Boo Hiss by Rene Gutteridge Read Free Book Online Page A

the ball, because five minutes ago he didn’t even know he was going to ask her out.

C HAPTER 6
    “D AD? YOU OKAY? ” Ainsley said, glancing at her brother, who was examining his steak knife and making it glint in the dim light.
    Her father was looking around, his disapproving eyes pinched like he’d stepped into the bright sun. “What have they done?”
    Ainsley thought it was charming. There was an actual tablecloth on the table, centered with a votive, which replaced what used to be a napkin holder that conveniently held the salt and pepper on either side. The ketchup bottle had also been removed, and in its place stood bottles of olive oil and balsamic vinegar. The waitress, wearing all black, brought a fresh loaf of bread to the table. As she left, Butch said, “Is that Tammi?”
    “Tammi?”
    “From high school. Don’t you remember? Stringy hair, skinny, with glasses.”
    Ainsley glanced behind her. Well, in this setting, that look was working to her advantage. The place was beginning to remind her of that fancy restaurant Alfred took her to in Indianapolis when he was trying to transform her into the next Martha Stewart. She looked at her dad again, and he was trying to figure out what to do with the vinegar.
    “See,” Ainsley said, “you take one of these small plates, and pour oil first, then vinegar. Then you dip your bread in it.” The bread had melted cheese in the middle and smelled like garlic.
    “I’m going to have to talk to Pete about this,” her father grumbled. “I’ve been a patron of this restaurant since it opened, and now all of asudden he goes and changes on me? It’s like what happens to your daughter from the age of twelve to thirteen. At twelve, she’s this innocent, beautiful child that adores you. At thirteen, she turns into a sophisticated ninny who is all dolled up. Everyone swears it’s just part of the progression. But suddenly there’s fancy clothes, an awful haircut, and makeup, all of which are supposed to improve her. But you know what? You just want the plain twelve-year-old back. She’s a lot less trouble, and perfectly dependable.”
    Ainsley found it slightly humorous that her father was saying this as if his daughter wasn’t on the other side of the table. “Dad, open your menu up. You’ll see all your favorites are there.”
    With a skeptical sigh, he flipped it open. Butch said, “Have I told you about the things I had to eat on some of my missions?”
    Ainsley nodded. “You’ve mentioned it a time or ten.”
    “Snippy, aren’t we?”
    “Tired. I spent half a day trying to convince Melb to go to the doctor. She absolutely hates doctors.”
    “Is she sick?” her father asked.
    “Kind of. She’s nauseated but seems to have quite a good appetite, all at the same time. But I can’t get her to rest. All she wants to do is scrub floors. The closest she’s come to seeing a doctor about it is calling Garth, who came over and gave her a horse pill.”
    “I hate swallowing big pills,” Butch said.
    “It was an actual horse pill. Garth claims it was all natural.”
    “All natural what?” Butch asked.
    “All I know is that my usual homemade chicken soup isn’t helping her. I don’t know what to do.”
    “She’s a big girl. She can figure it out,” her dad said. Butch was still eyeing Tammi over at the bar.
    “I’ll tell you one thing. This snake fiasco is about ready to make me retire.” Her father threw up his hands. “See? I can’t even find my favorite!”
    “The twelve-ounce steak?”
    “There is no steak on this menu.”
    “Here it is.
Steak au Poivre
!”
    “What?”
    “It’s the New York strip you like, with the peppercorn.”
    “Yeah. But there’s no sauce with it.”
    “Yeah, they’re calling it a wild mushroom demiglaze. Sounds tasty!” Her father rolled his eyes. “What’s wrong with saying steak with saucer?”
    Butch said, “Where’s Wolfe again?”
    “With Alfred, his former editor.”
    “Doing