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

way. “Anyway, they wanted to schedule a private party and that’s where Juliet is tonight.”

Just great.

Leave it to Cormack to snag my suspect—and my mother’s B&B.

On the bright side at least she hasn’t snagged Noah.

A twinge of guilt rides through me for having the thought.

It looks as if we’ve had a change of plans tonight. Noah, Everett, and I will be sharing our dinner with my mother and Wiley—and that will put me in the prime position to sneak off to speak with Juliet.

Let’s face it, having a cop and judge in the vicinity is a great way to get a suspect to clam up.

A whooshing sound emits from behind, and I turn around to see that silk ficus tree on the floor and Teddy immersed in a basket of yarn marked half off just south of where the ficus stood to begin with.

“Oh dear.” Teddy flails as she struggles to untangle those knife-like claws of hers from a pile of red and pink yarn.

The girl lets out a short yet shrill scream. “I think there’s a mouse in there!”

The poor girl hops back on her stool and draws up her knees as I quickly run toward the melee, tossing yarn in the air as I struggle to free Teddy from the impending yarn-ageddon.

“No mouse!” I shout over at the girl who’s gone white as toothpaste, but with a hint of anger, too. If I didn’t know better, I’d say she was one step away from calling the local security guard. “I’m just loving all this yarn.” I turn back and growl over at Teddy, “You’re a ghost, for Pete’s sake. Can’t you just float out of this mess?” I hiss while getting down on my knees in an effort to free the rowdy little specter.

“I don’t want to, Lottie. How I miss getting tangled in the vines.” She reaches up and an entire shelf’s worth of blue and purple yarn rains down over us. “Wee!” She thrashes her arms through the balls of yarn as if she was mixing a salad, and soon I’m covered head to toe in unraveled wool, and the one that needs to be detangled now is me.

The door to the shop swings open and in burst both Noah and Everett, stopping cold in their tracks once they get a look at me.

“Lottie?” Noah cocks his head as if he’s unsure what to make of it.

“Lemon.” Everett’s chest expands just as the girl from the register comes up.

“Someone’s going to have to pay for all that,” she says leaning in to inspect the damage.

Everett plucks out his credit card and hands it over to her without ever breaking his gaze with me.

“Thanks,” she says. “Hey? Aren’t you that hot judge? Can I get a picture with you?”

“Sure.”

While Everett’s off on his photo shoot, Noah helps me back to my feet just as Teddy floats between us.

I quickly take up Noah’s hand in the event Teddy has something to say. I discovered a while back that I act as sort of a conduit for the dead if someone is holding onto me.

“I’m afraid I’ll have to go, Lottie,” Teddy says as she floats toward the door. “I’m being pulled away. It seems Carlotta is about to grill a suspect, and duty calls. I guess she was right. She is the primary supersensual in charge.”

“She’s not in charge,” I balk. “I’m the primary!” I shout as the furry little cutie floats right through the window.

“What’s a primary?” Noah frowns as he helps unspool me from the fuzzy mess.

“I’m not exactly sure what the primary is, but I’m positive Carlotta is spewing lies to that poor thing, and apparently to her bingo group, too. And now she’s headed to the Rendezvous.”

Everett steps up. “Who’s going to the Rendezvous?” he asks as he pulls me loose from the colorful ties that bind.

“We are,” I say as I examine the disaster around me. “I might be a hot mess just like Carlotta suggested, but I’ll be darned if I’m going to let a featherhead steal my suspect.”

Noah and Everett exchange a brief glance.

“What?” I ask as I look to the two of them.

Noah shrugs. “I stopped by to see my mom, and let’s just say Cormack and Cressida have made a few more changes to the B&B.”

My lips purse at the thought. “So you’re saying I should bring Ethel?”

Everett gives a subtle nod. “And your dancing shoes.”

Lottie

Once we pull up to the Rendezvous Luxury Resort and Razzle Dazzle Day Spa, it becomes painfully apparent that my mother’s quaint B&B is a thing of the past. Despite the fact it’s pitch-dark out, the entire B&B seems to be glowing with a hot pink aura. There’s a large hot pink banner draped across the entry that reads Welcome to the Love Your Selfie fest! Where the fun of loving your selfie never ends! #Rendezvousluxuryresort

“This is all my father’s fault, Lottie,” Noah says as we gawk at the new outward appearance of what was once the Honey Hollow Bed and Breakfast.

“I will not argue with you on that point,” I say, trying my best to control my breathing and my temper for the sake of the unborn among us.

“I’m going to kill him,” Noah adds.

Everett shakes his head. “You should do it, Lemon. You’ve got a solid case. That man has singlehandedly ruined your life and that of those you love.”

My chest pulsates with a quiet laugh. “Wiley should be so lucky if death is all that happens to him.”

“I was talking about Noah.”

I’d frown over at Everett for even suggesting it, but I can’t take my eyes off the disaster before me. What was once an overgrown white mini mansion with Roman columns and dark mahogany doors is now a bubblegum pink eyesore with flashing bulbs installed around the doorway and…

“Are the front doors painted silver?” the words choke out of me. “Please tell me this is all some grand illusion caused by the floodlights they have pointing at the