Read Online 02_Coyote in Provence by Dianne Harman - Free Book Online

listed in the formulas. All of them were from South America and after an hour of research, she determined that only drug companies could bring them into the United States from Mexico, where they were distilled. The drug companies were a powerful lobby and they’d been able to get a Trade Agreement in place because the plants were essential in many of the drugs that they formulated.
                Elena began pacing the length of the patio. All she could think about was getting the drug. What she really needed was a chemist. Even though she had the names of the plants and the amounts, there had to be more to it than that. At the bottom of each of the pages were notations which she’d painstakingly copied, but they didn’t mean a thing to her. Maybe they would to a chemist, but how was she supposed to find a chemist in this little village? Plus, Jeffrey was one of the finest chemists in the world. It might take a very knowledgeable chemist to understand his notations.
                There’s nothing I can do today, but maybe, just maybe, I can get the drug again. Now I need to get ready for Jordan. I don’t have much time and there’s no way I can tell him about the formulas without going into everything that happened on my last afternoon at the Blue Coyote Motel.

CHAPTER 11
     
    Jordan left the chateau and walked to the parking lot, got in his car and drove the short distance to the épicier .  While the butcher cut T-bone steaks from the loin of beef hanging in the back cooler, Jordan selected two large potatoes and a few other items. He couldn’t pass up the Chateuneuf-du-Pape Cotes du Rhône wine and bought two bottles.
    He made his way up the winding hill, spotted the blue shutters, and saw that candles had already been lit in the house. The winding path to the door had several lighted pillar candles in tall glass hurricane holders as well. It made the appearance of the cottage seem even more warm and inviting than it had been the evening before, almost magical.
      I must have passed some test . This looks promising.
    Elena opened the door just as he raised his hand to knock. “Let me help you with those sacks. What did you bring? This looks like more than steak and potatoes,” she said.
    She wore jeans and a simple pink and white striped blouse. She’d cut her long hair right after she landed in Marseilles, but it had grown quite a bit since then. Elena wore it pulled behind her ears, with bangs swept to the side. On her ears were big hoop earrings and gold bracelets jangled on her wrists. She looked fresh and beautiful. Jordan beamed at her.
    “I couldn’t resist,” he answered. “I’m a sucker for Chateuneuf-du-Pape wine, and it wouldn’t be a true baked potato without bacon and sour cream. I thought you’d probably have some chives or scallions in your garden.  Why don’t you put the potatoes in the oven and I’ll open the wine?”
    While he was opening the wine, he stole a glance at Elena. She really was beautiful. He couldn’t even begin to guess her age. There were no lines on her face or around her eyes. With all of the investigations Jordan had conducted over the years, he’d become pretty good at gauging a person’s age, but not in Elena’s case.  None of the usual benchmarks were there.
    He couldn’t remember if Elena had worn make-up the day before, but she certainly had applied some tonight and applied it well. Her hazel eyes were glowing with her long lashes darkened by mascara and soft brown eyeliner applied to the lids. Her cheeks were a little more blushed than he remembered and she wore a hint of lipstick. He wondered what it would be like to kiss those soft, inviting lips. He didn’t know how long she’d been widowed or how long it had been since she’d been with a man. When they met yesterday and during dinner last night, he’d sensed some sexual tension between them, but tonight was a different story. Sex was definitely in the air, like a thick