concern.
“She’s not so bad,” I said, leaning on the railing and looking over the side. Gray shapes glided through the water underneath the boat. “You should’ve been around when Ava Faulkner was in charge. Palamina is a walk in the park compared to that witch.”
He grinned. “I’m glad to hear it. When you first moved down here, you were anxious about everything. I think you’ve developed more of a backbone.”
“It wouldn’t take much to improve from those days, would it?” I asked with a snort of laughter. We strolled around the outside of the restaurant and headed back into the dining area.
Ray held up his phone. “I’m going to give Connie a buzz, make sure she doesn’t need me.”
I ducked into the ladies’ room to freshen up.
On the way back out, I heard Wally’s voice rise over the rumble of conversation from the other diners.
“Can I speak frankly? Hayley’s reviews are the one thing you don’t have to micromanage at Key Zest . She’s improved one hundred percent since she started, especially since getting that monkey Ava off her back.”
“What did I say?” asked Palamina, all surprised innocence.
“Nothing direct, but I get the sense that Ava’s distrust of Hayley may have taken root in you.”
I felt my face grow hot and I froze, not wanting to show up at the table immediately and let on that I’doverheard their discussion. Wally was putting my submerged fears into words. I tensed for the worst.
“Not at all,” said Palamina. “I was only trying to make a few suggestions. Keep in mind that you may not be in the most—how can I put this?—unbiased position.” Her voice remained pleasant but firm. “Hayley is adorable and eager. But she’s young and a bit impulsive—don’t you think? I worry about her decision making, that she loses her focus.”
“Did you know that Paul Woolston of the Times reads her stuff every week? He loves what she does,” Wally said. “He told me that not only does she understand food; she understands why people eat it. What they crave and what they tend to turn away from—and the psychology behind those decisions. And that’s unusual in a food critic. Particularly a critic who’s not working in the rarified stratosphere of a major newspaper in a big city.”
Palamina shrugged, the expression on her face neutral. “We’ll have to see how it goes, right?”
I retreated farther into the hallway that led to the ladies’ room and counted to a hundred. Then I adjusted my shirt, ran my fingers through my hair, and marched back to our table.
“I am so looking forward to this dinner,” I said brightly, then took a swig of the sake that had been left near my place setting. My eyes burned as the alcohol seared my throat and I choked and spluttered. Ray returned from calling Connie and slapped me on the back. “Watch it there, maestro.”
The first course was delivered and we began to eat.
“Have they solved the murder yet?” Ray asked. “Spooky that the body washed up right near TarponPier. Is your friend the tarot card reader really involved?”
Wally shot me a warning look, which I read as, “Stay out of it.” A man with a round, pleasant face and a close-cropped salt-and-pepper beard approached the table, a woman with lovely silvery curls following him. They waited for us to finish our discussion.
“I’m sure he had nothing to do with it,” I said. “And I won’t stand by and watch him get blamed for something he didn’t do. That’s all I’ll say.” I cracked a tight smile at the man standing by.
“Good evening, folks,” the man said. “Thanks for coming out this evening.”
I recognized his smooth baritone voice from the city commission meeting—this was the owner of the restaurant, Edwin Mastin. He’d gotten a haircut for opening night.
“We are the owners, Olivia and Edwin Mastin,” he said. Olivia waved and beamed.
“We’d love your feedback, both good and not so good,” Edwin assured us. “With a
“She’s not so bad,” I said, leaning on the railing and looking over the side. Gray shapes glided through the water underneath the boat. “You should’ve been around when Ava Faulkner was in charge. Palamina is a walk in the park compared to that witch.”
He grinned. “I’m glad to hear it. When you first moved down here, you were anxious about everything. I think you’ve developed more of a backbone.”
“It wouldn’t take much to improve from those days, would it?” I asked with a snort of laughter. We strolled around the outside of the restaurant and headed back into the dining area.
Ray held up his phone. “I’m going to give Connie a buzz, make sure she doesn’t need me.”
I ducked into the ladies’ room to freshen up.
On the way back out, I heard Wally’s voice rise over the rumble of conversation from the other diners.
“Can I speak frankly? Hayley’s reviews are the one thing you don’t have to micromanage at Key Zest . She’s improved one hundred percent since she started, especially since getting that monkey Ava off her back.”
“What did I say?” asked Palamina, all surprised innocence.
“Nothing direct, but I get the sense that Ava’s distrust of Hayley may have taken root in you.”
I felt my face grow hot and I froze, not wanting to show up at the table immediately and let on that I’doverheard their discussion. Wally was putting my submerged fears into words. I tensed for the worst.
“Not at all,” said Palamina. “I was only trying to make a few suggestions. Keep in mind that you may not be in the most—how can I put this?—unbiased position.” Her voice remained pleasant but firm. “Hayley is adorable and eager. But she’s young and a bit impulsive—don’t you think? I worry about her decision making, that she loses her focus.”
“Did you know that Paul Woolston of the Times reads her stuff every week? He loves what she does,” Wally said. “He told me that not only does she understand food; she understands why people eat it. What they crave and what they tend to turn away from—and the psychology behind those decisions. And that’s unusual in a food critic. Particularly a critic who’s not working in the rarified stratosphere of a major newspaper in a big city.”
Palamina shrugged, the expression on her face neutral. “We’ll have to see how it goes, right?”
I retreated farther into the hallway that led to the ladies’ room and counted to a hundred. Then I adjusted my shirt, ran my fingers through my hair, and marched back to our table.
“I am so looking forward to this dinner,” I said brightly, then took a swig of the sake that had been left near my place setting. My eyes burned as the alcohol seared my throat and I choked and spluttered. Ray returned from calling Connie and slapped me on the back. “Watch it there, maestro.”
The first course was delivered and we began to eat.
“Have they solved the murder yet?” Ray asked. “Spooky that the body washed up right near TarponPier. Is your friend the tarot card reader really involved?”
Wally shot me a warning look, which I read as, “Stay out of it.” A man with a round, pleasant face and a close-cropped salt-and-pepper beard approached the table, a woman with lovely silvery curls following him. They waited for us to finish our discussion.
“I’m sure he had nothing to do with it,” I said. “And I won’t stand by and watch him get blamed for something he didn’t do. That’s all I’ll say.” I cracked a tight smile at the man standing by.
“Good evening, folks,” the man said. “Thanks for coming out this evening.”
I recognized his smooth baritone voice from the city commission meeting—this was the owner of the restaurant, Edwin Mastin. He’d gotten a haircut for opening night.
“We are the owners, Olivia and Edwin Mastin,” he said. Olivia waved and beamed.
“We’d love your feedback, both good and not so good,” Edwin assured us. “With a
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