Page 77 of The Holy Grail
“Do you want an order of eight wings, or sixteen?”
“Sixteen. She’s also been eating like a ranch hand—but don’t youevertell her I said that. She’ll kick my ass.”
Evan pondered that. “I might have to tell her, just so I can watch it happen.”
Grinning, Evan went back to the kitchen to put the order in and when it was ready, he told David it was on the house.
“Okay, thanks,” David said, then pulled two twenties out of his wallet, anyway.
“I just said the wings were on the house,” Evan said, with a reproachful look.
“I know. This is the tip.”
“Forty dollars? For a free order of wings?”
Ignoring Evan, David looked to where the tip jar usually was, and finding it missing, asked. “Where’s your tip jar?”
“I got rid of it.”
“Really? Why?”
Evan briefly explained why and said Lars’ time at the bar was hopefully limited.
“Okay, then I’ll just give this directly to you,” David said, laying the money on the bar and sliding it toward Evan, who made another face. “What? The service was amazing.”
When it was time to go, David started to head out, only to turn back to Evan. “There are other crazy women out there, Dick. And crazy men, too,” he added.
“I know,” Evan murmured.
Chapter 23
Throw down at Three Amigos
The meeting with Evan, Everett, and Evelyn took place at Three Amigos on Sunday afternoon, a few hours before the doors opened for business. When Jules arrived, she found the siblings quietly drinking coffee at one of the high-top tables, and began heading toward them, briefcase in hand. She’d dressed in a casual work outfit—low heels and red slacks paired with a tailored, cream-colored, short-sleeved blouse that gave off an effortless, professional vibe. Her hair was pulled back into a low ponytail, and she’d applied minimal make-up, except for her signature Black Honey lipstick by Clinique, which was one of the staples Jules would take with her in an apocalypse.
She used it like Chapstick, even though it wasn’t cheap.
As she approached the table, Evan got to his feet. “Good morning—er, afternoon.”
“Good afternoon,” she returned, setting her briefcase down on the table. Ever since the night when Evan had asked her about Malcom and the conversation turned contentious, her relationship with Evan had been somewhat stilted.
Evan motioned toward his siblings, and Jules immediately took note of the strong resemblance between the three of them. They all had wavy, reddish-brown hair and dark brown eyes, with Everett looking like the older version of Evan, and Evelyn looking like the female version.
“Jules,” Evan said, “this is my brother, Everett, and my sister, Evelyn. Everett, Evelyn, this is Jules Shaw, the accountant I hired.”
After looking Jules over for several seconds, Evelyn’s tone was pleasant enough when she said, “It’s nice to meet you.”
“It’s nice to meet you, too,” Jules said.
Everett’s tone, on the other hand, held more than a trace of skepticism after looking Jules over. “You’re the accountant?” he asked, before giving Evan a side-eye that clearly saidAm I supposed to believe that?
“Yes, I’m the managerial accountant,” Jules told Everett. “It’s nice to meet you.”
When it became clear Everett wasn’t going to return the sentiment, Jules couldn’t help the small smile that curved her lips; she was really going to enjoy the next sixty minutes.
Frowning at his brother’s rudeness, Evan got to his feet. “Would you like a cup of coffee?” he asked Jules.
“Yes, but I can get it,” she told him. “I know where everything is.”
