Read Too Rich and Too Dead for Free Online

was streaked with gray. She wore two gold chains around her neck, one with a large gold cross dangling from it and a second with the name “Juanita” written in script.
    “I'm here to see Carly,” Mallory added when the woman failed to respond.
    “Mees Berm, she ees expecting you,” the housekeeper finally replied, acting as if making polite conversation wasn't part of her job description. “Oh, and welcome to Casper Ranch.” Muttering as if she were talking to herself rather than to Mallory, she added, “I always forget I'm supposed to say that. One more rule Mees Berm make me remember.”
    O-kay, Mallory thought. Aloud, she asked, “Casper Ranch? Is that Casper as in Casper the Friendly Ghost or as in Casper, Wyoming?”
    “Ees C-A-S-S-B-E-R,” Juanita explained crossly. “Cass-Ber. Ees a combination of Meester and Mees's last names—Cassidy and Berm. Mees Berm, she make eet up.” She rolled her eyes, as if looking toward heaven for understanding. “She theenks giving a place a fancy name makes it more high-class or something.”
    “I see.” Mallory wondered if Carly's housekeeper's deliberate mispronunciation of her employer's last name was due to her faulty English or one more way of asserting her independence. Or would scorn have been a more appropriate word?
    She kept her questions to herself as she followed Juanita inside, noting that the house's interior was as impressive as its dramatic exterior promised. The cavernous living room's A-Frame configuration was emphasized by exposed beams made of uneven dark wood that looked as if it had been stolen from Abe Lincoln's birthplace. The same shape was echoed in the tremendous windows that dominated three of the walls, each of them five-sided so that their tops also formed peaks. All that glass did an effective jobof making the spectacular landscape part of the décor. At the moment, the scenery happened to include the pale yellow sun setting against a darkening blue sky streaked with oranges, pinks, and purples that in any other context would have looked downright garish.
    If I lived here, Mallory thought, I don't think I'd ever leave this very spot.
    That feeling was reinforced by the furnishings, which like the room itself were striking enough to be featured in a glossy design magazine. They incorporated an array of amazing textures: the ragged gray stones of the fireplace that jutted up between two of the gigantic windows, two Three Bears-style chairs made from rough-hewn wood but softened with buttery leather cushions in a deep shade of red, a long comfy couch upholstered in shaggy white fabric that reminded her of a polar bear.
    As she stepped farther inside the room, a poodle suddenly stuck its head up in the air. Mallory realized that even though the dog was in plain sight, draped comfortably across the couch, its fluffy white fur had caused it to blend in with its surroundings so well that she hadn't even noticed it. But the dog noticed her, leaping off the couch and bounding toward her enthusiastically.
    “Get away, Bijou!” Juanita insisted crossly. “Bad dog!” But aside from glaring at the animal, she made no move to rescue Mallory.
    “It's all right,” Mallory assured her. “I love dogs.” She bent down to let the poodle lick one of her hands while scratching her behind the ears with the other.
    Mallory was still admiring the house that Rejuva-Juice built, along with the pet she suspected had been chosen because her fur matched the décor, when she heard a familiar voice cry, “Mallory? Is that really
you?”
    Mallory turned and saw Carly loping toward her. Her long strides, unencumbered by ridiculously high heels, sent the silky fabric of her brightly colored print dress swirling around her knees as if she were a dancer.
    Mallory's first impression was that the Carly Cassidy of today was a considerably more sophisticated version of her earlier self, her youthful exuberance replaced by cool elegance. In fact, Mallory decided that the