039 The Suspect Next Door (14 page)

Before she could follow them in, Ned pulled her aside and put a small box in her hand. “I didn’t
get a chance to give you this yesterday,” he apologized. Opening the box, Nancy removed an elegant gold bracelet.

“Happy anniversary, Nan,” Ned said.

Nancy looked up, misty eyed. “Thanks for being my boyfriend, Ned Nickerson,” she said softly. “You’re the greatest.”

“You’re not half bad yourself,” he murmured softly, kissing her.

Standing on the front porch, the two of them turned around to look out at the street.

“You know,” Nancy told him, resting her head on his shoulder. “I mistrusted Trisha Rapp the first time I met her.”

“Oh?” Ned said casually. “And why was that?”

“She didn’t think much of River Heights!” Nancy exclaimed. “Can you imagine any decent person not liking River Heights?”

This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.