Fatal Chocolate Obsession (Death by Chocolate Book 5) by Sally Berneathy Read Free Book Online Page B

cookies and fuming about Rick’s latest intrusion into my life. I told her the whole story, including the roses, the fact that I’d actually planned to keep them, and how Henry had disagreed and disposed of them.
    She kneaded and rolled dough quietly, allowing me to rant until I finally wound down. I shoved a pan of chocolate chip cookies into the oven and slammed the door. “I’m going to call and tell him he had better back off! No, I’m going to go to his house and threaten to beat him with my iron skillet if he doesn’t leave me alone!”
    Paula calmly spread butter over her dough. “I don’t think that’s a good idea. That’s what he wants. Your attention. You should just ignore him. After all, it doesn’t hurt anything if he leaves gifts and notes at your home and work.”
    “ Doesn’t hurt anything? Excuse me? I nearly had a heart attack this morning!”
    “If you’d been paying attention to where you were going, you would have seen the wine and you wouldn’t have been frightened. If he leaves anything else, throw it away and forget it. Ignoring Rick is the cruelest thing you can do to him.”
    I opened my mouth to protest. I was angry. I didn’t want to just forget it. I wanted to take some kind of action. Recycle Henry’s furry gifts to Rick’s front door. Send Fred after him with a machine gun…again.
    But, much as I hated to admit it, Paula had a point.
    I threw my pot holder onto the counter. “Fine. I’ll just freaking forget it. Let him get away with being a stalker.”
    Paula knows me too well. She recognized my grudging capitulation for what it was…capitulation. She ignored the grudging part. “That’s wise. Don’t give him the satisfaction of knowing he got your attention.”
    I felt angry all over again, this time at myself for getting sucked into his game. I marched back to the counter and took out the ingredients for chocolate marshmallow pudding. “He will call eventually, you know.”
    “Maybe, or maybe he’ll get diverted by another woman before that happens.” She looked up and smiled. “But if he leaves you any of those Christopher Elbow Artisan Chocolates he used to bring, you can always re-gift them to me.”
    Paula was right. I hate it when that happens. I was letting Rick get to me. If he left gifts in the middle of the night and ran away without so much as ringing my doorbell, no harm done. If he left more flowers, I’d bring them to the shop instead of leaving them home with Henry. I regretted tossing the wine. Rick had expensive taste. It was probably a very nice wine.
    But if he left me chocolates, I’d have to eat those. It’s a crime—a felony, I think—to waste chocolate, especially Christopher Elbow Artisan Chocolates.
    I tried to put Rick out of my mind and focus on measuring, stirring, whipping, and, of course, taste-testing my desserts for the day. I wanted to get everything done as quickly as possible so I could leave early and get to A-Plus Construction before it closed. I felt certain Fred would go with me, but if he didn’t, I would do it anyway. I knew the routine. I could do it on my own if I had to.
    We were crazy busy with the breakfast crowd when the business phone rang. Paula was standing at the register, ringing up a customer, so she grabbed it with one hand while handing the man his change with the other.
    I was across the room refilling coffees, but I could almost feel the force of her gaze. I turned and saw that her eyes were narrowed and her lips thinned. Had to be her ex-husband or mine. Hers was in prison.
    She mouthed, “Rick.”
    I shook my head and filled another coffee cup. Darn. I’d been hoping he’d leave the chocolates before his ghost gifting ran its course.
    I crossed the room, returned the empty coffee pot to its place and picked up the full one.
    “He wants you to call him.” Paula took the full pot from me. “He says it’s important.”
    “Really? Important to who? Not to me.”
    She frowned and looked unusually