Killer Knots Read Online Free PDF Page A

board?”
    “No way; I’m not going near the place. Dalton and I are just here to relax.” She leaned back while the busboy, a young lad whose name tag said he came from Romania, refilled their water glasses.
    “Hey listen, they’re playing Mozart’s string quartet number fourteen in the background,” Oliver told them.
    “We heard the greatest concert in Vienna,” Thurston boasted in his loud voice. “You’d have appreciated it, Olly. Europe has the most amazing opera houses. You should go to the Baths of Garacalla to see Aida. Fabulous experience.”
    Marla, feeling adrift, exchanged smiles with Betsy, who cracked her knuckles under the table. “I’ve been lucky to get this far, never mind to Europe. If I ever cut back my hours at the salon, I’ll do more traveling,” she told her new friend.
    As soon as she and Dalton finished dessert—he had Black Forest cake, and she’d ordered crème brulee—Marla scraped her chair back. The waiters hovered, whisking dishes off the table so as to reset the dining room before the next horde arrived.
    Maybe on another cruise, they’d ask for later seating so they wouldn’t be rushed. In this instance, though, she was glad to escape from her tablemates.
    “I need to go back to the cabin,” she told Dalton as she rose. “If you’ll excuse us,” she said to the others.
    “Mom said she’d save us seats at the show tonight if you don’t mind waiting for the ten-thirty performance. She wants to check out the casino first,” Vail said on their way upstairs.
    “That suits me fine. All the shops are open now, so we can take a look. I just need to freshen up.” The ship rocked underfoot, and she stumbled. Clutching the staircase railing, she realized they must be moving at a good clip. The swaying motion made her unsteady. She hadn’t noticed it in the dining room, possibly because they’d been closer to the water level.
    “I feel like I’m drunk,” Vail said, grinning as a swell made them fumble to the left.
    “It won’t be like this the entire trip, will it?” Her full stomach clenched as the next dip drove them starboard. “Maybe I should take one of those Bonine capsules.”
    Vail slapped her on the back. “Have a few more drinks; then you won’t notice.”
    Stopping on the next landing to catch her breath, she considered getting an exercise machine for their new home. “Did you think our dinner conversation was strange?” she asked.
    “I wasn’t listening.”
    “You were busy eating. I’m sorry about the mix-up in seating arrangements. Maybe the restaurant manager will straighten things out by tomorrow night.”
    “I hope so. He wasn’t much help this evening.”
    “Betsy seems nice. I don’t think we have much in common with the other people,” Marla offered.
    “They were fortunate to receive a free cruise ticket from an unknown donor.” He gave her an indulgent grin.
    The sexy curve of his mouth and the tenderness in his eyes turned her thoughts in another direction. Hmm…making love while the ship swayed could be rather erotic.
    Placing one foot above the other on the carpeted stairway, she resumed the climb. Her thigh muscles felt the strain. She did too much standing in place at work and not enough aerobics.
    “They must have a rich patron who wants to remain anonymous. Art museums always get wealthy contributors.”
    “So what’s bothering you?” He ran a finger inside his neck collar, making her want to loosen his shirt for him.
    “For colleagues who work together, they seemed awfully uncomfortable with each other. If I didn’t know better, I’d say things were tense among them.”
    “Well, sweetcakes, you don’t know better, and if we’re lucky, we’ll be seated with my parents tomorrow evening.”
    When they reached deck eight, she couldn’t remember if their room was port or starboard. Glancing at the corridors branching on either side of the elevators facing them, she hesitated. “Which way?”
    “We’re on that