Death With An Ocean View (A Kate Kennedy Mystery Book 1) by Noreen Wald

have a will by now. I’d turned nineteen on the day our marriage was annulled—my twenty-two-year-old bridegroom, a rather dashing Marine, already had a wife when he’d married me. I haven’t seen him since the Eisenhower administration, but according to his last Christmas card, Walter’s now on his sixth wife and living in Roswell, New Mexico.”
    Oberon laughed. “Where else?”
    Marlene devoured her tea sandwich in one bite and reached for another. “And Kevin, my second husband, and I were divorced, but we remained…um…connected.”
    This time the lawyer frowned.
    Marlene decided her first impression had been skewed; she didn’t like Oberon. Way too prissy.
    “His twin brother, Charlie, was married to my best friend, Kate. So, even though Kevin and I had been divorced, we were still a family, Mr. Oberon.”
    “I see,” Oberon said. Clearly, he didn’t. “Why, Kevin even came to my third wedding.” Marlene, enjoying herself, giggled. “Said he had to waltz with the bride.”
    Oberon blinked rapidly, but he appeared to be all ears. “I didn’t know it at the time, but Kevin had been diagnosed with lung cancer. That man smoked more than Humphrey Bogart and John Wayne put together. Every waking minute he’d have a Camel dangling from his lip. On the job. Driving his funny-looking little car. Even in bed.” Marlene smiled. Especially in bed. God, despite Kevin’s cancer, how she wished that she could light up right now, but there were no ashtrays in Stella’s apartment. She reached for another sandwich.
    “Anyway, when Kevin died, I planned his funeral. No will. No money. He’d gambled his life away. But by then, I was married to a kind man with more than enough money to give Kevin a proper sendoff. White orchids and white doves at the grave. Caviar and champagne at the wake.” Oberon’s closed arms signaled disapproval, but he nodded, seeming to want to hear more.
    “Jack Weiss, my third husband, was the love of my life.” Marlene winked at the attorney. “So far.”
    “Why would you have felt responsible for your ex-husband’s funeral, Ms. Friedman?”
    “Because I loved him too, Mr. Oberon.”
    The lawyer’s lips formed a perfect O, but a sharp knock grabbed his attention. He closed his mouth and went to open the door.
    Nancy Cooper, chic in a lightweight aqua wool suit, her blond hair pulled back and caught in a matching bow, entered, followed by Mary Frances, wearing a black jumpsuit—somber and sexy, no easy trick—and carrying a plate of chocolate chip cookies.
    As Mary Frances placed her goodies on the table, Nancy’s eyes met, then immediately looked away from, Marlene’s.
    “I didn’t expect to see you so soon again, Nancy. How’s David Fry? He certainly seemed out of sorts last evening, didn’t he?” Marlene showed no mercy. “Was he afraid of you? Or was he threatening you?”
    Wyndam Oberon raised a spiky white eyebrow. “What’s that scoundrel Fry up to now?”
    After an audible gulp, Nancy said, “No comment. As a member of the fourth estate, I claim the fifth. A journalist never reveals her source, but you can read all about Mr. Fry in tomorrow’s Palmetto Beach Gazette. ”
    Marlene pounced. “So he was threatening you? I knew it.”
    Nancy looked smug. “I must admit that I’ve scooped the Sun-Sentinel. It’s such a drag that the Gazette only comes out once a week…just don’t miss tomorrow’s edition.”
    “Doesn’t anyone want a cookie?” Mary Frances passed the plate under Marlene’s nose.
    What’s a girl to do? Marlene took two.
    “Well, Miss Cooper, tomorrow I will read your scoop with relish, but right now, I have a will to read.” Oberon chuckled over what he obviously considered his clever play on words. “Would you and Miss Costello please be seated?”
    The lawyer snapped open his briefcase and pulled out some legal-size papers.
    So they must be in the will. Marlene met Mary Frances’s wide-eyed eagerness and smiled. Alive, Stella had