Free Real Estate and Murder (A Port Grace Cozy Mystery Book 1) by Emily Page Page A

wine, but she was pretty sure it was something better.

Chapter 10
    “ L ong time , no see,” said Georgia when she opened the door for Cooper the next morning.
    She had to admit, as nice as he’d looked the night before in his button-down and jeans, there was something extra handsome about the way he looked in his blue police uniform. Perhaps it was because it went so well with his eyes.
    She felt that same flutter in her chest she’d felt the night before, but she did her best to shove it aside. She couldn’t let it turn into anything serious, and something about him definitely had the potential to do so. Last night, she could tell he’d wanted to kiss her good night, and a part of her had screamed just to let it happen, but the logical, put-together business woman side of her had won out in the end. The date had been nice, wonderful in fact, but Cooper Harris needed to stay a friend. Nothing could come of it.
    “Hello, Georgia,” he said with an easy grin. “You ready to wrangle some confessions out of our suspects?”
    “Always,” said Georgia. “But why such an early start? And on a Sunday?”
    “Because a cop doesn’t have to adhere to typical business hours, and catching people on a Sunday morning, when they are usually at their most relaxed, is the best way to throw them off balance, especially if they’re lying.”
    “All right. If you say so. Who are we interviewing first?”
    “Delia,” said Cooper. “Since we can’t totally prove Cynthia and Bruce were having an affair, Delia has the most clear-cut motive: the job position.”
    “So, do I get to ride up front and play with the siren, or do I have to sit in the back?” said Georgia, eyeing Cooper’s police cruiser in the drive.
    “Definitely up front,” said Cooper, giving her his arm. “I love having an excuse to play with the siren.”
    He opened the door for her and showed her the switch to turn on the siren. Georgia flipped it on right there in the driveway and kept it on until Cooper said, “We’re coming up on her neighborhood now. It would be best if she didn’t hear us coming. We want to catch her off guard.”
    Delia lived in a cute little subdivision with a community center and pool. Her house looked like a something from a fairy tale. It was a small, two-story wooden home painted sky blue with a dark blue shingled roof and a bright red door.
    “Looks like she has company,” said Cooper.
    Three cars took up all the space on the short drive, so Cooper parked the cruiser on the street.
    Georgia and Cooper walked up the short drive together, and Cooper rang the bell. They heard the chime faintly behind the door, but no one came. Georgia knocked after a minute or so, and still no one came.
    “That’s weird. Do you think one of the cars belongs to the mystery—” Georgia looked around as she talked only to find that Cooper was making his way around the house, following the line of bushes circling it. She trotted off after him.
    In the back of the house was a little yard surrounded by a chest-high, black iron fence woven with ivy. What they saw on the other side made Georgia’s heartbeat quicken. Delia, Cynthia, and Victoria all sat at a patio table laden with mimosas, muffins, tea, coffee, sausage balls, and other finger foods. As Georgia stood frozen, watching, Cynthia and Delia laughed at something Victoria had just said.
    “I never could hold a tune,” said Cynthia, setting off another round of laughter.
    “Good morning, ladies,” said Cooper, approaching the gate in the fence.
    All three women made little noises of shock. Cynthia jumped and knocked over a tea cup.
    “I’m sorry to startle you,” said Cooper. “We tried the door, but no one answered.”
    “Chief Harris,” said Delia, getting up and flashing a perfectly white, but rather stiff, smile, “what on earth brings you here? And Miss Mason, what a surprise. Would you like to join us for brunch?”
    Georgia couldn’t answer. Her brain was zipping at a