Page 78 of Say Yes to the Death

“Yes, my father’s paternal instincts are off the charts,” Claire said glumly, stirring the melted remains of her yogurt.

“How did you feel when you saw him?”

“Terrified at first. I thought it was my stalker. I hit the panic button right away.”

“That’s good.” He reached across the table and took her hand.

Claire froze at the contact and pulled her hand back, feigning a cough.

“Sorry,” Sawyer apologized, crossing his arms over his chest. “I had four sisters growing up. I sympathize and comfort with physical contact. It gets me in trouble sometimes.”

She smiled. “I bet it does.” She wondered briefly what else those enormous hands could do, but it instantly felt like a betrayal. Even though Luke was dead to her. She scooted her chair back an inch and continued her story.

He sighed. “You don’t deserve this.”

“I didn’t think that I did. But this is all just too much. The universe has to be punishing me for something.”

“Maybe it’s leading you to something. In a really dickish way.”

“Another murder attempt, probably,” she said, shuddering. She glanced around. “There must be some cosmic punch card I have yet to fulfill.”

“Speaking of murder, it’s time for our out-of-classroom exercise. What was the cashier’s name?”

“Amanda,” Claire fired back. Ha. She had repeated the name in her mind several times in case he had asked.

“Good. How many froyo flavors?”

“Six, but one dispenser was broken. So five.”

“Not bad, Hartley. How long has the guy with the briefcase been sitting on that bench?”

“Uh.” She looked across the street in the direction he pointed. Damn it. She hadn’t noticed him at all. “Three minutes?” she guessed.

Sawyer shook his head. “I’m not saying you to have make a mental catalog of absolutely everything you see everywhere you go. But it is important for you to pay attention to people. Especially anyone who looks suspicious, who feels a little off. Trust your instincts.”

“My instincts and I aren’t on very good terms. They led me to plan a proposal for a man who killed five people. Six, if you count his dad.”

“He fooled everyone. Don’t be so hard on yourself.” He started to reach across the table again, but pulled his hand back and tapped the metal surface instead. “You’re alive. Focus on that.”

She sighed and leaned back in her chair. A raindrop landed on the top of her head. At least she hoped it was a raindrop. The way her year was going, it was probably bird poop.

“I wanted to tell you, I looked up the video of the proposal you did for Kyle and Nicole. It was amazing.”

The plastic spoon fell from her hand. She was so used to Luke disparaging proposals at every turn that any unsolicited compliment from a man about her profession made her immediately suspicious. “Oh—thanks. A lot of work went into it.”

“I bet. The archery, the obstacle course. Every part of it was so well thought out. How do you do it?”

Okay, it didn’t sound like he was being sarcastic. “It’s a combination of interrogation, internet stalking, and borderline obsessive planning. If you’re ever in the need for proposal planning services someday, I’m your girl.”

“I wouldn’t consider anyone else. It’s one of the biggest questions you’ll ever ask in your life. Everything should be perfect.”

“Thank you. I’m so glad you get it. A lot of people think elaborate proposals are stupid.” Luke, for example.

Sawyer raised his eyebrows. “Then they’re stupid.” Damn straight.

“So, how long have you been in the security business?” She took a visual sweep of the area as she asked the question. The man with the briefcase was still sitting on the bench. What was his deal, anyway?

“About six years now. I got a degree in engineering and my first idea was the fire alarms, like the ones in your building. That went over so well that we were able to expand into complete security systems. That’s what I’m really passionate about. Safety, preventing crimes. I design all our systems.” Rain pinged steadily off the table.

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