Page 24 of Let Sleeping Dogs Lie

I could have fudged the truth, but I suspected she could see through untruths. Plus, she’d lived with so many secrets in her past—and was still dealing with them—she deserved nothing but the truth. “At the moment, yes. We have a new season of the show filming in a few weeks, and quite a few potential cases up for consideration to be part of the show.”

Magnolia curled her upper lip in disgust.

“Look, I’m not a huge fan of it either,” I admitted with a sigh, “but it pays the bills. Running a farm down here is a crapshoot, and even though we had a great cotton crop this year, there’s no guarantee it will be any good next year. My show covers the taxes and the insurance, as well as provides income for my cousins through their own royalties. We don’t make as much as you might think, but the money comes in handy, so I won’t condone judgment for my choices. It’s a means to an end. I’m hoping my PI business will grow with the show, and in the meantime, I can ride my producer’s ass to try to keep it as real as possible.”

Magnolia started to say something, then stopped.

“So,” I said, gracing her with a friendly smile. “In short, I’d love to help you. I think I have the resources you need. I’ll treat you and your mother’s history here in Sweet Briar with respect,while not calling attention to what I’m looking into. I’m likely cheaper than Pierce, and I can start right away.”

Both women were silent for a few moments. Then Belinda said, “What are your rates?”

“I’ll need a two-hundred-dollar retainer, and I charge a fifty-dollar hourly rate. Any additional expenses are extra. I’ll be sure to clear them with you first, but I don’t anticipate any. I suspect it’s mostly just talking to people who knew her.”

“How will you keep it discreet if you’re talking to people about her?” Magnolia asked, her attitude back.

“There is a myriad of reasons I could use, but it helps that you’re a celebrity around here. Sweet Briar claims you as their own, so all I have to do is tell them I’m working on a Magnolia Steele segment for the show, and they’ll be none the wiser when I’m askin’ about your momma.”

Belinda gave Magnolia a questioning look, and when she didn’t respond, Belinda got to her feet. “Well, thank you for your time, Summer. We’ll get back to you and let you know one way or the other by early this afternoon.”

“Thank you,” I said, getting up too, then held out my hand. “It was a pleasure meeting both of you, and I hope you find what you’re looking for, no matter who you go with.” I leveled my gaze on Magnolia, who was now standing. “Or even if you decide to go with no one at all.”

Belinda shook my hand. Then to my surprise, Magnolia shook mine too.

Her hand was thin and delicate, and I was careful not to crush her. In fact, standing this close to her, I realized how fragile she seemed, and a wave of shame washed through me. Not only had Magnolia gone through hell at the hands of her own father and the serial killer, but the press had tormented her too. Funny how I’d been so grateful when Mo and Molly hadmoved on to someone else that I hadn’t given a single thought to who they’d moved on to next: Magnolia.

I had no delusions that Magnolia Steele and I would ever be friends, but we had a few things in common. If she and Belinda decided to hire me to look into her mother, I vowed to figure out a way to help her with the press too.

Chapter Nine

As soon as Belinda and Magnolia left, I texted Luke.OMG, I’m so sorry! Did you escape unscathed?

He answered right away.It took some fancy footwork and a whole lot of intervention from Amber, but they finally left.

Amber? She covered the police department’s front desk—which meant the fan had followed him the entire two and a half blocks to the station.

I sent a cringe emoji, then reminded him that I still planned to pay up for his assistance.

My phone rang almost immediately, his name showing on my screen.

“Just doin’ my job,” Luke said in a husky voice as soon as I answered. “Keepin’ the fine citizens of Sweet Briar safe at the risk of my own safety.”

I released a soft laugh. “Well, I better be the only one repaying you in the way I plan to go about it.”

“You’re the only one that I want, Summer.”

I heard the longing in his voice, but I heard tenderness too. We’d only been together about a year when we were teens, then broke up for a decade before we got back together five monthsago. While we were both still pretty much the same people we were when we were kids, there was no denying wehadchanged. We were still in the goo-goo eyes part of our relationship. I wanted to make sure we made it through the annoyance phase before I committed to “till death do you part.” We hadn’t even entered it yet.

“I want you too.”

“Was that really Magnolia Steele?” he asked.

I hesitated. While I shared just about everything with him, I also wanted to respect Magnolia’s privacy. I may not have signed an NDA yet, but I had no plans on spreading the word that she’d shown up in my office, whether she hired me or not. Still, I didn’t like keeping secrets from Luke, and sometimes he gave me advice on my cases. Not to mention he’d heard her name, so there was no point in denying it. “Yes, but I’d appreciate it if you kept it to yourself.”

“So it’s hush-hush, huh?”

“Yeah, and she hasn’t hired me yet. She’s talking to Pierce Robbins next.”

“That guy? No way she’ll hire him. She’ll come back to you.”

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