Keegan shakes her head. “Don’t worry, Jasper and Bizzy. You’re not the first married couple we’ve seen crash and burn.”
“Wonderful,” we both mutter in unison.
At least we’re in sync with something.
Keegan holds up a hand. “It’s a tie for the other couples,” she shouts as the room explodes with cheers. “Two free dinners for lucky couples one and two. Thank you all for playing!”
The music kicks on again, and the dance floor is quickly swamped. I bolt over to Keegan as she switches off the microphone and hands it to a bartender.
“You were great,” I say, and she laughs my way.
“Well, I wish I could say the same about you. But don’t worry. It was all in fun. I’m sure you and your handsome husband are as solid as a rock.” And I do mean handsome. Those other women might be eating free hot wings tonight, but Bizzy is going home with a real meal.
I’d have to agree with her on that one.
“You know, I just figured out why you look so familiar to me.” I lick my lips as I dive on in. “I run the Country Cottage Inn, and I think I saw you at the Perfect Pairing event the other night.”
Her eyes squeeze shut a moment. “Yes, actually, I was.” She blows out a breath. Now there’s a night I never want to think about again.
“I’m sorry. That was pretty horrible what Bobbie did to you in the ballroom.”
She shrugs. “She got hers in the end, I guess.” And so did he.
“Is it true?” My shoulders hike as I ask the question. “Were you and Chip—”
“No.” Her eyes grow wide. How dare she ask me that. She makes a face. “I was his secretary. Look, I’m going through a messy divorce. My ex is Hartford Merritt. Does that name ring a bell?”
My mouth falls open. “The same Hartford Merritt that stars on Second Chance Family?” It’s a sitcom I used to watch way back when, but it’s still on the air as far as I know.
She nods. “Every Tuesday night at eight. He’s already got four Emmys blowing up his ego.” She makes a face. “It turns out, I knew him even less than you know your husband.” She shrugs. “Sorry. That came too easy. Anyway, I applied all of the ridiculous principles Bobbie and Lacey doled out and it landed me in the biggest mess of my life.”
“I’m sorry to hear it. Is that why you turned to Chip? For comfort?”
She shakes her head as she gives a brief look around. “Look, I don’t make much here. And to be honest, that side gig as Chip’s secretary wasn’t exactly covering my bills either, so I was forced to get creative.”
“Creative?” My ears ride up a notch, anxious to hear exactly what she has to say.
She sighs as if she’s loath to say what comes next. “I’m a professional cuddler.” Her eyes close a moment. “Please don’t say anything. I’d hate for word to get out around here. It’s just something I’m doing that’s very low-key.”
“I’m sorry—a professional what?”
“Cuddler. You know, hugs? Anyway, Bobbie has long suspected that Chip was fooling around, and well, she caught us in the act one day. Cuddling that is, not canoodling in the traditional way. Chip told her he was just giving me a friendly embrace. And she seemed to buy it. Little did she know, it was one expensive hug. I charge a flat rate of five hundred dollars.”
“Wow,” I say, stunned.
“Oh, it’s a deal. I’ll go up to three hours before I double the fee. I once made two thousand dollars with a businessman from Edison.”
As soon as she mentions the name of that smarmy town, I suspect that businessman wanted to do a lot more than cuddle.
“So how’s Bobbie?” She looks as if it pained her to ask. “Any word?”
“Bobbie is doing well.” I tip my head her way. “I happened to see her myself. She’s adamant she didn’t pull the trigger. She says someone else did this to them. Any idea who that could be?”
She blows out a big breath. “I’m the easy suspect, I know. But I wasn’t angry enough to kill.” Sure, I was. “Okay, fine. I probably was, but not in the literal sense. I don’t even know how to use a gun. Besides, if the cops follow the money trail, it will lead to the exact person they should be looking at, and it’s not me.”
“What money trail?”
“Bobbie was flat broke. Chip was good at one thing, and that was making her money disappear. On second thought, he was good at two things. I can vouch for the fact he had a roving eye.”
“If the sheriff’s department follows the money and it leads to Chip… Hey, you don’t think Chip had a shady debtor come after him, do you?”
“Look, I don’t want to name names, but I think when the people running this investigation see how much the Buckinghams were in the hole, they’re going to start to wonder where they got the money to pay their bills.”
“Where did they get the money?”
“Let’s just say Bobbie’s manager not only had to play the part of mommy, she had to play the part of banker, too.” Someone calls her name from behind, and she glances that way. “I’ve got to go. It was nice meeting you. Oh, and I wouldn’t bother fighting with that man you’re married to. In fact, I’d let him have his way with just about whatever he wanted.” Especially if what he wanted was me. If Bizzy weren’t so nice, I’d drop my business card off at his table. Here’s hoping Mr. Gray Eyes and I meet again.
She takes off, and I frown because I know for a fact she and Mr. Gray Eyes are meeting again—when he detains her for questioning.
Jasper comes up. “Any luck?”
“No,
