Toasting Up Trouble (A Dinner Club Mystery) (25 page)

Gina had pulled a bottle of cognac and three glasses out of a desk drawer and poured them each a drink, which she passed over to J.J. and Devine.

J.J. gratefully accepted and took a small sip. The burning as it made its way down her throat felt bracing. “It’s funny it didn’t click the last time we were here. We actually talked to Lucy after searching the office, remember? I guess I was too focused on the questions and all those other leads. I’d thought the picture reminded me of somebody but then forgot about it. But it came back to me this morning when I stopped by to talk to Kevin Lonsdale. Just the angle of Lucy’s face, I guess, tickled at my brain, and after I left, it came to me. Well, it didn’t all come to me. I just thought she looked a lot like the woman in the photo.”

“And you didn’t think it would make her suspicious, your coming back like that?”

“I guess I hadn’t really connected her as being the killer, only the fact that she might be tied in some way to the photo. Pretty dumb, I guess.”

Devine sighed and put an arm around her shoulder. “No,
not dumb, but you’re very lucky. And very ingenious,” he added, nodding at the plastic wrap piled on the desk and the box cutter on top of it all.

J.J. suddenly felt totally exhausted. She would have liked nothing better than to curl up on the floor and take a nap. But Detective Hastings entered the room and asked her to go through the entire scenario once again. By this time, Gina had started on a second glass of cognac and wasn’t able to add too much to the telling.

“I’ll need you both to come down to the station tomorrow and give your statements.”

J.J. nodded, as did Gina.

“Why don’t you both go home now and get some rest,” he added, sounding sympathetic, or so J.J. thought.

Gina stood and reached out to hang on to the edge of the desk. “I should stay here for the closing up.”

Devine looked at her. “I’m sure they can handle it on their own. I’ll drive you both home and tomorrow you can collect your cars.” He walked over to Gina and held out his arm. He grabbed J.J.’s hand as they made their way to the door.

Another Sunday, another gathering of the Culinary Capers, only this time it was for a special luncheon that J.J. had decided to host at the last minute. She had to admit it was a combination of her cooking success earlier in the month that had really boosted her self-confidence, and a celebration of having all the angst and stress of the past month ended with the arrest of the murderer.

The doorbell rang and J.J. glanced at the clock on her way to the door. Right on time. It must be Evan.

“J.J., for you,” he said with a quick hug and a flourish of his arm, which held a bottle of red wine.

Alison peeked around him and stuck out her hand, which also held a wine bag. Alison and J.J. hugged, and J.J. hung their jackets while they made their way into the living room.

“I’m glad you were able to come,” J.J. said as she joined them.

“How are you, J.J.?” Alison asked. “Life back to normal after your run-in with the murderer?”

“I’ll say. I don’t think I’ll ever get involved in a murder investigation again. Hopefully, never with a murder, either. I’ve learned my lesson.” She quickly crossed her heart and heaved a huge sigh.

“You were really lucky, you know.” Alison stood with her hands on her hips. “Detective Hashtag almost had a bird, so I hear, when he found out you’d nailed the case. He has quite an arsenal of descriptive words, although anything said with a Brit accent sounds quite tame, I think. You know, he was equally upset that you’d put yourself in jeopardy. He really is quite a nice guy.”

“Yes, I do know that I’m lucky, Alison. And I’m sure Hastings is a nice guy. It just hasn’t been the appropriate conditions for me to find that out.” She grinned.

The doorbell rang again, followed by the sounds of Beth and Connor letting themselves in. Within minutes, they were all seated in the living room nibbling on plates of buffalo mozzarella with chunks of focaccia that J.J. had set out, and with mimosas in hand, courtesy of Evan, who did the honors and poured.

“Here’s to our hostess,” Connor said, his glass raised in a toast.

“To Culinary Capers,” J.J. countered.

“I am so glad everything is back to normal around here,” Beth said, “although I must admit I enjoyed our little tête-à-têtes over coffee as J.J. played investigator.”

Evan moaned. “Oh boy. I also hope we never go through anything like that again.”

Connor reached over and squeezed J.J.’s hand. Alison noticed and winked at J.J., but she pretended not to notice. Connor’s touch felt good—reassuring, but in a companionable
way. That thought momentarily depressed J.J. as she realized she was longing for some sparks somewhere in her life. Not here, though.

She smiled at him and then asked Alison what would happen to Lucy.

“There’s no hope of her getting out on bail, but I understand Gina Marcotti has hired a top-notch lawyer for her.”

“Gina?” That was a surprise, although the more she thought about it, maybe not. Gina was a kind person, and although it was her husband who had been killed, it seemed that Gina could understand what lay at the bottom of it. Of course, perhaps her attachment to Rocco had something to do with it. J.J. had been planning to stop by and talk to him, but she never seemed to get around to it. Maybe because she wasn’t really sure what to say.

“Uh-huh,” Alison continued. “It surprised everyone.”

“I still can’t get over how Marcotti didn’t see the same resemblance when looking at the photograph,” Evan said, shaking his head. “After all, you caught it and you’re not even related.”

“I don’t know. We’ll probably never know now that he’s dead. Either he was so fixated on the people in that photo—as they had been, and in no way did it intrude into the present—or who knows? He may have had an inkling but didn’t want to disturb the status quo, or else he might have been waiting for Lucy to say something.” J.J. sighed.

“If she’s been hanging around there that long, what was it that caused her to make a move that night?” Connor asked.

“That’s something the police asked. Devine said she heard Marcotti in his office speaking on the phone to someone who wasn’t his wife. Candy Fleetwood. Lucy got furious that he was again treating a woman so shabbily—namely Gina, whom she likes. She’d taken the knife sometime earlier from Rocco’s because it always was her plan to frame
him. She went to the Portovino estate, leaving her car outside the gated area, and waited for him to leave. Or in this case, waited for me to leave, and then stabbed him. She was able to walk away without being seen.”

Connor let out a low whistle. “She’s one very cold-blooded woman.”

J.J. nodded. “She was obsessed by the past. It’s such a sad story, all of it. I’m just glad it’s over. I hope I don’t have to give it another thought ever again.”

Evan jumped in. “Well then, let’s get focused on the matter at hand. J.J., you continue to surprise and delight us. Not one but two culinary pursuits in one month.”

J.J. felt her cheeks turning red. “It’s my pleasure. After all, you’ve lived through two of my main meals, and you’ve all been really supportive and helpful through all this. It’s the least I could do. I used
nigellissima
once again. And I have to share my secret.” She looked at each of them in turn, ramping up the suspense. “I really enjoyed preparing all of it.”

Beth and Evan clapped while Connor whistled. Alison gave her a high five.

“All right, without further ado, the table is waiting. And on the menu: chili crab risotto, cherry tomatoes with olives, and roasted red onions with basil. I have to admit, though, that I caved and the dessert comes from Gelato Heaven. I’m not quite ready to tackle the sweet stuff yet.”

Beth patted her arm on the way to the table. “One course at a time.”

They all took a seat while Connor poured from the bottle of Soave Classico. After passing all the dishes around, J.J. took a minute to watch her friends enjoying their food.

This is what it’s all about.

J.J. took a deep breath and pushed open the door to Rocco G’s. She saw him immediately, talking to a customer over in the olive oil section. Zoe was behind the counter and gave her a big smile.

When Rocco had finished, he seemed surprised to see J.J. and his expression turned to a look of pleasure as he gave her a big hug. “It’s a so good to see you. I thought you were maybe avoiding Rocco.”

Bingo.
“Not so. It’s been really hectic lately, and then I went home for a visit over Easter, but I couldn’t wait any longer. How are you doing?”

He gently took hold of her arm and steered her over to a table in the far corner, holding up two fingers to Zoe at the same time. When they were seated, he looked around the bistro. “You know, I value every day I am able to come here. It has become all the more precious to me after everything that’s gone on.”

Zoe delivered two espressos with a biscotti tucked onto each saucer. They both took a sip before Rocco continued.

“I feel so heartbroken about Lucy. To think that girl has harbored such pain and hateful thoughts for so long. It has ruined her life. And to think that Antonio and I were to blame. Such foolish young men.”

J.J. put her hand on his. “You were not to blame. Nor was Marcotti. Neither of you knew when you left that Lucy’s mother was pregnant. You are an honorable man, as was Marcotti, I’ll bet—at that time anyway. It’s very sad, but that’s just the way things worked out.”

He nodded. “You are right, but it is still hurtful to think of the role I played.” He took a deep breath. “Now, the best thing I can do is to live a good life for however long I have. I will try as much as is in my power to help others.”

J.J. smiled. “Sounds like a good plan.”

“And for starters, I would be happy if you had a few hours to spare some afternoon, and I will show you all these new vinegars I have imported. I thought it was time to expand the business a little. You will find some of the thicker balsamic a perfect touch for many Italian dishes. I’d be happy to have you do a taste testing.”

J.J. laughed. “Sounds like something I should know about.”

The bell above the door sounded, and J.J. looked over to see Ty Devine strolling in. He headed straight for the two of them. She felt a bit flustered and tried to calm down without being too obvious about it. She hadn’t seen him, either, since that night, and she thought he looked even more dangerous than ever, in a desirable sort of way. His jeans were snug in the right places and the sleeves were rolled up on the light blue shirt he wore. She wondered if he’d left his jacket in the car, because she sure felt it was too chilly to go wandering around without one.
What does it matter?

Devine pulled over a chair and asked if he could join them. Rocco signaled for another espresso.

“What brings you here today?” Rocco asked, a twinkle in his eye. “I thought you’d stocked up on cooking supplies yesterday.”

“I thought I had everything but wanted to be sure.” Devine waited until the espresso had been placed in front of him before continuing. “How are you, J.J.?” His deep blue eyes searched her face as if he might not really trust her words.

“I’m just great. Work is busy, I’m actually enjoying my mornings at the fitness center, and I’ve turned over a new leaf.”

Both men looked at her questioningly.

“I vow to never again get involved in a murder investigation.”

Devine burst out laughing. “It took you long enough to get to that conclusion.”

J.J. tried for a regal facial expression. “Everything in its time.”

“That’s what I always say.” He smiled at her.

Rocco asked, “Would you like another espresso, J.J.?”

She shook her head, still looking at Devine, enjoying the view.
Foolish woman.

“I’d better get back to doing some work. Sit, enjoy. Thank you both for coming to see me,” he added as he left the table, chuckling.

“I have a question for you,” J.J. said.

“All right.” Devine sounded a bit hesitant.

“How much had you already figured out before I left you the message about going to Bella Luna?”

Devine gave her a slow smile. She felt decidedly unnerved by it.

“I’d eliminated everyone with an obvious motive, namely anyone who hated the guy, so I figured it might be someone
trying to kill two birds with one stone. Nail Marcotti and frame Gates. The only thing they had in common—besides their places of business, which really weren’t in competition with each other—was that long-standing feud. As soon as you mentioned going back for the photo, it dawned on me, or at least I started wondering if anyone close to Marcotti had ties to the woman they’d fought over.”

“Did you think it was Lucy?”

“Does it matter?”

“Well, yes, sort of. I keep wondering why Marcotti didn’t realize how much Lucy looked like her mother, and also why it took me so long to click on it.”

Devine shrugged. “I’ll admit, it didn’t come to me right away, either. Probably because there was so much else happening with the case, and that photo, which we’d seen briefly and only once, sort of got lost in it all. As for Marcotti, sometimes we see what we want to see, and sometimes we don’t. Does that answer your question?”

“It’ll do.”

“It is over, you know. Time to put it behind you and focus on other things, like work or play.” He grinned as he said it. She tried to ignore the slight flutter she felt
. How silly is this?

“So, are you hot on the trail of another case?” she asked, redirecting the conversation.

“I’m always working multiple cases. That’s the only way this PI thing works as a moneymaker. And I do need money to put food on the table.” He smiled again. “It also allows me to take guests out to dinner. Speaking of which, would you like to go out this Saturday night?”

J.J. hesitated. She’d been taken off guard. If she were truthful with herself, she’d admit she had wondered what it would be like to go out on a date with Devine. However, she couldn’t quite reconcile that thought with her original image
of him, even though it had been changing over the few weeks they’d known each other.

Imperious
was one word that came to mind.
Pig-headed
, another.
Egocentric.

Not her type at all.

She thought of that kiss. She looked at him. He was smiling. Was he thinking of the same thing?