usual. “But there was this other guy who seemed to be in charge.”
She made a face.
“Red hair,” I said, playing to her reaction. At the same time, I hoped she didn’t notice mine. I felt my heart rate rise at the mention of the new detective. “Pale skin, blue eyes. Looked sort of like a handsome goldfish.”
Pepper snorted and then laughed. “That’s Connor Tierney. I knew there was something fishy about him.”
“Where did he come from?”
The laugh turned to a scowl. “He transferred in from the city. Thinks he can jump over people’s heads just because he picked up a bit of experience in a large urban setting.”
“Hm.”
“Handsome goldfish says it all. Cold. Slippery.”
It was my turn to laugh. “Don’t hold back. How do you really feel about him, Pepper?”
“How do you think? I knew him from the police academy and out of the blue he shows up here and now he’s supposed to be running an investigation? Get real. He doesn’t even know where to get a cup of coffee in this town. I would have been in charge normally, with Frank D’Angelo. Nick’s been here all his life and his father and grandfather were on the force.”
There was something else behind her comments. If I’d had to guess, I’d have said that Pepper didn’t entirely trust this guy.
“Oh right, Frank D’Angelo,” I said, bypassing the distractions of Tierney and Nick. “Your partner. Looks like he should be on Mount Rushmore.”
“What do you mean?”
“You know, chiseled face. Never smiles.” I remembered the crazy crush that Margaret had developed on him. We’d called him Tall, Dark, and Granite. I decided not to mention this to Pepper in case partnership trumped friendship in the secret-spilling category.
“Frank’s been on a task force dealing with a car theft ring. He’s got a lot of years on the force, starting to coast a bit. This is good for him.”
“Oh right. I forgot. He’s a lot older than we are.” And older than Margaret is , I thought.
“No kidding. Forty-five.”
“Divorced?”
“What difference does that make? You want to hook up?”
I shrugged. “Just asking. I have some older friends who are always on the lookout for an available man without a lot of baggage.”
For some reason, I thought it was better if Pepper didn’t know that I suspected that Margaret had her date with that same Frank D’Angelo.
“Forget that. His wife died in a car accident three years ago. I think he likes being on his own.”
“Point taken. So the new guy—”
“Is single. Interested?”
I was, but not for that reason. “Thanks, but I’m taking a break from men lately. Been burned a few too many times. I just wondered if he was the type to do a good job with this investigation, that’s all. It seems like quite a high-profile crime and here’s this guy we’ve never seen before.”
Pepper peered at me through narrowed eyes.
I continued. “I wondered if I could approach him about the Barb Douglas situation. He might have noticed her at the scene. For all we know, maybe he spoke to her.”
“Pay close attention. Do not approach him with your harebrained ideas.”
“I was just going to—”
She pointed her finger at me. “I need you not to poke your pointed little nose into this situation, Charlotte. Do you hear me?”
“Loud and clear,” I said, getting ready to leave. “Do they teach you to say ‘I need you to whatever’ in the police academy?”
She ignored that. “You must have heard that the victim in the trunk was a professional hit. He was shot execution style and dumped by people who knew how to cover their tracks and leave a message to others.”
“I did hear that, but—”
“But nothing. Do not get involved. Don’t discuss it with anyone. Go back to your closet makeovers and whatever else keeps you busy.”
And as I slipped into the Miata minutes later, I had a couple of questions to ponder. Why did Pepper have such hate on for the new cop? Was it merely
She made a face.
“Red hair,” I said, playing to her reaction. At the same time, I hoped she didn’t notice mine. I felt my heart rate rise at the mention of the new detective. “Pale skin, blue eyes. Looked sort of like a handsome goldfish.”
Pepper snorted and then laughed. “That’s Connor Tierney. I knew there was something fishy about him.”
“Where did he come from?”
The laugh turned to a scowl. “He transferred in from the city. Thinks he can jump over people’s heads just because he picked up a bit of experience in a large urban setting.”
“Hm.”
“Handsome goldfish says it all. Cold. Slippery.”
It was my turn to laugh. “Don’t hold back. How do you really feel about him, Pepper?”
“How do you think? I knew him from the police academy and out of the blue he shows up here and now he’s supposed to be running an investigation? Get real. He doesn’t even know where to get a cup of coffee in this town. I would have been in charge normally, with Frank D’Angelo. Nick’s been here all his life and his father and grandfather were on the force.”
There was something else behind her comments. If I’d had to guess, I’d have said that Pepper didn’t entirely trust this guy.
“Oh right, Frank D’Angelo,” I said, bypassing the distractions of Tierney and Nick. “Your partner. Looks like he should be on Mount Rushmore.”
“What do you mean?”
“You know, chiseled face. Never smiles.” I remembered the crazy crush that Margaret had developed on him. We’d called him Tall, Dark, and Granite. I decided not to mention this to Pepper in case partnership trumped friendship in the secret-spilling category.
“Frank’s been on a task force dealing with a car theft ring. He’s got a lot of years on the force, starting to coast a bit. This is good for him.”
“Oh right. I forgot. He’s a lot older than we are.” And older than Margaret is , I thought.
“No kidding. Forty-five.”
“Divorced?”
“What difference does that make? You want to hook up?”
I shrugged. “Just asking. I have some older friends who are always on the lookout for an available man without a lot of baggage.”
For some reason, I thought it was better if Pepper didn’t know that I suspected that Margaret had her date with that same Frank D’Angelo.
“Forget that. His wife died in a car accident three years ago. I think he likes being on his own.”
“Point taken. So the new guy—”
“Is single. Interested?”
I was, but not for that reason. “Thanks, but I’m taking a break from men lately. Been burned a few too many times. I just wondered if he was the type to do a good job with this investigation, that’s all. It seems like quite a high-profile crime and here’s this guy we’ve never seen before.”
Pepper peered at me through narrowed eyes.
I continued. “I wondered if I could approach him about the Barb Douglas situation. He might have noticed her at the scene. For all we know, maybe he spoke to her.”
“Pay close attention. Do not approach him with your harebrained ideas.”
“I was just going to—”
She pointed her finger at me. “I need you not to poke your pointed little nose into this situation, Charlotte. Do you hear me?”
“Loud and clear,” I said, getting ready to leave. “Do they teach you to say ‘I need you to whatever’ in the police academy?”
She ignored that. “You must have heard that the victim in the trunk was a professional hit. He was shot execution style and dumped by people who knew how to cover their tracks and leave a message to others.”
“I did hear that, but—”
“But nothing. Do not get involved. Don’t discuss it with anyone. Go back to your closet makeovers and whatever else keeps you busy.”
And as I slipped into the Miata minutes later, I had a couple of questions to ponder. Why did Pepper have such hate on for the new cop? Was it merely
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