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Chapter 22
“Aplan? What’s your plan?” Nico asked, sticking his chin out at his boss. “You gonna arm her with a bullwhip?”
Mel narrowed her eyes at him. “Violence won’t be necessary, Elliott. When you see him zeroing in on Julia, you head over with your tray of champagne. Offer him a fresh glass and take his old one. Then go straight into the kitchen and bag it. We’ll get his prints. His DNA, as well. Once we snag a glass from Dawson, Julia can disengage. She can disappear into Zoe’s room if Dawson gets pushy.”
Julia watched a muscle twitch in Nico’s jaw. But eventually he nodded, a sharp, angry jerk of his head. “Good plan,” he said from behind clenched teeth. “But I don’t…”
Mel interrupted him. “I know you don’t like your principal exposed to a guy who might have tried to kill her. I get it, Nico. But we need his prints. Dawson won’t try anything with so many people close by.”
“And maybe he won’t even come near me,” Julia said lightly. “I’m just a chef. No one important.”
“But you look like someone important -- exactly the type Dawson goes for,” Zoe pointed out. “And I know you have the presence to carry it off.”
Mel cut in, “If he asks what you do, tell him you’re in the hospitality business. Don’t tell him you run a restaurant. If he pushes, tell him you’re a hotel manager. Your name is Keely White. And whatever you do, don’t utter the word Madeline’s. If he’s the one targeting you, he knows your restaurant and what you look like. Running into you at Zoe’s party and hearing ‘Madeline’s’ would make him suspicious. Cautious.”
Zoe nodded. “Good thinking, An… Mel.”
Mel narrowed her eyes at her sister at her almost-slip with her name. After a moment, she took a deep breath. “Zoe, you keep Julia busy for a while after Dawson gets here. Introduce her to your friends. If someone presses for more information, wink and tell them Keely is going incognito tonight.” Mel’s mouth curved up in a wicked smile. “Nothing causes more buzz than people thinking a celebrity is in the room.”
“Why the hell are you trying to get Julia to stand out?” Nico demanded. “Shouldn’t we be trying to play her down?”
“No,” Mel said, tilting her head to study Nico. “You know why we’re doing it this way.” She narrowed her eyes and jerked her head toward the other side of the room. “With me, Elliott.”
Julia watched Nico follow his boss to the other side of Zoe’s living room. They were standing in front of her window’s amazing panorama, but Julia was pretty sure neither of them was paying attention to the view.
Mel spoke in a low voice, making it impossible for Julia to overhear them. Taking a deep, steadying breath, Julia turned to Zoe. “Anything else I need to know about Dawson?” she asked.
Zoe rolled her eyes. “From past experience, he likes women who fawn on him. Women who aren’t the brightest bulbs in the chandelier.” She studied Julia for a long moment. “You wouldn’t do fawning well. And you’re very bright. So instead of those tricks, maybe just pretend you’re not interested in what he’s selling. Be polite and pleasant, with an undertone of bored. That will both piss him off and intrigue him,” she said with a tiny smile.
Her smile faded as Spence walked by, his head swiveling as he studied everything. Zoe’s gaze shifted away from Julia and followed Spence as he moved past them. Before he got to the end of the room, Spence turned and locked his gaze on Zoe’s. Both of them froze for a long moment, then Zoe swallowed. Turned back to Julia. Cleared her throat. “Yeah. Pretend you don’t notice Dawson.”
Spence moved to the other side of the room, and Zoe shot him a glance. Dragged her gaze back to Julia’s. “And, uh, don’t look at Dawson’s drink. Lots of other people in the room will be watching his glass.”
Julia nodded, intrigued by whatever was going on between Zoe and Spence. She’d thought they had a case of insta-hate. But based on the way Zoe was acting, she wondered if it was something else entirely.
Zoe cleared her throat. “Uh, you should… you should get yourself into Keely’s mindset. You don’t talk about what you do, unless someone pushes. And you don’t give out the hotel name. Your only job here is to schmooze.”
“Okay.” Julia nodded. Sucked in a steadying breath. “I know how to schmooze. I do it every night at Madel… at the restaurant. I can do it with this creep Dawson, as well.”
“Exactly right.” Zoe nodded just as the elevator dinged, and an older couple stepped into Zoe’s foyer. With one last glance toward Spence, who was standing near the bar, Zoe hurried over to greet her guests, leaving Julia standing alone.
“You’re gonna be fine,” Nico said into her ear, steering her toward a corner. Once they got there, he stood in front of her. Still protecting her, even at this party where she was bait for the wolf. “You’re smart. You think on your feet. And you look nothing like the chef he’s probably seen at some point. Okay?”
Julia nodded slowly, taking another deep breath. “I know how to make small talk. How to have a conversation without really saying anything. I’ll pretend these people are all customers at Madeline’s.” Swallowing, she added, “I’m not going to look for you. I trust you’re going to be watching out for me.”
Nico didn’t say anything but his fingers trailed over the back of her hand. “That means a lot, Julia. Knowing you trust me to keep you safe. And I won’t let you down.”
She nodded slowly. “I know you won’t. So I’m going to take a deep breath and pretend I’m enjoying myself.” She glanced at Mel, then looked back at Nico. “What was Mel saying to you?”
He clenched his teeth, and a muscle in his jaw twitched. “She asked me what was going on between you and me. I told her I was focused on my job. Protecting you. And I didn’t like the fact that a suspect was going to be all over you.”
“And what did she say about that?” Julia asked.
He sighed. “She gave me her patented Mel look. The one that says, ‘I know a crock of BS when I hear it’. But she didn’t have a chance to grill me the way she probably wanted to do.”
“And she won’t until the end of the evening,” Julia said, nodding toward Zoe. “It’s show time. Zo’s motioning me over to meet some of her friends.”
An hour later, Julia had met a number of Zoe’s friends. She’d introduced herself as Keely White, working in hospitality. Several of Zoe’s friends asked what she did, and she told them she was a hotel manager at a small, boutique hotel. The kind that catered to people who wanted to keep a low profile while in Seattle.
