Free 3 Bodies and a Biscotti by Leighann Dobbs

bending his tall frame to stare into her eyes. “You have to start eating more. You’re not fat. In fact, I think you’re just perfect.”
    Lexy’s heart jerked in her chest as he bent down and brushed his lips against her forehead, then gently maneuvered her into her chair.
    “Now eat.” He pointed to her plate, then went over and started the coffee machine on the counter.
    Lexy dug into the salmon and potato. She had to admit, she was starving. Jack replaced her wine glass with a coffee mug and sat down on his side of the table watching her eat in silence. She couldn’t help the little “nummy” sounds that came out of her mouth.
      She finished up and pushed her plate away feeling encouraged that Jack had also devoured most of his meal. The food was doing it’s job, she felt a lot stronger and not so dizzy. She took a sip of coffee and closed her eyes.
    “Did you just cluck?”
    “What?” Lexy furrowed her brow. Did he say cluck ?
    “I thought I heard you make a strange noise.” Jack shrugged, then grabbed both of their plates and dumped them in the sink.  
    Lexy stood up to liberate the pie from its glass display. Her heart skipped a beat, remembering how Jack had been acting before she passed out. What was he up to?
    “It seemed like you were going to say something important before I passed out.” She handed him a plate loaded with a thick, tall slice of pie.
    Jack smiled and put the pie on the counter, pulling her into his arms instead.
    “I was, but it can wait until you’re feeling one hundred percent better.” He traced the tip of his finger down the side of her neck causing her body to shiver with anticipated pleasure. “Right now, I think we have some other important business to tend to.”

Chapter Sixteen

    “Would you guys like to test out another one of my new recipes?” Lexy opened the cardboard bakery box, and produced a tray of aromatic white chocolate biscotti which she placed in the center of Nans’s dining room table.
    “More biscotti?” Ruth asked as she, Helen and Nans picked a biscuit from the plate. Lexy had already helped herself and bit into the confection, the white chocolate dip coated her tongue with a creamy sweetness, which was the perfect compliment to the dark blend coffee that was sending up spirals of steam on the table in front of her.  
    She took a sip.  
    Nans, Helen and Ruth laughed. Lexy louvered her eyes at them. “What’s so funny?”
    “Nothing,” Helen said, her eyes wide. “Did the hypnosis work for your eye tic?”
    Lexy realized that her eye hadn’t bothered her the previous night when she’d been nervous about Jack’s behavior. “Well, it hasn’t bothered me, but I think I need more time to know for sure.”
    “Oh, I’m sure it worked.” Helen said, amidst more laughter from the other women.
    Ruth finished off her biscotti, adjusted her dentures and brushed the crumbs off her shirt. “That was delicious—I’d say you have a winner on your hands.”
    Lexy felt a swell of pride when the other women nodded their agreement.
    “Now, let’s get down to business.” Nans put her elbows on the table and leaned across toward Lexy. “What did Jack have to say about the case?”
    “Not much, I’m afraid. He’s still not convinced the first two were murdered.” Lexy’s stomach dropped at the disappointed looks on the women’s faces. “But he did say he had a suspicion the murder might be tied to the drug ring case he is working on.”
    “Really?” Helen asked. “How so?”
    “Apparently the drug ring sells quite a bit of oxycontin. They don’t know where it is coming from. You need a prescription for it, so it has to be tied to some place medical. He was starting to think it might be coming from the retirement center because the hospitals and doctors’ offices have such strict rules.”
    “I don’t see how they would actually get the drugs to sell them, I mean I’m sure they are carefully watched here too. But that is