But here she was, facing fifty and the realization that she’dalwaysbeen that way. Why didn’t she have the nerve to tell Dustin Mathers to take a hike and save her brand-new pink and green boogie board?
Well, she did now. Or at least she was aware of the problem and ready to change it for the next half of her life. So today, when Fiona tried to?—
The dashboard lit with an incoming call and the name derailed her train of thought, and in a very good way. Speaking of that very young Vivien—wouldn’t she be delighted to know that thirty-some years later, she was dating Peter McCarthy?
Okay,datingwas a stretch. They hadn’t been out again since their dinner date, but they texted daily and talked a few times on the phone. This was going…somewhere. She wasn’t sure where, but she was ready to enjoy the ride.
“Good morning, Detective,” she answered warmly, imagining his sweet eyes, neatly cut hair, and that smile that still made her a teeny-tiny bit weak in the knees. “Catch any baddies today?”
He chuckled. “Not yet, Viv. But it’s only eleven. How about you? Beautifying the world one window treatment at a time?”
She laughed, but wrinkled her nose. “Actually, I’m on my way to see a client and I’m already stressed out about it.”
“Why?” he asked, sounding genuinely concerned.
She thought about all the reasons why Fiona Buckman’s text had her uptight this morning.
At the top of the list was reason number one: she was more than a little terrified of the woman. And reason number two: Fiona reminded Vivien of Maggie. And that added a shiver of fear at the possibility that her mother could somehow discover that all of her kids—including Crista!—were currently and happily defying her.
But she didn’t want to go into all that with Peter.
“Well, her text was brief and…chilly,” she told him. “It was a demand that I be there at eleven with no explanation. I’m worried something in the design doesn’t work.”
“Oh, is this the cougar being scammed by a second-rate handyman?”
She snorted at the description. “Same client, yes. And, sadly, my only one other than the Summer House. But I haven’t seen the hapless handyman around her house for a while.”
“Have you sniffed around to find out if he’s up to no good?”
“Last time I met with her, she was barking orders so fast, I didn’t mention anything. And I stopped over late yesterday to see some carpentry work, but she wasn’t home. Her housekeeper let me in, and there was no sign of her young paramour—er, associate.”
“Well, maybe we’re just misunderstanding the whole situation,” he said. “Because mistakes do happen. I’m beginning to think this guy I’m looking for was never even in Destin. No one recognizes his picture anywhere, and he left zero tracks. I’m frustrated.”
“That’s so strange. How does a person just disappear? I’d think there’d be a full manhunt out for him.” Vivien checked the clock to make sure she wasn’t running late for this appointment, wishing she could just linger and talk to Peter about his case for an hour.
“We’ve got quite a few law enforcement people looking into it, but without a body, motive, or the media behind it, this could go on for weeks very quietly. I kind of hope it does.”
“You do? I’d think you’d want to wrap up the case.”
“But not my time in Destin,” he said, his voice just a little lower and more intimate. She got the message, and it made her smile.
“You’re only an hour or so away in Pensacola,” she said.
“Too far for spontaneity, which I happen to like. So how about we have lunch after your meeting?”
“Oh, I love that idea,” she said. “I should be done in an hour. Can I meet you somewhere?”
“The Back Porch?”
She gave a soft laugh. “I forgot about that restaurant. It’s still there?”
“Bigger and better than when we were kids. It’s a Destin landmark. Meet you at twelve-thirty?”
“I’ll be there,” she promised, turning into the entrance to Indian Bayou.
As she drove to Fiona’s house, she tried to imagine why the woman would have sent that icy text ordering her to come over at eleven. It was so…Maggie.
Vivien had to cancel an appointment with the owner of a high-end kitchen business, one that could have led to new clients. But she didn’t want to disappoint Fiona.
