“Well, she doesn’t have to pay the wedding planner anymore,” I point out, ignoring Mom’s ongoing battle with local wildlife. “And I guess you never know. I mean, financial desperation makes people do desperate things.”
“Speaking of Bea,” Emmie continues, “what’s your plan for questioning her? You mentioned wanting to corner her after the storytime disaster.”
“I’d love to talk to Bea, but I couldn’t seem to get close enough to her the other night. She was like a ghost during storytime—there one minute, gone the next.”
Mom huffs a laugh. “Can you blame her? Hey, wait a minute…” She suddenly perks up, having successfully defended the remainder of her sandwich from aerial assault. “You’ll see her tonight. You can talk to her then.”
“What do you mean?” I ask, sensing there’s information I’m missing.
Emmie tips her head at me with obvious amusement. “You don’t know?”
“Know what?”
“Tonight is the bachelorette party,” Georgie shouts it out like a battle cry, somehow finding the energy to sit up straighter. “Macy and Camila sent out a group text to all of us gals yesterday while you were dealing with Jasper and bedtime duties.”
I pull out my phone and check my messages. Nothing. “I didn’t get a group text.”
“That’s because you’re not in the Bridal Chaos Coordinators group chat,” Mom explains. “Macy created it after the cake tasting fiasco to coordinate girl activities.”
“I’ve never been more insulted in my life,” I say, and ironically, I think I mean it.
You’re not really insulted,Fish points out.You’re plotting. I can tell by the way your eyebrows are doing that wiggling thing.
What thing?Sherlock asks from his underground bunker.
That scheming thing,Fish all but smiles my way because we both know she’s secretly scheming, too.Same look she gets when she’s planning to investigate something she probably shouldn’t investigate.
INVESTIGATION TIME!Truffle yips with pure joy as she leaps a foot off the sand.I love investigations! There are always interesting smells and new people, and sometimes someone drops snacks, and did I mention I’m really good at being sneaky? Well, I try to be sneaky, but I get excited and bark a lot, but that’s helpful, too, right?she says it all in one quick bark, and I can’t help but laugh as she jumps into my lap.
“You are adorable.”Her incessant barking not so much, but I’ll never tell. I give her a hearty scratch between her ears and drop a kiss on her nose. “Well, insulted or not, I’ll be tagging along tonight come heck or high water,” I announce. “Or another body, depending on how this murder investigation goes.”
“Please don’t manifest another body,” Emmie begs. “One murder per wedding is quite enough, thank you.”
“I make no promises. We both know the universe seems to enjoy dropping corpses in my general vicinity.”
Mom moans at the thought. “Why do I feel like we’re tempting fate?”
“Because Bizzy is tagging along,” Georgie deadpans.
“So where are we going for this bachelorette extravaganza?” I ask, already mentally planning to corner Bea and get her to tell me everything she knows—and maybe confess to a murder.
Emmie, Mom, and Georgie exchange a look before they burst out laughing.
“What’s so funny?” I ask, sitting up straighter.
“You’ll see soon enough.” Emmie grins with far too much mischief in her denim blue eyes. “I’ll drive. And I have a feeling you’ll get a thrill out of everything Macy and Camila have planned.”
“That’s not ominous at all,” I mutter.
I’d be afraid if I were you, Bizzy,Fish mewls my way.I’ll bet all the treats at the inn that those two are planning something that involves secrets and probably embarrassment. And maybe a prison sentence—mostly for Georgie and you.
Should we be concerned?Truffle chatters at lightning speed.Because concerned sounds scary, but also kind of exciting, and I don’t know what embarrassment means, but if Georgie is involved, it’s probably LOUD and chaotic, and I LOVE chaos, did I mention I love chaos and mysteries?
Of course, we should be concerned,Sherlock says with a simple woof, now completely buried in his sand hole except for his tail.When the hoomans start making mysterious plans, chaos follows. Also, Truffle, your enthusiasm is making my ears ring.
As if on cue, Ella lets out a delighted squeal and throws a handful of sand directly at Elliot, who responds by clapping and giggling like it’s the funniest thing that’s ever happened. Both babies dissolve into giggles, completely oblivious to the murder investigation, bachelorette party melee about to ensue, and general chaos surrounding their perfectly innocent beach day.
Because apparently, tonight’s bachelorette party is going to be a mystery within a mystery, and I hope that before the evening is over, I’ll finally get all the answers I’ve been looking for.
