Fake

Escaping Chicago one step ahead of the police, con artist Kip Morgan looks for a way to start replacing what he's lost. Answering an ad for a private investigator in a small Michigan town, he meets Maureen and Jocelyn Waite, and Kip's life will never be the same.

Finding that few trust the sleuthing abilities of two sixty-plus women, Mo and Jo Waite are looking for a face for their business that's young, confident, and, they admit ruefully, male.

Jo is immediately convinced Kip is their man. Maureen is more reluctant but goes along with her sister-in-law's wishes.

On the job, Kip finds Jo enigmatic but likes working with her. Maureen is his nemesis, always on his back about little things like promptness and attention to detail. To add to his discomfort, the housekeeper, Helen, seems to think he's planning to walk off with the family silver. While that's close to his intent, Kip resents her open hostility. Then comes Teddy, a young man hired to help Maureen with the office work. Kip resents him too, since Teddy seems to be Maureen's idea of the perfect employee.

As jobs start to come in, the team learns to work together despite their differences. But there are secrets, Kip discovers, each one more shocking than the one before.

*How did Maureen really end up in that wheelchair?

*Why is Jo so secretive about her past?

*Why did the talented Teddy take a job with a tiny firm like Waite Investigations?

*Who does Helen slip out to meet on weekends?

*And what really happened the day their client, Troy Berden, supposedly stabbed and killed his boss?

Each revelation makes Kip's position more uncomfortable. Each one surprises the reader and notches up the tension in the story. Soon lives are at risk, and even more secrets are revealed. Once he knows everything, Kip has a lot more to worry about than being exposed as a FAKE.