Murder at Morningside Read Online Free

wedding.” Anything to take her mind off her absent stepdaughter.
    â€œFirst of all, the designer who made her gown told Trinity she should put the bridesmaids in black. Can you imagine? He said it’s quite popular on the East Coast. I had to put my foot down on that one. Why would the bridesmaids wear black for a spring wedding?”
    I tried not to smile. She had no way of knowing Ambrose and I were friends. “Hmm. What did he say when you told him no?”
    â€œI imagine he took offense. That’s the one good thing about hiring a wedding planner. She had to be the one to say that, not me.”
    We chatted a bit more about the wedding colors—peach and cream won out—the flowers, the dance music, and whatnot. Turned out Mr. Solomon hired the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra to play “Here Comes the Bride” on the front lawn. Between that and a fireworks display set to explode at midnight, I got the feeling the bride could have bought a house in Bleu Bayou for the cost of this wedding.
    Just then Beatrice dashed into the tearoom and made a beeline for our table.
    â€œShe’s gone.”
    Since the girl seemed to have a flair for melodrama, I didn’t get too worked up. “Slow down. What do you mean, she’s gone? Maybe she took a walk to get some fresh air.”
    Beatrice shook her head. “The maid told me no one used her room last night. Said she left chocolates on the pillow, and they haven’t been touched.”
    I glanced at Ivy. While I did not want to be indelicate, there was one obvious explanation. “Could she be with her fiancé?” Odds were good she spent the night in his room if hers looked untouched.
    â€œI was talking with him earlier in the hall,” Beatrice said. “He hasn’t seen her. Not since last night.”
    Well, now . The handsome stranger whose eyes blazed like hellfire must have been the missing girl’s fiancé. If only the mansion’s walls could talk, I’d get an earful and then some.
    â€œWherever could she be?” Ivy asked. “This isn’t like her.”
    Of course, Trinity Solomon wouldn’t be the first bride to up and run. But someone with a handsome catch like that, and carrying his offspring, no less, wasn’t likely to hightail it out of town. “She’s probably with her bridesmaids. You know, having fun while she still can.” That made perfect sense to me, and it seemed to calm Ivy down.
    But only until Beatrice pointed to the opposite corner of the room.
    Ivy and I turned at the same time. Five girls lounged around a table, wearing the peach-colored sunbonnets I’d designed. I hadn’t noticed them with all the fuss.
    â€œThe tall one told me they figured they might as well come here and get some use out of their wedding clothes,” Beatrice said. “At least the hats.”
    Ivy and I both stared at the table. Sure enough, the girls took turns splashing water into each other’s glasses with lots of giggles all around.
    â€œI’m going to find her,” Ivy finally said.
    Maybe it was my Christian upbringing, but I couldn’t bear to let her go alone. “I’ll go with you.”
    â€œOh, no. You’ll miss the competition. I can’t let you do that.”
    I tried to sound nonchalant. “It’s not that important to me.” It’d be a shame to walk away now, but my new friend was about to panic.
    Beatrice cleared her throat next to us. “I’m afraid I have to start the contest.”
    â€œOf course,” I said. “You go right ahead. We’ll slip out the back door.”
    As Ivy and I left the room, I glanced back at the party of bridesmaids, who didn’t seem to have a care in the world. One by one, they stacked packages of Earl Grey into a tower and then poked at it with a stir stick until the thing came tumbling down, which made them all squeal with laughter.
    Even though Mr. Solomon had