Nik Sajnt - Purrfect Heat. Purrfect Santa. Purrfect Crime. Purrfect Rivalry

4. PURRFECT HEAT

Prologue

Erin Coka arrived bright and early for work. It was her day to openFry Me for an Oyster and she didnt want to be late. As a newish employee of the restaurant, she had everything to prove and everything to lose. Not that her employers, Brainard and Isabella Stowe, were terrible people or anything. They just ran a tight ship, and expected all members of their staff, from the dishwashers to the chef, to do the work and show up on time.

Lately, things had been even more hectic than usual, with the famous celebrity chef Niklaus Skad in town, subjectingFry Me for an Oyster to his usual grueling treatment. Hed been all over the place, a camera crew in tow, criticizing the menus, the seating, the decorations, the presentation and even the way the staff dressed and behaved. It seemed nothing was good enough for the Great Niklaus, and Brainard and Isabella had been on edge all week.Kitchen Disasters could make or break their business, though by the looks of things, Niklaus was leaning more toward destroying them.

Erin opened the door and stepped inside. The air was stale and mustyredolent with cooking scents. She stuck her nose in the air and sniffed. Yuck. Something smelled awful. Had Hendrik been working on one of his notorious creations again? Cooking up something special for Niklaus? Going for a last-ditch attempt to save his career and the restaurant?

She walked through to the kitchen.Chef? Chef, are you in here?

Sometimes, when the mood struck him, Hendrik Serarols liked to come in at the crack of dawn to try out a few new recipes hed dreamed up. She walked past the bar and through the swinging doors into the large kitchen at the back. Here Hendrik created his masterpieces, which had put Fry Me for an Oyster on the map in Hampton Cove and far beyond.

Yuck, she muttered, as her eyes scanned the squeaky clean kitchen.

All gleaming countertops and scrubbed pots dangling over the stoves. Everything perfectly clean, as it should be. Niklaus Skad was big on hygiene, his pet peeve. The stench seemed to be coming from one of the ovens, the biggest one, where they baked pizza and other large dishes. Hendrik had once joked you could fit a man in there, even one as big as him.

She walked over to the oven and saw that it was switched on.Chef? she repeated. Are you cooking something in here? No reply.

She peered in through the oven window. Whatever it was, it had been cooking for so long that smoke was curling out through the vents. Had Chef put something in last night and forgotten to turn off the oven? He had so much on his mind lately he was starting to get a little frazzled. And who could blame him? With Niklaus on his case all the time, even yelling and screaming, and the camera crew in his face while he tried to keep it together and run the kitchen, a lesser man would have fallen to pieces.

She flicked on the oven light, and thats when she saw it. Her lips parted on a silent scream. There was a man in there, baked to a crisp!

Chapter 1

I was luxuriating in my all-time favorite spot: at the foot of Odelias bed. Im blessed with a smallish human, which means Ive got the foot of the bed all to myself. Ive heard horror stories of other cats, whose owners stretch out all the way to the edge of the bed, and then wriggle around all night, making it absolutely impossible for any cat to get any sleep.

In that sense, Odelia is the perfect human. Well, not just because shes short, but also because shes super nice and sweet. She always makes sure Im well fed and well taken care of, never stingy on the cuddles and the strokes, and she keeps my blorange fur looking nice and shiny by giving me a vigorous grooming every week without fail. Shes even installed a pet door so I can come and go as I please. A nice, big door, as Im big-boned.

Odelia is a reporter for the Hampton Cove Gazette, and if theres one thing that sets her aside from most humans, its that she speaks feline. Yep, she and I have a perfect understandingliterally. She takes care of me, and in return I collect gossip from all over town and give it her hot off the griddle. All the news thats fit to print, straight fromthe cats mouth.

Odelia stirred, and I pricked up my ears. I can tell when shes about to wake up, which is my cue to snuggle up to her and bury my nose in her armpit for an extra cuddle. Its our morning ritual, and the start of our day.

This morning, however, things were going to prove different, and the first sign I got was when Dooley and Brutus came barging into the bedroom, looking excited, but not in a good way.

Dooley is my best bud, a gray Raggamuffin who belongs to Odelias Gran. Brutus is a black cat and not exactly my buddy. He belongs to Chase Kingsley, a cop and occasional kissmate of Odelias. Yes, I know kissmate isnt a word, but how else can I describe Chase and Odelias relationship? Theyre not a couple, they just kiss sometimes. And flirt a lot, I guess. I know, its disgusting, but what can you do? Humans are weird that way.

Max! Dooley cried. Terrible news! Terrible, terrible news!

I reluctantly heaved my head from the soft blanket.What is it? I murmured, then yawned cavernously. Dooley is one of those overexcited cats who get their tail in a twist just because their human got them a new brand of kibble or a new smell of cat litter.

A new cat, Dooley said, still panting. Theres a new cat in town.

I looked from Dooley to Brutus, who was, at least in my eyes, still the new cat in town, even though by now hed been here a couple of months.

No, not me, Brutus grunted. A new new cat.

I frowned.So? New cats are born every day. Whats so special about this one?

Hes not a kitten, Dooley announced, looking highly perturbed.

Hes a full-grown cat, said Brutus. And he belongs to Chase.

Your Chase?

My Chase.

Thats not possible. Your Chase doesnt even like cats. He just took you in because his mother is living with her sister whos allergic to cats.

It was a long story. Brutus had belonged to Chases mom, but when she couldnt take care of him anymore, Chase had graciously agreed to give him a home. Though he spent most of his time either at Odelias or next door, at Odelias moms place, where Dooley lives with Gran.

Martha loves cats, Brutus explained. She just cant help herself. So when she saw this rascal roaming the streets, she took him home with her, and immediately got into a huge argument with her sister.

So Chase took him over? Again? I asked, incredulous.

Brutus nodded somberly.And hes something else, this one.

Hes called Diego and hes a real charmer. A regular ladies cat.

Like Brutus, you mean, I said, giving Brutus a level look.

Im not a ladies cat, Brutus protested. Can I help it that the ladies all love me? Its not as if I go out of my way to seduce them or anything. They just take one look at me and bingo. They go all gooey on me.

Thats a ladies cat, I said in measured tones. Thats you.

You got it all wrong as usual, Maxie, baby, Brutus growled.

No, you got it all wrong. As usual, I countered.

No, you got it all wrong!

No, you got it

It doesnt matter! Dooley cried. Diego is here and Harriet is going to take one look at him and shes going to go weak at the knees and fall for him!

Not my Harriet, Brutus said, though he didnt look convinced.

Your Harriet? Dooley asked. Harriet isnt your Harriet.

Oh, yes, she is. I know youre devastated by the fact that she likes me more than you, but she is mine, said Brutus with a smirk. All mine.

Harriet isnt yours. Harriet is a free spirit. She belongs to no one.

All mine, he said in a sing-songy voice. All the time.

Where is Harriet, by the way? I asked.

Harriet belongs to Odelias mom and also lives next door. Shes a white Persian with green eyes. Even though shes totally not my type I have to admit shes very pretty. And she likes to hang out with Brutus, he wasnt lying about that. Much to Dooleys chagrin, cause hes got a crush on Harriet himself.