Free A Taste of Sin by Jennifer L. Jennings, Vicki Lorist Page B

told Linda to stay out of it.”
    “What could I say? She’s Emily’s best friend. Of course she wants to help. She thinks Benjamin is Emily’s only chance of survival.”
    “What will you say if it really is him?”
    “I’ll tell him his sister is dying and needs him.”
    Max shook his head, doubtful. “Don’t you think he already knows about her condition? He must have heard it from their parents at some point.”
    I let out a sigh. “This whole thing is going to blow up in my face, isn’t it?”
    Max spun me around and caressed my neck. “Think of it this way. If you get a chance to meet him, maybe he’ll tell you the real reason he pissed all over the wedding cake. I’m sure that will make for some entertaining conversation.”
    “Paul is the one I need to be focused on, not the brother,” I said. “I should stay here and watch the surveillance.”
    “Don’t worry about that. I’ll keep an eye on Paul.”
    I gave him a hug. “Thanks. I really appreciate it.”
    “No problem.”
     

Chapter 15
     
     
    Francine’s was like walking into a Parisian bistro.
    Linda took it all in with wide eyes. “Fancy-shmancy,” she said softly, nudging my arm.
    A female hostess smiled at us from behind her podium, her blonde bangs almost covering her eyes. “Welcome,” she said. “Name on the reservation?”
    “Barrett.”
    “Right this way,” she said, leading us to a table for two near the back.
    She handed us menus. “Benjamin will be with you in a moment.”
    Miss Bangs drifted back toward her post as Linda leaned in. “This is so exciting.”
    A few moments later a handsome thirty-something African-American set a basket of bread on our table. “Good evening, ladies. I’m Benjamin, your waiter for this evening. Can I start you off with something from the bar?”
    Linda looked at me, her eyes bulging. She looked back at our waiter and smiled. “Oh, you’re Benjamin?”
    He nodded. “Is … there a problem?”
    “No. Of course not. Everything is perfect. Sarah, what do you think? Should we order some wine?”
    “Yes, is there a house wine you might suggest?” I asked Benjamin.
    He suggested a French wine that neither of us had heard of. We ordered two glasses and he headed toward the bar.
    Once he was gone, Linda leaned toward me and with a lowered voice said, “That is definitely not her brother.”
    I nodded. “Well, since we’re here, we might as well enjoy ourselves.”
    Linda’s shoulders slumped. “I feel so guilty. Emily is sick and here we are dining like movie stars. It’s not fair.”
    “We’re here because we want to help her. Let’s not lose sight of that fact.”
    Her features softened. “You’re right.”
    Benjamin returned with our wine, took our dinner order and said he’d return with our salads.
    I got right to work with the bread. “By the way, did Emily ever tell you her brother was gay?”
    “She didn’t have to. It was obvious at the wedding. Benjamin was very theatrical. Why is that important?”
    “It’s not, I guess. Speaking of the wedding, how did Emily and Paul meet?”
    Linda tried the wine, made a sour face, and set it down. “The story is very entertaining from Emily’s point of view. She belonged to an Internet dating site and was supposed to meet a guy for lunch. She had only seen the guy’s photo on the website. So she walked into the restaurant and saw this guy sitting alone. He sort of resembled the picture. She walked up and introduced herself. Wrong guy. She apologized, waited another ten minutes, but her date never showed. She was about to leave the restaurant when the single guy she thought was her date approached her. They ended up having a conversation and, next thing she knew, she had a date for dinner that night.”
    “So, I take it the date went well?”
    “It was horrible. The guy ended up being a complete jerk. He was rude to the waiter, kept texting on his cell phone throughout dinner and then suggested they go Dutch when the bill