Total pages in book: 110
Estimated words: 108165 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 541(@200wpm)___ 433(@250wpm)___ 361(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 108165 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 541(@200wpm)___ 433(@250wpm)___ 361(@300wpm)
It is.
His target does his own double take, holding out his hand to stop Frankie.
Such a predictable fucker.
He says something that makes her laugh, tossing her head back. While she’s swept away in laughter, his target eyes her body like it will be his dessert this afternoon. He motions to the empty chair across from him. Frankie glances at her watch, and then she nods. He stands to hold her chair like a real fucking gentleman.
Over the next hour, they order what seems to be everything on the menu and get cozy. Too cozy. He inches his leg closer to hers under the table and jumps at any chance to reach across the table to touch her hand.
This is not the wrench Jackson needs in his plans.
When his target’s security detail closes in to prepare for his departure, Frankie lets him put his hand on the small of her back and whisper in her ear. She laughs and nods. Then he hands her a card that she slides into her clutch. Frankie floats along on her merry way while the target gets into the back of an SUV.
CHAPTER SIX
FRANCESCA
To really know Molly Sanford, I need to know her family. As I slip out of my red dress and slide on a more casual romper and flip-flops for dinner at Eloise’s, I can’t stop thinking of my luck this afternoon.
Archer Sanford was a bit of a surprise today. I thought I might get a glance at him and his daily routine, but I never expected to be the bait he took so eagerly. All I did was walk past him at his table outside the restaurant. The next thing I knew, he was complimenting my dress.
“It’s just a dress. But thank you.”
“It’s not just a dress. It’s a goddamn statement.”
I laughed at his gruff assessment and his unshakable confidence.
“And what statement is that?”
“You want to be noticed. Admired. Treated like the fucking queen you are.”
Really, I never expected it to be that easy.
“What do you suggest?”
He grinned. “Let’s start with lunch.”
And just like that, I spent an hour with him and left with his cell phone number. Corinne Sanford must be so proud of her husband for making sexual advances toward strangers in plain sight. But after watching Molly’s behavior, I’ve decided there’s a lot that’s not right about Rhodale or the Sanfords.
“Come in!” Eloise calls when I knock on the door.
I step inside and kick off my flip-flops.
“We’re on the deck,” she says.
I set a pie on the counter and open the screen door to the deck where Eloise and Jack are lounging in chairs with her famous lemonade in a pitcher on the table between them. “Hi.”
“Have a seat. Dinner’s not quite done. Help yourself to lemonade,” Eloise says.
Jack gives me an unreadable expression while I pour myself a lemonade.
“Hey. How was your day?” I ask him.
He sips his drink and returns a one-shoulder shrug. “Not as good as I’d hoped.”
“Sorry to hear that.” I sit across from them on the wooden rocker.
“What did you do today?” Eloise asks me.
“I went to Rhodale. I bought a pie for tonight. It’s on the counter. Then I ran into Molly’s dad.”
“Frankie …” My name floats from Eloise’s lips on a big wave of disapproval—a familiar motherly kind of disapproval.
I shake my head. “It’s fine. It was just by chance. He’s an interesting man. I don’t recall seeing him at Steven’s funeral.”
Jack scowls at me, so I don’t give him any more attention.
“He wasn’t at the funeral.” Eloise sets her glass on the table. “Neither was his wife. Just Molly and friends from school. Where did you see him?”
“He was eating lunch by himself on the patio at a restaurant when I walked by.”
“And you introduced yourself?” Eloise asks.
“Um …” I swirl the ice in my glass. “Not really. He complimented my dress, and that was about it.”
Eloise scoffs. “A married man complimenting a stranger’s dress. How uncouth. I’ve heard he flaunts his affairs.”
“Mmm …” I nod in agreement. She’s not wrong. But I wanted him to notice me. However, I thought it would take more than casually walking past him. I planned to find a table on the patio and get his attention in other ways. He was just too easy.
I risk another glance at Jack and his corkscrewed lips and narrowed eyes.
“Well, I’m going to check on the roast.” Eloise heads into the house.
“Everything okay?” I ask Jack.
“Molly was your nephew’s girlfriend?”
“Yes.”
“Did you know her?” Jack narrows his eyes.
I squirm under his visual interrogation. “No. Steven talked about her. I think he liked her a lot.”
“Is she struggling with grief?”
Eloise must not have shared the letter with Jack—not that it’s any of his business.
“I wouldn’t say that.”
“Can I ask where you live?”
It takes a few seconds for my thoughts to shift to this new line of questioning. After several blinks, I answer, “Hinsdale, Illinois.”