Rarity joined her with a cup as well. Killer reclaimed his dog bed by the fireplace and went straight to sleep.
“That was brutal, but fun. I can’t believe how many people showed up. I thought most of our residents in Sedona were older.” Shirley sipped her coffee. “The babies were so cute. Not a one cried the entire time.”
“Crying babies, I hadn’t even thought about that.” Rarity shuddered a bit. “Maybe we should make this club every other week.”
“It’s only an hour at most. You can deal with babies for that long.” Shirley smiled at her. “Besides, it’s only a matter of time before you and Archer start making some of your own. You can use this as preparation.”
“I’m not sure about that.” Rarity hadn’t thought about kids. Especially after Kevin dumped her. And then the cancer. She needed to do the genetic testing that the breast health center offered. And talk to Archer. Maybe he didn’t want kids. He was her age without any commitments. Maybe he liked it that way. Did she?
“You’ll know when you know,” Shirley said.
Rarity turned toward her. “What on earth does that mean?”
Shirley stood and went over to the table. “I’m not sure. It’s what my mom always said when I’d ask her about anything.”
Rarity laughed as she took a tulip cookie that Shirley offered her. “I’ve been falling down rabbit holes all day. I guess that saying is as good as any other one I could wind up with.”
Shirley sat back down and glanced around the club area. “I think today went really well. Thank you for letting me do this. I needed the distraction.”
“Well, you know when you know, I guess.” Rarity threw Shirley’s quote back at her, and they both laughed. Then she updated Shirley on what she’d learned from her chat with Cara, and now what Viv had said.
“Viv and Matt are good people. Matt is a long-term member of the EMT department. He started doing rescue as a volunteer before the city made the department official. He’s a straight shooter, and he’s seen his share of deaths. If he says it’s not a suicide, you can bet Drew’s listening to his opinion.” Shirley mused as they put away the leftover cookies and cleaned up the drinks station. “I’m afraid the facts aren’t pointing Drew away from Sam’s brother.”
Rarity thought the same thing, but she didn’t say it. Shirley didn’t even know the bombshell that Sam had told Rarity on Tuesday night.
All in all, Marcus Aarons was looking more and more like a murder suspect, no matter what his sister thought.
Chapter 7
Wednesday evening, Drew showed up at the bookstore at closing time. He took his hat off and picked up Killer, who’d run to greet him as soon as he’d come inside. “Hey, buddy, it’s nice that someone’s happy to see me.”
“Killer loves you. You know that. And you’re always welcome here.” Rarity glanced out the front window, where she could see the entrance in front of Sam’s crystal shop. “I take it there’s trouble in paradise.”
He shrugged as he walked toward the counter, where she was finishing up her closing activities. “I’m not sure. Sam’s having dinner with Marcus tonight, and I’m sure my name will be mud in that conversation.”
“Sam knows you’re just doing your job.” Rarity tucked her murder notebook into her tote. “So what are you doing here?”
He rubbed Killer under the chin. “Archer’s has an early evening hiking tour, so I said I’d walk the two of you home. Are you ready?”
“You and Archer realize I know where my house is located, right? It’s not dark. And I have a protector, anyway.” She reached up and rubbed Killer’s head. “Who’s a big boy?”
“Killer would yip at an attacker. And you’d be dead.” He put his hand over the dog’s ears. “Don’t tell him I said that.”
“Whatever. But I can get home on my own.” She moved to the back and checked the lock on the door, then moved through the rooms, turning off lights.
“I know, but I wanted to ask you some questions about Janey. This way, I get my investigative work done, and you get home safely. Which means Archer doesn’t mess up my face for not protecting you.” He opened the door and held it for her. “Okay with you?”
“Not really, but I get it. Besides, Archer wouldn’t hit you. You might never see Killer again, but he wouldn’t hit you.” Rarity locked the door and dropped the keys into her purse. “If you get to ask me questions, do I get to ask some of you?”
“Of course. I may not answer the questions, but you can ask away. And it might give me a feel for what your group of Agatha Christie wannabes are thinking on the case.” He put Killer on the ground after clicking his leash onto his collar. “Who wants to go first?”
“You can.” Rarity enjoyed spending time with Drew. Not in a relationship kind of way but as friends. He was smart, and they had a lot of the same interests. She wondered if their sameness was why she didn’t have chemistry with the tall, handsome lawman. Instead, she was head over heels in love with the hiker guide who also made her dinner several nights a week.
“You’re thinking about Archer, aren’t you?” Drew raised his eyebrows as she looked shocked. “Fine, don’t tell me. I get it. You’re not in love with me. Besides, I’ve moved on. So Janey—when did you first meet her?”
Rarity told him the story of how she’d put an advertisement for help in the student center employment board. It had been Darby’s idea, and Rarity thought it was a good one. She only needed part-time help, so reaching out to college students who were interested in books and retail marketing seemed the best way to hire. “I called Campus Employment in mid-August, and I interviewed five candidates. At first, I was just going to hire one, but then we got to talking about opportunities for different clubs, and I hired the best two out of the bunch. Both Janey and Caleb were well read, and both had the energy and experience working with youth.”
“When did you interview and hire?” Drew turned them down the road that led to her house.
Rarity tapped her finger on her lips, trying to remember. “It was the week before Labor Day. I finally called Caleb’s reference, so I made offers on that Wednesday. Then Janey and Caleb came in the next week, and we did an orientation. The following week, I had them sit in on the Tuesday night club. And that Saturday, we hammered out the details for the four new book clubs. After she left that last day, I didn’t see her again.”
“Stupid question, but did she seem down, depressed, suicidal?”
Rarity shook her head. “No to all of that. She was excited. She really liked the job and was looking forward to her first Mommy and Me class today. And she was excited about seeing Marcus again. They’d had several fun dates.”