Betting On Santa. Debra Salonen

here.”

      “Yes, I heard that. But maybe there’s someone else who knew her. This was two years ago or so.” Tessa gave the woman the address of the rental property Sunny had managed.

      “Oh. Is your sister the pretty blonde from out West?”

      “Yes. She’s from Oregon. Did you know her?”

      “No. Sorry. That was before I started here, but I saw a photograph of her at a staff party. She’s really beautiful.”

      “Thank you. Yes. Um…she was in a car accident last week. She’s in a coma, and I’m in town trying to piece together what happened. I thought she might have contacted some of the people she used to know. The only person I can remember her mentioning is Cole Lawry.”

      The line went silent a moment. “Oh, you poor thing. This must be so tough on y’all. Most of this happened before I came to work here, but from what I’ve heard, Cole left not too long after your sister quit. He’s very much a persona non grata around here, if you know what I mean. Messy divorce with the boss’s daughter.”

      Tessa blinked. His ex-wife was his boss’s daughter? “Oh? From what Sunny said, he seemed like such a nice man.”

      “Well, I guess that depends on who you’re talking to. Big Jim—he’s our head honcho—is probably the one to ask about your sister ’cause nothing happens in this company that he doesn’t know about. But I’d leave Cole Lawry’s name out of the conversation if I were you. This is Texas, and blood is a lot thicker than marriage vows, if you get my drift.”

      “Is…um…Big Jim there? Can I talk to him?”

      “Sorry. He’s in Dallas at the moment. Do you want me to take your number? He usually calls in for his messages.”

      Tessa thought a moment. “We’re at the hospital a lot, so I’ll try back. Thanks for your help.”

      “You’re welcome, and I’ll be saying a prayer for your sister, too. Bye, now.”

      Tessa closed the phone and gave her mother a condensed version of what the receptionist had told her. “Do you suppose Big Jim is Sunny’s Mr. Big?”