Pecan Pies and Homicides Read Online Free PDF Page B

beautiful young woman with creamy skin and long silvery blond hair stood behind the wheelchair. She didn’t appear to be listening to what was being said and her gaze was fixed on the French doors leading to the back terrace.
    Seeing Ella Mae, Opal didn’t bother to hide her surprise. “Ms. LeFaye. I wasn’t expecting you this evening.”
    Ella Mae smiled at the strangers and introduced herself. “I know, and I’m sorry to interrupt. I just need a moment of your time.”
    â€œCan’t it wait, dear?” Opal asked with disarming sweetness. “Mr. Morgan and I were just discussing the relocation of his successful computer software firm to Havenwood.”
    The man looked Ella Mae over with an air of detachment. She felt like a racehorse being examined for sale. “A LeFaye? Any relation to Adelaide LeFaye?”
    â€œShe’s my mother.”
    â€œIn that case, yours is another important Havenwood family and I believe you should be made aware of our circumstances. Please”—he waved at the vacant chair next to Opal—“I’m Robert Morgan and this is my wife, Eira.”
    The lovely young woman smiled shyly. Ella Mae caught a quick glance of pale gray eyes before Eira averted her gaze once more. She was as slender as a ballerina and wore a slip of a dress made of ice blue satin. “Your name is beautiful,” Ella Mae said. “What does it mean?”
    â€œSnow,” Robert answered before Eira could even open her mouth. “My wife was a dancer when we met. I went to see
The Nutcracker
in Atlanta and she was in the ‘Waltz of the Snowflakes.’ She outshone every woman on the stage. The Sugar Plum Fairy couldn’t hold a candle to her.”
    â€œYou look so graceful just standing in place that I can’t imagine how wonderful it would be to see you dance,” Ella Mae told Eira. “Are you still performing?”
    Robert rapped his knuckles against the arms of his wheelchair. “Unfortunately, she spends most of her time taking care of me. Speaking of which, my darling girl, would you get me another helping of Thai shrimp? They’re irresistibly delicious.”
    When Eira hesitated, Robert’s tone turned brisk. “Go on, you don’t care for this business talk. Actually, forget the shrimp. Why don’t you have a little fun? After what we’ve been through, you should enjoy the party.”
    â€œOf course,” Eira said. Head bent, she excused herself and made for the door.
    Ella Mae touched Eira on the elbow as she passed. “I’ll make sure to find you later on. My aunt runs the Havenwood School of the Arts and I’d love for the two of you to meet once you’re settled.”
    Eira’s face lit up like the sun. “Oh, I’d like that,” she said in a voice filled with longing, and then left the room.
    â€œYou’ll have to forgive my wife,” Robert said. “She hasn’t been herself since the fire. It’s not easy to be shackled to an older man in a wheelchair either, but I couldn’t do without her. She’s an angel.”
    Robert Morgan’s words didn’t sound sincere to Ella Mae, and she tried to hide the instant dislike she’d taken to the man. After all, he and his community were in need of a fresh start, and since Ella Mae had so recently been given one of her own, she decided to be as friendly as possible to the people from Tennessee.
    â€œWould you tell me about the fire?” she asked.
    He nodded gravely. “It was set deliberately. There was no camper forgetting to stamp out his fire or a careless smoker leaving a lit butt on a pile of dry leaves. This was arson. And it caught us all by surprise. Our grove has never been threatened and we’ve flourished in our little mountain town for over two hundred years. Of course, our numbers have grown smaller and smaller over time, but we’ve remained strong.”
    â€œMy