Silk Stalkings by Diane Vallere Page B

murdered and all, I didn’t know if you were going to stay involved.”
    â€œThe pageant’s still going to happen, I know that much,” he said.
    â€œI need a crash course in this beauty pageant,” I said, my eyes still on him. “What can you tell me?”
    â€œThis pageant makes the women around here go crazy. I know one family who took out a second mortgage on their house so their daughter could compete. And you’d think somebody would have done something after what happened with Inez Platt, but it all just got brushed under the rug.”
    â€œWho’s Inez Platt?”
    â€œFormer winner. You might have seen her picture on the side of the Tangorli juice cartons. She was a very pretty young lady: exotic features, dark eyes, long black hair. Her mother was from Trinidad and her father was from San Ladrón. She looked nothing like the women you see around here today.”
    â€œWhat happened to her?”
    â€œI don’t know the details, but there was an accident when she was out in the Tangorli fields. Some kind of acid exploded and scarred her face and her hands. Chemical burns that discolored her skin and changed her appearance.”
    â€œDid she sue?”
    â€œI don’t think so. She dropped out of the limelight after the accident. Harvey still uses her image on the side of his products, which is odd considering how many winners there have been over the years. If I were one of the more recent winners, I’d wonder why he wasn’t updating his advertising. But since then, the entrance qualifications have gone through the roof and the judges have to sign a nondisclosure agreement. This pageant has gotten more exclusive than a country club.”
    â€œI don’t get it. It’s a beauty pageant, right? Women get judged by how they look—”
    â€œWhoa, whoa, whoa, stop right there. I’m going to do you a big favor and advise you to never say that outside this bar.”
    â€œBut it’s a
beauty
pageant, right?”
    â€œThe winner gets a position on the board of directors at Halliwell Industries. That’s enough to boost anybody’s résumé. And before you say it’s all about appearances, it’s not.”
    â€œSo even though Harvey was murdered, the show goes on.”
    â€œYep. Nolene already called to make sure I was locked in. Me, Maria Lopez, and your boyfriend.”
    â€œHe’s not my boyfriend.”
    â€œHe could be if you’d let him.”
    â€œCan we not talk about Vaughn McMichael for one second?”
    â€œIf that’s how you want to play it, sure. So what did Nolene want from you?”
    â€œNothing really. I’m going to donate some fabric to the contestants and consult with them on their dresses for the opening ceremonies.”
    His brows pulled together. “They’ve never done anything like that before,” he said. I shrugged, like being a pioneeron the pageant program was no big deal. “You better relax now, because come tomorrow, you won’t know what hit you.”
    â€œWhy’s that?”
    â€œThe preliminary screening is complete and the list of the final twenty contestants is going to be published in tomorrow’s paper. That’s one of the reasons I’m trying to kick back tonight.”
    â€œYou act like the town’s going to go crazy.”
    â€œPretty much. First, you get the contestants and their families. They’re happy for about five minutes and then they go into either bribery mode or watchdog mode. This bar will be swimming in muffin baskets by the end of tomorrow.”
    I raised an eyebrow.
    â€œI may have let it leak that I have a thing for Genevieve’s French pastries,” he said.
    â€œI don’t think it’s her pastries you have a thing for.”
    He leaned back in his chair and folded his hands behind his head. “See, now, I don’t have a problem agreeing with you. She is a pretty