much alike.”
“ Okay, now I hate you.”
Cam grinned. “So, how are things coming with Barker?”
“ Well…” I hedged, knowing anything I said was probably going straight to Tina. On the other hand, I didn’t really have much more than a list of reality show actors anyway. So I showed it to Cam, giving her the brief rundown of the case.
Cam looked at my list. “Well, Don and Deb—pretty much everyone knows about them. They break up and get back together, depending on the ratings. Total dysfunction.” She scanned down the list again. “I honestly don’t know much about Lowel Simonson. He pretty much keeps to himself as far as interviews go. I know he’s in town, though. I was doing LAX coverage last week and saw him arrive from Tonga.”
Which was, conveniently, just before Barker was killed.
“ Know where he’s staying?” I asked.
Cam shook her head. “No. But word is, he’ll be in town for at least a few days before flying back for the next judging round.”
I wrote: In town when B killed. Alibi? next to Simonson’s name. “Anyone else jump out at you?” I asked.
She looked at the list again. “This guy,” she said, pointing to the Little Bachelor, Gary Ellstrom. “He’s a real hothead. I was down at The Grove last week. Turns out he works in some boutique there now, and he totally cussed out some lady just because she wanted his autograph.”
“ Hot temper, huh?”
She nodded. “Oh, yeah. When he was on the show, they brought in some anger management therapist. Apparently he kept blowing up and breaking camera equipment.”
“ Sweet.” I put a star next to his name, shooting him to the top of my list. “You remember the name of the boutique?”
She nodded. “Bella Sole. They sell designer shoes.”
I wrote the name down. “Perfect. I could use an afternoon at The Grove anyway.” I threw my notebook and a sparkly pen in my purse and turned to go.
Only, Cam was still sitting beside my desk, looking like she wasn’t quite done chatting.
“ Is there something else?” I asked, itching to get going. I had a four o’clock deadline to get my article in to Felix, and so far I had bubkis.
“ Sorta,” Cam said. She stood up and leaned in toward me. She lowered her voice. “Listen, I have to ask…”
“ What?”
“ Well…” She bit the inside of her cheek, chewing thoughtfully. “Look, I know it’s really none of my business, but there’s this rumor going around, and I…well… I just…”
Uh-oh. “What rumor?” I asked.
“ About you.”
“ About me what?”
“ Well, some people are saying…and I’m not naming names—”
I’d bet a million dollars it started with a T.
“— but, well, it’s been hinted at that maybe…”
“ Maybe what?” I asked.
“ You and Felix are sleeping together.”
Mental forehead smack. “I’m gonna kill her,” I mumbled.
“ So, does that mean you’re not?”
“ No! God, no.”
Okay, there had been The Night, but that had been before he was my boss, before it would have gone from bad idea to completely inappropriate. It was ages ago. It was so past tense. As in slept . Once. And, technically, we hadn’t even really slept much. And I was definitely not sleeping , present tense, with him now.
“ No. Definitely not,” I emphasized.
“ Sure. Right,” Cam said. Though I could tell she still had her doubts.
“ We’re not!”
“ Okay, okay!” She held her hands up in defensive gesture. “I believe you.”
“ Where, exactly, did you hear this rumor?” I asked.
“ Um, nowhere in particular. Around. Here and there.”
I looked over the top of my cube. Tina was still engrossed in her computer, the back of her purple-streaked head hunched intently over her keyboard. She looked a whole lot like here and there to me.
“ Great,” I said, hiking my
“ Okay, now I hate you.”
Cam grinned. “So, how are things coming with Barker?”
“ Well…” I hedged, knowing anything I said was probably going straight to Tina. On the other hand, I didn’t really have much more than a list of reality show actors anyway. So I showed it to Cam, giving her the brief rundown of the case.
Cam looked at my list. “Well, Don and Deb—pretty much everyone knows about them. They break up and get back together, depending on the ratings. Total dysfunction.” She scanned down the list again. “I honestly don’t know much about Lowel Simonson. He pretty much keeps to himself as far as interviews go. I know he’s in town, though. I was doing LAX coverage last week and saw him arrive from Tonga.”
Which was, conveniently, just before Barker was killed.
“ Know where he’s staying?” I asked.
Cam shook her head. “No. But word is, he’ll be in town for at least a few days before flying back for the next judging round.”
I wrote: In town when B killed. Alibi? next to Simonson’s name. “Anyone else jump out at you?” I asked.
She looked at the list again. “This guy,” she said, pointing to the Little Bachelor, Gary Ellstrom. “He’s a real hothead. I was down at The Grove last week. Turns out he works in some boutique there now, and he totally cussed out some lady just because she wanted his autograph.”
“ Hot temper, huh?”
She nodded. “Oh, yeah. When he was on the show, they brought in some anger management therapist. Apparently he kept blowing up and breaking camera equipment.”
“ Sweet.” I put a star next to his name, shooting him to the top of my list. “You remember the name of the boutique?”
She nodded. “Bella Sole. They sell designer shoes.”
I wrote the name down. “Perfect. I could use an afternoon at The Grove anyway.” I threw my notebook and a sparkly pen in my purse and turned to go.
Only, Cam was still sitting beside my desk, looking like she wasn’t quite done chatting.
“ Is there something else?” I asked, itching to get going. I had a four o’clock deadline to get my article in to Felix, and so far I had bubkis.
“ Sorta,” Cam said. She stood up and leaned in toward me. She lowered her voice. “Listen, I have to ask…”
“ What?”
“ Well…” She bit the inside of her cheek, chewing thoughtfully. “Look, I know it’s really none of my business, but there’s this rumor going around, and I…well… I just…”
Uh-oh. “What rumor?” I asked.
“ About you.”
“ About me what?”
“ Well, some people are saying…and I’m not naming names—”
I’d bet a million dollars it started with a T.
“— but, well, it’s been hinted at that maybe…”
“ Maybe what?” I asked.
“ You and Felix are sleeping together.”
Mental forehead smack. “I’m gonna kill her,” I mumbled.
“ So, does that mean you’re not?”
“ No! God, no.”
Okay, there had been The Night, but that had been before he was my boss, before it would have gone from bad idea to completely inappropriate. It was ages ago. It was so past tense. As in slept . Once. And, technically, we hadn’t even really slept much. And I was definitely not sleeping , present tense, with him now.
“ No. Definitely not,” I emphasized.
“ Sure. Right,” Cam said. Though I could tell she still had her doubts.
“ We’re not!”
“ Okay, okay!” She held her hands up in defensive gesture. “I believe you.”
“ Where, exactly, did you hear this rumor?” I asked.
“ Um, nowhere in particular. Around. Here and there.”
I looked over the top of my cube. Tina was still engrossed in her computer, the back of her purple-streaked head hunched intently over her keyboard. She looked a whole lot like here and there to me.
“ Great,” I said, hiking my
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