Barbara Silkstone [Silkstone - Glossy Lips

I hope you enjoy GLOSSY LIPS Book 1 in the COLD CREAM MURDERS series. Please sign up for my newsletter to receive an email whenever I publish a new book or for special sales and giveaways. Your information will not be shared with anyone and you may unsubscribe at any time. I promise not to pester you !

W ith love & laughter!

Barbara Silkstone

http://secondactcafe.com/barbara- silkstone /

O live Peroni put out her family therapy shingle six years ago never thinking her top client would be Myron Meyers, head of a New York crime family. When Olives grandmother dies and leaves her a condo in Florida and a secret recipe for miracle cold cream, she grabs the chance at a new life in Starfish Cove, Florida, making designer creams for ladies who spend far too much time at the beach. Business is brisk and life is good! Olive even makes a wild new best friend and business partner in Lizzy, the real estate agent who handles the transfer of Nonnas condo .

B ut when the quiet little community on the Gulf of Mexico soon begins to compete with a certain notorious coastal village in Maine, Olive finds herself solving odd-ball murders as often as she soothes wrinkles. Clean and wholesome !

Each book contains a recipe for homemade cosmetics and beautifiers !

T he rhythmic crunch of rubbly brick pavers cut through the Florida night air as a slow-moving vehicle made its way cautiously down the narrow street. If the driver hadnt been intent on avoiding the potholes, he might have looked to his right and noticed shadowy forms struggling to stuff a dead body into the trunk of a small car .

N ew York City, Tuesday, 4:30 p.m .

M yron Meyers fiddled with the gold coin nestled in the white chest hairs peeking from two open buttons. So you want I should handle your ex-husband? I told you from the start, you take care of me I take care of you, my little Olive. You are mishpocha family .

The last thing I needed was one of Myrons notorious favors. Leave Willie alone, I said. Hes not bothering me. I promise .

The sallow-skinned octogenarian tugged a yellow handkerchief from his pocket and blotted his brow. You cant leave me right now. I need you here. I looked out the window at the skyline of lower Manhattan and sucked in a deep breath, struggling to calm my star patient enough to thump acceptance into his stubborn head .

Listen, Myron, when I put out my shingle a few years ago it wasnt to adopt you. I appreciate that you consider me part of your extended family, but I have real relatives that I have to care for now and then .

He blotted beads of sweat from his neck and glanced at the door. He always sat facing the door despite the lock and the armed doorman in the lobby. If that nudnik ex-husband of yours is giving you trouble, we take him for a ride in the country. The fresh air will do him good .

My ex was bleeding me dry money-wise, but he wasnt deserving of Myrons special attention. Whining Willie was merely a nuisance. Myron on the other hand

I appreciate the offer, but Willie is no problem. He hardly ever calls. You, on the other hand, you call a lot .

He wiped the sweat from the tip of his nose. I deliberately kept the air conditioning in my office on the warm side to shorten Myrons visits, but now the August heat was getting to me. I fanned myself with a sheet of paper .

You talking about me? he said in an even raspier voice than usual. Can I help it if I still get these attacks? You should know my heart, its running like a jalopy in here! He pointed to either his chest or belly. I wasnt inclined to pry .

You arent listening to what Im telling you. Before he could interrupt I continued. Willie has nothing to do with me leaving. My Nonna just died! I have to go to Florida to sort out her things. How would you feel if your grandmother just died ?

If my grandmother just died, shed be in the record books. Im eighty-five, and she was no spring chicken when I was born. He grinned, exposing a well-maintained set of choppers. Why do you have to go to Florida to take care of her things? Stay in the city. Use the phone. Thats what we got a phone forto call Florida .

He wiped his brow. Im sweating bullets here! Besides my retirement party is next week !

When he got to the petulant child stage, I had to speak to him in visuals to make him understand. My grandmother probably has milk going bad in her refrigerator. Im responsible for cleaning it out. Besides, I attended three of your retirement parties so far this year .

I got a lot of friends. They like to throw me parties. He shrugged his limp shoulders. How long will you be gone? He fought to lift his short chunky form from the chair. A week? Two ?

I wont know until I get there. Call me anytime you get an anxiety attack. Day or night. I promise Ill answer .

He waddled across the room with his tan-colored silk trousers wrinkled like an old Shar-Pei. Ill give you two weeks. No more than that, my little Olive. Your grandmother cant have that much food in her icebox! He slammed the door .

I stared at my desk wishing my world was different. My nameplate read Olive PeroniFamily Therapist. At the moment, I felt less like a psychologist and more like a woman in need of two weeks at a spapreferably on some uncharted island in the South Seaswith no phone .

I reread the letter from Nonnas lawyer. It listed all the things I needed to accomplish including disposing of her condo located in Starfish Cove, which was a private peninsula between Clearwater Beach and St. Petersburg .

It was selfish of me to think I would never lose my beloved granny. Guilt hung over me like the weight of a winter coat. Forced to cancel my Easter visit with her because Myron had been suffering from a panic attack, my heart now ached. I missed my last chance to see the person dearest to me .

Florida was a long drive but it would do me good to sit behind the wheel, put my brain on autopilot and chill. Or, at least, try to. In truth, unlike Myron with his large thug family, I could count my family on the fingers of one hand. With Nonna gone Id have a digit left over .

No more sad thoughts. Time to get to work. I needed a real estate agent to sell Nonnas condo. An agent I could trust when I returned to New York. No small feat when my only option was the internet .

I sat at the keyboard and began my search. In my mind I could hear my Nonna whisper please dont sell my home. I pushed the thought away and entered Starfish Cove to narrow my search .