Read Scottsdale Squeeze: a romantic light-hearted murder mystery (Laura Black Mysteries Book 2) for Free Online

Casablanca Lounge. Terry had mentioned Jackie and her friends often went there. It seemed like as good of a place as any to start.
    The Casablanca is on Stetson drive, a couple of blocks from the office. I’d been there a few times before and I really like the place. It’s a cocktail lounge located on the third floor of a building where most of the tourists don’t think to look. There’s a beautiful patio with great views of both Old Town and Camelback Mountain, plus there are several fire pits, which are perfect in the winter. They also have menus with tiny lights in them to show you what new drinks they’ve concocted.
    I went in and looked around to see if I knew anyone. In my line of work, I tend to meet a lot of people and I seem to keep running into them. The way I look at it, Scottsdale isn’t such a big city.
    Unfortunately, there wasn’t anyone I knew, either in the lounge or out on the patio. I went to the bar and asked both of the guys who were working if they knew the woman in the picture. The first looked, but didn’t recognize her. The second immediately knew who she was.
    “That’s Jackie-D,” he said. “She’s usually here with a girlfriend or two but I haven’t seen any of them for a while.”
    I asked him if he knew the names of Jackie’s friends. He said he only knew them as Elle, Pam, Sonia, and the young one, Annie.
    ~~~~
    Next on my list was the Rock Bar. It was only a short walk to Craftsman Court, down the street from Dos Gringos. I hadn’t been in since it was called the Acme Bar. I went in and really liked the changes. It’s always been a great place to watch a band and the drinks won’t make you go broke.
    I went in and looked around. Once again, I didn’t find anyone I knew. I went up to the bar and showed the picture to the woman tending the bar.
    “Sure I know her. That’s Jackie-D. I haven’t seen her in a while but a couple of her friends just left, maybe a half hour ago. There was the brunette named Pammy and the younger blonde. I’m not sure what her name is. I think they were headed over to Nexxus.”
    ~~~~
    Nexxus is only about half a mile east of the Rock Bar, but it’s a pain to get across Scottsdale Road on foot. I went back to my car and drove over to Nexxus on Indian Plaza. I surprised myself by finding parking on the street only two blocks from the club.
    As far as clubs in Scottsdale go, Nexxus is one of the nicest and also one of the most expensive. It’s been around forever and it’s where the rich and famous go to see and be seen. It’s really two clubs in one. One side is an ultra-modern dance and live music club and on the other side is a more comfortable cocktail lounge. I’d been there a few times over the years, usually with a guy who wanted to impress me to the point I’d go to bed with him. Can’t blame them for trying and sometimes it even worked.
    I went in and looked around. This time, I got lucky. Sitting at a table in the lounge was a blonde woman who looked familiar. It only took a few seconds for me to place her. I realized this was Annie and I had met her a couple of months before while working on an assignment. Seated next to Annie was an older brunette woman who I didn’t recognize.
    Annie was in her mid-twenties, medium height, and had a medium build. She wore white jeans and a light pink oxford button down. On her feet, she wore pink socks and brown leather sandals. She had short blonde hair, cut in a style that nicely wrapped around her face. Her lipstick was the same shade of pink I remembered from before. I again thought it went well with her skin and hair. As soon as I recognized Annie, the woman in the picture also started to make more sense.
    I walked up to Annie and said hello. She looked at me quizzically for a few heartbeats then recognition flooded into her face.
    “Laura?” she asked, jumping up to give me a hug. “Wow, it’s so great seeing you. It’s been months since Jeannie’s.”
    Annie turned to the