Red Roses in Las Vegas by A.R. Winters Read Free Book Online Page A

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Chapter Twelve
     
    Nanna was fast asleep when I got home, sprawled out on my bed. I’d been half-expecting her to be down at one of the casinos, playing poker against unsuspecting tourists, but I supposed she was more worried than she let on.
    I slept fitfully for a few hours, huddled on my sofa, until the clanging of pots and the smell of something cooking roused me.
    “I didn’t mean to wake you,” Nanna said when I groggily pulled myself upright. “I just wanted you to enjoy some healthy breakfast for once. Not cupcakes and instant coffee.”
    “Cupcakes are healthy.”
    “Not as healthy as this.”
    “It smells nice. What is it?”
    “Zucchini, carrot and cheese muffins. They should be done in about ten minutes. How was your shift?”
    “Ok.” I yawned and looked at the clock. It was just past 6.30, and then I suddenly remembered and jerked my eyes wide open. “Shit. I’ve got an appointment at 7.30. I’ll need to set out in forty-five minutes.”
    “Well, you’ve still got time to eat. Where are you going?”
    “Verdant Wealth. I’ve got an appointment with the CEO. Hopefully I’ll find something.”
    Nanna and I stared at each other, and she nodded. “I’m sure you will.”
    I wasn’t quite so confident, but I showered, dressed carefully, and devoured two of the zucchini-carrot-cheese muffins. They weren’t as good as cupcakes, but they were still pretty yummy, and Nanna assured me that they were full of good vitamins and minerals and proteins. Much more so than cupcakes.
    “Speaking of cupcakes,” I said, grabbing my big tote bag, “We should call in on Glenn. I’m sure he’s up by now, and I need to drop off some chocolate blocks.”
    Well, actually, I didn’t need to drop off the chocolate blocks. The blocks were cooking chocolate that I’d bought by mistake, thinking they were regular, edible chocolate. I’d been mentally debating trying to eat them raw vs trying to mix them with milk and flour, and microwave the whole thing into something edible.
    But now that Nanna was here, I needed an excuse to drop her off at Glenn’s, in the hope that something might transpire between them. Despite the existence of Karma and Nathan, I was keeping my meddling fingers crossed for Nanna and Glenn.
    We were waiting for elevator, when the doors slid open and Ian stepped out with a rolled-up newspaper under his arm.
    “Hey!” he said. “What’re you guys doing up so early?”
    He looked at me eagerly and I frowned, wondering how he was so alert, so early in the morning.
    “Tiffany’s going to talk to the CEO of Verdant Wealth,” Nanna said. “And she’s taking me to her friend Glenn, on the way out.”
    “Cool!” Ian said. “I’ll come with.”
    I shook my head. “No.”
    “Come on, I can help out with the investigation.”
    “Let him go with you,” Nanna said. “You never know when he’ll be useful.”
    I sighed. Nanna had a point – maybe two heads would be better than one, even when that second head was Ian’s. And come to think of it, I wanted to pull out all the stops when investigating this case, and that meant not having to worry about expenses. If Ian was my “partner” on this one, he could do the funding.
    “Fine,” I said. “But you’re paying for expenses.”
    Ian beamed. “It’s a deal, pardner.”
    I rolled my eyes, but let him shake my hand solemnly as the elevator went down.
     

Chapter Thirteen
     
    Ian, Nanna and I stopped by Glenn’s place, where we dropped off the blocks of cooking chocolate. Ian and I immediately raced out, leaving Nanna in our wake. We managed to make it to the Verdant Wealth offices just a little after 7.30, and I glanced around as we went up to their section of the building. It looked different in the bright light of the day – it was still too early to be bustling with people, but a few early-birds were arriving, looking all officious with their work clothes and confident strides.
    The doors marking the entry to Verdant