Raspberry Tart Terror (Murder in the Mix Book 30) Unknown (christmas read aloud .TXT) 📖

“What?” we balk in unison.

“No way,” Everett says. “I’m putting my foot down. I’ll take that phone away before I let that happen.”

“I thought you wanted to go to law school,” I cry out to her on his heels.

“Nobody is taking away my phone,” Evie snaps at Everett as her chest pounds. Her eyes are wild as she stares him down with defiance. You’d think he just threatened to take her sanity away, and I guess in a way he did. Her screen lights up and her mouth falls open as she looks at it.

“What is it?’ I scuttle over and hold her wrist steady so I can catch a glimpse, but Evie slaps the phone to her chest. “It’s nothing.”

Everett growls, “Spill it or lose the device.”

Evie growls right back, “Fine! It was Verity, if you must know. And she was reminding me to snap a picture of my environment.”

“Verity?” Teddy sounds about as alarmed as I am. “Why, she wouldn’t say that. Verity would be much more interested in getting a picture of herself in there somewhere. The vain are vain well into the afterlife, too, you know.”

I nod her way. I’ve certainly witnessed a vain character or two who has crossed the earthly divide.

A group of girls circle around us.

“Did you say Verity?” one of them asks.

“Is she speaking to you from the dead?” another gasps.

“No way! She can talk to Verity!” a third shrieks, and before we know it, the entire bookstore has turned itself inside out.

Evie is swarmed by a gaggle of women, all clamoring to speak to Verity, and Everett pulls me to safety just as Noah appears and makes his way over to us.

“What did I miss?” He glances to that hub of bodies surrounding Evie. “Is she safe in there?”

“No,” I tell him. “I’m starting to wonder if any of us are safe.”

Teddy purrs at the sight of Noah. “Oh, he is a looker, Lottie. Why, you’ve got two. One for each arm, I suppose.”

She’s not that far off the mark.

“I see your arms are empty. I’d like to fill the void.” Noah flexes his dimples my way and I bite down on my lip to keep from giggling. Little does Noah realize he’s playing off of Teddy’s words. “How about I help you pick out a few spicy books to heat up your nights? In fact, I’ll be happy to read them to you if you like.”

Everett lifts his head a notch. “She doesn’t need you to read her a spicy bedtime story. She lives it with me.”

“That may be true, but I think we could all get a few good books to curl up next to the fire with. Plus, it’s a nice way to support a local business,” I say, leading us over to my mother’s table where my sisters flank her on either side and Josie sits on my mother’s lap like the miniature queen she is.

“About time, Lot.” Meg winks. She’s just a year younger than me, but she’s spicier by a mile. “What’s it going to be?”

“One of each of her novels,” I tell her.

“Same for me,” Everett says.

“Ditto.” Noah lifts a finger. “Hey, where’s my father?” He gives a curious glance around.

Lainey shakes her head. “Apparently, Cormack and Cressida won’t let him off the leash.”

Noah inches his head back as if he was incensed. “I guess that’s what he gets. On second thought, I’ll take two copies of each book, Miranda. It’s the least I can do considering my father is wreaking havoc in your life.”

Mom makes a face at the three of us. “Fine. But none of you are allowed to actually read these books. They were written for adults, you know.” She offers a sly wink our way just as Carlotta stretches her legs in this direction and the people who were in her line zip over to Bambi’s table, making it almost certain I won’t be getting a signed copy of her tell-all tonight.

“What do you mean they can’t read your book, Miranda?” Carlotta gives her a playful slap on the back. “These three have done things together that would make even a grown woman such as yourself blush.” She looks over at Teddy. “Now come here, cutie patootie, and give me some lovin’.”

I take a moment to glower at her. It’s as if she has no regard for our transmundane status anymore, or the status of her thinly veiled sanity.

“There’s nothing I’ve done that could make you blush,” I’m quick to inform my mother just as Teddy floats over to Carlotta. “Okay, so it’s a little bit true.” I cut a quick glance to both Noah and Everett. “But the three of us haven’t done it at the same time.” I shrug. “And I’ve already read your first three books, Mom.” Although, in hindsight, I shouldn’t have admitted it. Just the thought of her acting any of those scenes out with anyone makes my stomach turn. Speaking of which, I open my purse and pull out a savory snack just to take the edge off. “Fried pickle, anyone?” I ask after I’ve all but lopped its head off with my teeth, and surprisingly no one takes me up on the offer.

The evening wraps up quickly.

Evie takes off with Dash and their respective boyfriends.

Carlotta says something about getting Mayor Nash into one of those hot pink T-shirts, and my sisters take off with my mother.

But as for Noah, Everett, and me—we head to Mangias and plow through two large pepperoni pizzas. Okay, so I may have polished one off all on my own, but Everett was nice enough to take a bite out of it so that I could say we shared it. And afterwards, the three of us head to the movies to watch a shoot ’em up action flick.

What can I say? I let the men pick. Let’s call a spade a spade. I was just there for the popcorn, nachos, and soft pretzels—and maybe the gummy bears, Sour Patch