The waiter brought our drinks. “Can I get you ladies a bite of brunch this morning? We have our signature Mission Benedict, salmon-stuffed French toast, and fresh-baked apricot turnovers, among other offerings.”
“It all sounds wonderful, but not for me, thanks,” I said. The tamale I’d consumed with great enthusiasm was going to last me for a while.
Katherine shook her head. “I’m all set.”
“Very good.” He cleared his throat. “Ms. Russom, isn’t it?”
She glanced sharply up at him. “Yes. Do I know you?”
“You ran the last wedding we hosted. I was lead waiter.”
“Ah, yes. Good to see you again.”
He turned away, but moved to each of the other tables in the courtyard, straightening silverware and adjusting chairs. Katherine had her back to him. From my vantage point, I could swear he was listening to us. Maybe Katherine had been rude to him during the wedding. Or had complained about him, neither of which I would put it past her to do. I mentally shrugged. Not my problem.
I lifted my glass. “Cheers.”
Katherine clinked hers with mine and took a long drag before she set it down.
“So do you get a lot of wedding business?” I asked. “I bet there are tons of brides and their moms who want someone to organize and run their big day.”
“You bet. I recently hired a second employee to help. The city has become a wedding destination, especially at this time of year. The tourist bureau calls Santa Barbara the American Riviera.”
“They do? Seems kind of exaggerated.”
“You think?” she scoffed. “But, whatever. It’s a fine slogan if it brings brides and their daddies’ wallets. Paying my bills is all I care about.”
“Well, here’s to another ten years of success.” I lifted my stemmed glass.
“Thank you.” She clinked briefly, then took a hefty swallow of her drink, holding the stalk of celery to the side. “Now that’s more like it.” Her shoulders, clad in a pale turquoise shirt, dipped as if finally relaxed.
A smoky breeze blew through and I coughed. The waiter finally went into the building.
“I read that the wildfire in the mountains keeps growing,” I said.
“Yeah. Gets worse every year, too. You escaped all the fires and earthquakes by moving east, didn’t you?”
“I guess. We get tornadoes, though, and sometimes blizzards. Although we don’t have as much snow anymore, with climate change. I’m on the southern edge of the Midwest.” I took another sip. “This is nice. And the juice is fresh-squeezed.”
“It should be. We’re in full orange season right now.”
“I know. Mom and I had a tree in the backyard growing up. I don’t think I drank OJ out of a bottle until I moved to Indiana. Even in college I would bring back a bag of oranges from home.” I still loved the scent of orange blossoms more than almost anything. That and the aroma of gardenias. A four-foot-high gardenia bush had grown outside my bedroom window.
“We still have a grapefruit tree, and a big lemon tree, too,” she said with a wistful smile. “My mom planted them when I was a baby. She’s been gone twenty years this month.”
I brought my hand to my mouth. I’d forgotten her mom had died when we were in elementary school. We had being motherless in common now. “You and your father must be close.”
She nodded. “Most of the time. At least since he got rid of the wicked stepmother.”
“He remarried?” It must have been in the last ten years. I didn’t think she’d had a mom figure around in high school.
“Yes. It didn’t go well. He kind of needs taking care of, but not from her.”
“Who was she?”
“Only the poster child for a second wife who wants nothing to do with hubby’s children, and wants said hubby to take care of her, not the other way around. The day of their divorce was my happiest in years.” She rolled her eyes. “Although now he’s seeing Sydelle. I’m not sure she’s much better, frankly, but at least I’m older.”
“It looked like you were having a fight with your father back there outside the market.” I tilted my head, mustering a sympathetic expression.
She turned down the corners of her mouth. “He can be totally bullheaded. Especially when it comes to my brother.”
“Cody waited on me at Boathouse the other night. Last time I saw him he was a bratty little kid.”
“He still can be, believe me. But yeah, he’s all grown up now.” She smiled, more to herself than to me. “And seems to have inherited Daddy’s stubborn genes.”
“So what does your dad do for work?”
She blinked. “I thought you knew.”
Uh-oh. Had she heard I’d been asking around about Agrosafe’s products? I waited, looking curious. A friend had somewhere obtained a mouse pad from the CIA, with guidelines for agents. “Neither deny nor confirm,” was the first instruction. Useful advice for life.
“He’s the president of Agrosafe,” Katherine said. “Making Agricultural Chemicals Safe for Farmers is their motto.”
“Are you part of the business?”
“Me? No way.” She drained her glass. “Man, that went down easy.”
I cocked my head. “What did you mean at the reunion, that you hadn’t forgiven me? For what?”
“Never mind.” She swept a strand of hair back. “It doesn’t matter anymore.”
Oh, well. It was probably about me dating Bill. It definitely didn’t matter anymore.
She gazed at the door to the inside.
Wishing the waiter would reappear so she could order another drink? My mimosa was barely a third gone.
She looked back at me. “Somebody told me you do undercover investigations these days. Like a private detective. You channeling Kinsey Millhone or something?”
“Of course not.” I shook my head. “A couple of bodies have shown up back where I live in the last year or two. I’ve kind of gotten involved in the homicide investigations, but only to help the police. I run
