Nightmare in Shining Armor Read Online Free Page A

you can guess what happened.”
    â€œShe found a motel receipt in the pocket?”
    They both nodded. “Very cliché,” Bob said, “but so is the entire situation. Older man, youngerwoman. Pot-belly, silicone. Sounds like B-grade movie material.”
    I snorted. “Sound like Ed’s a bit of a twit, too.”
    Rob cleared his throat. “Maybe—but maybe not. He may be kind of a dull man, but he’s also very conscientious.”
    â€œYou mean he wanted to be caught?”
    â€œNow you’re cooking with gas, Abby.”
    â€œBut why? And why wait so long?”
    â€œPermit me.” Bob tugged on a bra that was obviously riding up. “Wynnell says their marriage has been flat for a long time. She thinks Ed might just be tired of her, but too chicken to ask for a divorce.”
    â€œThe ironic thing,” Rob said, “is that Wynnell has been unhappy, too. She was thinking about divorce as well, until she found out about Tweetie. Suddenly she’s appreciating what she has, and wants to keep it.”
    â€œDoesn’t make any sense,” Bob said. “We think she’s just afraid of being lonely.”
    I can’t begin to tell you how hurt I was to hear the Rob-Bobs say these things. Wynnell has been my best friend for years. We share everything —or at least I thought we did. How could she confide in the Rob-Bobs, and not me? And speaking of friends, why didn’t the guys tell me earlier that Wynnell was hurting? They tell me everything else, and often in far too great detail.
    I was about to give them a piece of Scarlett’s mind when the phone rang.
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    I took the call in my upstairs den. It’s where I retreat to read a book, listen to music, and yes, even watch television. It was in my La-Z-Boy recliner by the phone where I watched Marian Colby lock Adam Chandler in his Y2K shelter, and where I tried to warn Erica Kane to stay away from that self-involved heart surgeon.
    â€œAbby’s house of pandemonium,” I said breezily.
    â€œMrs. Timberlake!”
    â€œJust a minute,” I let Scarlett say. “I’ll see if she’s in.”
    â€œMrs. Timberlake, that is you speaking, isn’t it?”
    â€œIs it?” I said cagily.
    â€œIt is! And do you know who this is?”
    â€œDo I?” I knew who it was all right. There is no confusing Captain Keffert with anyone else. Since he is a valued customer I try hard to think of his brusqueness as a charming by-product of his Connecticut origins. That is certainly how I explain his and his wife’s eccentricity.
    â€œYou’re darn tooting, little lady, so I’m going to stop beating around the bush. I want to know why you didn’t invite my wife and me to your party.”
    â€œParty?”
    â€œDarn it, Mrs. Timberlake, you’re going to force me to use stronger language.”
    I sighed. “Okay, so I’m having a little get-together. But it’s only for a couple of close friends.”
    â€œLynne Meredith is your friend?”
    I gulped. “You know Miss Meredith?”
    â€œWe met in your shop, Mrs. Timberlake. You introduced us. Thought we might know each other because we’re both from beyond the pale.”
    â€œThe pale what?”
    â€œThe pale , as in—oh, never mind. My point is she’s just another collector. Isn’t that right?”
    â€œCaptain, I fail to see how this is your concern.”
    â€œIt is my concern because my wife and I are big customers of yours as well, and we didn’t get invited. We bought that Queen Anne period walnut secretary from you last week. The one with the Boston provenance. Didn’t you joke that you could send your son to Harvard with your profits?”
    â€œDid I say Harvard? I thought sure I said Yale.”
    â€œMrs. Timberlake, this is no laughing matter. My wife is sitting here weeping as I speak. She’s convinced her position in Charlotte