It had taken him longer to get here than Laurie might have expected. He needed to pack a variety of lenses for the job. Taking shots from a distance could be tricky, plus the light would change as sunset approached. He hoped he wasn’t too late. He didn’t want to disappoint Laurie.
He had been surprised and excited when Laurie hired him to take photographs without the subjects’ knowledge. The first time she came to his house, she and her father made it sound like such a horrible thing to do. Then she did a complete about-face, offering him money to do exactly the same thing.
He suddenly stopped walking. What if this was all a trick? The last thing he needed was another restraining order.
He was thinking about calling this whole thing off when he finally recognized someone. It was Jeff, the groom from five years ago. He hadn’t changed much. He was rushing into an alcove leading to another section of the hotel. Jeremy was about to follow him when he saw Jeff reemerge, this time with a dark-haired woman at his side. Jeremy looked through his camera lens and zoomed in for a closer look. It was Meghan, Amanda’s maid of honor.
Neither Jeff nor Meghan looked happy.
Jeremy immediately began taking pictures. Maybe he’d give them to Laurie, or maybe not. Either way, he couldn’t help himself. He loved to watch.
60
“Shhh! Everyone on the floor can probably hear us.”
Jeff Hunter didn’t care if the entire state of Florida heard them fighting. He had never been this angry with Meghan before. Worse, he felt betrayed.
The phone call he received while Meghan and Kate were at the spa had been from Mitchell Lands, Amanda’s estate lawyer. At first, Jeff assumed he was calling to express his condolences. The news of Amanda’s body being found was all over the news.
But that wasn’t the only reason the attorney called.
Jeff was so angry now he could barely recognize his own voice. “Amanda’s body was found only hours ago, and Lands was already calling to explain the process for moving her estate into probate. I told him I never wanted Amanda’s money,” Jeff said, “and then came the bombshell. Imagine my shock when he told me you called him this morning to ask about my inheritance. Why in the world would you call Amanda’s lawyer behind my back asking how to get the money from her trust fund? You know I’ve never had any interest in one penny of Amanda’s money, not even when we were supposed to get married.”
“Marrying Amanda is what you always really wanted, wasn’t it? I knew this day would eventually come, the moment when you realized that she was the only one you ever loved. You only married me because I was her best friend, the next closest thing to your beloved Amanda.”
Jeff couldn’t even recognize the woman who was sobbing on the hotel bed. Did she really doubt his love for her? Is that why she called the lawyer? Was she planning to leave him and take half of the inheritance? He would give her every cent if she wanted. He just wanted her to act like the wife he thought he knew better than anyone on the planet.
“Meghan, talk to me. Why did you call that lawyer? You should have told me. Do you realize how horrible this will look now that they’ve found Amanda’s body?”
Meghan buried her head in the pillow, leaving mascara stains on the crisp white cotton. “It was just one phone call. I wasn’t thinking about the show, and I certainly had no idea they’d find Amanda’s body, today of all days!”
“They found her rings. Amanda’s dead. All these years, you said you thought she was out there living a happy life. You must feel something.”
Now her volume outmatched his. “Of course I feel something. She was my best friend. You know how the producers asked me about that stupid fight we had over X-Dream workout clothes? I couldn’t have cared less about Amanda taking that idea. I was looking for an excuse to lash out at her because she was marrying you. Don’t you realize, after all these years? I’ve loved you since college, and I had to sit there and pretend to be happy for Amanda while you fell in love with her. I’ve always been your second choice.”
Jeff had never seen his wife this emotional. “That’s not true, Meghan. Amanda was-we were so different. And people change. I’ve never felt as right with someone as I feel with you. But you’ve got to tell me why you called that lawyer.”
“I promise, it’s not what you think. I can explain. You just have to wait.”
There was a knock at the door. Meghan looked through the peephole, then wiped her face with her palms.
“It’s Kate. I told her to swing by here before dinner. Now can you please stop yelling and have a little faith in me?”
In an instant, her outburst was over, and she was back to her cool, levelheaded self. At this point, Jeff had no idea where to place his faith.
Five years ago, when he was about to marry Amanda, he had nagging doubts about how well he really knew her. Now after the bewildering rush of today’s events, he found himself questioning how well he knew his wife.
61
Sandra Pierce suppressed a wince as her son, Henry, confirmed with the hostess that their reservation was for four people. All these years, she knew that something terrible had happened to Amanda. Despite what the police and public wanted to believe, Amanda would never have vanished on her own. But some part of Sandra had always held out a glimmer of hope that they’d find Amanda alive-that they might be a table of five again.
Walter was remarking on the unusual aquarium bar when Sandra saw a familiar group already seated at the back of the dining room. She let out a gasp, and Charlotte immediately grabbed her hand.
“Mom, are you okay?”
Walter, Charlotte, and Henry followed her gaze. Jeff Hunter was there, with that traitorous Meghan, along with Kate and Austin. Sandra could not stop staring at Jeff. As Jeff lifted his water glass, Sandra pictured that same hand around her daughter’s throat.
“I can’t stand the sight of him,” she hissed. “He killed Amanda, I just know it.”
The hostess had obviously overheard her. “Shall I change your table?” she asked. “I have one at the other end of the dining room.”
Sandra felt a comforting hand on her back and turned to see Walter, looking at her softly. “You know what?” he said. “Now that we’re here, I’m in the mood for steak. Would you mind if we went across the street? We can have the concierge call them for us on our way out.”
As they left the hotel, Henry pointed out the beginning of a beautiful sunset. The sky was purple and gold. Amanda would have loved it. That’s why she wanted to get married on the beach.
Sandra felt Walter’s strong arm around her. “I’ll never rest until we get justice for Amanda,” Walter said. “But tonight is about our family. We deserve a night in peace to remember Amanda.” They walked to dinner as a family.
Jeff Hunter saw the Pierce family turn away from the hostess stand and walk out. He had seen the expression on Sandra’s face. She was judge, jury, and executioner.
He wondered if he looked at Meghan in the same way. He wanted to stand up in the middle of the restaurant and scream at the top of his lungs, “I did not do this!”
His cell phone buzzed in his pocket. It was a text message from Nick: Boca’s a beautiful place, but I wish I could be there with you guys. Hope you’re doing okay, man.
Jeff would tell Nick later he was lucky to have left early. This dinner was a terrible idea. Austin was clearly bored without Nick. Next to Austin, Kate kept inching her chair farther away from him, probably remembering all of Austin’s awkward passes in college. Meghan was sipping water and barely talking. And Jeff wanted to leave this dinner table right now and demand that Meghan explain why she called Amanda’s lawyer about the will.