Poisoned Prose (A Books by the Bay Mystery)

this setup? I get to swoop in, bestow gifts and kisses, and then make a swift departure when he spits up or has a full diaper,” Olivia said with a wry grin.
    Kim sniffed the air. “You’re probably safe for another thirty minutes.” She smiled indulgently at her son. “What about you and the chief? Everything going okay?”
    After a moment’s hesitation, Olivia took off the long silver chain she had tucked under her shirt and held it out to Kim. At the bottom of the chain, the ring Rawlings had given her spun around and around. The gems embedded in the band of platinum caught the stray sunbeams coming through the window and glinted like tiny stars.
    “Oh, wow.” Kim’s voice was a breathy whisper. “Is this what I think it is?”
    “Yes, but I haven’t given him an answer yet,” Olivia said. “He told me to take the time I needed to think the whole thing over. To try it on for a few days.”
    Kim snorted. “Honey, if you don’t accept him, then you are clean out of your mind. First of all, this is the most gorgeous ring I’ve ever seen, and second, you two are good together. Actually, you’re better than good. You’re perfect for each other.”
    “I agree, but this is
big
. I’ve never been married. Never even came close. My longest relationship lasted six months, and that was over a decade ago.” Olivia put her palm on the baby’s warm belly. He squealed and kicked his legs in delight, and she gently tickled the bottom of his feet until he squealed again.
    “I can help you decide,” Kim declared. “I’ll ask you a simple question, and if the answer is yes, then you should marry the chief. Are you ready?”
    Olivia stared at the ring in her sister-in-law’s hand and said, “Really? You can make it that easy? Fine, fire away.”
    “When you wake up in the morning, are you happier to have your man in bed beside you or are you happier to be alone?”
    “To have him there,” Olivia replied instantly. “Absolutely. Even when I know he’s not going to be there, I reach for him. I reach for him while I’m still dreaming.”
    Kim threw her hands in the air. “There you go. Marry him.”
    “That’s it?” Olivia laughed. “That
was
easy.”
    Handing back the ring, Kim said, “Seriously. Try to imagine morning after morning without him.” When Olivia frowned, Kim gave a triumphant clap. “See? You don’t like the thought. You want to be with him. You two are way past the overnight-bag stage. There’s no going back now. It’s scary, I know. It’s a huge change, I know. But isn’t it worth the risk? To never be lonely again? To have the person who makes you laugh and pushes your buttons and holds you when you cry and leaves the toilet seat up—it’s all worth it when you open your eyes first thing each morning and he’s there. He’ll always be there. That’s true love. Not the stuff we see on TV or in the movies. But that familiar lump in the bed. That’s the real thing.”
    Olivia was astonished by the emotion behind Kim’s speech. She had no idea her sister-in-law was so insightful. “You should write that down.”
    Kim waved off the notion. “Go on, let me see how it looks.”
    Taking the ring off the chain, Olivia slid it on to her finger.
    “It looks right at home on your hand.” Kim’s eyes grew moist. “Oh, Olivia. Don’t take it off again. Not ever.”
    Saying nothing, Olivia scooped Anders into her arms and blew raspberries on his neck and cheeks. He smelled like sunshine and promises of days to come. His wordless coos and iron grip on her fingers made her believe that anything was possible. Even the kind of love that she’d always longed for. The forever kind.
    The next day, Olivia met Laurel and Millay for lunch at Grumpy’s where Dixie was hosting a farewell lunch for Lowell. Her cousin’s testimony had been instrumental in convincing Amabel and Greg to admit to their crimes. Subsequently, he’d become something of a local hero.
    Considering how Lowell had spoken of gaining respect with such longing the last time she’d seen him, sitting in
The Phantom of the Opera
booth in his stolen lab coat, Olivia found it strange that he was leaving Oyster Bay. He didn’t have a job lined up, and Olivia suspected that his police record would make it difficult to obtain one. However, Lowell told Dixie that he was leaving because he felt compelled to bring Violetta’s ashes home to the mountains.
    “I’m going to bury her with her brother,” he’d told Olivia