    * * *
    T wo hours later, Rob arrived with his own bottle of wine.
    “I’m sorry I was short earlier,” he said.
    “You weren’t. And I guess it’s a little flattering for you to get