Free Murdered in the Man Cave (A Riley Reed Cozy Mystery) by R. Barri Flowers Page B

surviving ex-wives, whom he appeared to have some
obligation toward, even if they were no longer together. Might
there be others as well?
    I couldn't help but wonder if what Brent had
left behind and to whom he had left it to could have had anything
to do with his death. Or was that scenario more something out of a
good cozy novel?
    "Count me in," I reiterated.
    While I had Brianna on the line, I took the
opportunity to go over some of my legal affairs with her, including
adding a codicil to my will. I thought it was a good idea to put in
motion an internship or scholarship at my alma mater, Oregon State
University.
    Afterward, I called my good friend and
florist, Peggy.
    "I'm so sorry about Brent," she expressed,
having first met him when we were dating.
    "It's still hard to believe," I told her.
"Finding him like that—"
    "It must have been awful."
    "Yes, it was," I said.
    "I can only imagine what it must have been
like for Brent," Peggy said, "being confronted by his killer."
    I shared her disturbing thoughts and
admitted, "Thinking about it gives me the chills."
    "Have the police come up with a suspect or
motive?"
    "None that I'm aware of," I responded.
    "I'm sure they'll solve the case soon," she
said. "Brent was famous. The authorities always give top priority
to such crimes."
    I did not disagree with her, though it was
hard to think of Brent as a celebrity, per se, as much as a dear
friend, who deserved to live longer. "I hope so," I told her and
then, "I'm handling Brent's funeral arrangements. I'd like some
flowers delivered for both the church and cemetery."
    "Of course," Peggy said.
    We discussed having a standing spray with
white roses and Asiatic lilies, blue hydrangea and delphinium,
along with tropical ferns and leaves. For the casket, we would go
with white roses, a white carnation and larkspur, along with white
dendrobium orchids and an assortment of greenery. In a symbol of
camaraderie, there would also be a couple of baskets with yellow
daisies, snapdragons, gladioli, Asiatic lilies, and leatherleaf
fern.
    Though I would have to clear it with the
cemetery, we agreed that some ground cover plants and low growing
perennials, such as blue river lavender or burgundy lace fern,
around the gravesite might be nice.
    All in all, I was sure Brent would
approve.
    * * *
    I spent the rest of the morning writing my
blog. The subject was inexpensive ways for remodeling a kitchen
while still presenting an updated, vibrant place for family and
friends to hang out.
    After fielding a couple of calls from friends
and one from the press in wanting my take on Brent's death, which I
kept brief, I called Yvonne.
    "I'm anxious to know how your date went last
night," I told her.
    Yvonne paused. "It didn't go as well as I had
hoped," she stated.
    "Oh, I'm sorry to hear that." Now I paused,
trying to decide what to say. It seemed best to just come right out
with it and see where it took the conversation. "So did you talk
about having a child? Or did that not even come up due to the
climate of the outing?"
    "We talked about it..."
    "And...?" I pressed, perhaps more than I
should have.
    "And he doesn't think now is a good time to
add to our family."
    "Did he say when he thought was a good
time?"
    She sniffled. "Yeah, somewhere down the
line."
    "But he didn't outright reject the notion," I
pointed out. "So perhaps he is at least softening to the
prospect..."
    "I think it's more that he's simply putting
off having to deal with it," Yvonne stated flatly. "He's never
wanted children, why on earth would I expect that to change
now?"
    I wanted to concur with her, but also wanted
to give her hope that it could still work out and needn't put her
marriage in jeopardy.
    "People do change," I said, thinking of some
of my shifting views over time. "Or at least they can. I suggest
you not pressure him right now, but allow it to sink in before
broaching the subject again and telling him why you feel now is a
good time to have a child."
    "All right,"