Vista de Lirio Bundle

Desert sunshine casts the darkest shadows...

Fall into the fabled neighborhood of Vista de Lirio, an eccentric oasis in a desert town where the rich and famous come to play. That is, when they don't end up dead. Three friends stumble into psychic powers and discover that they've become unexpected detectives in a mystery that's more unbelievable than a tinsel town soap opera.

Defunct directors, scheming stars, and more than one famous ghost populate the exclusive compounds of Vista de Lirio. Can Julia, Vivian, and Evy manage to unearth their secrets without getting buried in scandal themselves?

Chapter One
There was something magical about nights in the desert. Julia Brooks stepped out of the guesthouse on her ex-husband’s estate, marveling at the lights and music that filled the evening. She walked up the brick path, circling the back patio of the Spanish estate in Palm Springs and toward the sounds of revelry centered around the pool.
She’d heard the guests at Dean and Sergio’s monthly dinner party from inside the guesthouse—it wasn’t her first time—but nothing could prepare you for the onslaught of eccentricity and friendly chaos that awaited guests at Sunday Dinner.
It was her first party as a new resident of Vista de Lirio, the wealthy and exclusive corner of Palm Springs where Dean, her ex-husband and business partner, had lived for twenty years.
Julia spotted an elegant woman in a vintage emerald gown from the corner of her eye. The woman walked soundlessly across the grass, stopped to give Julia a curious look, then continued toward the deeper shadows of the garden.
“Hey, gorgeous!”
She turned toward the sound of the familiar voice and saw Dean waving her over to a table covered in wineglasses, champagne flutes, and myriad bottles of bubbly and other libations.
She spun around. “I came prepared.”
“You look fantastic.” He leaned down, kissed her cheek, and handed her a glass of champagne all in one smooth motion. “I see you got the memo.”
Julia looked down at the rich blue caftan that nearly swept the ground, then around the glittering azure pool. “This is my first caftan, Dean.”
“You’re in Palm Springs now, darling. It won’t be your last.” Dean was six foot tall with silver-grey hair and a jaw that seemed to get more sculpted the older he got. “Trust me, you’re going to love it here. You already fit right in.”
She knew the rich cerulean color of her silk caftan set off her blond hair and clear blue eyes, but she couldn’t escape the feeling that she was walking around in public with a bedsheet thrown over her bra and panties.
Julia wasn’t in Orange County anymore.
She sipped her champagne for courage. “I think we should wander.”
Dean motioned toward the crowd. “Sounds like a plan.” He pointed at the table. “Just come back to the bar and help yourself when you need a refill, or grab a waiter if you can catch one.”
They strolled through the bunches of people dancing near the band. There was always live music at Sergio’s parties, and that night it was a group that was currently covering Gogol Bordello’s “Start Wearing Purple.” She saw a couple dressed straight out of the forties dancing in the shadows, but she couldn’t see their faces.
Weird. And wonderful. That was Dean and Sergio’s parties in a nutshell.
Thankfully, Julia was not the only woman in a caftan. The partiers wore a mix of fashion, but except for the couple in the shadows, it was all very casual. “You do know that if I was the only one in a bathrobe, I was prepared to kill you.”
“Are you kidding?” He looked down at his own clothes, a pair of linen pants and a loose white button-down shirt. “I’m the most formally dressed person here. Well… I am now that my children have retired for the evening. The girls are much more formal than me.”
Julia smiled. “I’m sure they think all this adult insanity is completely uncool.”
Dean sipped a glass of gold whiskey, his favorite. “They’re thirteen now. They think everything their fathers do is uncool.”
“To be fair, I’m pretty sure only half these people will keep their clothes on all night, and the wildest ones are old enough to be their grandparents.” Julia craned her neck and saw a tanned couple in bathing suits—who had to be in their seventies—sneaking behind a hedge. “I kind of get why they want to exit stage teenager. What are they up to?”
“Aurelia and Juliana are on a classic-horror-movie kick right now. I think they’re watching the Creature from the Black Lagoon with Analu.” He looked at Julia very seriously. “They have informed us that they are too old to have a nanny, so they now call Analu their respected companion.”
“Your children are delightfully weird.”
“Thank you. Good thing I dumped you.”
Julia laughed out loud. “It was a solid plan.”
Dean wasn’t only her ex-husband, he was her best friend, and he knew she’d never wanted kids. They’d gotten together in college when settling down with babies didn’t seem important to either of them and had split in their late twenties when Dean realized it was. In the middle of that, they’d started the beginnings of what became one of the most successful real estate companies in Southern California.
They liked each other too much to split the business, so Julia had taken the Los Angeles territory while Dean moved to Palm Springs with his future husband, promptly settled into weird domestic bliss, and had a couple of kids, a string of golden retrievers, and one rescue alpaca named Paco.
She swept her eyes over the green lawn of the gated estate and the half-naked people running around. “Remind me why I moved out here?”
Dean put his arm around her. “To spend time with family and friends. And because you missed our monthly explosion of sophistication and elegance.”
“Right.” Julia smothered a laugh as the band started into another cover. “I am never going to remember all these people.”
“The overall vibe is intended to overwhelm. Don’t worry, we’ll wait a few months before we quiz you.” He waved at a woman flying by. “Hey, Lily! Good to see you.”
“Neighbor?”
“She used to be. Just moved across town.” Dean waved at an older man. “Morty, looks like you got some sun.”
He yelled back, “I just flew back from Cabo. It was fantastic.”
They crossed the patio, and Dean introduced her to more people she wasn’t going to remember.
“I think the entire city is at this party.” Julia finished her glass of champagne and reached for another off a passing tray. “I thought you said it was quiet here.”
“For twenty-nine to thirty days of the month, it is.” Dean set his drink on a table where it was whisked away by another uniformed waiter. “Loosen up, Jules!” He squeezed her waist. “And don’t forget the reason you moved here was to relax and spend time with the people who really matter in your life.”
She looked at Dean. “You mean Sergio?”
He shrugged. “Obviously Sergio.”
Julia couldn’t hide her smile when she caught a glimpse of the host and orchestrator of the monthly madness, who was holding court in a sunken firepit and telling a story that had everyone in stitches.
Dean’s husband was what Julia would fondly describe as a people collector. He was born into a ridiculously wealthy Brazilian family, his mother was a celebrated actress, his father a musician, and Sergio had grown up on an estate in Los Angeles, surrounded by the gifted, the rich, and the bizarre.
And anyone who caught his eye as vaguely interesting, he invited to Sunday Dinner.
Julia watched Sergio keep his guests enthralled, a young woman in black net gloves and a chic black bob on one side and an older woman on the other, elegantly clad in a crimson caftan, a gold turban, and large black sunglasses that covered half her face.
Their host was wearing all black to set off his dark hair and eyes. The man might be in his late forties, but he still oozed sex appeal.
Julia elbowed Dean. “Your husband is hot.”
Dean smiled. “I know.”
“But there’s something wrong with this picture.”
Dean frowned. “The bevy of women surrounding him? That’s actually pretty normal.”
“No.” She laughed. “No one here has phones.”
“Oh! Sergio outlawed them a few years ago.” Dean caught Sergio waving at them. “Come on. We’re being summoned.”
Julia whispered, “How does he manage to keep all the phones away? Is that even legal these days?”
“He bought a velvet bag that Jim carries around. Everyone has to put their phone in it until they leave or he won’t serve them a drink.”
“Like… a key party?”
Dean pursed his lips. “You know… a few switched phones over the years have led to more than one divorce. You may be on to something there.”
They wound through legs and stepped down into the firepit area, only to have Sergio rise to his feet and spread his arms. “My darling ex-wife!”
“And my favorite home-wrecker!”
Julia grinned when Sergio swept her into a dramatic embrace, dipping her as she struggled to keep her champagne from spilling. Just as quickly, he set her on her feet and her glass nearly went flying. A friendly hand reached up and steadied it.
Julia was dizzy when she saw who’d caught her arm. It was the cool woman with the black bob and net gloves who’d been sitting next to Sergio. “Thanks. I’m only allowed two, so I’d hate to spill it.”
“No problem.” The woman raised a perfectly plucked eyebrow. “Favorite home-wrecker?”
“Old joke.” Sergio plopped back on the sectional that surrounded the fire and threw his arm around the dark-haired woman. “Julia and Dean had been split up for years when we met.”
Julia cocked her head. “I do think you got him on the rebound, but since you’ve been together twenty years and we were married for three, I think it worked out.”
“Damn right it has.” Sergio leaned forward and grabbed his drink. “Julia Brooks, meet Evelyn Landa, aka EV Lane, the illustrious comedienne, noted ventriloquist, and famous cockblocker. You’re welcome.” He waved a hand. “You both met fabulous people tonight.”
Julia nearly snorted her bubbly.
“You know what?” Evelyn wasn’t amused. “One time, Sergio. One time I interrupted you and Dean, and you have never let me forget it.”
“He’s horrible about grudges,” Julia said. “I once had to cancel a brunch because my sister was in a car accident and he didn’t speak to me for a month.”
“Typical.”
“What can I say?” Sergio was nonplussed. “I’m a Scorpio.”
Sergio promptly ignored both of them and began whispering to the older woman wearing the sunglasses on his left.
Evelyn muttered, “You are such a Scorpio.” She held out her hand. “Call me Evy. I go by my initials for bookings because retirement homes can’t tell if I’m a man or a woman. I get more gigs that way.”
Julia was instantly fascinated. “So you really are a comedian?”
Evy nodded. “I’d love to say that most of my money comes from that, but Geoff is way more popular than me.”
“Geoff?”
“He’s her dummy!” Sergio interjected as he waved at someone across the firepit. “Phillipe! Come sit next to Genevieve while I get us more drinks.”
Then he leaped up and was gone while an older man came and sat next to the elegant woman on Evy’s left; they immediately began a conversation in animated French.
Julia shook her head. “There’s nothing like Sunday Dinner.”
“It’s the best, right?” Evy sat back and kicked her feet up near the glowing blue flames of the firepit. “You either meet the worst people or the best people here. How have we never met? I know I’ve heard your name. Are you local?”
Julia sat back and let out a breath. “Just barely. I just moved to Palm Springs a couple of weeks ago because I’m kind of semiretiring?” She grimaced. “I can’t decide if this is going to work, and retiring sounds so damn old.”
Evy laughed. “That sounds rich. I, on the other hand, am going to work until I die at the rate I’m going.”
Julia forced a smile. “We’ll see if it takes. I’m only fifty-one, but Dean is convinced that I was burning out in Orange County.”
“Oh, you’re his business partner!” Evy stopped herself. “And the ex-wife. I get it now.”
“Yes, we’ve been partners nearly twenty-five years.”
Evy sat back with a smile. “Lot has changed in LA, huh?”
“So much.” She shrugged. “A lot of it felt like riding a wave. We got very lucky.”
“And now you’re going to sell houses in Palm Springs?”
Julia nodded. “The idea is for both Dean and me to kind of cut back while our associates take the lead on the footwork in the city. He’s going to do more commercial stuff here while I do more of the residential.” She sipped her drink and scanned the party, which showed no sign of calming down. “This is a funny town.”
“Funny is a generous way of putting it.” Evy had to raise her voice as the band got louder. “This is the best neighborhood though. Vista de Lirio has a little bit of everything. Big Spanish estates like this, little midcentury cottages, and everything in between.”
“All very high priced though.”
“Well, now it is, yeah.” Evy pointed to the aged couple that had emerged from behind the tree. “But see Elaine and Morty? She was a bookkeeper and he was a public defender. So it’s not all rich people. They’ve probably been in Palm Springs for forty years now.”
Julia nodded. “On sun damage alone, I’m going to assume you’re right.”
“They’re hilarious. I think they’ve been divorced three times.”
“From each other?”
Evy nodded. “They just keep getting remarried. It seems to work.” She pointed to another couple. “See Perfectly Preserved and Pool Boy over there?”
Julia craned her neck to see the stunning blond woman Dean had greeted earlier. She was probably in her fifties and was sitting next to a much younger man. They were lounging by the pool, and he was hand-feeding her grapes.
“Wow.” Julia blinked.
“I know.”
“Life goals?”
“I guess that depends on how much you like scandal.”