“I think we’re done here,” Jessie told her.
“Did Mrs. Newhouse do something wrong?” the attendant asked.
“Not based on anything I see here,” Jessie answered, unable to keep the disappointment out of her voice.
Kree led her back to the main entrance of the spa and unlocked the door for her. Just as she was stepping outside, an understatedly attractive brown-haired woman with glasses, wearing a cream blouse and a gorgeous, cherry pencil skirt walked up. She had a small, leather backpack flung over one shoulder.
“Hi Kree,” the woman said amiably. “I’m here for my pedicure.”
“Hello, Ms. Potter,” Kree said diffidently. “I’m sorry but the spa is temporarily closed.”
Jessie realized who was in front of her but did her best to pretend like she didn’t recognize the name. Honey Potter was not at all what she was expecting.
“The whole spa?” Potter asked incredulously, “Why?”
“I’m afraid I’m not at liberty to say,” Kree replied, doing her best to be professionally vague.
“But someone else clearly got to partake of…,” Potter started to say, nodding in Jessie’s direction, before her words faded off. She tilted her head as she looked closely at Jessie for the first time. “Oh, I see now—this has to do with the other thing.”
“I’m sorry?” Kree said, baffled.
Jessie remained silent, watching as the other woman put the pieces together.
“Don’t worry about it, sweetie,” Potter said affectionately. “I won’t try to force my way in. I’d much rather join Ms. Hunt wherever she’s going.”
Jessie was impressed. She knew that her exploits had made her something of a minor celebrity around town, but this might be the fastest that anyone had recognized her, and she hadn’t even spoke a word yet.
“You have me at a disadvantage,” she lied, extending her hand.
“Sorry. My name’s Honey Potter. Call me Honey. I’m Peninsula’s official romance coach. I ran into your partner in all things a little while ago when he was speaking to some of my clients, so I figured I might bump into you at some point. How are things going?”
Jessie debated whether to engage. She wasn’t going to share anything of consequence but if she offered a crumb or two, maybe Honey would reveal whether the Darcys’ session had been contentious, which might explain the coldness between them that Ryan described observing. She turned to Kree.
“Thanks so much for all your help,” she said. “I think I’m good for now.
The girl seemed relieved to be done and, after offering a quick, tight smile, scurried off. Jessie returned her attention to Honey.
“I obviously can’t get into specifics,” she said as she started up the hill toward the Grand Hall, “but I can say that it’s slow going.”
“So no more progress since I spoke to Detective Hernandez earlier?” Honey asked, keeping pace with her.
“Well, we haven’t solved the case yet,” Jessie conceded.
“What exactly is the case?” Honey wondered. “I’m sure I’d already know if I hadn’t been buried in my office for the last half hour.”
Jessie knew the woman was right. Word had to have gotten around by now. If Honey started asking folks on campus, she’d probably have the basic facts, along with some wild speculation, in less than five minutes. For that reason, Jessie chose to throw her a bone.
“A guest died in the spa—in the men’s lounge area, to be specific. We’re trying to determine the cause of death.”
Honey gave her a sly smile.
“Well, considering that you and Detective Hernandez work for a unit called Homicide Special Section, I’m assuming the guy didn’t slip and fall.”
“He didn’t fall,” Jessie conceded, “but that doesn’t mean this was foul play. We’ve just been asked to be thorough, considering the high profile nature of the decedent.”
“Okay,” Honey replied, admirably not asking for a name. “So what did my clients have to do with it?”
“They’re friends of the man who died,” Jessie said, sensing an opening. “Detective Hernandez interviewed them to get more insight into him. But as long as we’re discussing your clients, I was hoping that you could clear something up for me.”
“What’s that?”
“My partner said that he noticed a bit of a chill between them,” Jessie told her. “Was that a result of their session with you?”
Now it was Honey’s turn to play coy.
“Ms. Hunt,” she said, with a grin, “while I’m not technically a medical professional and have no formal privilege, I do generally try to maintain some level of privacy for my clients. Otherwise I wouldn’t have any left.”
“I respect that,” Jessie replied. “But anything you can offer that might help us get a fuller picture of the people who knew the decedent would be helpful.”
They had reached the top of the hill where the resort staff was busily prepping the expansive lawn for the upcoming sunset wedding. Honey Potter was panting slightly. Jessie was not, which she attributed to her daily runs.
“In that case,” Honey said, trying to catch her breath, “I can offer you this: the Darcys were focused on finding non-traditional ways to please each other.”
“That’s quite a euphemism,” Jessie said, stopping in her tracks and fixing Honey with a serious stare. “What does that mean exactly? Are we talking S&M?”
Honey laughed out loud.
“Ms. Hunt, I know my reputation precedes me,” she replied drily, “but just because my previous career involved some…unconventional practices, that doesn’t mean I try to get my clients to employ them. Sorry if that’s a disappointment.”
“What then?” Jessie wondered, refusing to be distracted by Honey’s teasing.
“I assure you our session didn’t address anything that intense,” the woman informed her. “But I think it’s fair to say that some couples, perhaps including the Darcys, intermittently find that traditional lovemaking can get a bit old after a while. So we try to workshop alternatives they might be comfortable with. There are stages of experimentation. Suffice to say, the Darcys have a long way to go. But I can assure you of one thing: when our session was over, they were more connected to each other, not less. Any ‘chill’ that Detective Hernandez picked up on was not a result of our time together.”
Jessie didn’t let on, but that was actually good news. If the couple wasn’t distant because of their appointment with Honey, then whatever their issue was preceded their time with her. Admittedly, it could be something as innocuous as a thoughtless comment. Or their coldness could be due something more significant, maybe some larger shared secret they were hiding. It wasn’t much to go on, but it was more than she had two minutes ago.
“Thank you,” she said, as they stopped at the back patio of the Grand Hall. “I appreciate your help.”
“Of course,” Honey said. “Now that my pedicure is off, I was going to get a bite to eat. Care to join me?”
“I’m afraid I can’t; I’ve still got this whole investigation thing to deal with.”