“So the police were there,” Lizzie prompted, reaching for her wineglass. “Does that mean Eric was on the scene?”
I met Jane’s gaze. We both knew Lizzie was fishing for some juicy gossip on the handsome police chief, but I didn’t have any to give. “Yes, he was here. He was very thorough. He won’t make any judgment calls until he’s seen all the evidence and talks to the coroner.”
“He’s such a good person,” she said fondly.
“And he’s very attractive,” Marigold said, egging Lizzie on in her own subtle way.
“And how nice that he showed up himself,” Lizzie added, “instead of sending an underling.”
“There were plenty of underlings around, too,” I said dryly. Ever since Eric first suspected me of murder a few months ago, Lizzie had been lighting votive candles and praying that he would ask me out on a date. She was a natural-born matchmaker and thought a crime scene was as good a place as any to meet an eligible man.
I loved Lizzie like a sister and her husband, Hal, was a sweetie pie. But there was not enough love in this world to ever make me go out on another blind date again. Not after the last guy she set me up with was found dead.
I didn’t blame her for that, of course. And I didn’t blame her for thinking Eric would make a nice boyfriend for one of us. He was a great guy. But that didn’t mean I would allow myself to be set up on blind date with him. On the other hand, it wouldn’t be a blind date since I already knew him, right? And why were my thoughts headed in this crazy direction? It must’ve been the shock of finding Jesse today. There was no other explanation for it.
Marigold pushed her plate away and sat back in her chair. “Jane, I’d like to help you with the funeral arrangements. I’ll do whatever you need me to do.”
“Yes, let’s figure out what needs to be done,” said Lizzie, always the organizer, pulling a pad of paper from her purse. “Have you scheduled a time and place for the service?”
Jane sighed. “I thought I’d ask Mr. Bitterman to handle everything. Jesse wasn’t particularly religious, but I would like a memorial of some kind. And he was a veteran, so I’d like some recognition of his service. And afterward, I thought about inviting everyone back to Hennessey House, but . . .”
“But it won’t be open for business yet.” I finished the sentence for her because I knew what she was thinking. “Having a funeral service so close to your grand opening will put a pall on your party and might even affect your reservations.”
She sighed. “When you say it out loud like that, I feel so shallow.”
“Don’t,” Lizzie insisted. “You can have a lovely party at the Inn on Main Street and nobody will think anything of it. Well, I guess it’s not a party exactly, but—”
“No, let’s call it a party,” Marigold said. “We’re celebrating a life well lived.”
Jane nodded more firmly. “That’s right. I want to have a party and I want everyone to have a good time celebrating Jesse’s life.”
“Sounds perfect,” I said. “He would love that.”
“I’d be happy to cater it,” said Emily, who ran a successful catering company with her tea shop employees. “Unless you have something else in mind.”
“No, that would be wonderful,” Jane said. “Can you include a full bar? Something tells me we’ll all be in the mood for some liquid refreshment.”
“Absolutely. A full bar, hearty appetizers, and bite-sized desserts. How does that sound?”
“Wonderful. Thank you all so much.” She gazed around the table. “I couldn’t ask for better friends.”
“Oh, now you’ve done it,” Emily said, grabbing one of the tissues I was already handing out.
I’d placed tissue boxes strategically around the room, figuring there would be plenty of tears tonight along with a few laughs. All of us had known Jesse and loved him, so we told plenty of funny stories and jokes and made some somber guesses as to what had happened to him.
Yes, we’d loved Jesse, but more important, we all loved Jane and wanted to lighten her mood for a while.
Finally Emily returned to a subject I’d been wanting to revisit all evening but hadn’t brought up for fear of upsetting Jane. “I’m concerned about the possible breakin at Jesse’s. I think we should ask around town, see if anyone else has had their home broken into.”
I was happy to see Jane perk up. The last time the five of us had joined forces like this, we helped find a killer.
But then Jane frowned. “Shouldn’t we hold off until we know what actually happened at Jesse’s place? I would hate to frighten people with the idea that someone is breaking into houses around here.”
Lizzie lifted one shoulder, unconcerned. “I’m surprised the whole town doesn’t already know about the possible breakin. By morning, it’ll be front-page news.”
“True enough,” Jane said, and glanced around the table. “We wouldn’t have to make a big deal of it, right?”