Burned

“Now they’re sold out,” Regan informed them.

“I guess we have no choice then,” Bob said with a laugh.

“They’re accepting names for a waiting list,” Regan offered.

Kit poked Regan in the ribs. “Regan,” Kit whispered. “Steve is coming. Look who’s with him. I don’t believe it.”

Regan turned and spotted Steve and Jazzy walking around the pool and heading toward them. Jazzy started to wave.

“How does she do it?” Regan asked.

“I wish I knew,” Kit answered.

“Remember,” Regan cautioned Kit, “not a word about my checking things out for Will.”

“My lips are sealed,” Kit promised.

Regan turned to Betsy and Bob as she and Kit got up from the bar. “Nice talking to you.”

“Hope to see you gals again,” Bob said with a wave of his martini glass.

“Hi, girls,” Jazzy cooed as she and Steve approached. “I have so much to do today with packing the gift bags for the ball, talking to the manager of the hotel’s secretary to make sure everything is in place, and who knows what else. But Steve invited me to join you for lunch. I hope you don’t mind.”

“Of course not,” Kit answered without much conviction.

They secured an outside table for four that had a large umbrella and was also shaded by a large banyan tree. Kids were splashing in the pool, and the smell of suntan lotion was in the air. The beach spread out endlessly in front of them, and the sun was directly overhead. It was high noon in Hawaii, and people were relaxed and enjoying themselves.

It was hard for Regan to believe that the East Coast was still caught in the grip of a blizzard. People there are hunkering down in their long underwear while we’re sitting here in bathing suits and summer clothes. Jazzy had on a sundress that would work at a cocktail party, and it looked a lot like the dress she was wearing last night. Regan had the feeling that short low-cut flower print dresses were her uniform of choice.

Regan glanced at Steve’s handsome profile. I hope he turns out to be a nice guy, she thought. Though it’s a little suspect that he thinks Jazzy is good company. And he did seem terribly impatient with that girl at the bar last night.

They ordered drinks and sandwiches from a waitress wearing white shorts, a pink top, and a lei made from pink carnations and white plumeria.

“It feels good to sit,” Jazzy a

“How did you get involved with the ball?” Regan asked.

“My boss is very charitable. He’s helping to underwrite the ball.”

“How generous of him.”

“And he’s donating Hawaiian shirts and muumuus that he designed for the gift bags.”

“He’s a designer?” Kit asked.

“He’s just getting started with his line of Hawaiian wear.”

“Is he coming to the ball?” Regan asked.

“Of course. I’ve organized a couple of tables for him.”

“Where does he sell his clothes?” Regan asked.

“Well, as I said, he’s just getting started,” Jazzy replied in a tone one might use correcting a child. “He hopes the ball will attract publicity for his line, Claude’s Clothes.” She shrugged. “We’ll see. He’s a very successful man, so if it doesn’t work out, I’m sure he’ll be on to the next venture.”

“Of course he will,” Regan answered, trying not to sound too sarcastic.

Over lunch the conversation was light. Steve admitted he didn’t want to be completely retired and that he was looking for new investments. How about Claude’s Clothes? Regan wanted to ask but refrained. Steve intended to spend half the year in Hawaii and then have a second home somewhere else. He just wasn’t sure where yet.

A nice way to live, Regan thought. But what about Jazzy? Surely she wouldn’t be happy to house-sit forever-not after she had been a lawyer in New York.

When the check came, Regan was relieved. She was eager to get up to the room and make a few phone calls but told the group she was heading to the spa. Steve insisted on paying for lunch, which Jazzy seemed to expect. The group disbanded with Kit and Steve heading down to the beach alone. Jazzy made a beeline for Will’s office. I’ll stay away from there for now, Regan decided. She walked back to the room and spotted Betsy and Bob down the hall. They had just emerged from the employee supply room.

What are those two up to? she wondered.

“Hey, Regan!” Bob called to her. “We’re on this hallway, too. They never seem to give us enough towels no matter how much we complain.” He laughed. “So we took matters into our own hands.” He held up several towels that they’d obviously taken from the unguarded room.

“You can never have enough towels,” Regan agreed as she quickly opened the door to her hotel room and gratefully slipped inside. What a morning, she thought. Now she wanted to call the man Dorinda had interviewed for Spirits in Paradise. Then she’d take a walk around the hotel. She also wanted to find Will and tell him that she’d like to meet Dorinda’s cousin. Who knows what she might find out from him?

Regan sat down on her bed and pulled the cell phone from her purse. “First things first,” she said to herself as she dialed Jack’s number. She hadn’t had much of a chance to talk to him yesterday. This morning he had been in a meeting when she called, and she told him she’d call back later. When he answered the phone, he said, “Finally!”

“Hi!”

“I’m sorry I couldn’t talk this morning. How’s it going out there in paradise?”

“Fine. I’m actually working for a living out here. You know, a lot of people would love to work in Hawaii, and I got a job without trying.”

“What?”

“I know Mike Darnell told you a female employee drowned here at the beach in front of the hotel. The manager thinks she may have been murdered. And strange things have been happening at the hotel. He wants me to see what I can find out.”

“Where’s Kit?”

“On the beach with the new guy.”

“Oh, boy. It sounds as if she doesn’t need you.”

“I’m glad she’s having a good time. And now I’m occupied.”

“Did you speak to Mike about the manager’s suspicions?”

“No. He joined us for drinks last night. I wasn’t hired until Kit and I came back to the hotel and the manager asked if we’d join him for a drink.”

“How did he know you were a private investigator?”

“Kit told him earlier in the evening when we ran into him in the lobby.”

“Kit doesn’t waste time, does she?”

Regan smiled. “Not lately. Anyway, according to Mike the police believe that the woman drowned. There were no signs of struggle. But, get this: the woman was from New York and had interviewed my mother years ago. She turned out to be a piece of goods. She burned my mother with the article she wrote about her.”

“Maybe Nora arranged the hit.”

“Very fu

“She won’t mind. She thinks I’m going to be a wonderful son-in-law.”

“I know she does. According to her, you’re capable of doing no wrong.”

“Your mother has good taste,” Jack pronounced with a laugh. “But seriously, Regan, why does the manager think she was murdered? He must have some good reason.”

“That’s the $64,000 question. All he said was that when she was leaving the other night, she told him she was going straight home.”

“That’s it?”

“That’s it.”

“There’s got to be more to his story.”

“I know. I think I’m going to have to talk to him again.”

In his office, Jack shook his head. “I guess it’s why I love you, Regan. You do manage to find yourself in these situations more often than not. I’ve said it before, and I’m sure I’ll say it at least a thousand times more: Be careful, would you please?”

Regan thought of Jimmy standing over her this morning. It was uncomfortably close. Then that weird couple with the camouflage hats admiring her ring. “I’ll be fine, Jack,” she insisted. “Besides, I don’t like to sit in the sun all day. I’ll take a swim later, but this gives me something to do.”