The In Death Collection Books 21-25 - J. D. Robb [207]
“Lover’s quarrel, maybe. No honor among thieves. Maybe she was trying to cut him out.”
“Yeah, greed always works.”
Her ’link beeped on the way to the car. “Dallas.”
“Complications?” Roarke said.
“A few.” She filled him in. “You’re on for ECC status if you want and can fit it in.”
“I’ve a few things to deal with I’d rather not shift, but I’ll touch base with Feeney. I should be able to work on it a bit at home this evening. In the company of my lovely wife.”
Eve’s shoulders automatically hunched together, particularly when she noted Peabody looking her way with fluttering eyelashes. “My day’s pretty packed. I’m going to go by the lab now . . . No, shit, meet first, then lab. Gotta do some media spinning, so I’m tagging Nadine. Appreciate the assist if you manage it.”
“Not a problem. Squeeze some food into your schedule.”
“I’m having lunch with Nadine at some stupid place.”
“Scentsational,” Peabody told him, leaning over enough to get a glimpse of his face on the ’link screen.
“Well, now, the world’s full of surprises. Let me know what you think of it.”
It only took Eve a beat. “Yours?”
“A man’s got to keep his hand in. I’ve a lunch meeting myself. Try the nasturtium salad. It’s very nice.”
“Yeah, that’s going to happen. Later. That’s flowers, right?” she asked Peabody when she ended transmission.
“Edible ones.”
“In my world, flowers aren’t on the menu.”
Apparently they were in Roarke’s world. They could be sampled, sipped, and sniffed, all in one elaborate setting where the tables rose up on graceful stems and bloomed in a garden of colors.
The air smelled like a meadow, which Eve assumed was supposed to be a good thing.
The floor was some sort of green glass, translucent so the flowers thriving below shimmered in a sophisticated garden. There were various levels, up trios of steps. An arbor arched over the bar, where diners could order flowery or herbal drinks as well as the more pedestrian wines.
Nadine sat at a table near a little lagoon where golden fish swam among water lilies. She’d done something to her hair, Eve noted, straightening its usual waves and fluffs so it was sleek, streaky rain angled around her face.
She looked sharper, somehow honed, suited up in pansy purple. She wore an earpiece, and spoke softly into it between sips of something very pink and very frothy.
“Gotta go. Hold everything for the next hour. Yes, everything.” She tugged off the earpiece, dropped it into her purse. “Isn’t this a place? I’ve been dying to come here.”
“Your hair looks absolutely mag,” Peabody told her as they sat.
“You think? First time I’ve taken it for a spin.” In the way of women, Nadine combed her hand through the angled ends. “I’m trying it out.”
A waiter, decked out in leafy green, poofed beside their table like magic. “Welcome to Scentsational, ladies. I’m Dean, and I’m your server today. Can I get you a cocktail?”
“No,” Eve said even as Peabody’s eyes brightened. She kept hers bland as Peabody’s dimmed. “Got Pepsi?”
“Of course, madam. And for you?”
“Can I get what she’s got?” Peabody gestured to Nadine’s drink. “Virgin.”
“Absolutely.”
“Fantastic party the other night, by the way,” Nadine began when the waiter went off to fill the order. “I’m still recovering. Didn’t have a lot of time to talk to you then, and I didn’t think it was the right time and place for what I need to talk about. So—”
“Hold that, will you? I’ve got something going, and I need some spin.”
Nadine’s eyebrows shot up. “You’ve got a hot one already? Why haven’t I heard?”
“Female vic, skull cracked, hotel room on the West Side.”
“Mmmm.” Nadine shut her eyes a minute. “Yeah, I got some wind on that. Tourist, bungled break-in. What’s the big?”
“I found the body. I knew her. It wasn’t a burglary gone wrong.”
“Let me get this down.”
“No, keep it in your head. No record, not now.”
“You never make it easy. All right.” Nadine sat back, gestured