Free Suspicions with Murder (A Rilynne Evans Mystery, Book Four) by Jenn Vakey Page A

on the bottom of the page, the list had been created a full month before Brittney Price had been killed. She wondered to herself why he hadn’t told her about it when they were discussing the case.
    “The only names I know are the mayor and a few of the Lewis’ wealthier friends,” Danny said. He handed the book across the table to Cole.
    “Let’s see,” Cole said, running his finger down the page. “There’s the chief of police, which is a first, and the head of the school board. I guess that makes sense since this is a fundraiser for education.”
    Nancy grabbed the binder out of his hand. “Who do you think that cute guy is?” she asked. Rilynne caught her eyes flick toward Danny for a brief moment before returning to the page. If she hadn’t expected it, she would have thought it nothing more than her own eyes playing tricks on her. “I’m sure I would have remember him if he had been here before.”
    Rilynne struggled to keep the smile off of her face as her cheeks began to warm. “I recognized one of the men as the chief of surgery,” she quickly said, trying to change the subject.
    “Was he with someone?” Nancy asked, eyes still trained on the list.
    “Yeah, he arrived with a woman,” she replied. “From the looks of it, I would say his wife.”
    Nancy’s face twisted with contemplation. “Well, if I had to guess, I would say the handsome stranger is Ben Davis. He’s one of the few people listed without a plus one, and I’m pretty sure I can put faces to the other names.”
    “What’s the point of trying to find out who he is?” Sydney asked. Unlike the others, she didn’t even bother to act like she enjoyed Nancy’s company. “What are you going to do, track him down on one of your days off?” She paused and started to grin. “Second thought, don’t answer that. I can see it all in my head. You ‘accidentally’ bump into him on the street and start up a conversation. You go out for coffee, then fall in love and live happily ever after. Is that about right?”
    Rilynne looked up at Nancy only to find a large grin sitting on her face. “He’s single; otherwise he would have brought someone with him. It would be almost criminal if I didn’t do what I could to rectify that depressing situation,” she stated. As she said it, Rilynne couldn’t help but wonder why Ben hadn’t invited her to join him. “Besides,” Nancy said, pulling her attention back to the conversation, “don’t act like you don’t already have an attractive, rich man in your sights. I bet the one I chose isn’t nuts.”
    Sydney’s face tightened as she glared at Nancy. “Like I have time to even think about finding a man,” she said. Despite her firm tone, the look on her face said a very different story. She seemed angry and betrayed. Rilynne wouldn’t have put it past her to reach out and slap Nancy right there in front of everyone.
    Nancy appeared to have realized she said too much, because she quickly changed the subject. “So I wonder what this Ben Davis does. Maybe he’s a rich oil tycoon. I could definitely live with that.”
    “Or maybe he’s a teacher who’s taking a personal interest in the welfare of his students,” Danny said, apparently bored with the conversation. “Just because he came to one of these events doesn’t mean he actually has any money. Besides, I’m sure if he were actually wealthy, he wouldn’t still be single. Even if he were, he wouldn’t have had trouble finding someone to bring to a big party.”
    There was a glint of hope in her eye, as if Danny was upset that she was talking about another man. Rilynne could tell by the look on his face that it couldn’t have been further from the truth. He showed no signs of being troubled or jealous by the conversation. He was just annoyed.
    “So where’s a good place to run in the morning?” Rilynne asked to ease the tension that filled the room.
    “If you go out through the north wing exit, head straight for the tree