Mackenzie Woods is definitely the bad decision in question.
“Bizzy?” Hux ticks his head to the side as he pulls me in for a hug. “Playing with the piranhas tonight?” he whispers in my ear.
“I could say the same for you.” I give him a little wink.
He pulls back and makes a face. Can’t wait until she finds out I’m thinking of proposing soon.
“No!” The word rips from me with horror, and soon all eyes are feasted this way. “Um”—I clear my throat—“I mean no, don’t tell me the two of you have to endure an hour wait for a table, too.”
“Geez.” Hux inches back, and don’t think I don’t notice how easily his arm glides around Mackenzie’s waist as if he were protecting her from me. And he just might have to. Don’t get me wrong. I’m just starting to make peace with Mackenzie after all these years of torment, but she’d be the last candidate I’d choose to spend the rest of her life with my brother.
Mackenzie rolls her eyes. “No, Bizzy. Unlike you and your new girlfriend, Hux and I made reservations. We just finished up with our meals and were about to leave when he spotted the two twits he thought he recognized.” She makes a face at my brother and mouths the word sorry.
“Oh?” My shoulders hike with a touch of glee. “Well, that’s too bad because I would have offered for you to join us.” It’s true. I’m a glutton for punishment that way.
Mackenzie gargles out a laugh. “And spoil this romantic rendezvous? We couldn’t.” We wouldn’t. “Where does that new husband of yours fit into the equation, anyway?” Bizzy is up to something. She’s no pushover when it comes to the good detective. I should know, I tried to wrangle him away from her for old time’s sake.
Mackenzie was pretty darn good at wrangling away anyone with an extra proverbial limb away from me back in high school. She recently claimed she was testing them out to see if they would cheat, and sadly just about every single one of them took her up on her offer—save for Jasper, of course.
Camila sniffs her way. “My husband will be here shortly.”
“She meant my husband,” I quip.
Mackenzie shakes her head. Why Bizzy does what she does, I will never be able to wrap my head around. There’s no way I’d entertain the sluts Hux has been with—and funny enough, I’m pretty sure Camila Ryder is one of them.
Camila smacks me on the arm. Get rid of them. Tabitha just spotted me and she’s headed this way.
I gasp as I survey the area, but I can’t seem to see her. It might just be a ploy of Camila’s to get rid of the scourge before us, but it happens to be a scheme I’m willing to go along with.
“Don’t worry, Bizzy.” Mack sneers. “I don’t have to be a mind reader to know you want us out of your hair. Hot tip, the lobster is to die for.” She shrugs my way. “Maybe you can work that into your next homicide somehow? Oh, and by the way, tell Georgie I fast-tracked the approval to let her display those quilts.”
“What quilts?” I lean my ear her way, because if this is another one of Georgie’s questionable initiatives that involves the inn, I want to be in the know—or more to the point, I want to know if I need to line up one exorcist or two.
Mackenzie gives a long blink. “The Cider Cove quilting guild donated dozens upon dozens of those dusty pieced together blankets to the town over fifty years ago, and they’ve been in storage ever since. Apparently, Georgie found out there was an entire slew of them inspired by fall and Halloween, and she said she wanted to display them at the inn.”
“Well, now that sounds perfect.” I breathe a sigh of relief.
Mack shrugs. “She said you were the one that requested it.”
I rewind the last few conversations I’ve had with Georgie, and by Georgie, I think she’s right. Sort of. I said I’d prefer quilts to spiders, and I stand by my statement.
The two of them say goodnight and take off just as Tabitha Carter appears at our table. Her hair is up in a bun, and she’s dressed like a vampy little vampire this evening. Gone are the librarian glasses, replaced with a cherry red smile as she yelps and gives Camila a spontaneous hug.
“What in the world are you doing here?” She smacks her friend on the shoulder.
Camila’s lips twitch. “My friend Bizzy invited me out to dinner.”
Tabitha grimaces as she looks to the two of us. Her friend Bizzy? I would swear on my life Camila said she couldn’t stand the woman’s guts just a couple of nights ago. I guess some people will tolerate just about anyone for a free meal—and my guess is, Bizzy is buying.
I shoot Camila a look, and she frowns as if she understood what just transpired.
She clears her throat as she looks to the friendly vampire among us.
“We’re—um—discussing a business proposal I have for the inn. I’m keeping it short. Bizzy is actually having dinner with friends.”
How I hope that’s true.
Camila nods and shakes her head all at once, and it’s a dizzying look to witness.
“I was actually about to pitch Raven’s products like she asked,” Camila continues. “And now that you’re here, you can vouch for how wonderful they are.”
“Raven?” I say her name with a touch of intrigue. “The girl with the long hair I met the other night?” I refrain from calling it the night of the murder.
“Yes.” Camila nods. “That’s the one. Not only does she run her own hair salon, Color Me Crazy, but she has a perfumery.”
Tabitha offers a feverish nod. “She has a home lab where she creates her own scents. Don’t worry. It’s sanitary—your ears won’t fall off or anything.
