Murder in the Mix Boxed Set 28-30: Cozy Mystery Addison Moore (the reading strategies book .txt) 📖

the Candy Lounge out in Fallbrook. Both Carlotta and Keelie are with me, so this works out perfectly. Evie is at the movies tonight with her best friend Dash, so if I time it right, I should be home just as she’s getting there herself. And as fate would have it, Everett still isn’t home and Noah texted me earlier letting me know he was working overtime to solve the Abner case before Christmas.

Fallbrook is a good drive from Honey Hollow on a normal night, but on a snowy night with holiday traffic, it feels as if it takes us an eternity to arrive. I park my minivan, and the three of us find ourselves wandering into the Grand Lux Hotel. The hotel is set on a fancy golf course, and inside it’s opulent with all the glitz and glamour this highfalutin town requires. Fallbrook is the Beverly Hills of Vermont. It houses more millionaires and billionaires per capita than any other place in the state.

We come up on the Candy Lounge with its name written in gold across a white background. Just under the word candy, they’ve added the word cane in red and white stripes, transitioning the name of the club to the all too festive Candy Cane Lounge.

It’s dimly lit inside, rock music blares through the speakers, and if I’m not mistaken, it sounds as if a rock and roll version of “Silent Night” is playing overhead. The scent of something saucy and cheesy infiltrates my senses and makes my stomach rumble twice as hard.

“Oh, I’m starving,” I tell Carlotta and Keelie as they both crane their necks every which way. “I was so busy today, all I had time to eat was the treats from my bakery. Mostly eggnog trifle because I’m a sucker for the combination of eggnog and gingerbread cake. But I threw a few gingerbread cookies, éclairs, black forest cake, red velvet cupcakes, cheese Danishes, orange cranberry scones, and glazed crullers into the mix as well. Oh, and fried pickles. But that’s not real food,” I say as a waitress dressed in a tiny silver dress glides by with a tray full of appetizers, and just the sight of all the mouthwatering goodness drives a hard groan from me.

Carlotta threads her arm through mine. “We’d better get her to a table before she grabs a waitress and starts gnawing on her leg.”

Both Carlotta and Keelie did a quick change at home before we headed out this way. I’m still in the loose flannel dress Lainey lent me, but Carlotta came to play in a short number that looks as if it’s entirely comprised of green tinsel. As if it didn’t have enough fashion offenses going for itself, there are tiny fluffy red balls sprinkled around it in a random pattern.

And Keelie’s choice of accouterments is no better. She’s donned a red dress with a hemline that’s markedly higher in the front than it is in the back. It’s cut to look as if it’s strapless, but there are tiny black ribbons tied over her bare shoulders. A thin white boa lines the top of it, giving it that naughty holiday appeal, and the middle of it morphs into a black bustier. It’s a dress that’s full of ideas, not all of them good ones, but not surprisingly, it looks stunning on my bubbly blonde bestie.

“Keelie, you look amazing,” I tell her. “You really snapped back into shape. I bet Bear can’t wait to see you in that dress.”

“He’ll see me sooner than later. I told him where we were going, and he says he’s going to meet me here. Don’t worry, Lottie. If all goes well, I won’t be needing a ride home.”

“What do you mean by if all goes well?”

Her ruby lips twitch as she gets a devilish gleam in her eyes. “Aunt Carlotta, I took your advice, and Bear and I are doing a little role-playing to spice things up. My mother offered to watch the baby tonight, so this is the perfect opportunity to take part in Operation Carnal Christmas happening tonight. I’m playing the role of the hot elf that escaped Santa’s workshop, and Bear is the mean executive looking to replace Santa’s workshop with a factory that mass-produces shoddy toys.”

“Wow, you’ve really thought this one through. I guess it’s up to you to save Christmas.”

She nods. “And to teach that heartless executive a lesson. Bear is really getting into it. He said I’ll hardly recognize him because he’s showing up in a suit.”

Carlotta ticks her head to the side. “I didn’t know Bear owned a suit.”

“He doesn’t.” Keelie shakes her head. “But he said he swung by your place this morning. No one was home, but he saw Noah out front and Noah let him in to borrow one of Everett’s suits.”

“One of Everett’s suits?” My eyes bulge at the prospect. “Does Everett know about this?” Everett’s suits are tailor-made for him and imported straight from Italy. I saw the price tag of one once and nearly needed to be resuscitated. Thankfully, Dr. Baxter was on hand to make sure all of my medical needs were well tended, too. Suffice it to say, Everett and I have done a little role-playing ourselves. Let’s just say he was thorough with his exam.

Keelie clucks her tongue. “How would Everett know? He wasn’t home. Besides, Lot, we’re like sisters. What’s mine is yours. It’s always been that way.”

Something tells me I need to add an addendum to that policy. Clearly we need to draw the line at my husband’s closet.

A pale hand waves to me from across the room, and I see a group of women, a trio of which has hair as pale as flames.

“There they are,” I hiss, pointing over to where Cormack, Cressida, and Candy sit at an elongated table, and we begin to thread our way through the crowd as we make our way over.

Normally, I wouldn’t be caught dead schmoozing with Cormack and Cressida, but Candy