Page 27 of A Jingle of Justice
“We talked about me being on my best behavior.”
I regarded her with amusement. “Best behavior?”
“She said I must learn to control my antics if I’m ever to be queen.” Fiona stuck out her tongue.
“I imagine that response was unacceptable.”
Giggles rippled out of her. “Do you think I’m loco? No, I was more than compliant and said, ‘Absolutely, Auntie. Whatever you say.’”
When we arrived at the café, Idris Gentry and a handsome employee at Wizard of Paws, the pet-grooming salon opposite Open Your Imagination, were waiting in a line of six to be seated. Idris had swirled her curls into a hair claw. Loose tendrils graced her cheeks. Deep green eyeliner enhanced her eyelids. The date appeared smitten with her. He tapped the corner of a rainbow-colored envelope peeking from the top of Idris’s purse and asked a question. Her coy response sounded like, “For me to know,” and then she adjusted the strap of her gold purse.
The hostess bypassed those ahead of me and advised me to proceed to the back patio.
“Hi, Idris,” I said in passing.
“Hi, Courtney. Say hello to your fairy for me.”
She was teasing. She couldn’t see Fiona. Otherwise, she would have burst out laughing because Fiona was mimicking the same googly eyes her date was making.
I stepped onto the patio, and as always, seeing the trees twinkling with fairy lights brought a smile to my face. Brady, who looked as handsome as all get-out in linen shirt and tan trousers, rose from the table in the far corner and waved to me.
“Bye,” Fiona said, and disappeared into the ficus beside our table to play with Ulra.
I sauntered past a couple of tables and spotted Reddick dining with Meaghan. She winked at me and gave me a thumbs up, meaning she’d received my text asking her to question him about his investigation. As an assist, I’d sent him an earlier text sharing everything I’d learned so far, to show him I was a compliant citizen.
Brady pulled out my chair for me and kissed me on the cheek. “Hello, beautiful.”
“Ha. Liar. It’s been a long day.” I sat and took a sip of the wine he’d already ordered for us.
Fiona and Ulra emerged from the tree. Ulra sped to Brady and perched on his shoulder. He was oblivious.
The hostess escorted Idris and her date to a table. Idris made eye contact with me, and then laughed at something the young man said.
For the next half hour, Brady and I discussed what I’d learned at the recorder’s office and from Lissa Reade.
“I can’t derive any conclusions,” I said.
He placed a hand over mind. “You will.” He nodded toward Reddick. “You should tell him about the keys angle. If someone did take the duplicate to your shop, perhaps he or she didn’t risk returning it to the landlord’s office, and it’s still in their possession.”
“I did.”
“And?”
“Crickets.”
CHAPTER NINE
Adieu, adieu—I fly, adieu,
I vanish in the heaven’s blue?—
Adieu, adieu!
~ John Keats, “Fairy Song”
SATURDAY MORNING JOSSAND I prettified the main showroom by adding more sprigs of holly, scented candles, and merry-sounding jingle bells. I also brewed a large pot of hot spiced tea, which was a favorite during the holidays.
Then we attended to the patio where the book club tea would take place. On each table, Joss set a palette of paint brushes and paints, around which I arranged the party favors of bisque fairy figurines and holiday bells. When I completed my task, I positioned copies ofWreath Between the Lineson each table in case someone had forgotten to bring a copy and wished to review the book during the discussion.
