Page 42 of Say Yes to the Death

Claire dropped the knife to her side and bent at the waist, willing her breath to slow. She had made it out of the woods completely on her own. No compass, no pants, no problem. And she had found a cool free pen. Adrenaline coursed through her veins, and she felt strangely invigorated, as though the sleepwalking escapade had made her invincible. Maybe this was just her subconscious’s way of preparing her for the unexpected. It wasn’t really a problem, just a safety drill. Everything was fine.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

To Do:

- Update dog sitting binder- corn allergy!

- Figure out who’s stalking me

Mindy threw a suitcase into Claire’s arms.

Claire staggered and dropped the heavy case onto the warehouse floor. It had only been twenty-four hours since the hearing, but it felt like much longer.

“I’ll be watching Rosie while you’re gone,” Mindy said, hurling Claire’s purse onto the mahogany conference table and rooting through it. She withdrew four packs of gum, a baggie full of dog treats, a stack of multicolored sticky notes, and a Taser before finding a leash.

“Absolutely not. You don’t even know her bedtime song,” Claire protested.

Mindy looked up from the binder she was struggling to heave out of Claire’s bag.

Sweet dreams, little Rosie

A kiss for every toesie

Unicorns will greet you

In a magical canoe

Mindy took a breath to continue in her off-key voice, but Claire held up a hand to stop her. “Okay, fine, you know the song. But I can’t leave. Tyler’s proposal is next week. It’s crunch time.”

“And we already have everything ready for it. The decorations are going in on Wednesday, the firework technician is ready to go, the marching band has been practicing for two weeks. Tyler’s PT is going well. You need to escape for a few days. It’s just a long weekend, Claire,” Mindy said, plopping a heavy backpack down on top of the suitcase. “I packed all the essentials for you.”

“I am not leaving,” Claire said stubbornly, crossing her arms over her chest. “What if the police need me?” She stomped up to the table and shoved the dog treats and sticky notes back into her bag. She sure as hell wasn’t leaving.

“Detective Smith is the one who suggested you go!” Mindy sighed. She grabbed one strap of Claire’s purse and pulled.

Claire grabbed onto the other one and tugged it toward her.

“Get out of town for a few days, let them sort this out,” Mindy said sternly. “Besides, fall proposal season is coming up. Farmer’s Almanac is predicting that the foliage is going to be more vibrant than it has been in years. Think of all the hiking and pumpkin-themed proposals, Claire. This may be the last chance you get to take a trip for months.”

Fall proposals! She loved fall proposals. The crisp chill in the air, the plaid, the pumpkins. It might only be June, but it was never too early to start planning some fall ideas. Maybe they could offer mini proposal packages? Still romantic and beautiful, but more cost-effective for clients and less time-consuming for the business. But that would take away from the impact of the uniquely tailored proposal for each person. And Happily Ever Afters was not about cookie cutter proposals.

Wait, what were they arguing about again?

Claire’s grip must have loosened on the strap, because Mindy heaved it away from her. Damn it.

“I’m not going to let some note-leaving creep run my life. I don’t need to take a trip. I need to be here for my clients.” Claire walked over to her massive whiteboard (which had recently been de-murdered after their Widowmaker investigation) and picked up a marker. She studied the color-coded To Do lists and crossed off “silence-breaking blog post.” She had posted a story from her backlog of proposals in anticipation of Pride Month, featuring a sweet couple who had met when Kelly took Jade’s pottery class. Jade had proposed to Kelly with a beautiful ceramic ring she had crafted herself.

Claire had had to turn comments off on her blog following the incident. Some were sympathetic, others cruelly questioned her judgment and professionalism. She had considered posting something about Barney and her experience, but the heinous crime didn’t have a place among the joyful and romantic posts on her blog. Frankly, he wasn’t worth the time it would take to write about him.

“We still need to set up a supervised date with Zayne and Alex. I’m still not fully convinced that she’s not sleeping with his brother,” Claire said.

Mindy slapped the marker out of her hand. “No more work. Stop being a child and sit your ass in that chair. Luke should be here any minute.”

Claire bristled. “Why the hell is Luke coming?”

“You didn’t seriously think I was going to send you to an undisclosed location alone, did you? You would have turned around immediately and come right back to work.”

Well, there went that plan.

---