Serape & Scapegoats: Sassy Supplies Cozy Mystery Book 7 by Katherine H. Brown

Author:Katherine H. Brown [Brown, Katherine H.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2022-05-04T16:00:00+00:00

6.

The parking lot of Bellisima Brushstrokes boasted only three vehicles when I parked my white SUV near the door. I hoped that meant Viola wouldn’t be too busy for a short chat. With a latte for Viola and a tea for myself, I entered the store.

“Special delivery!” I called out.

Viola’s head popped up from behind a canvas. “I don’t remember scheduling any orders this week.”

“That’s why this one is special.” I winked. “Vanilla latte with extra cinnamon?”

“Yum! Go on in.” She waves a paintbrush toward her office. “I’ll be just two minutes.”

Viola’s office was covered in paint. Literally. My mouth dropped as I turned in a slow circle admiring every inch. The walls were painted floor to ceiling in a frothy blue with gold and silver speckles and streaks thrown in. I’d stood in front of aquarium tanks that felt less like the ocean than this room. Incredible.

The first thing I saw when my eyes finished drinking in the walls was a massive floral arrangement on Viola’s desk.

“Beautiful, isn’t it?” Viola asked from behind me.

I nodded. “Breathtaking.” Without a shred of greenery, stark white calla lilies contrasted beautifully against deep purple roses and violets. It was so enormous that if Viola were to sit on one side and I on the other, we wouldn’t be able to see each other. Clearly thinking the same thing, Viola perched on the edge of her desk rather than going around to her chair.

I handed her the latte. “I hope I’m not here at a bad time.”

She took a sip then smiled. “Not at all. I’ve got another class in fifteen minutes but I’m free until then. What’s up?”

Instead of coming straight to the point, I chickened out. “Who are those from?” I pointed at the flowers again.

Viola blushed. “Wayne.”

Dollar signs flashed in my mind again. I made a note to look up the cost of that bouquet. “Wow! So, your date went well?”

“Actually, we didn’t get to go. He sent the flowers as an apology with a note asking if we could go out tomorrow instead.” Viola fingered one of the calla lily petals. “I have to admit, he made it hard to refuse.”

“Why did he have to cancel?”

The corners of her mouth turned down. “His brother got arrested recently. From what I gathered, Wayne has a lot of extra work to do while his dad makes sure his brother stays put for trial and the family hires a lawyer.”

I couldn’t believe my luck. She already knew about the arrest and I didn’t have to figure out a way to bring it up tactfully. Because let’s face it, there’s really not a tactful way to do that. “Yikes!” I feigned surprise. “That sounds pretty bad.”

“Oh, it’s awful. Wayne was really upset about it because his brother used the family cattle business to launder money and now everything is in jeopardy.” Viola took another sip and crossed her arms. “Between you and me, Wayne is so angry that he doesn’t even want to see his brother.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.