Tequila Trouble by Elizabeth Ashby & Nicole Leiren

Author:Elizabeth Ashby & Nicole Leiren [Ashby, Elizabeth & Leiren, Nicole]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, Mass Market
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Mandi's statement, simple yet profound, gave me pause. She continued with her thought process. "It makes sense when you think about it."

"How so?" I could probably figure it out, but if she'd already done the mental math, no sense in me recalculating.

"He was reluctant to cook the meal from the beginning, right?"

"Right."

"But Agnes is relentless and wouldn't even consider giving him money without tasting the product first, so he had no choice."

I nodded my head and picked up on her train of thought. "But he knew if he tried to cook the meal, Agnes and I might sense that something was off, especially since we were expecting perfection. I'm not sure what happened at Bree's the other night. Maybe her spices really were old and useless or maybe her chicken really was starting to go bad. Who knows. Regardless, delivering anything short of perfection at the brunch could potentially sink his hopes of securing new investors for his business."

Mandi's blue eyes sparkled like freshly polished sapphires. "Exactly. He couldn't have that, so he insisted that Tara and Clara assist him."

Tiny goose bumps prickled my skin. "Clara told me that morning that she and Tara had done all the work. Even said he was testing them when it came to the flavor combinations. When I ate my dish, it reminded me of their style and presentation." Trust me, I'd eaten enough food prepared by them to know.

"Makes sense. He needed them so his secret would remain safe."

Some customers chose that moment to walk in and take a seat in one of the booths. Mandi sighed. "Guess we'll have to continue this later."

I checked on the few patrons at the bar and started some of my cleaning routine. The more I could get done now, the less I'd have to do at closing time. The circular motion of the cloth against the stainless steel of the sink area helped me think. If it was true that Chef Jonathan had lost his ability to taste, the stakes for him would have reached new heights. It would be a long, hard fall if word of this got out. Assuming it's true.

Bottom line—it was the only thing that could explain away his odd behavior. Desperate men do desperate things. Rico had issued the threat about Agnes's money. So one had to ask: would Jonathan kill to get it? That was a question I'd need to answer…and soon.

I tried to determine the best way to obtain that answer—short of asking him—which I didn't feel would go over well. Given the man was an expert with knives, I decided a head-on approach would most likely end with me on the wrong side of a razor-sharp edge.

Before I could formulate an alternate approach, Allyson walked in with a man dressed like he'd stepped out of the center of Vogue magazine. In addition to his finely tailored suit, he sported a very unique accessory: an onyx and silver cane, which gleamed in the artificial light. Was it customary

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