Page 24 of Death By Llama
“I have no idea.But I did see St.Nick in a compromising situation with a woman young enough to be his daughter.”
“What is a compromising situation?”
“He had his hand on her bosom.”
I wasn’t sure which era Oliver was in now but I never wanted to hear him say “bosom” ever again.He could daresay all he wanted if he steered clear of bosom.
“That is compromising.I just think there is more to this whole Peanut thing.Plus I need to clear Jack’s name.He’s not a killer llama.”
“Just be careful.This inn is Cameron’s baby.He wants to protect its reputation because he’s invested a lot of money into it.”
“I understand that, but a man died.”
“A drunk man fell off of a cliff.It’s sad, but not unexpected.”
I couldn’t be that cavalier about a death.
Apparently, Cameron could though because when we returned to the dining room, he was on the phone with his lawyer.
“I don’t want any liability to come my way,” he was saying, giving me a distracted smile and gesturing for us to sit down.
The tables were together and we took seats opposite my parents.My mother took in the visual of her clothes on me and didn’t say anything, so I didn’t know how to interpret that.Instead I just took a sip of the wine already poured.
Cameron ended his call and ran his hand across my back before dropping into the chair at the head of the table.“Do I build a fence?”he asked.
“What?Where?”
“In front of the cliff.”He shook his head and raised his hand for the server who had mysteriously appeared from the kitchen.“Bourbon.Neat.”He glanced around the table.“Does anyone else need anything?I had intended to have a champagne toast but that seems inappropriate now.”
“I agree.”
My mother protested.“It wasn’t your fault!You can’t fence off an entire coastline because a drunk man in tight boots lost his footing.”
“I know, but this isn’t good for business.”He waved off the server.“Just the bourbon.”
I felt bad for the outcome of his grand opening celebration but I also felt bad for Peanut’s family.
“No one will even remember this by next week,” my father assured Cameron.
If a man was murdered, they should remember.
I was going to reach out to the sheriff after dinner.
I crossed my leg and my elf shoe jingled.
My mother said, “Is there a cat in here?”
“It’s my shoes,” I told her.
“Good grief, Sophie.”
“I think they’re adorable,” Cameron said.
I smiled at him, but I couldn’t shake off what Oliver had said as Henry appeared in the doorway of the dining room, looking handsome and rich and overdressed.
Maybe I was playing a role as well.
SEVEN
