Devil in Texas (Rugged and Risque 1)

“I’ll come back with the rest of the candles—tea lights?—and some matches,” he said.

He took in her work thus far and nodded his head in apparent approval. As he went off to get the candles, Liza reached for the scissors and cut holes into the middle of the foam forms in the floral arrangements. Just big enough for her to cram a votive holder into each hole. Fluffing the greenery around the edges of the glass holders helped to hide the foam again.

Sean came back with the tea lights and matches and she explained, “I’d like to bring the food into the room. It’ll help to get rid of the musty smell in here.” And the faint scent of cigars that was making her a tiny bit nauseous.

“I’ve got some chafing dishes the Bains donated when they remodeled their kitchen last fall.”

Liza cringed at the mention of that name and the thought of Lydia. “That’ll work,” she hated to admit.

While Sean retrieved the food, she used large, white paper napkins to cover the scarred credenza and then helped him set out the chafing dishes he’d piled high with food. They placed small dishes next to each one and added the applicable serving utensil.

“What about the bread?” he asked.

There was nothing fancy to put the rolls in. “Basket?”

He gave it some thought, as though searching the facility’s inventory in his head, and then said, “Nope.”

“We’ll make our own.” She proceeded to show him how to make a bread warmer from the two remaining linen napkins they had. She placed the rolls, tucked into their little cocoons, at opposite ends of the table, so they could be passed along with the individual containers of butter Sean brought in from the fridge. They piled them neatly on white side dishes to accompany the passing of the rolls.

Liza then scattered the rest of the yellow rose petals around the buffet area and added two votives there.

Excited by her resourcefulness, she turned to her new friend and asked, “What do you think?”

His eyes grew wide. “Looks a hell of a lot better than anything else I’ve seen in this room. Really, the ladies’ll be blown away.”

“Great!” As she patted herself on the back—and hoped that the effort would be a good reflection on Jess in the Junior League’s mind—Sean burst her bubble.

“What about the orchids?”

“Oh shit!” She’d totally forgotten about them! She glanced at her watch, discovering she had less than fifteen minutes before the women would arrive.

Where Jess was, she didn’t know.

“Okay,” Liza said, thinking quickly. “Do me a huge favor and set the glasses on the table at each place setting, fill them with ice and pour the tea. I’ll figure out where to put the orchids.”

“Say,” he said, a thought occurring to him. “There are a few bottles of sparkling cider in the fridge from Marta and Jake Olson’s fiftieth anniversary party. How about I pour it into some cups and serve it to the ladies as they come in through the front? That’ll give you time to finish up back here.”

Liza still had boxes to dispose of and orchids to place.

“Fantastic idea!” she beamed, resisting the urge to hug her partner in crime. “You are the absolute best assistant party planner.”

He grinned sheepishly. “It’s been fun helping you. It’s usually pretty boring around here.” He didn’t wait for a reply. His cheeks flushed pink and he turned quickly and vanished into the hallway. Liza smiled, wondering if Sean had developed a little crush on her.

He certainly was a great kid. And if she spent a few more hours with him, sh

e’d know everyone by name in this town, along with their birthday and anniversary dates.

But, no time to dwell on that. She still had work to do. Using books and knickknacks to create varying heights on which to set the potted orchids, she strategically placed them around the room. Three in the far corner, two on the buffet table, four in the front corner that was just a wide gaping hole desperate to be filled. One in the center of the table, between the modified floral centerpieces. That left her with two more.

Liza frowned. No more available surface space and the corners were covered. Her eyes shifted from one pot to the other as she held one in each hand. Then she heard a frantic voice in the hallway and her gaze lifted to the doorway.

The doorway! Of course!

The dingy gray door opened inward, so she could place a pot on either side of the outer frame, creating a lovely visual, inviting the ladies inside.

After placing them, she quickly gathered up the boxes and all the tools she’d used to transform the room and was just heading out the back to the van when Jess called out to her.

“Oh, Liza!” she said in a high-pitched voice Liza had not heard from her before. “I’m so sorry! My gosh! Service went longer than usual and then everyone was so chatty afterward and I just couldn’t find an appropriate break in the conversation to slip away and—oh!”