Bikinis in Paradise (Tj Jensen Pardise Lake Mysteries) (17 page)

“Given the fact that you have a dead Tropical Tan employee and a missing model
, it’s probably a good thing you were here,” Jenna pointed out.

“Yeah, I guess that’s true.”

“Any news on either?”

“Actually, yes. It looks like not only was Fenton Ridley having an affair with Tonya, his son Porter m
ight have been as well.”

“You mean Tonya slept with the father
and
the son?”

“It looks like it’s a strong possibility. Fenton isn’t saying anything, but based on what I witnessed today, I can totally believe Porter might be guilty of the deed.”

“Why? What did Porter do?” Jenna asked.

Tj filled her in on the disturbing encounter she’d witnessed between Jazzy and Porter.

“Wow. As gross as I find the whole thing, I guess sleeping with your dad’s mistress and having your dad find out and exile you from the other models could be a motive for murder.”

“That’s what I thought,” Tj agreed. “Although in all fairness, I don’t actually
know
that Fenton found out about Porter and Tonya. And besides, there’s more. There’s a possibility that neither man murdered Tonya. In fact, it’s possible she wasn’t murdered at all.”

“Okay, now I’m confused.”

“Roy seems to think it’s possible that the blow to Tonya’s head could have been due to a fall.”

“A fall? I thought the autopsy indicat
ed a blow to the head by a rock.”

“That’s what the report says
, but we both know that our local coroner is getting on in years. I’m going to ask Doc to take a look at the body and the original autopsy report. I should have done that in the first place, but given the fact that Tonya was also tied to an anchor and sank, it seemed pretty evident that she was murdered, and based on my own observation, a blow to the head fit. Do you think this speaker should be farther to the left?”

Jenna stood back and considered Tj’s question. “No
, I think it’s good.”

“Then I guess we
’re done here.” Tj jumped off the bandstand and called Echo to her side. “Let’s head over to the cabins and check to see whether the Tropical Tan folks need anything. They’ve been a fairly demanding group this year.”

“Aren’t they demanding every year?”

“Yeah, but this group seems particularly bad. If they run low on anything, you can be certain that someone is going to have a rant. They should change the title of the competition to Ms. Tropical Diva.”

Jenna laughed. “Just two more days and the nightmare will be over. In the meantime
, you have a missing girl to find and a suspicious murder to solve. Seems like that should be enough to keep you distracted.”

“More than enough,” Tj agreed as she stopped in the laundry to fill a cart with clean towels.
It had been Leiani’s idea to hold the Tropical Tan competition at the resort in the first place. And while it did bring in early revenue, which was important to ensure that each season got off to a good start, Tj found that she was having less and less patience with the finicky models.

“So why does Roy suspect a fall?” Jenna asked as sh
e, like Echo, followed Tj across the resort after she’d gathered the supplies she’d anticipated she might need.

“
A friend of his is an intern, and he noticed some anomalies.”

“Have you asked H
unter about it?” Jenna wondered as she helped Tj drop off towels in one of the cabins the models had been using for massages. The furniture had been moved and the room partitioned so that multiple massage tables could be set up and still offer some privacy. 

“Not yet
, but I intend to. I figure I’ll wait until after the BBQ judging and then talk to both Hunter and Doc. If nothing else, maybe I can have them both take a closer look at the report.”

“Not to be dense or ask a stupid question
, but does it really matter?” Jenna asked as they made their way to the next cabin. “We know Tonya is dead. We know someone tied an anchor to her ankle and sank her in Secret Cove. It seems like murder any way you slice it.”

“Hunter told me that Tonya was dead when she went into the water. Th
at would be pretty evident due to a lack of water in the lungs. I don’t think even our coroner could mess that up. But what if Tonya slipped and hit her head and died as a result? Whoever she was with might have panicked and sunk the body. If that’s what happened, then the person who did it would only be guilty of covering up a death, not murder.”

Tj stoppe
d in front of the cabin that was being used as a hair salon. The women lined up in chairs receiving blow-dries made her think of Annabeth and her desire to have her hair done. Maybe she could arrange something the next time she saw her. Nothing drastic, but perhaps a good wash and a trim.

“I’m
still confused.” Jenna stopped walking as Tj made the decision to go inside. “Are you investigating Tonya’s murder or Kiara’s disappearance?”

“Both. No
, actually, neither,” Tj corrected herself. “I don’t know. I just know that something went down and I want to know what. Kiara is missing and may still be alive and in need of our help, so I guess finding her is my priority, but I have to admit to being curious about what happened to Tonya. Roy seems to be in over his head and there appears to be more going on behind the scenes at the Tropical Tan Corporation than meets the eye.”

Tj briefly filled Jenna in on what she had learned from Roy.
She was just getting to the part about Porter’s afternoon tryst with Jazzy when Chloe walked up.

“Afternoon
, Tj,” Chloe said.

“
How was your day?” Tj asked the young girl, who was leaving the salon.

“Excellent. And yours?”

“It was pretty excellent as well. This is my friend Jenna. Jenna, Chloe.”

“Happy to meet you,” Jenna answered.

“Chloe is hoping to win the competition in order to gain the scholarship that’s part of the prize package,” Tj explained.

“That’s fantastic.
Where do you want to go to school?” Jenna asked.

“I haven’t r
eally thought about it. I haven’t had the financial resources to apply to top school up to now. I know there are a lot of good options out there and I should look at everything each school has to offer. I guess I’ll figure all that out if I can work out the rest.”

“Makes sense.
Good luck with tomorrow’s events.”

“Thank you. I have to admit I’m getting nervous,” Chloe shared. “Tomorrow is the talent competition and I plan to sing a song. I’ve never s
ung in front of a big crowd before. I’m afraid it will come out all high and squeaky.”

“I have a friend
who’s a fantastic voice coach,” Tj offered. “He’s here tonight for the BBQ cook-off. I’d be happy to introduce you. Maybe he would be willing to listen to your song and give you some feedback.”

“That would be
great.” Chloe smiled. “I have to check in with the group organizer, but I can meet you in half an hour.”

“Perfect. I’ll be up by the BBQ booths.”

“Thank you so much.” Chloe hugged Tj. “It was really nice to meet you,” she said to Jenna before trotting off.

“She seems nice,” Jenna commented.

“She is. She’s a lot more serious than many of the girls. I really hope she wins.”

“If anyone can help her with her song
, it’s Kyle. The man is a miracle worker.”

“Don’t I know it,” Tj agreed. “I don’t know what I would have done with my choir assignment if he hadn’t offered to help out.”

“So what’s next on the agenda for the girls?” Jenna asked.

“There
are evening gown and resort wear competitions this evening after the BBQ judging. This year each girl is judged in five outfits. Three are chosen by the Tropical Tan staff and the other two are chosen by the participants themselves.”

“Wow, that’s a lot of changing.”

“Tell me about it. Each girl has someone assigned to help dress her so that everything moves along in an efficient manner. It’s really quite a production.” Tj paused and looked around. “It looks like I’ve done what I can. Let’s head over to the BBQ and root on the guys.”

“Who do you think is going to win?”
Jenna asked as they walked back across the resort.

Tj shrugged. “
All the men who are entered have competed before and have made improvements to what seemed like perfectly fantastic recipes already. I think they all should win. I guess the judges will have to figure out some way to decide whose BBQ is actually the best.”

“I think I’m going to have a bite of each one,” Jenna decided. “Last year I filled up
on Nolan’s pork ribs because it was the first booth I visited. They were delicious, but I didn’t have room to try anything else.”

“Yeah
, I’ve done that before too. I think I’m going to Jake’s booth first. Hunter said Jake was pretty mad that he insisted on chicken over the usual ribs. I’m going to make a big fuss about how it’s the best chicken I’ve ever tasted. I know Hunter is just trying to look out for his grandfather, but I feel bad for Jake. It must be hard to live with your doctor. Makes it almost impossible to cheat.”

“I heard Jak
e was back in the hospital for a few days last month. How’s he doing?”

“Okay
, I guess,” Tj answered. “He had a second heart attack, but this one was mild. He’s getting on in years and these things happen, but I know that as his doctor
and
his
grandson, Hunter wants to keep him healthy as long as he can.”

“You know if you go over to his booth
he’s just going to try to convince you to marry Hunter while he’s still alive to see it,” Jenna warned her.

“I know. I wish it was that easy. There
’s nothing I’d like more than to make Jake happy. He’s always been there for me. Almost like my own grandfather, although getting married to make him happy would be a bit extreme.”

“Jake just wants you and Hunter to both be happy and settled.
In his mind, the easiest way to accomplish that is to marry you to each other.”

Tj laughed. “I know. Jake knows that things are a lot more complicated than he wants them to be. Personally
, I think he just enjoys the banter. He calls me Hunter’s girl and Hunter and I deny it. It’s almost like some silly script we repeat over and over again.”

“I bet that when he’s gone
, that silly script will be the thing you miss the most,” Jenna speculated.

“You know,” Tj felt her heart tighten at the thought of Jake
not being there to tease her, “you could be right.”

Echo decided to take a nap under the table Ben and Kyle had set up for distributing their ribs. Tj introduced Chloe to Kyle, who was more than happy to help her. Ben held down the fort while Chloe and Kyle wandered over to the bandstand where the competition would take place the following day to practice. Ben said he didn’t need help, so Tj and Jenna wandered from booth to booth, speaking to each contestant and sneaking a taste of their entries. In the end, Doc and his melt-in-your-mouth brisket took the grand prize. All of the entries were delicious, and Tj was fuller than she could remember being for quite some time by the time she invited everyone back to the house to talk about Roy’s opinion on Tonya’s death. Somehow, in light of the new evidence, it seemed like a good time to have a powwow to get everyone’s input. Most of the people in town believed that Tj was on a roll when it came to solving the unusual rash of murders in the area, but she knew that in every instance it had been a team effort.

“I can’t believe you think we need dessert,” Jenna commented as she helped Tj carry the three cheesecakes she’d snagged from the Grill on her way back to the house.

“Guys are guys. They always have room for dessert. I guess we should make some coffee.”

“Is Jake coming over with Hunter
? I doubt he’s going to be allowed to eat cheesecake,” Jenna pointed out.

“I had
the chef make a special dessert for him. He’ll love it, and there’s nothing about it that Hunter could disapprove of. I guess we’ll just plan to sit at the dining-room table. If Hunter brings Jake and Doc brings Bookman, that will be six of us. I’m sure Kyle and Grandpa will come along, so let’s figure on a total of eight. Let’s set out eight cups and eight plates.”

“I think we’d better make that nine,” Jenna s
aid as she looked out of the window. “It looks like Nolan is coming along as well.”

Tj hugged each man as
he came through the door. She’d filled Doc and Hunter in on what was going on when she’d asked them to come over for dessert, so the conversation quickly moved on to the news Roy had shared with her concerning the autopsy report. The fact that Tonya had been found in the cove was now common knowledge, although the police were being selective in which details were made public.

“To be honest
, I didn’t look at the report all that closely,” Hunter, who was sitting next to Tj, admitted. “I hadn’t looked at it at all until Tj called me the other night. I pulled it up on my computer, skimmed down to the summary, and left it at that. There didn’t seem to be any question that the woman was murdered, and the blow to the head was evident to the naked eye. Not to take the easy way out, but reviewing autopsy reports really isn’t my job. I normally only look at them if asked to. Besides, it was the end of the day and I was tired.”