My Spy 3: Murder Mayhem

Little Red Dress

I wake up only slightly hungover the next morning and make my way down into town to meet up with Annabeth again. I stayed at my momma's last night since I didn't know when Ryan and Austin would make it home from Theo's party. She reminded me that since I was one of the hosts of the party, I needed to look sophisticated and elegant- I agreed as soon as she handed me her Amex.

I find Annabeth clutching onto a paper cup and a slight breeze blows her soft curls away from her face when I get to the boutique. She smiles when she sees me.

"Ready to shop?"

I nod to her and pull open the door to Blush. I glance to Annabeth after seeing how busy the boutique is and she is just as surprised at the hustle and bustle. I look back to the clusters of ladies and recognize most of them from my guest list. Maybe everyone is buying their dresses for the party today.

After I push my way past the first racks, I spot LulaBelle and Georgina holding up colorful dresses in front of a small mirror on the wall. They are commenting to each other and I quickly pull Annabeth to the other side of the store. I pull a derby hat off a rack on the wall and cover most of my face with the brim. I don't want LulaBelle marching over here and demanding more information I can't give her. I lean into Annabeth.

"As always, I do not want LulaBelle to see me."

She nods in understanding and we continue on to the back of the store.

As I am passing the sale rack, I spot Tinsley and dart over to her.

"Well, hello there, old friend!" She glances up from the rack and smiles when she spots me. She pulls me into a hug and replies, "Well hey there! I am just here shopping for your big party!"

I felt I should invite Tinsley because of her connection to the Penderghasts. Since we are hosting it in Poppy's honor, I felt she should be in attendance.

"I'm so glad you are coming. I've missed you," I tell her and she nods with a sweet smile.

"I know, I've missed you and the winery. We haven't opened the doors since the last time you were there."

I decide to see if she has any new information so I lean closer to her and ask, "Have you heard any more about it selling?"

She shakes her head.

"No, I haven't heard. I was glad to hear you decided to buy the remaining wine off them for the party though. Too bad it wasn't nearly enough to cover what they owed."

I look to her in surprise.

"What do you mean?"

I watch as Tinsley looks around the store for any eavesdroppers. She grabs my hand and pulls me toward the back wall before she says, "The Penderghasts lost the winery because they owed almost sixty-thousand dollars in back taxes. I guess that's why they had to sell off their land."

Something she said has my wheels spinning again. With my eyes still wide I ask, "They owed almost sixty-thousand dollars? Wasn't their land worth more than that?"

She shrugs.

"I imagine someone doesn't want to buy half a vineyard. It was probably easier to sell it all off than divide it up I guess."

I have no idea how any of that works, but I do know something now. I smile to her and reply, "Well hopefully whoever buys it knows what a fantastic asset you were to the team and hires you back."

She smiles back at me and I am crossing my fingers the buyer is me. She glances behind me and says, "Well it was great to bump into you. I'll see ya on Friday."

She glides over to someone that just walked into the boutique and Annabeth comes over to me holding onto a grip of dresses. She looks to my empty hands and says, "You better get to gettin'! There aren't many dresses left now."

She continues on toward the dressing room and I glance around to the dresses on the rack next to me.

I peruse a few more racks but my mind is elsewhere. I pull my phone out and call Ryan. He answers on the second ring.

"Hey baby girl. What's up?"

His voice is deep and husky so I know I just woke him up.

"Hey there, are ya still gonna be home in about an hour?" I ask him.

"I can be if it means you are dropping by," he adds a mmm... and his house just became more enticing. I bite my lip to keep from grinning before replying, "Yeah, I'll be comin' by. I have a few things you might want."

"Mmmhmm, I can think of one thing for sure," he says seductively and I feel myself blush.

"Alright, see you soon."

I spin around and catch Annabeth coming out from the dressing room. She's wearing a darling, floral knee-length sundress with a matching plum cardigan. I smile to her and nod my head yes.

"That is amazing. It would be perfect for the party."

She spins around while smiling and when she stops, she looks to my empty hands, "You still haven't picked anything?"

"Nothing has caught my eye yet."

She frowns and then says, "Well we can always head next door to Inspire if you want to check that boutique out."

I nod and glance behind me to where LulaBelle and Georgina are still chatting. They haven't noticed Annabeth or me yet and I want to keep it that way. I look back to A.B and say, "I'll meet you at Inspire."

She nods and I duck out of the store unnoticed, leaving the derby hat on a mannequin by the front door.

There are fewer women in Inspire, so it's easier to rifle through the racks. I pick a few dresses out and quickly head to the changing room. My mind is still on Tinsley and the Penderghasts, so I'm hardly caring about what I am picking out. I still just can't believe they owed that much in back taxes. I always thought the winery did well, but maybe not well enough to cover the cost of the lands.

The saleswoman comes over to me while I am standing motionless at the rack and says, "Can I start you a fitting room?" I nod to her and she says, "Are you also shopping for the Wellington House grand re-opening?"

"Yes, I am actually hosting it. I imagine most of the women shopping this weekend are going?" I ask her and she smiles and nods. She leads me to a fitting room and then says, "Now, if you don't mind a suggestion, we just got this gorgeous little red number I think would look exquisite on you."

I'm sure the dress she's "suggesting" comes with a price tag that's a bit higher than the ones I grabbed. The sales reps know the people shopping this weekend have deep pockets- luckily, I have my momma's credit card on me. But I also could use the help since my mind doesn't seem to be on dresses.

"Sure, I could try it on."

She holds the velvet curtain back for me as I step inside the room and when it drops, I am surrounded by a ruby glow.

I change into the first dress I picked out and frown when I realize I've seen LulaBelle wearing almost an identical dress. I am about to pull on my next choice when a hand shoots through my curtain.

"Here's the dress I mentioned. Let me know what you think."

I grab the hanger from the saleswoman and hold the red ruffles up to me. I quickly slide it on and can't help staring at myself in the mirror. I'm draped in a thin red fabric that has a high collar and floor-length skirt. It sways as I walk and it flatters my lanky body nicely. I quickly glance at the price tag and my heart stops a little. But I guess since I am hosting the party and Momma told me to look elegant, I can afford to splurge a little. I do one last glance in the mirror and call out to the saleswoman, "I'll take it!"