Death Vetoes The Chairman (Lizzie Crenshaw Mysteries Book 7) by Teresa Watson Page B

better now?”
    “No, I wish I had poured two pitchers of tea on her head.”

Chapter 8
    Mother’s mini-Cooper was sitting in the driveway when Jake pulled in. “How did that get here?” I said, knowing I had left it at the office.
    Jake shrugged. “I guess T.J. had someone drive it over. Does he have a spare key?”
    “Not that I know of,” I replied. I dug my keys out of my bag, and noticed the car key was missing from the key ring. “Guess that answers that, doesn’t it?”
    We got out and went inside. Mittens jumped up and down, acting like I hadn’t been home in three days, when it had only been since breakfast. I dropped my stuff near the door, and let her and Babe out into the backyard. “You want something to drink?” I called out.
    “Just water, thanks.”
    I grabbed two bottles of water out of the fridge, and went back in the living room. Jake was setting up the laptop. “What are you working on?” I asked, handing him a bottle.
    “Can’t tell you.”
    “Are you doing something illegal?”
    “Can’t tell you that, either.”
    “Deniability?”
    “Ding ding,” he said.
    “Thanks for saving me from going to jail,” I said, shaking my head.
    “Anytime.”
    I plopped down in the recliner and turned on the TV. It had been an extremely long day, and I was physically and emotionally exhausted. For a few minutes, the only sounds in the house came from a documentary about WWII, and the keyboard on the laptop.
    “Where did you get the money?” Jake said out of the blue.
    “Huh?”
    “Where did you get the money to buy the newspaper? Did you take out a loan?”
    “No, I didn’t take out a loan.”
    “Rob a bank?”
    I cringed at that, considering what had happened yesterday. He wasn’t going to stop until he got his answer, so I got up and pulled Debra’s will out of my bag. “This doesn’t go any further than this house, is that clear?”
    “Absolutely,” he replied, holding out his hand.
    “I mean it, Jake. I don’t want anyone else to know about this. One word, and I will buy out your shares of the paper and kick you out the door.”
    “Okay, okay! I get it,” he said, snatching the papers out of my hand. He read over them, and looked at me. “Gives new meaning to the term ‘blood money’, doesn’t it?”
    “Oh, very funny, Jake, very funny.”
    “Buying the newspaper didn’t even make a dent in what she left you.” He leaned back on the couch. “You’re rich, Lizzie, almost as rich as my family is. What are you going to do with all that money? You can certainly afford a new car now. I’ll be glad to go car shopping with you. SUV? A sports car? Luxury sedan?”
    “Something simple.”
    “Oh, come on, you can’t buy something simple when you can afford the best! You should get a luxury SUV, customize it with everything you’ve ever wanted in a car. GPS, satellite radio, heated leather seats…you know, there’s a new 2016 SUV coming out that has all-wheel drive, navigation system, cooled driver seat, driver lumbar, a ten-speaker sound system…” he kept rattling off all the features he could think of.
    “Jake.”
    “On the other hand, you’re the owner of a business now, so maybe you should go with a luxury sedan.”
    “Jake…”
    “But you should also buy a truck, so you can drive Babe and Mittens…”
    “JAKE!”
    “Huh? What?”
    “Stop.”
    “Stop what? Why?”
    “I am not going to buy a luxury sedan, a luxury SUV or a sports car.”
    “Why not?”
    “Can you see me driving something like that?”
    “Well, honestly, no, but that doesn’t mean you can’t. You can afford nice things now. You should treat yourself.”
    I put the papers back in my bag and sat down in the recliner. “No.”
    He threw his hands up in the air. “Why not, for crying out loud? Give me one legitimate excuse for not living it up now that you can afford to?”
    “Because I am not you. Need I remind you how she got the money?”
    “Hm, you do have a point. However,