Stranger Danger (Lucy McGuffin, Psychic Amateur Detective 4)

“Why are you smiling? And why am I suddenly nervous as hell?”

I’m smiling because tomorrow night, not only is this faker going to be exposed, Will is going to tell everyone that he’s the real J.W. Quicksilver. I can’t wait to see the look on everyone’s faces when they find out, especially Betty Jean’s. Not that I plan to gloat or anything. But, yeah, I plan to gloat. Heavily, as a matter of fact.

“No reason to be nervous,” I say.

“Now I’m terrified. Promise me you’re going to let me handle this.”

“I promise.” And I mean it too. Now that I’ve alerted the police about the con and Will has promised to tell everyone the truth, I can rest easy. “Sorry to kick you out, but I need to go to bed. Tomorrow’s going to get here before you know it, and I have muffins to bake.”

Travis nods toward my kitchen door. “Don’t forget to—”

“Lock up,” I finish for him.

But instead of leaving like I thought he would, we stand there, staring at one another. The room feels overly warm. Did I leave the oven on by mistake? Travis leans in close, like he’s about to kiss me.

His mouth is just a few inches away when I blurt, “You need to delete that photo of me.”

He stops cold. “The one you sent me tonight?”

“The one I accidentally sent you tonight.”

“Why would I delete it?”

“Because it’s awful. And … What if it ends up on the Internet? Or in some chat group?”

He looks like he’s about to laugh but wisely refrains. “First off, it’s not awful. It’s sexy … in a cute way. Secondly, I don’t plan to share it with anyone.”

“Then what’s the big deal about deleting it?”

“Lucy,” he says, his lips hovering dangerously close to mine. “Don’t you trust me?”

Oh boy. Yep. He’s going to kiss me. Only I can’t let that happen on account of I’m in love with Will. Before he can make a move, I shove him out the door, slamming it firmly behind him. “Drive safe!”

He chuckles from the other side. “Good night, Lucy.”

I lean against the wooden door, listening to the sound of his footsteps crunching against the gravel parking lot. Despite all his irritating qualities, Travis is a good guy. And yeah, not so hard to look at either. He’s going to make some girl deliriously happy. It’s just not going to be me.

The thought of Travis and some anonymous “other girl” makes me frown. Then I mentally shake my head. I can’t have my cake and eat it too. I’ll be in a relationship with Will, which is what I’ve always wanted. I should be doing cartwheels. Correction: I will be doing cartwheels. Just as soon as this whole J.W. Quicksilver mess is over with.

I call Will to tell him about the fake publishing scam.

“That bastard,” Will seethes. “So that’s what he’s up to.”

“Yeah. Good thing Travis is on the case.”

“You told Fontaine?”

I’m not sure why Will’s attitude bothers me, but it does. If he had just told everyone the truth tonight, Hoyt Daniels and the fake J.W. would already be behind bars.

“I didn’t tell him that you were J.W. Quicksilver, if that’s what you mean. But yeah, I told him all about the scam. I even got a picture of the guy impersonating you on my cell phone. Travis is going to see if he can find out who this joker really is.”

“Good idea,” he says grudgingly.

“So, I’ve been ordered to be at Betty Jean’s house by six. What time are you going to get there?”

“Why? What does it matter?”

“Because this is what I think you should do. Book club starts at seven. You should show up around twenty minutes later, that way we’ll make sure to have a full house. And just when everyone is lapping up all the BS this faker is spilling, you stand up and announce that you’re the real J.W. Want me to tape it with my new cell phone?”