If Books Could Kill by Kate Carlisle Page A

combination made for the perfect partnership.
    But Royce McVee was more than Kyle’s business partner. They were cousins. They’d inherited the family business from their fathers, two brothers, both of whom had been knighted for their loyalty to the crown. Kyle was the public face, the upbeat personality who had built up the clientele and made the money Royce counted in the back room. Royce was a nice enough guy but bland. He had pale skin, his hair was thinning and his chin was slightly too small. He was hardly the dynamo his cousin Kyle had been, and I wondered what would happen to the business now that he was top dog. I assumed Royce would inherit everything.
    And wasn’t that a nice motive for murder?
    Royce’s eyes were red and his shoulders were more slumped than usual. He appeared awkward and self-conscious as he glanced around the room. “Everyone loved Kyle.”
    “Yes, they did,” I said. “He was one lovable guy.”
    “Always the life of the party,” he said with a tinge of resentment. When he finally met my gaze again, he managed a thin smile. “I should go find the committee members. Perhaps we can speak later.”
    “Sure.” I squeezed his arm in sympathy and he walked away. This was clearly not the time to tell him about the Robert Burns book after all, but I knew I’d have to do it eventually.
    Feeling even more depressed, I took the seat Derek held for me.
    “Friend?” Derek asked.
    “Kyle’s cousin. I suppose he’ll inherit everything.”
    “And you’re thinking motive,” he whispered.
    I frowned. “I didn’t say that.”
    I heard his snort of disbelief but ignored it as I turned to see who was seated nearby. I nodded to a few familiar faces, then noticed Peter and Benny, two bookseller friends, seated behind us. Peter leaned forward and invited me to their private cocktail party later in the week.
    “I’d love to,” I said, feeling a little more buoyant than before.
    “Ooh, and bring that one along,” Peter said under his breath as he made eyes at Derek, who paid no attention.
    “Pretty,” Benny cooed.
    “He wouldn’t miss it,” I said, patting Derek’s knee.
    They both giggled.
    I turned around in time to see Helen walking past us. I called her name and waved.
    “Come sit here,” I said, then took a quick look around to see if Martin was with her. Happily, he wasn’t.
    She nodded cautiously to Derek as she slipped past him and sat on my other side. “Thanks. I don’t think I could face this by myself.”
    “Isn’t Martin here?” I asked.
    She gave me a dour look. “Even if he was, I don’t want to sit with him.”
    “Oh.” Well, thank goodness for that.
    Peter tapped Helen on the shoulder. “Hey, girl.”
    Helen squealed and jumped up. She leaned over the chair and hugged both men, who invited her to the cocktail party, too.
    When she sat back down, she was flushed and happy, but she quickly turned serious and grabbed my hand. “I want to apologize for this morning. It was a fluke. Martin happened to come along and I was still feeling vulnerable from last night, so he consoled me. He can be okay when he wants to be.”
    “I’m sorry I didn’t stay. I just-”
    She held up her hand. “Please, I know he’s a pain. And he wouldn’t take the hint and leave, so I didn’t blame you one bit. Are we still on for lunch?”
    “Of course.” I leaned in closer to her. “So Martin knew about you and Kyle?”
    “Oh, God, no.” She clutched my arm for emphasis, then whispered, “No one knew about Kyle and me. Please don’t say anything to anyone.”
    “You know I won’t. It’s just that you said he was consoling you.”
    Her lips quivered and she blinked back tears. “Because he knew I found the body.”
    “Ah,” I said, not believing for a minute that Martin had merely been consoling her. He was the ultimate manipulator and would probably do anything to get her back in his life. I wondered if maybe Helen was wrong, that maybe Martin had known about her