Page 63 of Diamonds & Deception

“Can you think of any common thread between your sister and Miss Sumner? It’s too much of a coincidence to me that two people you’re close with have been murdered in the past five months.”

Chills creep up my arms, and I gasp at the insinuation. My body begins to tremble. Am I the connection? Am I the one the murderer is after? Drake reaches over and takes my hand. His presence, his warmth, calms me.

“My sister and Lenora met a long time ago when I was in college. Carly was only eight years old and not really into what college girls were into. They were friendly but not close. They never communicated with each other. I don’t know what they have in common... except me.”

“You’re an investigative reporter. Have you received any threats, any hate mail from someone or a company you may have exposed?”

“My research and writing aren’t that riveting.”

“No detail is too small,” Colton reminds me.

“When you called me a few days ago, you mentioned your sister’s boyfriend. Could Miss Sumner have been seeing him as well?”

“Owen Donahue? I don’t think so. I talked about him with Lenora and she...”

Drake tenses next to me, squeezing my hand hard. I glance up at him but his face shows no signs of what’s going on inside his head.

“She...?” Detective Carlton asks.

“She didn’t know him personally, only of the Donahue reputation. I never met Owen until recently.”

“He had a solid alibi for the night your sister was killed. We’ll investigate his whereabouts yesterday afternoon,” Detective Marshall says, closing his notebook. “If you think of anything else, please don’t hesitate to call us. You have my number. I’m sorry once again for your loss, Miss Winters.”

“Thank you.” I don’t get up and let Drake escort them out.

I hear the door click and Drake’s growl. “Your sister was dating Owen Donahue?” He takes the seat across from me that Detective Marshall just vacated.

“Yeah. He was at his father’s restaurant all evening. There were multiple witnesses. The text messages they confiscated on the phone between Carly and Owen were all... sweet. Nothing suspicious.”

“Fuck.” Drake runs his fingers through his hair and leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees.

“What is it? What do you know that they don’t?”

He shakes his head. “I don’tknowanything.”

“You have suspicions. You think Owen killed them?” I clutch at my heart. God, I talked to the man. I laughed with him. How could I betray my sister and best friend by falling for his charisma?

“No. I don’t think Owen had anything to do with either.”

Relief sets in, as does confusion. “But...?”

Drake lifts his gaze, his dark eyes intense and serious. “Let’s go.” He stands and offers me his hand. I take it, and when I get to my feet, I expect him to release me.

He holds my hand in his to the elevators and doesn’t let go until we’re inside his penthouse.

“I have some work to do. Help yourself to anything, but don’t leave.”

“Where would I go?”

He takes a deep inhale before heading down the hall to his office. I lie down on the couch, mentally exhausted from our meeting with the detectives, even though I don’t feel like we made any progress on finding the killer. Or killers.

I’m halfway through the third episode of House Hunter, an episode I’ve seen before when someone knocks on the front door. Daisy’s ears perk up and she trots to the door. So much for being a guard dog.

The door opens, and Avery comes barreling in, capturing me in a tight hug. “Oh my god, Nora. Trey told me about your friend. Are you okay? No. That’s a stupid thing to ask. Of course you’re not.” She pulls back and rests her hands on my shoulders. “Oh, honey. I’m so sorry.” She engulfs me again in a hug.

Drake comes down the hall and greets Trey. They’re talking too low for me to hear what they’re saying. They glance at Avery and me quickly before going down to Drake’s office.

Avery acts as if she doesn’t even see them. I’m sure she was sent to be a distraction, which I appreciate. She pulls me to the couch and sits so close our thighs are smashed together.

---