heavy oak door, I rested my hand on the brass handle and took a deep breath. Here goes! I rang the bell. As I waited for Alder to answer the door, I looked up and forced myself to focus on the bottle green awning and the pretty blue-green porch ceiling.
When Alder opened the door, I at once noticed the scent of lemongrass and citronella. “Van Van Oil?” I asked him, and then instantly regretted my opening words.
“Amelia, come in.” Alder stood aside for me to enter. “Yes, I did a floor wash earlier.”
“Because of Fred? Oh, that’s the entity’s name. I wished he’d tell me what his name was, and he did.” I silently scolded myself. Stop talking, you idiot. Take a deep breath .
I’ve never seen Alder look so shocked. “Fred? You’re kidding me, right?”
I was still standing in his doorway. “That’s what he said his name was, and he didn’t appear to be joking.”
The corners of Alder’s mouth twitched. “I don’t think you’ll be able to banish him then, because I’m sure the family’s ancient spell books don’t have any mention of an entity by the name of Fred.” Alder put his hand under my elbow and steered me inside.
I hoped Alder couldn’t see my knees shaking. To say I was nervous about the upcoming dinner was an understatement. Alder had never kissed me, and it wasn’t as if we were officially dating. The very thought made my heart race, and I shivered.
Luckily, Alder had his back to me and couldn’t see my discomfort. He ushered me down the long corridor past his office entrance and into his private apartment at the back of the building. It was still daylight, and the dimming sunlight fell gently on the flowers in the high walled garden. I could almost smell the honeysuckle trailing over the high brick walls. I forced my attention from the bi-fold doors back to the kitchen.
I cast my eyes around the industrial chic, stainless steel and utterly spotless kitchen and realized that Alder was likely a neat-freak, but I could forgive him that flaw. He nodded to his dining table and pulled out a chair for me. “Sit down and relax while I finish dinner.” He poured me a glass of wine. “Chardonnay.”
I was touched that he remembered I was partial to Chardonnay. Of course, it was hard to relax with Alder in front of me. After all, he was tall, incredibly good looking, with a wicked and mysterious edge. Alder caught my eye and winked at me. I pushed my heels into the floor to stop my knees shaking. “So, tell me more about this Fred.” He chuckled as he said it.
“ This Fred could be a murderer,” I pointed out.
“I doubt it.” Alder turned to the wok over the gas flame before speaking again. “Scott Plank wasn’t at all popular, and he was involved in some shady deals. I’d be very surprised if he wasn’t murdered by a real, live human.”
“I hope so,” I said fervently, immediately followed by, “Oh, that didn’t sound good. Of course, I’m sorry that he was murdered, but I just don’t want to be the one responsible for it.”
Alder nodded. “That’s entirely understandable. Have you come up with any suspects yet?”
I spun my glass of wine around. “No, but I went to his memorial service earlier today, and there wasn’t a single person there with a good word to say about him. Well, apart from the usual platitudes you’d expect at that sort of thing, and even those were few and far between.”
Alder looked up from his preparations and smiled at me. “After dinner, we’ll look through the books and see what we can find. I hope you like nasi goreng istimewa ?”
“Yes,” I said. I, in fact, had not the slightest clue what the dish was, but it sure smelled good. I started to relax as Alder stirred the wok. He had cooked Thai green pumpkin curry on the only other occasion I’d been in his apartment, an impromptu dinner that time. I liked the faint smell of gas emanating from his gas stovetop—it reminded me of those few occasions I had gone camping
When Alder opened the door, I at once noticed the scent of lemongrass and citronella. “Van Van Oil?” I asked him, and then instantly regretted my opening words.
“Amelia, come in.” Alder stood aside for me to enter. “Yes, I did a floor wash earlier.”
“Because of Fred? Oh, that’s the entity’s name. I wished he’d tell me what his name was, and he did.” I silently scolded myself. Stop talking, you idiot. Take a deep breath .
I’ve never seen Alder look so shocked. “Fred? You’re kidding me, right?”
I was still standing in his doorway. “That’s what he said his name was, and he didn’t appear to be joking.”
The corners of Alder’s mouth twitched. “I don’t think you’ll be able to banish him then, because I’m sure the family’s ancient spell books don’t have any mention of an entity by the name of Fred.” Alder put his hand under my elbow and steered me inside.
I hoped Alder couldn’t see my knees shaking. To say I was nervous about the upcoming dinner was an understatement. Alder had never kissed me, and it wasn’t as if we were officially dating. The very thought made my heart race, and I shivered.
Luckily, Alder had his back to me and couldn’t see my discomfort. He ushered me down the long corridor past his office entrance and into his private apartment at the back of the building. It was still daylight, and the dimming sunlight fell gently on the flowers in the high walled garden. I could almost smell the honeysuckle trailing over the high brick walls. I forced my attention from the bi-fold doors back to the kitchen.
I cast my eyes around the industrial chic, stainless steel and utterly spotless kitchen and realized that Alder was likely a neat-freak, but I could forgive him that flaw. He nodded to his dining table and pulled out a chair for me. “Sit down and relax while I finish dinner.” He poured me a glass of wine. “Chardonnay.”
I was touched that he remembered I was partial to Chardonnay. Of course, it was hard to relax with Alder in front of me. After all, he was tall, incredibly good looking, with a wicked and mysterious edge. Alder caught my eye and winked at me. I pushed my heels into the floor to stop my knees shaking. “So, tell me more about this Fred.” He chuckled as he said it.
“ This Fred could be a murderer,” I pointed out.
“I doubt it.” Alder turned to the wok over the gas flame before speaking again. “Scott Plank wasn’t at all popular, and he was involved in some shady deals. I’d be very surprised if he wasn’t murdered by a real, live human.”
“I hope so,” I said fervently, immediately followed by, “Oh, that didn’t sound good. Of course, I’m sorry that he was murdered, but I just don’t want to be the one responsible for it.”
Alder nodded. “That’s entirely understandable. Have you come up with any suspects yet?”
I spun my glass of wine around. “No, but I went to his memorial service earlier today, and there wasn’t a single person there with a good word to say about him. Well, apart from the usual platitudes you’d expect at that sort of thing, and even those were few and far between.”
Alder looked up from his preparations and smiled at me. “After dinner, we’ll look through the books and see what we can find. I hope you like nasi goreng istimewa ?”
“Yes,” I said. I, in fact, had not the slightest clue what the dish was, but it sure smelled good. I started to relax as Alder stirred the wok. He had cooked Thai green pumpkin curry on the only other occasion I’d been in his apartment, an impromptu dinner that time. I liked the faint smell of gas emanating from his gas stovetop—it reminded me of those few occasions I had gone camping
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