“Yes,” Griff said. “How did you know?”
Her face paled, but she squared her shoulders. “I didn’t. It was just a guess.”
Griff studied her. Something about her was off...
He leaned against the window, his gaze meeting hers with a warning look. “Listen to me. If you know something about Joy’s murder, you’d better come clean. Right now, all we have is her ex. If he’s innocent, we’ve got nothing.”
She jerked her gaze from his and stared at her hands which were clenching the steering wheel in a white-knuckled grip. “I... I’m here researching a story,” she said again. “I didn’t even know Joy.”
Maybe so. But she was holding back something.
“If you’re scared or something else is going on, I’ll go with you to talk to my brother,” he offered.
She clamped her teeth over her bottom lip and shook her head. “I have to go. Sorry for disturbing you.”
“Just tell me—”
“I won’t bother you again. I’ll get the information on my own.” The window slid up, then she started the engine, backed from the space and drove away.
Just what the hell was she planning? A single woman asking questions about a murder could be dangerous. Didn’t she know that?
Chapter Five
Ginny silently chided herself as she drove away. She couldn’t allow another man to intimidate her. But Griff Maverick had done just that.
She would just have to do what she’d said. Investigate on her own. Find another way to determine if Joy had been dating Robert.
After deciding to start by chatting up Mitzi at the café, she drove to the quaint little spot, parked and scanned the property before she went inside. Just because she didn’t see Robert didn’t mean he wasn’t lurking around.
Watching her. Trying to unnerve her.
He’d done that before when she’d first left him. When his more subtle pleas and promises to win her back had failed, he’d started stalking her. Showing up in random places. Outside the coffee shop she liked to go to in the mornings. At the library when she’d decided to study and go back to college. At the restaurant where she’d worked part-time to pay for the room she’d rented in the rear.
Sometimes he’d simply sit and watch. Other times he’d leave her notes, reminding her that she was his. Twice she’d gone back to the apartment and realized he’d been inside.
He’d left a gift for her on the bed. Flowers. Perfume. A silk teddy he wanted her to wear.
That same cloying cologne he wore had lingered in the air, suffocating and nauseating.
She inhaled to ward off her nerves and entered the café. The scent of coffee and apple pie wafted toward her. Mitzi stood behind the counter pouring coffee into two mugs for an elderly man and woman. The couple carried the mugs to a corner table and huddled together as if they were newlyweds.
Ginny’s heart gave a pang. At one time she’d dreamed of love and happily-ever-after. Then Tess had been taken from her. Tess who would never have a chance to love or be loved or hold her own baby in her arms. Tess whose art brightened the world. A world now void of color without her in it.
Ginny slid onto the bar stool and forced a friendly smile toward Mitzi. The young woman’s blond hair accentuated her narrow face and was twisted into a claw clip on top of her head. She was probably midtwenties, looked friendly and easygoing as she managed the various orders tossed at her.
“What can I get you?” Mitzi asked as she handed off a cappuccino to the waitress to deliver to another table.
“Just plain coffee,” Ginny said. Her stomach couldn’t handle anything richer today, not after the scent of that cologne.
Mitzi arched a brow in question as she slid a steaming mug toward her. “You’re the woman who was here with Griff earlier, aren’t you?”
Ginny drizzled honey into her coffee. “Yes, I’m an investigative journalist researching a story on arsonists. I heard about the fire at the nail salon and was hoping he could add some insight.”
Mitzi rearranged the condiments on the bar. “Then you’re not from around here?”
“No, and I don’t intend to stay,” Ginny said, deciding to let the woman know she wasn’t a threat in case Mitzi was interested in Griff. “I’ll be leaving as soon as I finish my story.” She stirred her coffee. “By the way, did you know the owner of the salon?”
Mitzi’s lips pinched into a frown, and she propped her elbows on the bar. At this time of the day, the place was virtually empty. Still, Mitzi spoke in a conspiratorial whisper. “We met, but I didn’t think much of her. I heard she’d used Griff and that she went through men like some women change their shoes.”
“Really?” Ginny absorbed that tidbit. “Do you recall seeing her with anyone specific?”
Mitzi twisted her mouth in thought. “A couple of times she came in with this really handsome fellow. Said he was an investment banker who helped her secure the loan for her salon.”
“What did he look like?” Ginny asked.
“Late thirties, brown hair, neatly trimmed, well dressed. He seemed really flirty with her, so I wondered if there was more to their relationship than business.”
“Do you recall his name?”
Mitzi shook her head “No, don’t think she ever mentioned it.”
“Was there anyone else?”
“I don’t really remember, but I’ve only been here a few months. I had the impression Joy liked the nightlife though. Dancing and clubs and bars, you know that sort of thing.”
“I do know.” Ginny shivered. Robert had similar interests. And he preferred expensive restaurants.
None of it had been her scene though.
The bells over the door jingled as a group of women entered, and Mitzi waved at them.
“I gotta talk to those ladies. They want to plan a private women’s luncheon here, and I can use all the business I can get.”
Ginny offered her a smile. Under different circumstances, she and Mitzi might be friends.
“If you think of anything else, call me.” Ginny pushed a business card into Mitzi’s hand.
“Sure thing. Good luck with your story.”
Ginny’s phone dinged as Mitzi maneuvered around the corner of the bar to greet the women.
She pulled her cell from her pocket and checked the text. She had a message from the dating site Meet Your Mate. Rather, June Embers had a message.
A man named Karl Cross requested a date. She checked the man’s profile in search of a photograph, but the one that was posted was taken from a distance and in shadows so she couldn’t distinguish the man’s face.