Ain't She Sweet (Seven Brides for Seven Mothers #2) - Whitney Dineen Page 0,32
face it, once upon a time, no press was bad press. That changed when I stopped modeling and left Romaine.
“Stay calm, honey,” my mom says. “It looks like the scumbag is leaving, so I’ll have James drop me off at the lodge. But I don’t think we should meet in the dining room. In fact, I think you’d better try to stay out of public spaces as much as possible.”
“You think?” I ask sarcastically. I thought I’d finally broken free from the constant scrutiny of others. Damn. What do I do now?
“I’ll call you when I get there. Hopefully, I’ll have a plan by then.”
I hang up with my mom and try to focus on the pears I’m poaching for tonight’s dessert special. While I’m whipping up the goat cheese and honey filling, Ruby walks through the door. She waves from across the room before heading in my direction.
“I just got off the phone with James,” she says. “He told me what’s going on.”
“He didn’t shoot the guy, did he?” Dare to dream.
“No, he just scared him into moving on. But I’m guessing if the reporter was willing to follow your mom here, he’s not going to give up on finding you.” She reaches out to give my arm a squeeze of comfort. Her mouth has folded in on itself in a grimace of concern.
I feel the prickle of tears behind my eyes, so I inhale deeply, trying to calm my emotions enough to keep them at bay. “I’m so sorry, Ruby. I don’t want to cause any trouble here.”
“Psh.” She shakes her head. “I’m not worried about us; I’m concerned for you. But I have an idea.”
“What’s that?” She hands me a passkey to a room.
“Your mom is going to meet us upstairs. Come on up to room three twenty-seven when you finish here. We’ll be waiting.”
I turn the burner off the pears to let them sit in the poaching liquid. Then I transfer the filling into a pastry bag. After I’m done, I ask my assistant, Henry, to caramelize the pecans for the garnish.
I hurry to Geoffrey’s office to take a quick look in the mirror. After using a wipe to take off the light makeup I’m wearing, I pull my hair up into a high ponytail and then wrap it in a bun. I top it with a tall white chef’s hat. Then I replace my coat with one in a larger size. I feel like a secret agent chef. All I need is my favorite cleaver under my hat and I’d be ready to fight crime.
My disguise isn’t enough to fool someone looking closely, but I’m hoping it’s enough to let me blend into the background long enough to find out what Ruby’s plan is.
Scurrying down the hallway to room three twenty-seven I realize that I’ve never seen the inside of one of the rooms at the lodge. After sliding the keycard through the door, I watch as the light turns green before pushing the door open.
While I’m expecting to see my mom and Ruby, I’m surprised to find James is there as well. He pulls me into the room before leaning his head out into the hallway. Then he announces, “I’m pretty sure he’s not dead.”
What?!
Chapter Sixteen
Ruby
Stopping at the front desk on her way up to the third floor, Ruby says, “Hey, Chris, do you have a sec?”
Chris turns around. “Sure, Rubes, what’s up?”
“Trouble.” Ruby leans in and whispers, “The press have arrived in Spartan.”
“Is that code for something?” Chris asks, more than a bit confused.
“Some photographer went to James’s house this morning. He was there with Tara’s mom.”
“Why was Tara’s mom with him?”
“James was going to show her around town after letting his plumber in. The guy must have followed Gwen from LA.”
“Well, crap. How is Tara going to keep her secret if the press is here?”
“I have a plan, but in the meantime, we need to close ranks. All food ordered from room service needs to be taken up by staff we know well. I know that’s a pain, but the fewer people who see into that room, the better. I’ll put a tag on the room requesting no maid service.”
“Maybe it’s better to use one of the cabins,” Chris suggests.
“I thought about that, but there’s more protection here in the lodge than there would be in the woods.”
Shaking her head, Chris says, “Poor Tara.”
“As long as she’s willing to stay here for a while, my plan might just work.”