Granny Apples 05 - Ghost in the Guacamole by Sue Ann Jaffarian Read Free Book Online

living being able to communicate with the dead, but I will not tolerate you claiming I’m for sale.”
    He flashed her a slick grin. “I checked you out, Emma, and not just your show. You used to be married to Grant Whitecastle, that ass on TV. He and that sleazy talk show of his make a mockery of decent people by sensationalizing their problems and tossing them into the public feeding frenzy.” He shook his head in disgust. “You’re no different.” He paused. “So what did Lucy pay you or offer to pay you?” he asked. “I’ll double it for you to tell Rikki what she wants to hear.”
    Emma threw her napkin down on the table and stood up just as Rikki came back out onto the patio. “I’m sorry, Emma, but we had an emergency with a supplier. Do you have to leave?”
    Emma gave T.J. one last frozen stare before turning to Rikki. “Yes, I’m afraid I must run along.” She picked up her purse and her packages.
    T.J. got to his feet. “It was interesting meeting you, Emma.” He didn’t offer his hand and Emma didn’t offer hers. Rikki didn’t seem to notice the coldness between the two.
    As Emma walked toward the exit, she thanked Rikki for the meal.
    â€œCan we set up another time to meet?” Rikki asked with eagerness. “I’d really like to try and reach my father and grandfather as soon as possible.”
    Emma did her best to push T.J. Mendoza and his accusations out of her mind and concentrate on Rikki and what Felix had told her. Felix had said Rikki was in danger if she didn’t consent to the sale of the restaurant. He’d also hinted that his own death was suspicious. If Rikki Ricardo was in danger, Emma wanted to help her, or at least find out why Felix had said such a thing. But she certainly didn’t want to be accused of being a fraud with a price tag. She didn’t need the headache.
    â€œI have a very busy schedule coming up,” she told Rikki. “So I may not be able to do it as soon as you might like. Let me think on it.”
    She could tell Rikki was disappointed by her answer, but nodded with understanding just the same. Emma glanced back at the table. T.J. was still standing, watching the two of them. If she did meet again with Rikki, she’d want to do it without his interference, but she also doubted he’d allow that. He was on alert, ready to protect Rikki, and certainly not ready to accept any communication from Felix Ricardo as being real.

• CHAPTER FOUR •

    â€œI SHOULD punch that guy in the nose,” Phil Bowers said after Emma told him about her meeting with the Ricardos and T.J. Mendoza. “How dare he imply that you’d make crap up for the highest bidder.”
    They were cuddled on the sofa in the den of Emma’s parents’ stately home in Pasadena. Emma split her time between this house and the home she’d built in Julian, which stood on Granny’s old homestead across from Phil’s ranch. Phil had had a meeting in Los Angeles that day and was staying the night in Pasadena before heading back down to San Diego. Like Emma, he also had two homes—the ranch, which he shared with his aunt and uncle, who raised him after his parents died, and a stylish condo overlooking the ocean in San Diego near his law practice. Phil had taken Emma and her parents out for dinner. The Millers had gone up to bed after returning home while Phil and Emma had settled in on the sofa to watch the news and enjoy a glass of wine.
    â€œI’d like to punch his lights out myself,” said Granny, who was hovering nearby. “It’s a good thing I wasn’t there.”
    After Emma relayed Granny’s comment and pointed Phil’s attention in the right direction, Phil said to the ghost with a grin, “And what would you have done, Granny, passed through him a dozen times? That would show him.”
    The tiny ghost put her hands on her hips