All She Ever Wanted - Barbara Freethy [58]
"And colored contact lenses," Cole said, holding up a case.
She looked into Cole's eyes and knew he was thinking what she was thinking. "That must mean he's afraid he'll be recognized. He's someone we know, Cole. The question is—who?"
* * *
Laura knew she should not be spying on her husband. It wasn't right. But she couldn't seem to stop herself from going through the pockets of every piece of clothing Drew had in his closet. For a while she had tried to pretend that she was simply checking the pockets before taking the clothes to the laundry. It was a lie. She was looking for evidence. She'd called Drew's hotel room late last night and he hadn't answered. She'd tried him again this morning on his cell phone, but he hadn't picked up. If she truly had an emergency, how on earth was she supposed to reach him? Didn't he consider the fact that his family might need him?
Her anger grew with each passing minute. Of course he didn't consider that fact. She was in charge of the house and the kids. She was supposed to handle everything on the home front while he went off and brought home the bacon. Maybe something was wrong. Maybe something had happened to Drew. Her imagination was capable of creating all kinds of horrible scenarios. She had to focus. Most of the time her instincts were wrong. She wasn't proud of that fact, but it was the truth. And it was a good thing, because it meant that most of the horrible things she worried about never actually came true.
Drew was fine. He was just busy. She reached into the pocket of the last jacket in the closet, and her fingers closed around a piece of paper. She pulled it out. It was a travel itinerary. But there was something different about it. And then it hit her. Garrett Malone's name was on the top of the paper, followed by a list of flight numbers, hotel reservations, book signings, and radio appearances in Los Angeles. The date was for today.
Laura walked into the bedroom and sat down on the bed, still staring at the piece of paper in her hand. Why did Drew have Garrett Malone's travel itinerary? Was he planning to contact the man? But Drew was on a business trip. A business trip in Los Angeles. A shiver ran down her spine. Drew and Garrett Malone were both in L.A.
She couldn't believe that Drew was behind the book. That didn't make any sense at all. There was no motive, no reason, nothing to be gained. He must have gone to L.A. to meet with Malone. Or maybe he was .just going to combine law business with personal business. He was probably trying to protect her. That's why he hadn't said anything. That had to be why.
But she didn't like that Drew was keeping secrets from her. They were supposed to be partners in everything. If he was keeping secrets about Malone, what else was he hiding? The lack of communication in their marriage seemed suddenly insurmountable. They should be talking about Malone and Emily and the book and everything else that was happening. They should be working on it together, instead of separately.
The phone rang, interrupting her thoughts. Hoping it was Drew, she picked it up and said, "Hello?"
"Laura McKinney?" a woman asked.
"This is she."
"Are you the same Laura Hart who married Drew McKinney?"
"Who's asking?"
"Laura? It's Kathy Allen," the woman said. "Remember me? I went to college with you."
"Of course I remember you." She searched her mind for a face to go with the name. Kathy Allen had been a freshman pledge when she'd been a senior. They'd known each other only in passing. Still, a sorority sister was a sorority sister. "How are you?"
"I'm fine. I'm a reporter now for the Santa Cruz Sentinel. I loved this area so much I decided to stay after graduation."
"Really?" Laura didn't like the sound of that. Why would Kathy be calling her from Santa Cruz?
"Have you heard about a book called Fallen Angel? It's supposed to be a fictitious murder mystery, but the buzz is that it's really the story of that girl who fell off the roof of our sorority house two years before I came to school. You were friends with her, right?"
"I'm sure this