If Looks Could Kill, page 10
“You guys’ll make up. I know you will,” Kiki said. She slathered some suntan lotion on her fair skin.
“I don’t know,” Raven said. “It was pretty ugly.” She went over to sit by the edge of the pool, letting her long, tanned legs dangle in the water. “Maybe I don’t have any business having a boyfriend right now. Too much going on. I probably shouldn’t even be here this afternoon.”
“Raven, you’ve got to give yourself a break,” Kiki said. “You went home to be with your mother after the lunch meeting, right? And your sister’s with her now.”
“Yeah. But I’m so afraid of not being there if something happens again. Papa’s practically not speaking to me.” Raven bit her lip. “I had to lie to him too. I told him Vaughn and I didn’t lay a finger on each other. Just fell asleep because we were so tired from everything.”
“Oh, right!” Kiki laughed, and shot a crumpled-up napkin at Raven.
Raven laughed too. She could remember how hard her heart had been beating as she lay with Vaughn in front of the fire. Her laughter died in her throat. How could it have gone so sour so fast?
“You’ll be back together for the Peach Blossom Festival,” Kiki assured her. “I know Vaughn, and I know he’s totally fallen for you.”
“I’m not even sure that’s what I want after this morning.” Raven fingered the turquoise stones on her bracelet. Things had gotten so weird. So weird that Raven had mistaken a glinting object in Mr. Woolery’s hand for a weapon, when he was really just retrieving Raven’s own lost jewelry. Still, she wasn’t a hundred percent sure of Mr. Woolery’s innocence in April’s murder. She wasn’t a hundred percent sure of anything these days. Especially Vaughn.
But Kiki was upbeat. “I know you and Vaughn will be going to the Festival Ball together. Maybe he’ll be escorting Peggy Sue.”
“Or maybe Bobby will be,” Raven said. She shielded her eyes from the sun and looked at Kiki.
Kiki shrugged. She came over and joined Raven at the edge of the pool. “Raven, don’t tell anyone, but I just don’t know about Bobby anymore. I mean, he’s the sweetest. He really is. But … I just don’t think I like him as much as I used to. The thing is, if I break up with him, it’ll crush him.”
Raven wasn’t surprised. She’d had a feeling about this for a while now. “But Kiki, it’s not fair to either of you to stay together if you don’t think it’s right.”
“I know. I just keep thinking that maybe Bobby’ll start feeling the same way and it won’t be so hard.… It’s so stupid. Here I am with someone I just don’t think is right for me, and you and Vaughn are great for each other and you’re in this huge fight.”
“Maybe we’re not so great for each other. He’s one of the Paradiso Cutters, and I’m just a girl from the wrong side of the tracks. Who am I fooling, anyway? Besides, I’m so mad at him, I’m sure if we talked to each other, we’d just get into another fight.”
“Boys,” Kiki said. She reached for the bag of cookies by her chair. “Want another?”
Raven eyed the bag warily. “If I keep eating those, I’m not going to fit into my dress for the ball. You could probably eat the whole bag and you wouldn’t gain an ounce,” she said enviously. She went for another glass of lemonade instead.
“One of the advantages of having the figure of a twelve-year-old boy,” Kiki said, making a disgusted face. Raven thought Kiki looked great, with long, lean legs and a slender, athletic body, her brown hair streaked with gold by the sun.
“What are you wearing, anyway?” Kiki asked. “Did you sew up something totally awesome?”
“I hope so,” Raven said. “I went through a whole stack of magazines from the Fifties to get ideas. It’s turquoise taffeta, with a skirt that ends just below the knee—it’s got a crinoline under it to make it extra full—and a tight, strapless bodice.”
“Sounds hot. Wow, I can’t believe you can make something like that yourself. If I had to make my own gown, I wouldn’t get to the ball until halfway into the next century.”
“And in the seniors’ division, Miss Kiki De Santis, being wheeled in now,” Raven joked. “So what’s your dress like?”
“It’s blue chiffon with puffy sleeves and a low neckline.” Kiki frowned. “I thought it was really pretty, but then Lacey gave me a hard time because I bought it at a secondhand store.”
“Where else are you supposed to get a dress from the Fifties? What’s she wearing? Some zillion-dollar brand-new copy of something old and authentic?” Raven couldn’t believe Lacey Pinkerton. Anything that wasn’t expensive wasn’t good enough for her.
“Actually, I think she’s wearing the dress her mother wore when she was Peach Blossom Queen,” Kiki said. She reached into the bag again.
“Her mom’s going to kill her if she doesn’t win this time, huh?” Raven said.
Kiki dropped her hand, a cookie halfway to her mouth. “Maybe she’s going to kill us if Lacey doesn’t win. Raven, doesn’t the idea of maybe being Queen scare you at all?”
“You mean because the last person named Peggy Sue was killed?” Raven was surprised at how much it did frighten her, now that Kiki had brought it up. She wrapped her arms around herself. “I guess with all the other stuff I’m worried about, I’ve managed not to think too hard about it. I mean, I can’t. I need that scholarship money too much.”
Kiki sighed. “I wish I could throw all my votes to you. I don’t even really want to be in the contest.”
Raven hoped she hadn’t made it sound as if that was what she wanted Kiki to do. Sure, Raven wanted to win, but she’d gotten to really like and respect Kiki lately. “Kiki, listen, let’s make a pact that if either one of us wins, we won’t let it get in the way of our friendship.” Kiki swallowed and gave a chocolatey smile. “Deal.
It’s more important than some contest anyway.”
“I thought being Queen was like a real dream for you,” Raven said.
Kiki frowned. “It is. I mean, it was. Before the murder. But I don’t want to wind up dead.” She lowered her voice, as if the killer might be right around the corner.
“You know, Kiki, if Spike’s guilty like they say he is, the Peach Blossom Queen is safe. He’s outta here. Gone. And if he comes back, it’s going to be in handcuffs.”
Kiki shook her head. “I don’t believe Spike did it.” She swirled her legs around in the pool. “He may act tough, but I remember one time these guys from San Pedro came into town when I was sitting on the green reading, and you could just tell they were here looking to get into trouble. Anyway, they found me. And they really started scaring me. I mean, there were about five or six of them, and they made this circle around me on the green. Well, all of a sudden, Spike roars up on his Harley. He comes right up on the grass and revs his engine real loud, like he’s going to run them over.” Kiki’s laugh rippled across the pool. “That got rid of them. Spike was really nice to me. He got me a soda and made sure I calmed down, and then he rode me on his bike all the way home. I can’t see him as the killer type.” She paused. “Killer eyes, maybe.” She smiled.
Kiki has a crush on Spike. Raven felt a stab of worry for her new friend. Spike was handsome. And he seemed like Mr. Cool. But he could be a killer. Kiki, however, seemed convinced that Spike was innocent and the real killer was still in Paradiso, just waiting for a new Queen to be chosen.
“Lacey doesn’t seem very scared about what might happen to her if she gets to be Queen,” Raven mused.
The corners of Kiki’s mouth turned down. “She’d probably scare the killer, not the other way around. She’s been so horrible lately.” Kiki gave a hard kick, and the pool water splashed up. “I know she’s never been an angel, but she used to be my best friend. Now she’s so wound up—coiled up like a snake, ready to bite.”
Raven thought that Kiki was better off without Lacey Pinkerton. But she could see Kiki was hurting. Kiki really was a loyal friend. “It’s the murder,” Raven said. “Since then, it’s like nothing can go right in this town.”
Her thoughts went to Vaughn, maybe right next door listening to his stereo or pumping weights in his basement, a bloody rag wrapped around his injured hand. “Nothing.”
CHAPTER 18
“What a rush! That’s an incredible feeling,” Vaughn exclaimed. He was walking back to the main cabin from the cockpit. “Did you see how the plane veered straight up like that when I pulled the throttle out?”
“I could feel it all right.” Lacey giggled. “I almost lost my veal Marsala. I think you need a few more lessons before they’ll let you go solo.”
Vaughn laughed. “I knew this would be a little different than flying the propeller plane my dad and I took up once. This thing cranks!” Vaughn looked around for a place to sit down.
“Right here, Vaughn,” Lacey said, motioning to the empty space on the couch. “I won’t bite.” Lacey was sitting on a plush sofa that faced a small round window. The interior of the jet was done in muted shades of pinks and roses. The salmon pink wall-to-wall carpeting was extra soft. The lighting, controlled by a dimmer switch that was built into a panel next to the couch, was set low. Out the window, Lacey could see the lights that dotted the San Diego harbor fading into the distance. “Look, you can see the moon. It’s smiling at us.” She patted the cushion.
Vaughn was a little hesitant, but he sat down on the couch next to her and looked out the window too. “Wow. There are a million stars out.”
“You know all the names, don’t you?” Lacey said, looking out and silently making a wish. I wish that Vaughn is as into me as I’m into him. This one’s coming true. I can feel it.
“I know a lot of the constellations,” Vaughn said, “but I get them confused. I learned them from my father. He learned them looking up from the New Hampshire woods. He claims they’re different back East.” Vaughn smiled.
Lacey was happy to see him in such a great mood. And to have him here, away from Paradiso, all to herself. “Sorry you came with me?”
Vaughn laughed. “Yeah, it’s horrible having dinner on a cliff overlooking the Pacific at sunset. And flying a jet is a drag, too. Thanks, Lacey. Seriously.”
“The restaurant was cute, wasn’t it? It was fun taking our shoes off and being barefoot like that.” Lacey tingled, remembering their feet touching under the cover of the billowy white tablecloth. It had been so romantic, out on the candlelit terrace, looking down at the ocean.
“Everything was great, Lacey. It’s really been a blast,” Vaughn said.
“What about being with me? Has that been so bad?” she asked coyly, grabbing hold of his arm and taking his hand in hers. She could feel that she had caught him unprepared. He stiffened a little at first. But he didn’t object either, so she hung on.
Lacey felt confident that this night was going to keep getting better. They sat quietly, hand in hand, for a while. She lay back on the sofa, resting her head against Vaughn’s shoulder, not wanting anything to ever change. Everything felt so wonderful. “What are you thinking, Vaughn?” she asked.
“You really want to know?” he said, a touch of uncertainty in his voice. “I was thinking about my family.”
“What about them?” Vaughn’s grip had tightened, as he’d said the word family.
He spoke softly, but with intensity. “I don’t know. I guess I was thinking about how they don’t really understand me. They say that everything they do is for my own good. Maybe they mean it, but I think they just can’t deal with me being different. They’re afraid I’m not a ‘true Cutter.’ Whatever that is.” He frowned. “They’re so caught up in the family image. Dartmouth and all that. I think they’re afraid I’m gonna destroy it somehow.”
Lacey knew the Cutters. With their old-world, old-money, Ivy League way, they were a different breed of exclusive from her family. Sometimes, they could even be more snobby than the Pinkertons.
“Why would you destroy your family’s name? You don’t mean to hurt them, Vaughn,” she said.
“No, I guess not. I don’t know …” His voice trailed off.
“Raven,” Lacey said. Then she was instantly sorry she had mentioned her name at all. Things were going so well.
There was a long pause. “Yep.” He nodded.
His hand tightened even more. It felt a little sweaty.
“They can’t stand her,” Vaughn admitted. “Never mind.” He sighed.
Lacey let it rest. She waited for Vaughn to calm down and get Raven out of his mind. She was hoping he was appreciating how nice their hands were together.
“You know, Vaughn, I’m glad we did this. I was supposed to spend the evening with Penny watching Madonna videos. Well, actually we could have gone to the show, but …” She paused and sighed deeply. “Never mind. It’s too long a story. Let’s just say I’ve got family problems too. Anyway, it’s a lot more fun holding your hand than watching Madonna with Penny,” She looked at his face for a reaction.
He smiled. “I’m glad too. Really,” he said. “Hey, I think we’re flying over the ocean again.”
Lacey looked out. “I guess the pilot’s just having some fun. He loves to be up in the air. It’s so dark down there. Spooky, huh? No one around but the two of us.” She sat up and looked into Vaughn’s baby blue eyes. “You do look gorgeous, Vaughn.”
There was an awkward pause. “So do you, Lacey. I’ve always thought you were beautiful.”
“Then kiss me.”
He didn’t let go of her hand, but he pulled back.
“What’s the matter, babe?” Lacey took her free hand and ran it through his hair. It felt soft. She let her fingers wander, stroking the side of his face. There was no resistance. Lacey gave a seductive giggle.
“Lacey …” Vaughn tugged at her hand, but she held on. He could have broken the grasp if he had really wanted to.
“What’s the matter, Vaughn? It feels good, doesn’t it?” She stroked his face again, drawing sensitive little circles on his cheek.
“But …” It was only a matter of time before he gave in to her.
“What’s wrong with feeling good once in a while?” Lacey pressed his hand softly. “That’s what it’s all about, isn’t it?” Their eyes studied each other for a moment. An intense moment. She smiled at Vaughn. He couldn’t resist. When she reached out for him, he opened up, taking her in his arms, and he joined her in a passionate embrace.
The kiss was blissful. Warm and wet and long. Lacey let her hands run wild through Vaughn’s wavy hair, keeping him close. She tickled his neck and face with soft touches, her nails gliding ever so lightly along his skin. His arms were wrapped tightly around her body, exploring the feel of every curve. Lacey was at the edge of control, losing herself in Vaughn.
And then it ended. She felt his body tighten up. Just like that, he stopped. He let go of her.
Lacey’s heart sank. “No. Don’t stop. Vaughn?” She reached out for him, but he refused her arms.
“Come here, baby. Please. Come to Lacey.”
“No.” Vaughn turned away. He bowed his head, and covered his face with his hands. “I’m sorry, Lacey. I can’t.”
“But you feel so good.” Lacey pulled Vaughn back into her grasp, wrapping her arms around his waist and pressing her head against his shoulder blades. He felt strong. But he felt tense, too. He was shaking.
“Please, Lacey. I can’t.” He unfolded her clutching arms. “I know it feels good. To me too. I can’t deny that. But it’s just not right.”
“Raven,” Lacey said.
He lowered his head. He couldn’t face her. “Uh-huh. I can’t get her out of my mind. I’m sorry, Lacey.”
Lacey fought, unsuccessfully, to suppress the flood of tears coming on. All her feelings of worthlessness and loneliness were returning. She knew that no matter what she said or did, she wouldn’t get Vaughn. Not now.
Lacey flicked a switch on the wooden panel next to the couch, signaling the pilot. “I’d like to go home now,” she said, thinking she sounded exactly like her mother when she gave orders to Manuel.
Lacey had nothing to say to Vaughn, who sat on the couch, his head hanging low. He didn’t say a word either, except for an occasional weak, “I’m sorry, Lacey.”
He should be ashamed, Lacey thought. She felt the sadness he had caused turning to bitterness and anger. Vaughn had let her think that he cared, only to let her down. Her hopes had been shattered. This was supposed to have been a special night. An escape from the mess of a life Paradiso had become. Tonight was for fun and excitement, with no strings attached.
The whole night was ruined. Lacey wished she had never invited him in the first place. Now she would return to Paradiso feeling worse than ever. And the last thing she was going to get when she returned home was sympathy from Mother and Daddy.
CHAPTER 19
I’m going to hate myself for this. Raven walked slowly up Winding Hill Road. Her cheeks were warm with shame at the thought of what she was about to do. She prayed she wouldn’t run into anyone she knew on the way.
Especially Vaughn. As she passed the Cutter estate she broke into a jog. Thank goodness for the high stone fence and the long landscaped lawn in front of the house. When she was out of range of Vaughn’s property, she slowed down again. She’d gotten by the first obstacle in the course.
The second obstacle was Kiki’s house. It was more dangerous, since you could see the road from the house. But from the sounds of it, the whole family was in the backyard by the pool. Raven got by there without being spotted also.
The third and final obstacle was the worst. It wasn’t just a matter of getting by the Pinkertons’ without running into Lacey. She had to get all the way inside the Pinkerton mansion. What if she got to the door, and Lacey was the one who answered it? Then she’d have to leave without doing what she’d come to do. A part of her actually hoped that might happen.
