thirty-eight

Nina did a fairly passable job of pretending that she wasn’t expecting a private reunion with Nigel. Of course, she was wearing a black silk robe, and from the looks of it, nothing else, so I was pretty sure my presence was a surprise. At least, I sincerely hoped it was.

“Darling!” she cooed to me after greeting Nigel a shade more enthusiastically than necessary. “I’m so delighted to see you again. And who is this?” she asked, looking down at Skippy.

“This is our dog Skippy,” I explained.

“Are you sure he’s a dog?” she asked. “He’s so big.”

“I know,” said Nigel. “We suspect that he’s wearing lifts, but we haven’t been able to catch him.”

Nina looked at him and laughed. “Have you been drinking?” she asked.

Nigel shook his head. “No, why? Do you think I should be?”

Nina laughed again and said, “I’ll take that as a hint. Please, make yourselves comfortable.” She waved us to take a seat in the living room while she went to the sideboard and poured a generous splash of scotch into a glass. She took a sip and then turned back to us. “So what’s your pleasure?” she asked. “I have wine, gin, vodka and, of course, Chivas Regal,” she said indicating the bottle in her hand. “If I remember correctly, Nigel, that’s one of your favorites.”

“It is. Thank you,” said Nigel with a nod. “I’m surprised you remembered.”

Nina winked. “I have a very good memory,” she said.

When she turned back to the sideboard to pour two more glasses, I took the opportunity to flick Nigel on his ear. He smothered a smile and shrugged. Nina turned back, drinks in hand, and walked over to us. “Is it true that the police arrested Harper for Dan’s murder?” she asked as she handed us our drinks.

“I’m afraid so,” Nigel answered.

Nina suddenly froze. “Oh dear God,” she gasped. “Is that why you’re here? Did Harper kill Dan because of his affair with me?”

“No, it’s nothing like that,” I said. “Besides, Harper didn’t kill Dan.”

Nina glanced sharply at me. “Well, you certainly don’t think I had anything to do with it, do you?”

I smiled. “Of course not,” I said. “We’re only here because we wanted to ask you a few questions about Dan.”

“Well, that, and because you serve an excellent scotch,” Nigel said with a wink as he took a sip of his drink.

Nina let out a throaty laugh and curled up on the opposite couch. “Oh Nigel,” she said. “You could always make me laugh.” She tucked her feet under her legs and arranged the folds of her robe over her legs. “Well, what did you want to know?” she asked.

“How long were you and Dan together?” Nigel asked.

Nina tilted her head. There was no trace of embarrassment as she considered the question. She reacted no differently than if Nigel asked her what she had for dinner last night. “Hmmm,” she said as she tapped the edge of her glass with her finger. “Not that long really; a few weeks, maybe. It certainly wasn’t serious.” Suddenly her gaze turned to me. She regarded me for a moment and then said, “I know Harper is your friend, and as such, you probably think I’m horrible.”

I shook my head. “Of course not,” I said. “And neither does Harper. To be honest, I think she was a bit relieved.”

Nina’s brows drew together. “She was relieved?” she repeated, her tone puzzled.

Leaning forward a bit in my chair. “Harper told me about Dan’s penchant for full-body waxing,” I confided. “Between you and me, she hated it.”

Nina blinked. “Oh,” she said. “I see.”

I nodded. “So you needn’t worry about Harper holding a grudge or anything,” I said. “Besides, Dan never made a secret of his affairs.”

Nina took a sip of her drink. “Good. I’d hate to think that I was the cause of any additional pain for her.”

I shook my head and leaned back in my chair. “Not at all. But I was curious about one thing. Why did Dan give you such a nasty review? Usually his trysts ended amicably.”

Nina lifted a slim shoulder before answering. “I may have said a few things that got back to him,” she said.

“Things like what?” I asked.

Nina took a sip of her drink before answering. “To be honest, I wasn’t a big fan of the waxing either,” she said. “I felt like I was making love to a Ken doll.”

Next to me Nigel almost spit out his drink.

“I can well imagine,” I said.

“Well, luckily, it was a short-lived affair,” Nina went on. “I find those are the best.”

“Is that why you broke off your engagement with Fletcher Levin?” I asked.

Nina looked startled. “Yes,” she finally said. “I was just eighteen and starting my career. I realized that I wasn’t cut out for marriage and a family.”

“You went to Europe after that, didn’t you?”

Nina’s lip’s tightened and her eyes shuttered. “That’s right,” she said.

“You were there for about a year, is that right?” I asked.

Nina gave a tight smile. “That’s right.”

“Were you in a production?” I asked.

Nina took another sip of her drink. “No. I took a little sabbatical,” she said with a casual shrug. “Being engaged to Fletcher Levin—even for only a brief time—rather took its toll on me.”

I smiled sympathetically. “I quite understand. He strikes me as being somewhat dogmatic in his views about women, especially once they become mothers.”

Nina drained the rest of her drink. “You’ve no idea,” she said.