The Armstrong Assignment (A Janet Markham Bennett Cozy Thriller Book 1) by Diana Xarissa (books for 10th graders TXT) 📕

“My former wife thought that Lucy should have an opportunity to spend some time in North Dakota, where her family lived,” Bobby said. “I thought that was child cruelty.”

“North Dakota wasn’t all bad,” Lucy countered. “My grandparents adored me. I was completely spoiled.”

“I believe I spoiled you rather more completely,” Bobby argued.

“In different ways,” Lucy replied.

“In bigger and better ways,” Bobby said.

“What about you?” Janet asked Neil. “Do you live in Texas?”

He shrugged. “I have a house in Texas, an apartment in New York City, and a flat in London.”

“Which one do you consider home?” Janet wondered.

“For tax purposes, my home is in Texas,” he said.

Which wasn’t an answer, Janet thought but didn’t say. “And do you live in Texas as well?” she asked Tony.

“I do now,” he replied.

“Where are you from originally, then?” she asked.

“I wasn’t expecting an interrogation,” he replied.

Janet let herself look shocked. “I was simply trying to be friendly,” she said, trying to sound hurt rather than suspicious.

“Lighten up, darling,” Lucy told him. “He grew up in Cleveland, Ohio. He came to Texas for college and never left. Apparently it snows a lot in Cleveland.”

“That bring us to you,” Janet said to Theodore. “Have you always lived in Texas?”

He nodded. “I was born and raised in Dallas. This is the first time I’ve been outside of Texas, actually.”

Janet nodded. “How long have you been working for Bobby?”

“Six months,” he said. “Although it feels a good deal longer,” he added under his breath.

“And, Dixie, you’ve always lived in Texas?” Janet asked.

“Not always. I was born and raised there, but then I decided to see the world. My first husband was an Italian count. We got married when I was nineteen and divorced when I was twenty. By that time, I’d met my second husband. He was Russian, and when we were married, we lived in Siberia. That marriage lasted twenty-two months only because I was too cold to think straight for most of them.”

Janet chuckled. “My goodness, you’ve led an interesting life.”

“That wasn’t the interesting part,” Dixie told her. “After I left Igor, I moved to Mexico. My third husband turned out to be part of a major drug cartel. My parents had to send in the US Army to get me out of that marriage after two and a half years. They dragged me back to Texas for a few years. I got married again, to a man I’d known as a child. We quickly discovered that we had shared history but no interest in sharing our future. I ran away from that marriage on our third anniversary.”

“And if you’re thinking she’s doing better because each marriage lasted a bit longer, don’t be fooled,” Bobby interjected.

Dixie laughed. “My next husband was a man I met in Las Vegas. I’d gone there to drown my sorrows after my fourth marriage fell apart and I ended up marrying him the day after I met him. We were divorced six weeks later.”

“My goodness.” Janet didn’t know what else to say.

The waiter interrupted Dixie before she could tell the rest of the story. Janet ended up ordering for everyone, as the waiter either couldn’t or wouldn’t understand English. As soon as he’d left the room, Dixie continued.

“At that point, I decided that I was done with men,” she told Janet. “So I flew to a private island, one that was owned by a friend of mine. He was very happily married when I arrived. Six months later, he was divorced and we were planning a wedding. I changed my mind the day before the wedding and flew home. He’s still angry, but I imagine he’ll get over it one day.”

“I doubt it,” Lucy said. “I was there in the summer and he still wouldn’t allow anyone to say your name.”

Dixie shrugged. “If we had married, we’d be divorced now anyway, and the situation would be much the same.”

“That’s very true,” Lucy agreed.

“I’m afraid to ask what happened next,” Janet said after a moment.

“After that near miss, I’ve managed to keep myself single,” Dixie replied. “With the benefit of hindsight, I’ve realised that I simply should have married Bobby back when I had the chance. He’s the only man I’ve ever met who can keep up with me, and the sex is incredible.”

Janet nearly choked on her water as Lucy made a face.

“Too much information,” Lucy said firmly.

Dixie grinned. “I talk too much,” she laughed.

Bobby nodded. “It’s part of your charm,” he told her.

“The food is very good,” Edward said after a moment.

“It’s not that different to what I can get at home,” Bobby complained.

“You should have read the menu yourself and ordered something exotic,” Lucy said.

“Like you did?” Tony asked, eyeing the plate in front of her. Lucy had ordered the same chicken dish about which Bobby was complaining.

She shrugged. “I’m enjoying my meal and I couldn’t care less that it’s similar to what I could get at home.”

“Mine’s very good,” Theodore muttered.

“What did you do before you came to work for Bobby?” Janet asked him.

He stared at her for a minute and then shrugged. “After college, I worked for a bank for a few years before moving into recruitment. I was working as an executive recruiter, but when I saw the job with Bobby, I decided it was time for a change.”

“How’s that working for you?” Lucy drawled.

Theodore flushed. “It’s a very different sort of job, but I’m enjoying the challenge.”

Lucy laughed. “Of course you are.”

“How did you and Tony meet?” Janet asked the woman, changing the subject.

Lucy looked at Tony and shrugged. “In a bar or restaurant or something like that.”

“You don’t remember?” Dixie asked. “Even after