Bead of Doubt Read Online Free PDF Page A

broom to it.
    Everyone helped clean up. Bernadine counted the money in the cash register because she was so organized I knew she would do it right. Cheri took care of poor Willow who wouldn’t go near Marlene and her red hot heels. Flora caught up on her phone calls while she stacked all the Divas projects in the storage room. Ginger, in true best friend style, cleaned the under and dusted the dust bunnies off the beads.
    We said our goodbyes, and they promised they’d all stop by tomorrow to check in on me. I locked the door behind them and went to get Willow in the office.
    “How did you do?” Sean was sitting in the office chair.
    “Sean!” I screamed. “You scared the holy hell out of me! How did you get in here?”
    He pointed to the window in the office.
    “I know we are in Swanee, but you really need to keep the window locked.” Sean’s feet hit the floor when I knocked them off the desk.
    “You can’t break into the place like you own it, Sean Harper. Now get out.” I demanded.
    Willow twirled her tail, and looked up at him with her big black eyes. It was beyond me, but she loved him. Most women did. That was the problem. A marriage was for two, not three or four.
    “Fine.” Sean stood up. “But if you need anything, call me.”
    His hand slid down my arm, giving me chills.
    Too bad , I thought. If only he could be faithful.
    I made sure he was gone and locked the front door again. I stood at the front of the shop and marveled at my hobby turned dream. I giggled like a girl.
    Finally my life was becoming mine and what I wanted to do.
    “Let’s get your leash and go home.” I patted my leg for Willow to follow me. “And we can’t forget the you know what.”
    I didn’t even want to say Yellow Spinet out loud. The thought of it made me nervous that Marlene had left it in my care.
    I attached Willow’s leash and opened the desk drawer to get the pouch. I felt around the back of the drawer, the only thing in there was the money Bernadine counted from the cash register. I put the money envelope in my back pocket.
    My heart stopped. I dropped Willow’s leash and pulled the drawer off the rollers. It had to be here somewhere.
    Nothing.
    I threw the drawer on the floor and scoured the rest of the desk. Not a sign of the pouch. Frantically I searched the office high and low. There was nothing there.
    “Marlene is going to kill me if we don’t find it.” I looked over at Willow with tears in my eyes.
    It didn’t bother her; she was asleep in the corner.
    There was nothing left in the office to search. The only things in there were the desk and the chair.
    Sean. I ran into the shop.
    I picked up the rotary phone on the counter and dialed his cell.
    “You need me already.” Sean answered.
    “No. Did you open my desk drawer by any chance?” I asked him. It would be out of his character to take the jewel. He would’ve said something about it if he did see it.
    “No. I didn’t even open the drawer. In fact I shut it.” Sean answered. “When I sat down, I had to shut it to put my feet up. Why?”
    “Oh, nothing.” I hung up the phone.
    Sean was too dumb to know what the gem was. He would’ve thought it was just another glass bead.
    I looked around the shop. I glanced around the floor. The under.
    I had to do it. Stick my hand in the under.
    With my eyes closed and ass up in the air, my elastic waist band was cutting into me, I sucked in and stuck my hand into the dark under of the hanging shelves.
    I knew Ginger had cleaned the under, but maybe somehow the gem was there.
    Nothing but dust bunnies.
    The phone rang, scaring the living crap out me of. I jumped up to get it and pulled my elastic pants up.
    “Hello?” I frantically answered.
    “You really should say The Beaded Dragonfly.” Marlene was on the other end.
    Thank god, she was going to tell me she had the Yellow Spinet.
    “Marlene. I’m so glad you called.” I said panting into the phone. I really needed to get some of this weight