Read Online Spicy Lasagna Murder: Book 13 in The Darling Deli Series by Patti Benning - Free Book Online Page A

had just had a successful business meeting with an honest man, or a tense meeting with a murderer, but either way she was glad that it was over. Her arm was aching, and she wanted nothing more than to go home, check on the puppies, then lie down and take a nap.
     

CHAPTER TWELVE
    “Thanks so much, Logan,” Moira said, pausing at the front door as she shrugged on her jacket. “I know that between work and school, you’re pretty busy. I hope this isn’t cutting into your study time.”
    “Nah, I can do my homework here, Ms. D,” he said. “You know I love hanging out with the dogs. I’ve missed them.”
    “I think they’ve missed you too,” she said with a smile. Keeva and Maverick had greeted the teenager so enthusiastically at the door that they had nearly knocked him over. “The vet’s number is on the fridge, so if something happens don’t hesitate to call them. I think everything will be fine, though. Hazel has been great with the pups.”
    “Okay, will do,” he promised. “I’ll keep a close eye on them.” He glanced over the gate at the squirming nest of puppies, and Moira recognized the warmth in his expression. The surest way to tell that someone is a good person is whether or not they like animals , she thought. Some of the worst people she had ever met mistreated animals, like the dog thief that had owned Maverick before she had taken him.
    “I shouldn’t be back too late,” she promised Logan.
    “Okay. Don’t worry about it, though. I can stay as late as you need me to. The nice thing about working at the candy shop is that I never have to wake up early on the weekends.”
    Moira smiled at that. She wasn’t a huge fan of early mornings either, though by necessity she often did wake up with the sun. Before she had expanded the deli’s hours to include breakfast, she had rarely been up before ten.
    After saying her final goodbyes to the boy and the dogs, she got into her SUV and started it, glad that she was finally able to use the fingers on her right hand for basic gripping and support without sending shocks of pain up the limb. Driving with one hand wasn’t fun, but it was legal as long as she could operate all of the vehicle’s controls safely, which she could. Luckily, Misty Pines wasn’t too far away, and she was looking forward to this dinner with Candice, Eli, and Reginald enough that she wouldn’t miss it just for a little pain.
    The assisted-living home was located in a beautiful swath of pine forest a few miles outside of Lake Marion. It was one of the nicest places of its sort that Moira had ever been to. In fact, her only complaint about it was the food, which of necessity was always soft and bland.
    She waited at the second set of doors for only a minute before one of the aides came and punched in the code to let her in. The second she set foot in the dining room, her daughter waved her over to the small round table where the three of them were already seated.
    “I’m glad you could come,” Candice said. “Logan’s with the pups?”
    “Yep,” she told her. “It’s so nice not to have to worry about them. I know they’re in good hands.”
    “I still have to stop by and see them sometime,” said Eli, Candice’s boyfriend.
    Eli ran the ice cream shop in Lake Marion. His grandfather, Reggie, who was now also a friend of Moira’s, owned it. Both men were good at heart and honest, and the deli owner couldn’t have been happier for her daughter and Eli, who had become nearly inseparable over the months. Besides, she and David got free ice cream for life after helping rescue Reggie from a psychopath a few weeks ago, and ice cream was one of Moira’s weaknesses.
    “You know you’re welcome over any time, Eli,” she told him.
    “I want to see the puppies too,” said Reggie. “I miss having a dog.”
    “Maybe I can bring one or two over for a visit in a few weeks once they have their first round of shots, if it’s okay with the director,” she said. “They