Janet McNulty - Mellow Summers 07 - Two Ghosts Haunt a Grove by Janet McNulty Read Free Book Online

market. Jackie and I went there earlier today and the owner insisted that he had every item appraised and was genuine ivory.”
    “Talk about a lying sack of—” began Jackie before I interrupted her.
    “This proves that he is either really ignorant—”
    “Dumb,” Jackie spat.
    “—or is purposefully selling fakes.”
    “I think it’s the latter,” said Jackie.
    “Want me and the boys to put the fear of God in him?” suggested Tiny. He would too. All I had to do was say the word.
    “Not just yet,” I said.
    Tiny’s face fell.
    “But you could keep an eye on the guy. He’s getting his stuff from somewhere and I’d like to know where.”
    “You got it. That man won’t make a move without us knowing about it.” Tiny jumped on his bike and the engine roared to life. “See you girls later.”
    “So now what?” asked Jackie.
    My cell phone rang. “Hello?” I answered.
    “Mel,” came Greg’s voice, “you are going to love me. Tonight we are going to Antonio’s.”
    “What?”
    “I got some gift certificates for there. This older gentleman gave them to me this morning when I helped him with his car. So tonight, you and I are having a romantic evening at Antonio’s and it’s free!”
    “That’s great!” I was really excited. It had been awhile since Greg and I had gone out, just the two of us.
    “So get dressed up nice. I’ll pick you up at seven.”
    “What’s up?” asked Jackie.
    “Greg got gift certificates for Antonio’s,” I said.
    “That’s a really expensive place.”
    “I know! And he’s coming to pick me up.”
    “You say that like it’s a big deal. He lives right across the hall.”
    I glared at her.
    “Sorry. Let’s go home. I need to do something with your hair and you can borrow my dressy sandals. Oh! I know exactly what you should wear.”
    I found myself being dragged back home by my fashion consultant, but I didn’t care. I was excited to be going to the most expensive place in town with my man.
     

Chapter 5
    Seven o’clock on the dot Greg picked me up. Jackie let me borrow one of her blouses and dressy sandals. Luckily I had a skirt and the jade jacket she had given me when we first moved here.
    “Ready?”
    “Yes,” I said, closing the door behind me.
    “You two kids have fun,” Jackie called from the living room.
    Antonio’s was packed when we arrived. Despite it being a bit expensive, they served really good food and everyone loved going there. The owner, Antonio Bonbarda, moved here from Italy with his family and built this restaurant offering authentic Italian food. His pizzas were to die for and were nothing like what you got at the local Pizza Hut. All of his sauces were homemade with his old family recipe; a closely guarded secret.
    He made the noodles fresh each day adding a special blend of spices. Alone, the noodles were tasty, but add his pasta sauces and—Yum! Of course, you could always get the house salad and appetizers. Then there were the desserts, all of it made from scratch.
    So you can see why people would be coming to this place to eat. Pricy? Maybe. But authentic Italian food made entirely from scratch with real, wholesome ingredients—how can you possibly go wrong? And Antonio’s was always crowded.
    The hostess seated us in the middle of the restaurant. My mouth watered as I looked over the menu anticipating what delectable goodness I was about to choose. I decided on the veal ptarmigan while Greg ordered a pizza.
    “So how was your day?” asked Greg.
    “Okay,” I replied, “Jackie and I went to the flea market today to check out the place where Mrs. Dayton got the pipe.”
    “What did you find out?”
    “The guy who owns it has all kinds of things that are supposedly made from ivory.”
    “But you don’t think they are,” said Greg.
    “No,” I replied, “I took the pipe to an appraiser today and discovered it was a fake. The guy at the flea market insisted that everything he sells is real and has been