Chocolate Macaroons and a Dead Groom (Poppy Peters Mysteries Book 2) by A. Gardner
Authors: A. Gardner
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shop with the name Fromagerie on the front window. There is a line out the door.
"A long line is good." Destin nods and steps past the line of customers who are waiting impatiently. I follow him, a little embarrassed when he bypasses the wait and strolls straight up to the girl at the counter. My eyes go wide as I stare at the various selections of cheeses behind the glass, and the pungent smell hits me all at once. I'm the only one who looks bothered by it.
I've never seen so many types of cheeses all together in one place. So many colors with different levels of thickness to choose from. The woman behind the counter blushes and quickly grabs a baguette. She fills a paper sack with an assortment of cheeses and hands it to Destin. The man standing first in line scowls at us on our way out.
"Uh, did she just give you that for free?" I ask curiously. Dandre grabs the sack and examines the cheese selection. He nods in approval.
"She is a friend," Destin explains. "We visit her shop every week. Come." He walks faster, much like a native Parisian. We cut through an alley and come out onto a market street where foot traffic takes up the center of the road. I smile, dazzled by the colorful produce stands and smell of fresh-cut flowers in the breeze. Tall buildings are huddled together so tightly that they look like they are one continuous stone wall.
Destin stops again, handing some change to a woman in an orange jacket in exchange for a handful of vine-ripened tomatoes. Dandre snags the tomatoes and gently places them in the paper sack. He calls to Destin and runs to a booth of sweets.
"Dandre," Destin mutters. "Bonbons again?"
"Don't we sell plenty of sugary things at Le Croissant?" I watch Dandre scoop a handful of sugar-covered gummies into a bag. They remind me of the sugary gummy candies I see at the grocery store back home. My favorites in middle school were the aqua blue gummy sharks. I haven't had one of those since…well, the last time I bought them while I was out with my childhood friend, Evie. I hid them in my closet when I got home. My mom didn't approve of sugar. She still doesn't. The exception to the rule was when Grandma Liz came over.
"He came here as a boy, and…." Destin searches for the right word. "Eh, he dreams of it."
"He's obsessed?" I guess.
"Oui," Destin agrees. " Obsessed with pâtes de fruit. "
Dandre pays for his sweets and doesn't waste a second digging into the bag and popping a pink-colored gummy in his mouth. I imagine it tastes like strawberry or maybe even watermelon. The three of us continue walking until we reach the edge of the market.
Destin looks up and down the street before he runs across like it's no big deal. I anxiously follow, nervous that if a car comes it might not stop. If I didn't have Dandre and Destin with me, I would be so lost. Destin walks quickly to a nearby park. My heart leaps as I think of laying our spread out on a checkered picnic blanket and eating our lunch staring up at the Eiffel tower.
The park isn't next to the Eiffel tower, but I think we are close to it. The lawns extend all the way to a serene duck pond, and the grass is a rich green. We pass a few beds of violet-colored tulips. I raise my eyebrows, seeing a sign that says Pelouse interdite . I'm not sure what it means, but I don't see anyone lying out on the green with glasses of French wine or a cheese spread like ours. The sign must be a polite warning to steer clear of the lawn.
Destin keeps walking until he reaches a grove of trees ripening with blossoms. They look like cherry blossoms—varying shades of red and pink. He sits under the tree and Dandre follows him like it's an everyday ritual. I glance around. A few other people had a similar idea. I carefully hang onto the hem of my skirt as I sit with bent knees.
Dandre lays our food out on top of the paper sack, munching his gummy candies in between breaths. Destin watches him wolf down a few sweets and glances up at the overcast sky. He
"A long line is good." Destin nods and steps past the line of customers who are waiting impatiently. I follow him, a little embarrassed when he bypasses the wait and strolls straight up to the girl at the counter. My eyes go wide as I stare at the various selections of cheeses behind the glass, and the pungent smell hits me all at once. I'm the only one who looks bothered by it.
I've never seen so many types of cheeses all together in one place. So many colors with different levels of thickness to choose from. The woman behind the counter blushes and quickly grabs a baguette. She fills a paper sack with an assortment of cheeses and hands it to Destin. The man standing first in line scowls at us on our way out.
"Uh, did she just give you that for free?" I ask curiously. Dandre grabs the sack and examines the cheese selection. He nods in approval.
"She is a friend," Destin explains. "We visit her shop every week. Come." He walks faster, much like a native Parisian. We cut through an alley and come out onto a market street where foot traffic takes up the center of the road. I smile, dazzled by the colorful produce stands and smell of fresh-cut flowers in the breeze. Tall buildings are huddled together so tightly that they look like they are one continuous stone wall.
Destin stops again, handing some change to a woman in an orange jacket in exchange for a handful of vine-ripened tomatoes. Dandre snags the tomatoes and gently places them in the paper sack. He calls to Destin and runs to a booth of sweets.
"Dandre," Destin mutters. "Bonbons again?"
"Don't we sell plenty of sugary things at Le Croissant?" I watch Dandre scoop a handful of sugar-covered gummies into a bag. They remind me of the sugary gummy candies I see at the grocery store back home. My favorites in middle school were the aqua blue gummy sharks. I haven't had one of those since…well, the last time I bought them while I was out with my childhood friend, Evie. I hid them in my closet when I got home. My mom didn't approve of sugar. She still doesn't. The exception to the rule was when Grandma Liz came over.
"He came here as a boy, and…." Destin searches for the right word. "Eh, he dreams of it."
"He's obsessed?" I guess.
"Oui," Destin agrees. " Obsessed with pâtes de fruit. "
Dandre pays for his sweets and doesn't waste a second digging into the bag and popping a pink-colored gummy in his mouth. I imagine it tastes like strawberry or maybe even watermelon. The three of us continue walking until we reach the edge of the market.
Destin looks up and down the street before he runs across like it's no big deal. I anxiously follow, nervous that if a car comes it might not stop. If I didn't have Dandre and Destin with me, I would be so lost. Destin walks quickly to a nearby park. My heart leaps as I think of laying our spread out on a checkered picnic blanket and eating our lunch staring up at the Eiffel tower.
The park isn't next to the Eiffel tower, but I think we are close to it. The lawns extend all the way to a serene duck pond, and the grass is a rich green. We pass a few beds of violet-colored tulips. I raise my eyebrows, seeing a sign that says Pelouse interdite . I'm not sure what it means, but I don't see anyone lying out on the green with glasses of French wine or a cheese spread like ours. The sign must be a polite warning to steer clear of the lawn.
Destin keeps walking until he reaches a grove of trees ripening with blossoms. They look like cherry blossoms—varying shades of red and pink. He sits under the tree and Dandre follows him like it's an everyday ritual. I glance around. A few other people had a similar idea. I carefully hang onto the hem of my skirt as I sit with bent knees.
Dandre lays our food out on top of the paper sack, munching his gummy candies in between breaths. Destin watches him wolf down a few sweets and glances up at the overcast sky. He
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