Page 139 of Say Yes to the Death

Claire rolled her eyes and slid on a pair of sunglasses. “There had better be food.”

She drifted into a light sleep as he drove through the countryside.

He shook her awake a few minutes later. “Put this on.” A blindfold fell into her hands. They were in his driveway, and a mysterious van was parked next to them. Who else was there?

“Why do you just have a blindfold in your car? I know we joke about me getting kidnapped again, but it’s kind of creepy.”

“For emergency surprises,” he said. While she situated the blindfold, he got out and rounded the car. He opened her door and walked her onto the driveway, then into the house.

“Upstairs,” he said, taking her elbow and gingerly leading her up.

“What smells so good? Is someone cooking in your house? Please tell me it’s not your mom.”

Luke declined to comment.

“If there is a puppy up here, I am gonna lose my damn mind,”

He laughed. “No puppy. Here,” he said, pulling off her blindfold.

A massage table and her favorite masseuse from Reflection Spa stood in the bedroom.

“Jade!” Claire squealed, giving her a squeeze. “Thank you—” She turned to thank Luke properly, but he had disappeared into the bathroom.

With the help of some soothing music and Jade’s unparalleled masseuse abilities, Claire was able to banish Barney from her mind for a full thirty minutes. She staggered into the master bathroom after her session and collapsed into the steaming whirlpool tub.

Here, surrounded by pulsating water and lighting she had adjusted to her exact specifications, the reality of her day crept back in.

She had stared into the cold, steely eyes of the man who tried to kill her. It hadn’t broken her. She hadn’t projectile vomited or had a panic attack, but she had debased herself to get information out of him. Would it be worth it? Had he told the truth? Would she help bring Kayley’s family closure, or would this all have been for naught?

He had basically admitted to ESA’s involvement, which was huge. But the revelation didn’t bring her any comfort. How was she supposed to protect herself against a legion of homicidal frat boys? Her only option was going on the offense. She couldn’t just wait around for them to kidnap her. She needed a plan. But there was time to worry about that later. For now, she had a date that deserved her full attention.

She drained the water in the tub and dug under the sink in the bathroom, pleased to find her emergency makeup bag still stashed below.

When she emerged, she found a beautiful black dress, matching diamond bracelet and necklace, and heels displayed on the bed. Claire slithered into them, secretly wishing it had been a new pair of yoga pants instead.

She opened the bedroom door and was greeted by a trail of rose petals. Holy crap. Mr. Tough Guy No Time for Romance had pulled out all the stops. Was he trying to seduce her, or was he about to admit to something terrible?

“Luke?”

Claire followed the trail of petals down the stairs, chasing the smell of bacon. She wobbled her way down the hallway, all the way to the double doors of the ballroom. She opened them hesitantly.

Luke stood next to a tiny, candlelit table set for two. Classical music came from somewhere in the room. Sunlight streamed through the row of floor-to-ceiling windows.

She approached hesitantly, footsteps echoing in the otherwise empty room.

He pulled her chair out for her wordlessly, smiling in his infuriating Luke way, accented by the candlelight.

“This is beautiful,” Claire said, gesturing at the ballroom where Nicole and Kyle had gotten engaged. “Are you about to admit to something terrible? Because if you killed someone, I’m not going to be your alibi.”

Luke shook his head. “I wanted it to be like Paris. Before I screwed everything up. Is this romantic enough for you?” He raised an eyebrow but continued without letting her respond. “I thought about a harpist, but the acoustics in here aren’t suitable for string instruments.”

“Well, it’s better than falling off a boat into a river. Thank you.”

He grabbed her hand and kissed it, and shivers ran up and down her spine.

“How are you feeling?” he asked, placing her napkin on her lap before sitting down. “You’ve had a hell of a day.”

“I’ve had better days. Now I have to pencil in bringing down ESA along with throwing together the escape room proposal. Logistically, it’s the most complicated one I’ve ever planned.”

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