Sweets Forgotten (Samantha Sweet Mysteries Book 10) by Connie Shelton

extraordinary.”
    Wow. Sam worked hard to act as if
this sort of request came in every day. “Naturally. I will—”
    “Margie’s two favorite things in
the world are cats and chocolate. I want two pounds of chocolate kitty cats.
Each must be unique—different poses, different facial expressions—whatever it
takes to make this a gift that no one else in the world has ever received.”
    Sam could pretty well bet that a
box of custom made chocolates presented during a flight to Paris would be right
up there in the list of exceptional gifts of all time, but if this man needed
them to be shaped like cats she would simply have to figure out a way. Her
brain worked at figuring out exactly how she could make this happen while her
pen filled in the blanks on an order form.
    “Understand, now, that the shape
is only one aspect of these chocolates. I want there to be variety in flavor,
color and texture too.”
    Sure—go ahead and make the
impossible a little more impossible.
Sam felt her anxiety level rise. Next, he would probably want the gift box
ready by tomorrow. She jotted a few notes as ideas came to her.
    “Margie’s birthday is next
Saturday. I’d like to pick up the order by Friday afternoon if that’s okay.”
    A whole week. Bless him. She put
Beau’s investigation and the funeral of Zack Robinet and the whole unsolved
situation with her Jane Doe visitor on the back burner. Creating unusual
desserts was her real love and she was about to get the chance to do something
really special.
    Stan Bookman reached into the
front pocket of his slacks and pulled out a money clip. From it came two one-hundred
dollar bills. “If that’s not enough, just let me know the balance when I come
back,” he said.
    Sam pushed one of the bills back
to him. “One will be more than enough. Depending on what I need to spend on
packaging, I’m sure you’ll get change back.”
    He thanked her and stood. “I look
forward to seeing my wife’s lovely gift.”
    Sam watched him walk out the
front door before turning to see if Jen still needed help. Luckily, the crowd
had thinned considerably.
    “You do know who that was, don’t
you?” Jen said, walking over to clear and wipe the empty table.
    “Stan Bookman?”
    “Book It Travel. The company
handles worldwide travel arrangements for all the ritzy-rich who jet about in
private planes. He’ll charter their flights, arrange stays at the most
exclusive hotels, have their dogs shampooed and delivered all fluffy and white
if that’s what they want.”
    “Wow.”
    “I’m surprised he was so nice,”
Jen said. “I guess I assumed because his clients can be such snobs that he
would be, too. Believe me, I saw a lot of them in the gallery before I started
working here.”
    Sam filed the knowledge as a
caution. Just because the man was cordial today didn’t mean he wouldn’t know
how to throw a supreme tantrum if his order was not up to his standards. This
definitely raised the bar.
    In the kitchen, Sam caught a
glare Becky aimed toward Jane’s back. The sooner she could send their visitor
back to the care of Melissa Masters, the better.
    “I overheard a little of what
that man requested in his order. He wants unusual flavors—how about some apple
and carrots with ginger? Or maybe a cinnamon-nutmeg in eighty-six percent
cacao?” Jane said. “Sam, I’d love to help with it. I thrive when I’m working in
chocolate. And you know I’m good at it.”
    Her eyes were bright with
enthusiasm and Sam wavered. Jane could possibly be a big help. But what was
going on with Becky?
    “Let me think about it,” Sam told
Jane. “I need to put some ideas together before leaping into this one.”
    Jane walked over to Sam’s desk,
picking up a sheet of paper and a pencil. She found a quiet corner of the
worktable and began sketching.
    “Becky, help me get something
from the van?” Sam headed for the back door without looking back.
    The shady alley felt chilly as
clouds had rolled in. “I