Read Murder on a Silver Platter (A Red Carpet Catering Mystery Book 1) for Free Online Page A

behind her ear thing again. “I want to be sure you get there okay and that you’re safe.”
    Penelope wondered again if she had missed something, and if Sam and Arlena were actually dating. She knew she’d never seen him at the house before. They’d only been filming Remember the Fall for a week, so essentially they had just met.
    “Oh, Sam, thank you,” Arlena breathed gratefully. “That would be wonderful.” She gathered herself together, easing herself off the hospital bed.
    She was still wearing her slim black trousers and tight pink sweater from earlier when the accident happened. The arm of her sweater was ripped, but it would be covered by her coat. Penelope knew Arlena would never head out in torn clothes in case the paparazzi lurked nearby. Sam put his arm around her tiny waist and helped her up from the bed.
    “If Sam is taking you home, I’ll head back to set and wrap up the crew, do my orders,” she said, stepping into the room and handing Arlena’s coat and bag to Sam.
    “That sounds perfect. I’ll see you later.”
    Penelope had seen that look before. Arlena was going to recover at home with the help of Sam’s sexy Dr. Reynolds, back from the dead for an encore performance. She figured her recovery would probably include wine and candles.
    “There’s some crab dip in the fridge,” Penelope offered.
    “Sounds amazing. See you later on tonight?” Arlena asked.
    “Yep. See you later,” Penelope said.
    Point taken. She would stay out for a while and let nature takes its course at home. Depending on how well things went, she might want to take herself out to dinner and a movie to give them as much time as possible. Sam guided Arlena carefully through the room and after a few steps she seemed to regain her balance. Arlena tossed her hair over her shoulder and said goodbye to Joey as they passed, Sam holding her purse and coat for her as he led her away.
    “Are there any more developments in Holly’s case?” Penelope asked once she and Joey were the only two left in the once crowded room.
    “We’re following up on some leads, questioning the girl’s family. None of your neighbors heard or saw anything, the ones we’ve been able to talk to anyway.”
    “It was a good night to be indoors,” Penelope said. She was momentarily distracted by the little gold flecks in his green irises.
    “We’re still determining what happened exactly. It’s hard to tell anything with all the snow. It was all churned up like a herd of Clydesdales had tromped through it.” He glanced at his watch.
    “I’m sorry I messed up your crime scene,” Penelope said quietly, slightly miffed at his comment. Although Penelope was an athletic size six, she sometimes felt a sharp contrast in comparison to Arlena, who was a tall and wispy size two and looked like a strong wind could pick her up and blow her down the street like a piece of newspaper. No woman wants to be compared to a giant horse, even in a flattering way, which this was not.
    “I know it wasn’t intentional.” Detective Baglioni chuckled. “You were scared.”
    Penelope crossed her arms against her chest and leveled her gaze at him.
    “You were never scared back in school. You were the bravest girl on the playground. That’s how I remember you at least,” Joey said.
    “Luckily there were no dead bodies to trip over back in third grade,” Penelope said, softening a bit. “Where did you go to school after Immaculate Heart?”
    “St. Joseph’s High and then right into the police academy,” Joey said. St. Joseph’s was an all boy’s Catholic school on the north end of the town where they grew up. “You?”
    “I went to the public high school in Freehold. They have a culinary arts program there. Made it easier to apply for culinary school when I graduated. I didn’t have to work the line in a restaurant first, like most first years do.”
    “That’s Penny Blue, always the planner,” Joey said with a quiet laugh. “You didn’t know