Seeing the Light (A Marie Jenner Mystery Book 1) Read Online Free PDF

talked. I told him about my old job and Gerald “The Tyrant” Turner, my boss from hell. He told me about his uncle, the private investigator. How he’d worked with him every summer while he was in high school and full time after, and how his uncle had talked about James taking over the business when he retired.
    “So how come you’re working here?” I asked. “It sounds like you had a good set up with your uncle.”
    “I know it sounds like that,” he said. “But sometimes the paycheques were few and far between. I needed more stability. You know—”
    “A living wage and benefits. I understand.”
    Our eyes locked. I mean, literally. I couldn’t have looked away if my life depended on it. I felt like I was drowning, but in that good way. Which meant I had to look away. I couldn’t.
    “Exactly,” he whispered. Then he looked down at his hands, and when our eyelock broke, I felt as though I’d been given a reprieve I didn’t really want. “I really hurt him, the day I told him I wasn’t going to go into the business with him. I feel bad about that.”
    I wondered if it had been as bad as it had been for me with my mom.
    Oh God. My mom. I was supposed to call her about Farley.
    I pulled my cell phone from my bag and looked at the time. I only had a few more minutes before my lunch hour was over.
    “Expecting a phone call?” James asked.
    “No. Actually, I need to make one.”
    He leaped up. “I’ll get out of your way.”
    “I wish you could stay,” I said, then felt my face heat. Good grief, I was acting like a lovesick teenager. “It’s just—”
    “You have to make a phone call.” He smiled. “Boyfriend?”
    I laughed. “No. My mother.”
    “Oh,” he said, and his eyebrows rose. “Your mother?”
    “Yep,” I replied. “My mother.”
    He hovered, and I knew he wanted to know why I was calling my mom in the middle of the day, but sharing time was definitely over.
    He took the hint and moved off, picking up his abandoned rake. “Next time I’ll bring the sandwich,” he said.
    “It’s a—” Good heavens, I’d almost said, “it’s a date.”
    “That sounds good,” I said. And then I pointedly turned away from him, and began to punch the numbers in to connect with my mother.
    I heard him move to the other side of the evergreen tree, and then the skritch skritch of his rake started. I knew if I could hear him, he was going to be able to hear me.
    He wasn’t trying to listen to my phone call, was he?
    I walked away from the bench, and James, and only when I could no longer hear his rake did I push “enter.” I realized I was probably being paranoid. However, sometimes being paranoid is a good thing.
    The phone rang once, and then I nearly jumped out of my skin when I heard Mr. Latterson’s voice behind me.
    “Jenner,” he said. “Shouldn’t you be working?”
    I turned and he was standing by the front door. He tapped his wrist, like he was pointing at a wrist watch. When I mouthed the words “Lunch hour,” he frowned.
    “It’s over,” he said, and disappeared inside the Palais.
    The phone rang in my ear a second time, so I quickly disconnected and ran for the door. Even though I’d managed to make myself late back from lunch, and Mr. Latterson had caught me at it, I felt nothing but relief. I hadn’t had to talk to Mom about Farley. I’d tried, and it hadn’t worked out.
    Telling myself I’d figure it out on my own, I hit the stairs running.
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

Farley: Marie Learns Something
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    I left Marie alone for a couple of days after that. I wanted to give her time to figure out what was going on with me. Not that I didn’t want to help, but I figured I’d leave it to a professional. Besides, all that crap she said about moving me on hadn’t made me feel too great.
    I enjoying hanging around, watching everybody. It was like living my life, without all the aggravation. When I wasn’t on one of my bloody crying jags,