Bare-Naked Lola (A Lola Cruz Mystery) Read Online Free Page A

You’ll take her spot.”

    Victoria made it sound so simple, but somehow I doubted the dancers would buy it. I sidled up to Jennifer and Selma as they gathered their purses and bags, making my first attempt at camaraderie. No dice. They didn’t flash a single pearly white.
    Victoria turned to Manny. “You’ll be in touch, I assume?”
    “ Por supuesto ,” he muttered, his lips curving up.
    Sadie and I both stared at him. I checked my watch to be sure it was still ticking, then I pinched myself. And grimaced from the pain. Nope, this was not a dream.
    I was pretty sure Victoria didn’t know he’d said of course , but she’d gotten something from his tone. She batted her eyes, just once, then glided away after her husband and the dancers.
    Manny walked them to the door, the surveillance camera zipping along as it recorded their departure. A moment later, Manny sauntered into his office, the almost nonexistent grin still lingering. He closed the door behind him without another glance at me or Sadie.
    “ Son locos ,” I muttered as Sadie shoved back her chair and marched out. I waved at the boxy camera in the corner. “Did you get all that? Enjoy the entertainment?”
    As if in response, the camera zipped up and down. Yep, in his lair, Neil was laughing his ass off.

Chapter Two
    After spending the next ten minutes writing down information on one of the whiteboards that hung around the conference room, I dubbed the case Operation: Dance . I finished by putting the lines of the mysterious letters the dancers had received across the top of the board, then I stood back to think.
    Being a detective was like being a scientist. Manny had taught me to come up with a hypothesis and then work to prove or disprove it. Most of the time that was easier said than done. Still, I studied the facts, such as they were.
Victoria Wolfe: director of Courtside Dancers
Lance Wolfe: co-owner of the Royals basketball team and married to Victoria
Rochelle Dupre: former dancer; had been having an affair with a player
Selma Mann: current dancer — one letter
Jennifer Wallace: current dancer — two letters

Letters began arriving three weeks ago
Thin and fit is out as a body type; sexy curves are the preferred for Courtside Dancers
    I stood back to survey my progress. No great stroke of brilliance surfaced in my mind.
    After another minute of perusal, I capped the dry-erase marker and wiped away the last bullet. My curves weren’t pertinent to anyone but me. And maybe to Jack Callaghan.
    Definitely to Jack Callaghan.
    Except that Jack’s ex-girlfriend was holed up at his sister Brooke’s house and he was helping her—and not nearly as indignant about Brooke helping his ex as he should be. And what were they helping her with, anyway? So Jack had no claim on my hips, boobs, or any other curvature right now.
    I’d been as patient as I could be, pero enough was enough. If he wanted to see any of my curves again, he had to make some choices. Muy difícil choices, pero choices. My disastrous relationship with Sergio had early destroyed my faith in love, but Jack—Jack showing up again after so many years of being gone—he had restored it.
    My mind drifted back to when Jack had told me the truth about Sarah. I’d solved a case and when the dust had settled, he’d taken me to meet her. We’d sat in his sporty silver Volvo in front of his sister’s house.
    “You ever see the movie Fatal Attraction ?” he’d asked me.
    I darted my eyes toward him. Did a double-take. “As in Glenn Close psycho rabbit killer Fatal Attraction ?”
    He tapped the tip of his index finger to his nose. “That’s the one.”

    My eyes narrowed. “Yeah, great movie.”
    If you like demented, obsessed, murderous adultery cinema.
    “Remember how Alex—”
    I arched a questioning brow.
    “—Alex is the character Glenn Close plays,” he clarified.
    “Oh. Right.” Jack had a keen knack for movie trivia, it seemed.
    “Remember when Alex spies on Michael