A Deadly Course by Diane Weiner

Author:Diane Weiner [Weiner, Diane]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Cozy Cat Press
Published: 2016-09-02T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 21

Emily bubbled as she walked into Coralee’s with Henry and Maddy. She was going out to eat with her family, not just her husband. Hoping they were over the initial awkwardness of their first restaurant experience, she looked forward to introducing Maddie to her friends. Maddy looked fashionable in her new jeans and handkerchief-styled shirt they’d picked up at the American Eagle Outlet earlier. Her blond hair was pulled into an intricate French braid, which impressed Emily to no end. Emily couldn’t even make a regular braid without wisps of hair poking out. Her sister used to beg Emily to let her to do it, but it never turned out right.

“Coralee, this is Maddy. Maddy, Coralee Saunders. She owns this bed and breakfast and wait till you taste her cooking.”

“I pulled out some vegetarian recipes and put them on the menu. I’d been meaning to do that anyway. Every now and then I’ll have a guest who asks about it.” She seated them at a round table in the center of the dining room.

At an adjacent table, Emily noticed an oddly-dressed man eating by himself. During the summer, guests typically dressed casually—jeans or, more often, shorts. This bearded gentleman wore a three-piece suit. On a Saturday night. Something felt off about him.

Henry said, “Look, Maddy. Coralee added vegetable lasagna to the menu, a baked squash casserole, and a tofu stir fry. I might try one of those myself.”

“Save room for dessert,” said Emily. “Coralee could win an award for her apple strudel.”

Wichita and Holly appeared at the doorway of the dining room. Coralee led them to a table next to Emily and her family, but Wichita looked around the room. When he saw the stranger in the suit, he fidgeted and whispered something to Coralee, who then led him and Holly to the opposite side of the dining room.

“I wonder what that was about?” said Emily. “I wanted to introduce them to Maddy.”

“We’ll go by their table later,” said Henry. “Maybe he doesn’t want you to see him having dinner with Holly.”

Emily pointed out all the people she knew to Maddy. “Over there, helping Coralee, is her son, Noah. And by the window, those are our neighbors, Kiki and Buzz. They’re pretty irritating. Young and spoiled, both of them. Not that being young means being spoiled. I didn’t mean that…” She felt her face flush.

The waitress brought three steaming hot servings of vegetable lasagna to the table. She refilled their drinks and set down a second basket of rolls. “Be careful, the plates are hot. Can I get you anything else?”

“Not right now,” said Emily. “This smells delicious.” All three dug in.

“Do you like it?” said Henry to Maddy.

“Yeah. It’s really good.” For the first time since they’d met her, Maddy finished every bite on her plate. Emily took it as a sign she was starting to feel more comfortable.

While they were waiting for dessert, Franklin walked into the dining room. He went directly to Wichita and Holly’s table and started yelling.

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