Free The Maverick by Jan Hudson Page A

expect to hear from him again. Let’s just ignore this one.”
    “Don’t you think we should mention it to Mom and Aunt Min? After all, they’re the majority stockholders of the company.”
    “I suppose so,” Cass said, “but you know their answer. They’d sooner sell a kidney than part with Chili Witches. The guy probably wants to raze the buildings and put up offices or, God forbid, another condo high-rise.”
    “I thought the high-rise craze had passed.”
    “Nope. Rumor is it’s coming back with a vengeance. POAC is a watchdog for irresponsible destruction and building, and we keep our ear to the ground. If we hadn’t been on our toes last month, some idiot would have leveled an entire grove of pecan trees and put in a car wash.”
    “Cass, a car wash is a legitimate business.”
    “Of course it is, but we worked with the guy to reconfigure his layout and be able to save most of the trees. It not only made for a more attractive place, but now he can also bill his business as eco-friendly, and eco-friendly is in.”
    “Well, good for POAC,” Sunny said. “And good for you, tiger. Sic ’em.”
     
    C ASS THOUGHT HER MOTHER and aunt had never looked so lovely—even after a grueling overseas flight. Gloria andMinerva O’Connor weren’t twins—Aunt Min was older by a year and a half—but they looked very much alike. Both were still trim and a couple of inches shorter than Sunny and Cass. The streaks of gray in their strawberry-blond hair had disappeared in the months they had been gone, and they both had new short and fashionable haircuts instead of their old styles, which was usually some sort of convenient twist. They both looked ten years younger than their sixty plus.
    “You look fantastic,” Cass said, hugging her mother, then Aunt Min. “What have you done to yourselves?”
    Gloria beamed. “I highly recommend retirement. And the new French makeovers helped.” She fluffed her hair. “Like it?”
    “I love it. Aunt Min, are you sure you haven’t had a face-lift?”
    Min chuckled. “Absolutely not, but we went to this lovely salon for skin treatments.” She rubbed her cheek. “Soft as a baby’s butt. Feel.”
    “You’re right, and you both look so rested. Were you able to sleep on the plane?”
    “We were,” Gloria said. “You two, on the other hand, look like you’ve been dragged through a knothole backward. But not to worry, we’re here to help handle things.”
    “There’s nothing to handle,” Sunny said. “Everything has been dried out and checked out and approved. The new floors are going in today and the contractors are coming tomorrow for some minor repair work.”
    “What about…?”
    “Supplies have been ordered for the kitchen,” Cass said, kissing her mother’s cheek, “and the cooks and kitchen help are coming in over the weekend to see that everything will be ready for business on Monday.”
    Gloria looked at Min. “See, I told you our girls could handle the situation.”
    “Ha!” Min said. “You were chomping at the bit to get here. Same as me. We have Sunny’s wedding to plan, anyhow. We just came back a little early.”
    Sunny sighed. “I’ve told you. There’s nothing to plan. We’re going to have a simple wedding with only family and a few friends.”
    “We’ll discuss that later,” her mother said, clearly intimating her preference for a more elaborate do. “Even small weddings take preparation. We’re eager to meet Ben.”
    “He’s eager to meet you, too,” Sunny told her. “He’ll probably be over for dinner tonight.”
    “Good, good,” Min said. “Come on. Let’s get our bags and stretch our legs. We love Europe, but it’s wonderful to be home. I’ve been dying for a big plate of barbecued ribs. Did you know you can’t get a decent barbecued rib in France? For all their culinary expertise, they’ve never managed to make a good old Texas barbecue sauce.”
    “Or a good bowl of chili,” Gloria said as they walked toward the