"I can always eat. But really we need to talk to Beau. All these different stories aren't quite coming together for me. And to see Beau…"
"We need to go to the diner." I sighed and heaved my tired self out of the swing. "Fine. But don't even think of putting so much as a cracker in front of me or I might yark all over you."
"Noted."
I picked Lou up and gave her a cuddle, checked on her water bowl again, grabbed my purse, and we headed out.
The festival traffic and crowds had thinned out since it was Sunday and the rides and booths were beginning the packing-up process. I looked for Shelley as we drove along, but didn't see her.
"She's probably on one of the rides," Jack said, reading my mind.
"She really is doing great, isn't she?" I laughed. "She's an amazing kid. When she isn't messing with my phone or telling people about our upcoming nuptials."
Jack said nothing for a few minutes, but then, as he was backing into a parking space by Beau's, he slanted an enigmatic emerald glance at me. "Would it be so bad? Marrying me?"
I froze. "I—we—the—"
He flashed a smile. "It's okay, Tess. Just kidding. I didn't want to give you an aneurysm. Let's go interrogate my client who also happens to be our biggest suspect. I'm guessing he will not want to pay my bill after this."
He climbed out of the truck, leaving me sitting there, still frozen.
What just happened?
Before I could formulate actual words, Jack was opening my door. "Come on. The special is fried chicken."
My stomach roiled at the thought of food, but it was easier to concentrate on my stomach than on what Jack had just asked me, so I just groaned and followed him into the diner. He'd been kidding, anyway.
Beau's was the only eat-in restaurant in Dead End. Everybody in town ate here on a regular basis, and it was Gossip Central in normal times. Now, with the discovery of Earl's skeleton, the gossip level must be ramped up to an eleven.
Everybody in the place turned to look at us when we walked in. Even the out-of-towners must have caught something in the air, because they all looked too. I had the sudden urge to yellBOO!
I refrained, being a mostly responsible adult, but it was close.
I started toward our normal table, by the window, but it was taken by a young family I didn't know. Probably in town for the festival. We sat a couple of tables away and a server we hadn't seen before hurried over with menus. Her hair was bleached blond with blue and pink stripes. Sort of patriotic mixed withSuicide Squad. I liked it.
"Menus?"
"Lorraine never gives us menus," I said. "Is there actual writing on them? I thought they might be just props."
The girl, probably in her late teens, gave me a confused look. "I don't understand…"
"It's okay," Jack reassured her. "Lemonade, extra ice, please. And what is the lunch special?"
She turned to him and her breath stuttered. Another victim of Jack's total hotness.
I sighed. "The special," I reminded her.
"Oh. Right. Sorry. Fried chicken, corn on the cob, mashed potatoes, green beans, dumplings, and chocolate cake. Beau says you can have the special or a burger or you can go somewhere else."
Jack grinned at her, and she blushed all the way to her hairline. "I mean, he says that about you-everyone, not you-you. I mean, ah…"
I rescued the poor girl. "I'd just like a Diet Coke, please."
"I'll take the special," Jack said.
I raised an eyebrow. "Only one? After all, it's been nearly thirty minutes since your third piece of post-breakfast pie."
"She's kidding," he assured her.
