After some initial chitchat, there was the clink of ice cubes. Seconds later, the sound of the patio door opening preceded their voices fading as they stepped outside.
Setting the timer, Dani slid the asparagus and parmesan puffs into the oven, and at precisely 6:58 p.m., she removed the baking sheet. She arranged three of the steaming appetizers on each of four small glass dishes and carried them into the dining room.
The Karneses and their guests were just sitting down as she approached the imposing dark-maple table with its shiny chrome pedestal base. The two couples barely glanced at her as she slid their plates in front of them.
Dani served course after course, her rubber-soled shoes silent on the travertine floors. Beyond an occasional thank-you, no one spoke to her. Feeling almost invisible, she overheard snatches of conversation and from what she could piece together, the Karneses’ guests, Anson and Honoria Bourne, were leaving for their annual ten-week cruise. Throughout dinner, the two couples discussed the various ports and traded travel stories.
At eight thirty, when Dani entered the dining room with the chestnut tart, Chelsea leaned toward Honoria and said, “Of course, we would be happy to look in from time to time on Regina.” Chelsea raised an elegant brow at her husband, then continued, “Wouldn’t we, darling?”
“Certainly.” Trent bared his teeth in what was probably supposed to be a smile.
Trent Karnes was an attractive man in his midforties. He was tall and slender, with aristocratic features and a perfectly groomed beard and mustache.
“It’s a shame she isn’t in any of your classes this session.” Honoria stirred cream into her coffee. She had the sleek, well-bred appearance of a greyhound. “If she had one of your courses, you’d see her several times a week.”
“My baby girl loved the class she took from you last semester.” Anson’s voice was a bit loud, and Dani noticed his nose was red and the buttons on his Armani dress shirt gaped open over his paunch.
“Yes.” Trent’s expression was frozen. “It’s too bad the timing is off.”
“I’m sure she’ll want to take another with you.” Honoria continued to stir her coffee.
“Well.” Trent drained his wineglass. “Regina may not have room in her schedule with all the required courses. For her, mine are electives.”
Dani wrinkled her brow. The whole exchange sounded off in some way. Like their words had an entirely different meaning than what she was hearing. And why did the name Regina sound familiar?
After serving the tart, Dani asked if they needed anything else. No one had any requests, so she retreated to the kitchen. While she packed her equipment, she repeated the name Regina over and over again. Finally, it came to her. Regina Bourne was the girl who had invited Ivy to join her study group. Apparently, as well as being beautiful and popular, she also had extremely wealthy parents. Was Ivy prepared to become a part of that type of crowd?
Shrugging off her concern, Dani began to clean up the mess. An hour later, Dani was putting away the last pan when she heard the Bournes leave. She gave the counter one final wipe, then went in search of the Karneses.
Dani found them drinking brandy in the professor’s study. She knocked on the partially opened door and said, “I hope dinner was okay.”
“Come on in.” Trent smiled. “The food was delicious as always. Thank you for serving it earlier than we’d scheduled.”
“Glad I could do it.” Dani entered the room, pulled her phone from her pants pocket, and held it out. “Everything is spic and span, so if you’d like to settle the bill, I’ll take off.”
Trent reached into his pocket, pulled out his wallet, flipped it open, and scowled. “Hell! I forgot. My new credit cards haven’t arrived yet.”
“Good thing I have separate charge accounts. I’ll get my purse.” Chelsea got up. “Be right back.”
“What happened?” Dani frowned at Trent. “Did you lose your wallet?”
“No. I was the victim of identity theft.”
“How did you find out about it?” Dani asked.
“My bank called because our checking account was overdrawn.” Trent sighed. “But it should have contained several thousand dollars. When we looked into it, we found the trail.”
Before Dani could inquire further, Chelsea returned and handed over her American Express. Once the transaction was completed, Dani wished the couple good night and headed home.
As she drove down the dark streets, she thought about the Karneses. The idea of someone stealing her identity was terrifying. Maybe she should find out how much a protection service would cost. The last thing she needed was that kind of trouble.
Chapter 5
The rest of the week and weekend flew by, and the text from Spencer Drake on Monday caught Dani by surprise. Once again, he apologized for being unable to stop by in person to check on Ivy and the other girls. His ex-wife had finally agreed to sell their condo, so he needed to travel to Chicago and sign some papers before she changed her mind.
Dani sent Spencer a message assuring him that Ivy, Tippi, and Starr were all behaving, wished him luck on the real estate deal, and returned to her latest project. A gardening club had asked her to provide a trio of desserts for their annual flower walk at the end of July. Today she was experimenting with a new recipe for that event, a chocolate-espresso dacquoise.
The cake—made with layers of almond and hazelnut meringue, buttercream, and ganache—was exceedingly complicated and labor intensive, but Dani hoped that if she impressed the club members, the ladies would keep her in mind for their personal catering needs as well.
Dani was grinding almonds, hazelnuts, cornstarch, and salt together in the food processor when the back door banged opened. She jumped back, fearing that a gang of culinary thieves was breaking
