Grilled Rye Murder: Book 16 in The Darling Deli Series Read online

  “What? How? You don’t have that kind of money. I know I don’t pay you that much.”

  Cameron sighed. “Look, I didn’t want this to get out… but I’ve got money. A lot of it. I come from a wealthy family, and it makes a lot of things easier, but it wasn’t something I wanted everyone here to know. Especially not Jenny.”

  “If you’ve got that sort of money, then why on earth are you working for me?” Moira asked. “And why on earth wouldn’t you tell Jenny? It’s obvious to everyone how you feel about her.”

  “To answer your first question, I like working here. I’ve always enjoyed working with food, but I hate the high-stress environment of the big restaurants. Working as a caterer here is fun… but to be honest, I only decided to take the job after I saw that Jenny was working here. It was love at first sight, for me at least,” he admitted. “And that leads to your second question. I didn’t want her to find out about my money because… well, if I started dating her, I wanted to know it was real. I’d want to know that she actually liked me, not just my money. Of course, that plan seems to have backfired. She hardly gives me a second glance.”

  The deli owner stared at him for a long moment, then slowly shook her head. “David and I have spent hours trying to figure out who would have posted bail for me. I can’t believe it was you all along. Thank you.”

  “It’s the least I could do,” he told her. “Even just working here for half a year, I’ve been able to see everything that you do for your employees. I figured it wouldn’t hurt to help you out a bit. Sorry it caused so much trouble—maybe I should have just come clean then, but I still had my hopes that I’d be able to win Jenny over with my personality instead of my bank account.” He sighed. “I guess the cat’s out of the bag now.”

  “Not necessarily,” Moira said after a moment’s thought. “Beyond News isn’t exactly a huge station. Brendan himself said that they were ‘up and coming,’ and I get the feeling that this is the first really big story that he’s covered. There’s a good chance that Jenny won’t see his broadcast.”

  “I hope you’re right,” he said.

  The deli owner shook her head again, grinning. “I guess you didn’t really need that raise I gave you, huh?”

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Moira promised Cameron that she wouldn’t mention his secret to Jenny, but she had made no such promises about telling anyone else. Candice and David were both floored at the news.

  “I wish he had told us right off the bat,” David said. “It would have saved me a lot of fruitless work trying to find out who posted your bail.”

  “I can understand why he didn’t want anyone to know,” Moira said. “I do think of him differently now, even though I try to act the same as ever towards him.”

  “Still, it would have been nice to know.”

  Moira had half-expected Cameron’s revelation to lead to more headway in the case. With one mystery solved, shouldn’t that make it all the easier to solve the other? But the days kept passing without more leads, at least, none that she or David could find. Neither of them had any idea what to police were doing, and when Moira called Detective Jefferson, he simply gave her the same tired answer as always. “I’m working on it, Moira. I’ll let you know when I have something new.”

  At last, almost before she knew it, the evening before her wedding had arrived. Her belly felt full of butterflies as she stared at herself in the mirror. Tonight would be her last dinner with David before they were married. The next time they ate together would be at their reception, as husband and wife. The thought sent a thrill through her.

  This is also going to be the last night I spend without him, she thought. Tomorrow night, we’ll be sharing a bed. That sent a different kind of thrill through her, and she blushed.

  Closing her eyes, she tried to calm her nerves. Tomorrow was going to be the happiest day of her life, but also, in a way, the most terrifying. This was a huge step that she was about to take. Tomorrow would be the first day of the rest of her life… but tonight would be a wonderful reminder of the past eighteen months.

  They had arranged their last dinner together as an unmarried couple at the Redwood Grill—the site of their first real date, and many dates since. She was wearing one of her very favorite black dresses, a comfortable pair of flats, and simple makeup. Tomorrow she was going to be spending most of her time completely done up, and she was determined to take her comfort when she could.

  “Don’t be nervous,” she whispered to herself. “It’s just a date like any other. You’ve got this.”

  After the date, she wouldn’t see David again until she was walking down the aisle. Candice and Martha, her two maids of honor, were spending the night at her house tonight, and bright and early tomorrow morning they would begin the arduous project of getting her—and themselves—ready for the ceremony. Moira’s one comfort was that everything was out of her hands now. All of the arrangements for the wedding had been made, and most were supervised by people whom she trusted deeply. As long as nothing unforeseen came up, all she would have to worry about was not falling on her face while she was trying to match her step to the bridal march.

  At the sound of tires on the gravel driveway she straightened up and gave each of the dogs a quick pet goodbye. “Maverick, Keeva, you two be good, all right? Candice should be here soon, and I’ll be back in a few hours.”

  She left them inside and met David just outside her front door. He took her in his arms, then kissed her before uttering a word.

  “Ready?” he asked.

  She nodded, trying to quell the newest swarm of butterflies in her stomach. Just another date, she reminded herself. “Let’s go.”

  Their regular table was waiting for them at the Grill, but Denise had gone the extra mile and had dressed it up with candles and roses. Moira smiled at the sight. She really did have great friends.

  “So,” he said, sitting down across from her. “How was your day?”

  “Busy,” she admitted. “There were a lot of last-minute arrangements to make, but at least everything is done now. I’m glad I made a checklist. Whenever I worry that I forgot something, all I have to do is look at the list.”

  “I wish you’d let me help more,” he said. “I feel bad that you’ve had to do so much by yourself.”

  “You’ve been working on the case,” she pointed out. “That’s just as important. Being married to someone in prison wouldn’t be much fun.”

  “That’s true, I suppose.” He gazed at her for a moment, then added, “You’re beautiful.”

  “This is one of my favorite dresses for a reason,” she joked.

  “I don’t mean just tonight,” he said, taking her hand. “I mean always. You’re the most beautiful, the strongest, the most good-hearted person I know. Every day I feel lucky that you agreed to spend the rest of your life with me.”

  “That’s—” She cleared her throat. “Thank you. I don’t even know what to say. I’m the one that’s lucky. Before I met you, I hadn’t even thought about getting married again.”

  As they spoke, her nerves melted away. What had she even been nervous about? This was David. Yes, tomorrow would change both of their lives forever, but in the end he was still the same man that she had spent the last year and a half falling deeper and deeper in love with.

  “Any news about the case?” she asked an hour later as they were finishing up some of the best pecan pie she had ever tasted.

  “Yes, but unfortunately nothing good,” he said. “I finally tracked down some information about Danehill. He couldn’t have killed Zander. He’s been in Canada since before the murder.”

  “So we’re back to having no idea who did it?” she asked, disappointed.

  “I’m sure something will turn up,” David told her. “Let’s not worry about all of that now. I don’t want it to distract from our wedding.”

  “All right,” she agreed, trying to push her concern to the back of her mind. “I don’t want anything to distract from the wedding e
ither. I want it to be perfect.”

  When he drove her home that evening, his goodnight kiss lingered. She wanted the moment to last forever, but eventually he pulled away.

  “See you tomorrow,” he said softly, grinning. “I love you.”

  She could hardly contain her own smile as she let herself indoors. She knew that tomorrow would be a hectic, crazy, wonderful day, and afterwards they would have the murder charges against her still looming, but right now, in that moment, there wasn’t a single thing to worry about.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  “Just breathe out, Moira. I can’t get it tight if you don’t. Quit hyperventilating.”

  Focusing on her breathing, Moira consciously slowed it down and exhaled deeply. Martha took the opportunity to pull the laces tight and tie them off.

  “What do you think?”

  The deli owner turned to the full-length mirror and gazed at herself. Her hair and makeup hadn’t been done yet out of fear of smudging something while she got dressed, but even so, she looked transformed. The dress was just as beautiful as she remembered, and she couldn’t wait for David to see her in it.

  “It’s perfect. Thank you, Martha. I can’t even imagine trying to put this thing on alone.”

  “You’d have to be a contortionist,” her friend agreed.

  “Mom, the hair lady is here,” Candice called from the doorway. Moira looked up in time to see the cosmetologist stride in. She winced. Freya was supposed to be great, but the deli owner had never enjoyed having others do her hair and makeup for her. The thought of sitting still for the next hour while someone poked and prodded at her wasn’t a tempting one, but there was no getting around it.

  “Take a seat right over there,” the woman directed. “Are you sticking with the plan that we went over before? Hair down, semi-natural makeup?”

  “Yes, if you can. Thank you.”

  She took her seat and tried to relax as the woman pinned a protective sheer around her neck to protect her dress from the hair spray and makeup. This would be over soon enough, and then the wedding would begin.

  Freya had nearly finished when a knock sounded at the door of the dressing area that the church had let them use. Martha frowned, checked her watch, then went to answer it. Moira, who had been forbidden to move her head, kept her eyes on the mirror in an effort to figure out who it was. She was surprised to see Jenny walk in. The young brunette looked nervous, but she had a certain determination to her face. It was the deli owner’s turn to frown. Had something gone wrong with the food for the reception?

  “Can I talk to you?” the young woman asked quietly. “Alone?” Her eyes darted anxiously between the others.

  “She’s not done yet,” Freya told her with a frown. “You’ll have to wait.”

  “Please, Ms. D. It’s important.”

  Moira met her employee’s eyes and read the urgency there. Whatever was going on, she knew it couldn’t wait, or Jenny wouldn’t have interrupted.

  “All right,” she said. “Sorry, Freya. I’m going to have to step into the hallway really quickly.”

  Ignoring her hairdresser’s annoyed sigh, she shrugged out of the sheet and got up. A quick glance in the mirror tempted her to stay and take a longer look—could that beautiful woman really be her? But Jenny was fidgeting at her side, and she knew there was no time to spare.

  “What is it?” she asked the young woman when they reached the privacy of the hall. “Did something happen?”

  “It’s about Cam,” Jenny whispered.

  So she found out about his money, Moira thought with a sigh. She could understand the other woman’s need to talk to someone, but found herself wishing that Jenny had waited until the reception at least. I need to be ready in time for the ceremony.

  “He didn’t want—”

  “I think he killed Zander.”

  The deli owner choked on her words, completely floored by what the other woman had said. “What? Why on earth would you think that?”

  “The police…” Jenny took a deep breath. “They brought me in and asked me a lot of questions about him.”

  “What sort of questions?”

  “Stuff like how well he knew Zander, and if he knew that we were dating, and if I knew where he was the morning of the murder.”

  “I’m sure they were just covering all of their bases,” the deli owner said. “They arrested me, remember? And I know I didn’t do it.”

  “But that’s not all.” Jenny bit her lip. “This morning, I had the news on while I was getting ready. It was that same station as before, Beyond News or whatever, and they said that according to Zander’s calendar, he had met with Cam the night before he died.”

  Neither woman said anything after that for a long moment. Moira’s mind was racing. Why would Cameron kill Zander? What motive could he have? Her gaze fell on Jenny’s face, and she realized that his motive was standing right in front of her.

  Cameron was in love with Jenny, by his own admission. He had spent the last six months trying to get her to notice him, trying to get her to like him for who he was, not just his money. After Jenny and Zander broke up for the first time, he must have been relieved and thought he had a chance with her. But if he somehow found out that they had begun seeing each other again…

  “Jenny, where is Cameron now?”

  “He’s over at the reception hall. I—I was scared to be there alone with him, or I would have waited to tell you. I don’t want to wreck your wedding.”

  “Don’t worry about that. If you’re right, then you just solved Zander’s murder and cleared my name. I could hug you—but I won’t, because Freya will murder me if I smudge this makeup.”

  Moira slipped back into the dressing room, then hesitated. She had been about to grab her phone and call David… but was that really the best thing to do? He would be just as busy preparing for the wedding as she was supposed to be. If she could somehow get Cameron safely in police custody without disturbing the ceremony, that would be ideal.

  She glanced at the clock. In forty-five minutes, she was supposed to get married. The reception hall—really just the event center at City Hall—was only a five-minute drive away. She could go there and… and what? And get Cameron to confess. If she could somehow convince Detective Jefferson to go along with her, he could arrest the young man on the spot, all in time for her to get back to the church before the ceremony began.

  “I’ll be right back,” she told a startled Martha as she pushed past her to grab her purse. “Don’t let them start without me.”

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  “Wait!” Jenny called as Moira rushed down the church’s hallway. “I want to come with you.”

  The deli owner hesitated for a moment before biting her lip and agreeing. “I have a plan; I’ll explain it to you on the way. But I’ve got to make a call first. Can you drive?”

  They ran through the parking lot, Moira slowing down just enough to hoist up her skirts as she hurried across the asphalt. She leapt into the passenger seat and tossed Jenny her keys. “Head to the reception hall,” she said before pulling out her cell phone and scrolling down to Detective Jefferson’s number.

  They pulled into the City Hall parking lot a few minutes later, both women frightened but determined. An unmarked black car pulled in after them a moment later. It cruised by in front of them close enough for her to recognize Detective Jefferson, and she felt a rush of relief. He hadn’t liked her plan, but at least he had believed her enough to meet them there.

  “Are you sure you want to do this?” she asked Jenny.

  “I’m sure,” the young woman said. “I think you’re right—if he’s going to confess to anyone, it’ll be to me.”

  “Let’s go, then. David will never forgive me if I’m late to our wedding.”

  They edged their way into the eerily empty City Hall building and began making their way towards the stairway that led down to the event center. It had been over a year since Moira had been there. In fact, the last time she had bee
n there had been a retirement party for a detective… a detective that had been killed later that night.

  Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to host the reception here, she thought with a shiver. The last time I went to an event held here, it didn’t exactly end well.

  “Are you ready?” she asked Jenny at the top of the stairs. They could hear the sounds of conversation from the basement. Moira had forgotten that Allison would be there too.

  “Ready,” the other woman said. “Are you sure that detective will be nearby?”

  “He’ll be close,” Moira promised. “And the second he hears Cameron confess, he’ll step in and arrest him.”

  “Okay.” She took a deep breath. “Here we go.”

  The two of them walked down the stairs to find a beautifully decorated reception hall waiting for them. Allison and Cameron were on the far side of the room, pulling a table cloth over the long table that the cake would be presented on. Strings of beautiful white lights hung all around, giving the room an almost magical look.

  “Ahem,” Jenny said. Cameron and Allison looked around, both of their faces taking on the same shocked expression when they saw Moira standing there in her wedding dress.

  “What’s going on, Ms. D? Did something happen to the wedding?” Allison asked.

  “No, it’s still on,” the deli owner assured her grimly. “But we need to talk to Cameron… alone, if that’s all right.”

  The other woman looked between them, confused, but agreed to give them some privacy. “I need to get the place cards from the truck anyway,” she said, excusing herself. Moira waited until she had disappeared up the stairs before turning back to Cameron.

  The young man was looking at Jenny with a resigned look on his face. “Look, I think I know what this is about… I just don’t want it to change things between us, Jenny.”

  “What do you mean, you don’t want it to ‘change things’?” the brunette asked in a high-pitched voice. “How can you be so calm about this? I know what you did! Ms. D knows what you did. You’re a terrible person, Cam.”