Page 43 of Macaron Massacre
“You’re thinking about Tanner, aren’t you?” Lainey’s eyes grow wild. “You’re afraid there will be a murder at my wedding!”
“Not happening. I promise you that,” I say it so fast I almost believe it. Of course, Lainey knows what I’m thinking. I’m the book she can’t stop reading. I’ve never been able to hide anything from my big sister.
“Only time will tell.” She glowers at the wall behind me for a moment. “What’s happening with Rich’s homicide investigation? Any solid leads?”
“Not really. I spoke with Gloria, Michelle, and Claret. And I gleaned some info at your bridal shower. It turns out, Rich was having financial trouble for a while but came into some kind of a big payday just before he was killed. And Scott Dushane mentioned to Mayor Nash that whoever did this tried to get a hit on Rich, but the mob wisely declined.”
Bear smirks. “They don’t call them wise guys for nothing. So, what’s next?”
“I want to speak with Scott myself. And I still need to track down Dawn Dallas, and maybe even her old boyfriend Griffin.”
“Dawn Dallas.” Bear tips his head to the side, deep in thought. “Griffin Locke? I know that dude. He’s a contractor out in Leeds. You need to talk to him? I know how to find him tonight.”
“Tonight?” My fingers fly to the back of my apron as I whip it off. “Where is he?”
Lainey holds up a hand. “No way are you going alone.”
“I’ll try to take Everett.”
“And me,” Keelie volunteers as Bear wraps an arm around her waist.
Bear shakes his head. “And there’s no way I’m letting you two go off on your own.”
“So, where are we headed?” I can already feel the adrenaline coursing through my veins.
“Tequila Mockingbird. They advertise beer as cold as your ex-girlfriend’s heart.” He winces and rightly so. “Sorry, Lot.”
“Not a problem. Seven o’clock sound good?”
Keelie wraps her arms around her new man. “We’ll see you there.”
* * *
Tequila Mockingbird ison the wrong side of Leeds, and as fate and destiny should have it, there is no other side to this troublesome town. I texted Noah to let him know where I’d be in the event he wanted to join me, but he said he and Ivy had a lead they needed to follow up with, more info to come.
Everett nods to the sign out front, and I scoff. “Looks like the soup of the day is whiskey,” I say.
He ticks his head to the side. “You know what they say. Whiskey is sunlight held together with water.”
We look to the shiplap façade outside of the building as a large neon sign boasts their nod to great literature. Hanging on the door there’s yet a far more informative sign for the drunk and the lonely.
Looking for a meaningful one night relationship? Inquire inside.
I groan as we study it for a moment. “At least there’s an air of honesty about it.”
“There’s nothing more honest than hearing a woman say, ‘I don’t care what your name is.’” Everett’s brows bounce my way, and I can’t help but laugh. I’ve no doubt Everett has heard that phrase many, many times. “You ready for this, Lemon?”
“As ready as I’ll ever be,Essex.” I give a sly wink as we enter this drunken wonderland.
Inside, the music is loud, and the rowdy crowd is even louder as they chant and scream while congregating at the bar.
A trio of women—a brunette, a blonde, and a redhead—hop up on the counter and start in on a cross between a kick line and something I once saw inCoyote Ugly. I’m pretty sure that if someone starts a line of fire across that granite, things will go south pretty quickly.
The place is lined with bodies to the hilt, the furniture looks as if it’s made of balsa wood, and there’s enough hairspray in this crowd that ensures the fact heads will spontaneously combust at the sight of the first flame. And what’s with all the big hair, neon clothes, and garish makeup these girls are sporting, anyway? Just as I’m about to get waylaid in my mission by assessing the poor follicular choices and bad fashion sense that abounds, I spot the giant sign near the door that readseighties night.
Makes perfect sense.
Bear waves to us from the back as the girls on the counter stomp their way to celebrity status among the drunk and the lonely.