Read Drowning in Amber (A Marie Jenner Mystery Book 2) for Free Online Page B

rest of us crazy. “Let’s go tomorrow.”
    We. This meant vicarious shopping, which took the sting out of the superior smile I’d probably imagined. “I love that idea,” I said.
    After that, we settled into a tiny, comfortable bit of silence. I would have thankfully stayed there for a long time—like a cat in a sunbeam or something—but James snapped the moment.
    “Have you called your mother lately?”
    I blinked.
    “No,” I finally said, looking out the far window, even though there was nothing much to see.
    “You should,” he said. “She’s probably worried.”
    “Probably,” I mumbled. I walked over to the window and stared out, willing James to shut his mouth about Mom.
    “We have time before the meeting with Honoria,” he continued. “You could touch base now. If you want.”
    The last thing I wanted to do was talk to my mother. She’d ask me hard questions—about my finances (nonexistent), my prospects for the future (equally nonexistent), and my love life (abysmal). And then she’d ask me if I’d met any good ghosts lately, and because James would be listening to everything I said, I’d have to lie. And she’d know I lied. That would probably lead to a fight, and I didn’t feel right about sparring with a woman who was fighting for her life.
    “I’ll call her when I get to Jasmine’s,” I said, still staring for all I was worth out the window at nothing.
    “Up to you,” he said, and I heard the rustle of pages as he reached for the book he’d been reading.
    I felt the tightness in my chest ease. I was off the hook for the moment. Time to keep the searchlight away from me and my family stuff.
    “Have you found out when you can move back into your apartment?” I asked, turning away from the window.
    “It’s almost repaired,” he mumbled, without looking up from his book.
    “Glad to hear that,” I said. His apartment had been damaged by the same freak who had burnt down my apartment building. That freak, unfortunately, was my ex-boyfriend Arnie—may he rot in jail for the rest of his unfortunate life—Stillwell.
    I wandered back in James’s direction, running my fingers over the spines of the books that filled the bookcases covering nearly every bit of wall space in that office.
    “When can you move back in?” I asked.
    James closed his book, carefully keeping his finger between the pages to mark his spot. “In a couple of days,” he said. “Why? You tired of staying with Jasmine? Want to move back in with me for a while?”
    I’d stayed at his apartment for a few days after my apartment had been torched.
    I laughed halfheartedly. “Thanks for the offer, but no,” I said. “Staying with Jasmine’s not so bad. Most of the time.”
    “She’s got a lot of kids, doesn’t she?”
    “If three is a lot then, yeah.” I shrugged. “Most of the time it’s all right, but sometimes they’re so loud—”
    “You could stay here,” he said. “If you want.”
    “Maybe I should,” I said. “Just until I get my own place—”
    My stupid throat tightened up, because there was no way in the world I was ever going to get my own place. Not until money started flowing in my direction.
    “We have to take that job, James,” I said. “You might have enough money to ride out this—”
    “Series of unfortunate events?” he said.
    I shrugged.
    “Close enough. I can’t, though. I need money coming in. Even if it is to build an alibi for Honoria.”
    “I could lend you some,” he said.
    “No.” I tried to keep my voice from quavering like a little kid’s. “Thanks, but no. Let’s just take the job. It could be profitable. For both of us.”
    “Like I said, I want to think about it,” he said. He picked up his book. Conversation was nearly over. “I get this feeling she’s lying, and I don’t want to be used by a liar. You do understand, don’t you?”
    “I understand,” I said. “But you have to understand that if we don’t take this job, I’ll have to find