Chapter 11

CHAPTER 11

T hankfully, Harmony Honeycutt's schedule is laid bare for all to see on her website, and as my fickle friend fate would have it, Harmony is speaking tonight at a local festival.

The Harvest Feast Festival right here in Honey Hollow is sensory overload in the best possible way. The crisp fall air is filled with the scent of smoked turkey legs, sweet funnel cake, and fresh baked pies. Hay bales and cornstalks are artfully arranged around the festival grounds, and every booth is festooned with autumn leaves and tiny orange twinkle lights.

There's a pumpkin patch where kids are happily picking out an orange globe to call their own, and the sound of folk music drifts through the air, adding to the festive atmosphere.

And true to their word, Aunt Cat, Carlotta, and Niki followed me over as soon as I got off work. But not before I collected my ball of fluff from Serafina.

Watson wiggles and jumps and his leash is hardly able to hold him back.

"Someone is happy about the smoked turkey legs," I say.

"Yeah, and that someone is me," Aunt Cat says, rubbing her belly. "This place smells like heaven. And don't think just because I wolfed down a dozen of those pumpkin spice cheesecake wonders that I don't have room for an entire Thanksgiving dinner. In fact, I'm ready to dive into one of those turkey legs right along with Watson."

"Speaking of diving," Carlotta says, her eyes fixed on a stage nearby where a man delights the crowd by shoving a sword down his pie hole. "Check out the sword swallower. Now that's a trick I'd love to learn."

"Now that's a trick I've gotta learn." Aunt Cat grabs Carlotta by the arm and swoops her off in that dicey direction.

"Guess we're on our own," Niki says as she cranes her neck and takes a gander at the sights. "Would you look at that?" she squawks so loud I'm half-afraid I'll see Naomi with her inflated lips locked onto Cooper's face, but all I see is the most delicious booth of them all.

" Ooh , smokin' hot turkey legs," I say, inhaling the smoky scent deep into my lungs.

"No, not the turkey legs. The smokin' hot guy doling them out. I swear, it's as if all you think about is food."

"Have you met me?"

"Yes," she grunts. "And now it's time for me to meet him ." She stalks off in that direction and I shake my head.

"And then there was one," I say to myself just as Watson begins to bark and tug at his leash, reminding me that there are technically two. He starts to take off and I can hardly hold him back. "Whoa," I say as I'm dragged a few feet. "Where are you going, buddy?"

I let him lead the way, and within ten seconds I'm staring up at two familiar faces—one who loathes me and one who I'd like to think loathes me a little less.

"Loretta, Cooper ," I say, surprised to see the brother-sister duo at the harvest festival, of all places.

"Call me Solemina," she all but growls. Suffice it to say, Cooper's baby sister doesn't care much for me. She leans in and offers me the stink eye as if she heard my internal musing. "Only my closest friends call me Loretta."

Cooper winks and shakes his head at me, and I can't for the life of me decipher what that means.

Solemina has her dark locks pushed up into a ponytail that looks as if it could double as a rat's nest. Looks to me that someone likes to tease their hair as much as they like to tease the boys. She's clad in a black velvet tracksuit, albeit with enough rhinestones studding it from top to bottom she could double as a lighthouse. Not surprisingly, she has another moniker she's known by around these parts—the Black Widow Lazzari. Let's just say good ol' Loretta here has a body count going herself.

And Cooper looks fresh from work with his dark corduroy jacket and matching pants.

"Hey there, buddy." He scoops up Watson and soon the fluffy pup is licking his face silly.

Lucky dog.

How is it fair that my pooch gets more action than I do with my own boyfriend? That is, if Cooper and I are an item anymore. I've got questions when it comes to our relationship status—almost as many questions as I have regarding the status of my freedom.

"Fancy seeing you here," I say as Cooper leans in and offers me a kiss on the lips.

My entire body freezes. I can't tell if that was the gentle kiss of the man who once thought I was a hot piece—or the kiss of a man who wants to put me away because of the hot piece I keep in my purse. But for the most part, it felt natural.

Hey? Maybe I should nickname my gun Loretta?

"Solemina invited me out," he says. Cooper almost never calls her Loretta. I'm not sure what that says about the state of their relationship. "She's got a booth and she wanted me to see it."

"It's not my booth," Solemina corrects before glaring at me. "It belongs to the Honey Hollow Hearts Foundation. I'm simply making a few extra sales for them. My friend Fiona runs the foundation. She calls me Loretta." Her eyes slit to nothing and Watson growls at her because of it.

Note to self: Reward the little guy with a turkey leg of his own before we leave this place.

"Whoa, boy," Cooper says, pulling Watson out of her range. "All right, I'll be back." He nods toward his sister as he leads us a few feet out. "What brings you here?"

That smile on his face morphs into a frown as if he were already onto me. And seeing that he's pegged me as an assassin, yes, I would say he's that good.

"I heard Harmony Honeycutt was speaking and I wanted in on the action. Word on the street is she can teach me how to make all of my troubles go away and even dream up a whole new reality. Believe me, if anyone's in the market for a whole new reality, you're looking at her."

Cooper dips his chin as he inspects me with those marbled eyes.

"Is there something about your present reality that I ought to know about?" He lifts a dark brow. "Is that the reason you've been avoiding me like the plague for the last few weeks?"

"So you caught on?" I'm only half-teasing.

"I'm a detective."

"And I was under the weather." Emotionally speaking. I'm not doing this with him. At least not now. Not here where there's a perfectly good suspect and a potentially better sword swallower to garner my attention—and maybe pick up a few tips from.

"Okay." Cooper gives a slow nod, his eyes never leaving mine. "Why don't we check out what Harmony Honeycutt has to say. And maybe afterward you can fill me in on what exactly had you under the weather."

We head off into the crowd, and suddenly I'm in need of answers I'm not sure I can ever give Cooper. Not that I don't think he already has them.

I'm in one prickly pickle. And little does Coop know so is he. If Cooper Knox so much as steps an inch away from this relationship, my Uncle Jimmy has vowed to end the guy.

Face it, both Cooper and I are doomed.

Here's hoping Harmony Honeycutt can give us a few tips and tricks on how to manifest a whole new reality—and one that doesn't involve the mob.

But I'm not that lucky.

And if Harmony killed Peter, then she's not that lucky either.

I'll make sure of it myself.