Deadly Inheritance: A Romantic Suspense by Amy Corwin Page A

His wispy brown hair had given up the battle with his high forehead, and his large nose formed a prominent protrusion above a weak—almost non-existent—chin. But despite his shyness and stutter, he had a plain gold band on his left hand, indicating that someone had fallen for the kindness in his soft, hazel eyes.
    “So you’re little Nora, and who’s your friend?” the woman with the bleached hair asked, her gaze still fixed on Gabe.
    “Gabe,” he replied as he sat down next to Nora. He smiled at the blonde, even though she had to be at least twice his age and wore a huge diamond and equally gaudy diamond-studded wedding ring on her left hand.
    “Well, Gabe, I’m Candace Westover. Everyone calls me Candy.” The blonde laughed. “As in eye-candy .”
    Eye -Candy straightened in her chair and touched the base of her plump neck, at the beginning of the curve of her impressively buoyant cleavage, with the well-manicured fingertips of her left hand. Her diamond ring twinkled in the bright light streaming through the windows.
    Between the glittering jewelry and the speculative gleam in her brown eyes, Nora wondered if Candy thought Gabe was the kind of man who viewed married women as fair game.
    Nora glanced at Gabe. He wore a bland, unreadable expression that failed to reassure her. For all she knew, Candy might be right.
    Michael blinked several times, took a deep breath, and stuttered, “As S-Sarah said, I thought she should join us. Hope you don’t mind.” Once the words started to flow, his stutter lessoned and then disappeared.
    “That’s fine. I think it’s a good idea, in fact. So are you Michael—or is it Mike?” Nora asked.
    He nodded. “Mike.”
    “Mike it is.”
    He smiled and nodded again in relief before sipping his ice tea, clearly relieved to have that introduction completed.
    The woman next to Gabe leaned forward, propping her forearms against the edge of the table, her purple-tipped, crow’s-wing black hair brushing her plate. “Kirsty Stevens.” She gestured toward the man sitting across from her. “And that’s Andrew James—he goes by Drew. So that’s all the cousins. Over to you, Sarah.”
    Drew had brown hair and brown eyes that resembled Nora’s father enough to make him seem familiar. The twinkle in his eyes and his charming smile completed the resemblance. He smiled at Nora, winked, and shook his head, as if amused by Kirsty’s attempt to end the introductions and move on to lunch.
    “One minute of silence, please, before we begin our meal,” Sarah said, glancing around the table.
    Candy sighed and rolled her eyes, but the others immediately clasped their hands in their laps and bowed their heads. No one said a prayer out loud, but when Nora peeked sideways at Sarah, the woman’s thin lips were moving silently. At the end of the minute, Sarah picked up the dish of vegetables and passed it to Candy on her right.
    “Steamed veggies? Again?” Candy wrinkled her nose and took a small spoonful before passing the bowl to Drew. She wiped her hands on her napkin as if she’d been contaminated by touching the serving bowl.
    Sarah ignored her, picked up a small white dish, and handed it to her. “Here are some herbs if you want. They’re healthful, and a lot of us are watching our weight these days.” Her gaze flicked to Candy’s expansive bosom. Her mouth tightened into a thin line.
    “Maybe so, but it’s still boring.” Candy passed the dish of herb seasoning to Drew who spooned out a liberal helping to sprinkle over his vegetables. “Steamed vegetables, poached chicken breast, and brown rice. Just like being at a health spa, isn’t it, Cousin Nora?”
    “It looks great.” The rubbery chicken tried to slip off Nora’s plate when she attempted to cut it. After one taste, she picked up the bowl of herbs and sprinkled them over everything on her plate. Seasoning of any kind could only help when the predominant flavor seemed to be water.
    It wasn’t that the food