in my arsenal, but the gingerbread men and the eggnog trifle are the stars of the show.
A rock and roll version of “The Twelve Days of Christmas” blares from the speakers, and it seems as if all of Honey Hollow is on the dance floor doing just that—dancing.
“Come on, Lot.” Noah takes my hand and hitches his head to that crowd of twitching bodies. He’s donned a gray suit and a silver tie and looks strikingly handsome with his hair slicked back and his eyes as green as those decorated evergreens dotting the room.
“I can’t.” I shake my head. “I should be here, doling out more trifle. Or see if the coffee needs to be refreshed.”
Lily scoffs as she hands out plates of trifle in her cute silver dress. “I’m getting paid overtime for a reason, Lottie. Go dance with Noah. The odds are good he’s the baby’s father. You might as well play nice. Lord knows your specialty is playing with him. You can’t resist his dimples.”
Noah twitches his brows, and I can’t help but laugh.
“Fine, but I’m going to look like a zombie doing it.”
“A zombie?” Carlotta crops up dressed in a black dress with red and green plumes of some sort dusting it. She looks as if she’s been tarred and feathered, but I’ll be the last to point it out. However, knowing Carlotta, that’s the look she was going for. “I bet Foxy would like to take you out back and smooth out your zombie moves.”
Noah’s phone chirps before he can say a word, and he lets out a deep sigh.
“Shoot.”
“Noah?” I lean toward his phone. “Everything okay?”
“It’s just great. Ivy says she has enough evidence to arrest my mother, and she wants to talk to me.” He squeezes his eyes shut. “I’m sorry, Lottie. Rain check on the dance?” He lands a kiss to my temple and quickly dissolves into the crowd.
A throaty chuckle escapes Carlotta. “Looks as if good old Suze is about to get herself a couple of roommates. That ought to put you in a good mood, Lot.”
“Yeah.” Lily laughs. “I bet you can dance a jig all night long knowing she won’t be around to torment you.” She shudders. “I just can’t believe Suze Fox is a killer.”
“She’s not.” I try my hardest to sound convinced of this. “Or at least I hope she isn’t.” A thought comes to me, and I take in a deep breath.
I forgot to mention to Noah what I gleaned last night about Gloria’s murderous past. It turns out, Gloria Abner was once Gloria Markus, the very woman who killed her husband. She claims the gun went off while he was trying to teach her to use it. She was charged with negligent homicide, was forced to pay a fine, and served a mere thirty days in jail. Once she was released, she came to Vermont and started a brand-new life right here in Honey Hollow. I bet that’s the secret Elodie was in on.
I spot Elodie across the room talking to Candy Brighton, and both of them have on red shimmering dresses.
I’m about to head in that direction when Mom and Wiley dash this way.
“Lottie!” Mom takes in my dress before pulling me close for a warm embrace. My mother dazzles in an emerald gown with rhinestones dotting her neckline. Her vanilla blonde hair is coiffed to perfection, and her cherry red lips show off her perfect smile. “Oh, you look simply stunning, Lottie!”
Wily nods with an affable smile, and his dimples dip in deep just like his son’s. He’s wearing an odd looking country western-inspired suit with black and white whip stitching and a shoestring for a tie, but he’s handsome to a fault regardless. It’s easy to see why my mother is under his spell—and why Elodie Frost keeps stealing glances in this direction.
“You’re looking great, Lottie,” he says. “How’s my grandchild doing?”
Mom shrugs. “The man is with me, Lottie. This baby is his grandchild either way.”
“Sugar Cookie is doing great. I’ve met all of its odd culinary requests today. And that includes a croissant filled with chocolate and anchovies, but just one anchovy.”
The entire lot of them gags and waves their hands over their faces as if I just let an offensive odor fly.
“What?” I balk. “It added just the right amount of salt.”
“Ooh.” Mom lifts a finger. “Speaking of salty, guess who signed on for a three book publishing deal with Wiley Rose Press?”
I try hard not to roll my eyes