Page 7 of Lion & Lamb

“Daughter, I hear your question, but right now your mother is approaching and she doesn’t look entirely pleased.”

Sure enough, Lamb’s ex, the former—and possibly future?—love of his life, was approaching the passenger side. Ariel helpfully pushed the button to lower the window.

She had never been Lori Lamb; Lori Avallone thought she wouldn’t be taken seriously at the museum with an alliterative name. Lamb had considered offering to takehername, but Cooper Avallone sounded like a country-and-western lounge singer, so that was out.

“Don’t worry, I’m taking the kids to breakfast,” Lamb said.

“They already ate,” Lori replied. “It’s almost eight, and they have to be at Friends Select in twenty minutes. For future reference, the school frowns on the kids cutting first period to eat waffles.”

“We do it all the time!” Cooper Jr. said.

“When we’re with Daddy, we do,” Ariel confirmed.

“You were supposed to be here an hour ago,” Lori said.

“I was…wrapping up a case.”

“Does this ‘case’ have a name?”

“The People versus Cooper Lamb.Because people arealwaysgetting on my case.”

Cooper Jr. knew he shouldn’t laugh at that, but a giggle escaped his lips anyway.

“Thank you, son,” his father said, turning and lifting his hand for a high five. The look on his ex’s face, however, revealed exactly zero amusement. Both Cooper Sr. and Cooper Jr. put their hands down.

“I’m sorry, Lori. I’ll do better.” Lamb searched her eyes for a reaction but failed to find the one he’d hoped for. “Imeanit.”

Thing was, Lamb actuallydidmean it. If this was the end of the world, and it was sure looking that way, he’d better start getting his act together.

But first, pancakes thick and fluffy enough to choke a horse. Book learning could wait.

Chapter3

11:02 a.m.

“JUST SITback and relax.”

“I am perfectly relaxed.”

“Oh, and you can take your sunglasses off.”

“I know I can. I prefer not to.”

“Um, is it too early for a nice glass of wine? We have red and white.”

“Redandwhite, huh. Tempting, but I don’t like to drink while I’m working.”

The girl in the disposable face mask and nitrile gloves smiled. Or at least, her eyes smiled. “But are you working right now?”

“I don’t know. Areyou?”

Veena Lion knew that was probably too much, but the young nail tech had lost all credibility with the wine thing.Red or white?Then again, maybe she was expecting too much from a random Korean nail joint on this end of Chestnut Street.

Veena liked to change things up, rarely visiting the same salon twice in a season. Mostly because she resisted the idea of having a regular place where people could easily find her. That ruined the indulgence of having her nails done in the middle of the morning.

Said indulgence lasted for another seventy-five seconds before Veena Lion’s phone alerted her to an incoming call. She lifted a hand from the manicurist’s table and tapped the bud in her ear twice.

A haughty voice spoke. “This is the district attorney’s office. Is this Veena Lion?”

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