Page 49 of The Last Close Call

“You knocked it out of the park with that DNA thing. Wow. Very impressive.”

She smiled. “Glad I could help.”

“We need to get going,” Jack said, and Bryan tore his eyes off Rowan. “The interview.”

“Right.”

“Nice meeting you.” Rowan looked at Jack as she took a step back. “Let me know how it goes.”

“I will.”

She turned and walked away.

“How what goes?”

Jack glanced at Bryan. “Nothing.” He checked his watch again. “Let’s go.”

***

Rowan turned onto the driveway and studied the two-story house. With its neatly trimmed hedges and traditional architecture, it had that all-American look of one of those homes in a John Hughes movie. As a girl, Rowan had always thought about living in a house like that, but those daydreams seemed unimaginable now. Sweet, yes, but almost laughably out of reach.

Once again, the black Mercedes was parked near the back door. No Range Rover this time, but maybe it was inside the three-car garage at the end of the driveway.

Rowan parked and got out, casting a baleful look at her dinged Toyota. Her tires were bald, and she desperately needed to get the oil changed, but she hadn’t had the funds to devote to auto maintenance lately.

With any luck, this meeting would help.

She cast a glance at the back courtyard but this time followed the cobblestone path around to the front entrance. The glossy black door had cut glass windows on either side and stone pots filled with carefully manicured topiaries. Did Joy do her own gardening? Somehow Rowan doubted it. As a tech executive with no kids, she could probably afford a fleet of domestic helpers.

Rowan squared her shoulders as she stepped up to the door. In contrast to Rowan’s severed-hand door knocker, courtesy of Skyler, this knocker was a traditional brass lion. Rowan gave it a double tap, setting off a flurry of yips inside the house. A moment later, a blurry figure appeared at the glass and the door swung open.

“Thank you for coming,” Joy said.

“No problem at all.”

Joy ushered her inside. As opposed to the last time Rowan had been here, her hostess was immaculately put together in pants, riding boots, and caramel-colored cashmere sweater. Her highlighted blond curls spilled loosely over her shoulders.

“Come in. Please.” She ushered Rowan through the foyer. “Boys, no.”

The dogs scampered around her, and Rowan bent down to pet them as they sniffed at her shoes.

Joy led her through the enormous living room where she and Jack had been just the other day. What would he think if he knew that she was here right now? She had a feeling he wouldn’t like it.

“Can I get you anything?” Joy asked over her shoulder. “Water? Coffee?”

“I’m fine, thanks.”

Joy walked through a hallway with French doors that opened onto a brick patio, then stepped into a spacious office.

The room had a vibrant colored rug and a corner fireplace. But it was the floor-to-ceiling bookshelves that took Rowan’s breath away.

Gaping, she stepped through the doorway. The shelves occupied three of the four walls, leaving the fourth wall open for a huge window with a cushioned seat. Rowan felt a wave of reading-nook envy.

Joy gestured toward a pair of brown leather chairs. “Please. Make yourself comfortable.”

“I love your library.”

“Thank you.”

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