SLAY PAIRS WITH ROSE (The Kelly's Deli Cozy Murder Mysteries Book 3) by Sophie Brent (phonics reading books .txt) 📕

Erin smiled a closed mouth smile and lifted the sugar rose into a wide shallow tray to join the cream and pale pink rosebuds and flowers in various stages of bloom that she had worked on in the cool of the night.

Erin pushed up, pulled a large container out of the huge refrigerator and flipped open the lid.

“I finished the base layer this morning. Have a smell.”

Zoe peered into the round plastic box and inhaled. “Wow. That’s amazing.”

“I started with moist dark chocolate cake, made with the finest Belgian chocolate. The filling is homemade Morello cherry jam and buttercream. You serve this one in very small slices.”

“I had intended to dance at this wedding!”

Zoe peered towards the cake on Erin’s kitchen table. “What’s in the other layer?”

“A special request for Fiona’s mother and aunt. Lemon and vanilla sponge with a fresh lemon curd filling. I’m finishing it with a cream satin ribbon and sugar roses to match the bride’s bouquet. Do you think she’ll like it?”

Zoe chuckled. “She will be in heaven.”

Erin leaned across the table and smiled. “The cakes are ready. Everything is prepped. Give me half an hour and hey presto! We have a wedding cake.”

“This is amazing work, Erin,” Zoe said as she circled the cake, inspecting it from every angle and taking photographs as she went. “They really do look like panels of vintage lace. Fiona is going to be blown away.”

“Thanks, Zoe,” Erin grinned. “I haven’t made a wedding cake in years, so I was a bit worried about whether I could pull it off at this short notice.”

“Fiona is super grateful, and she is going to love the cake.  Wait until…” Zoe was about to continue but was interrupted by the ring tone on Erin’s phone.

Erin glanced at the number display, looked up at Zoe and winced, then counted to five in silence before answering the call. “Hello, Kelly’s deli. Hi, Emma. How did the wedding rehearsal go?”

Oh, why did she have to ask that? Stupid girl!

Erin stared at the table and listened for several minutes to the long list of gripes and complaints from Fiona’s maid of honour about why the rehearsal had been a complete disaster, before Emma finally took a breath and Erin had a chance to speak.

“How can I help?” Erin asked in a cheery voice, already dreading what last-minute alterations to the cakes Emma had ordered for Fiona and Ethan’s wedding. There had been three changes yesterday and goodness knows how many the day before.

“You are worried about the wedding cake? Well, you can relax, because I am right on schedule,” Erin smiled and looked down at the cakes on her kitchen table. “Both of the cakes were baked late last night, and I have just finished the icing on the second tier. The party cakes are next on the list.”

She inhaled sharply and glanced at Zoe who was clearly trying not to giggle. “No, Emma. I couldn’t possibly change the cake decoration at this short notice. Fiona approved my sketch last week and seemed very happy with the vintage champagne and pastel theme. Yes, I know peonies are lovely, but Fiona was very keen on having the same roses to match her bouquet.  I remember you telling me how important it was to think about this kind of detail.”

Then she closed her eyes. “Well, I am sorry to hear that you have changed your mind about the precise shade of blush pink you wanted for the bride’s bouquet, but I’m sure it will still look stunning. Oh. You think you should change the order and go for peonies instead? And when was this? Half an hour ago? Well yes, I can see that it might be a problem for the florist at this time on a Friday afternoon.”

Erin sat back in her hard kitchen chair and took a couple of deep breaths.  Emma Wilson had just decided to change the entire order from a local florist who had ordered those roses especially for this wedding.

Why wasn’t Emma Wilson in the hotel spa with Fiona and the other bridesmaids?

“Now, Emma. There is no need to panic or drive back to London to get more flowers. Calm down. I have an idea. You know that Fiona is wearing that gorgeous vintage lace dress. I think that a bouquet of peonies could be way too big and out of proportion to that delicate gown.”

Erin held the phone away from her ear for a moment and willed Emma to see sense. “Zoe told me that Fiona was so thrilled with the design that you worked on last week. She thought that it was fantastic. Yes, seriously.  I would tell the florist that you want to go back to the gorgeous rose bouquet you ordered, just the way you planned. Your design looked stunning.”

Erin breathed in through her nose and tried not to scream. “Yes, I still plan to deliver the cake and hen party treats this afternoon. I’ve already spoken to the hotel and it’s not a problem. Of course, I shall drive very carefully all the way to Abbotsdown Hall. See you tomorrow. That’s right. Tomorrow. Bye for now. Bye.”

Erin exhaled a slow calming breath, before squeezing her eyes tight shut, and pressing the cool telephone to her forehead.

“You don’t need to say it,” Zoe snorted. “Emma Wilson. Am I right?”

“How well do you know Emma?” Erin asked Zoe as soon as she had regained use of her lungs and her brain.

“I don’t know her at all really,” Zoe shrugged. “I only met Emma for the first time when I caught up with Fiona yesterday evening. But she seems very confident and capable. That’s why Fiona asked her to be her maid of honour.”

“Confident and capable I can cope with.” Erin murmured. “What about bossy and unreasonable?”

“Oh