Janet Evanovich - Love in a Nutshell

“Supposing, for the sake of discussion, that we were hiring right now,” he said. “Other than a couple of weeks at Bagger’s, what’s your work experience?”

She folded her hands in her lap, a gesture more appropriate for a navy blue interview suit than jeans and a puffy, off-white down jacket still zipped up to her chin. He wondered what she was going to wear when it really got cold around here.

“I have a B.A. in Drama from a small college in Ohio.”

This time he couldn’t fight back a smile. “I didn’t ask about your education. I asked what you can do. Before you came to Keene’s Harbor, did you have a job?”

“Yes.”

He waited for more, but it didn’t appear to be coming.

“And?” he asked.

“I was an assistant editor at a business magazine headquartered downstate, outside of Detroit.”

“And?” he prompted again.

“I moved here.”

“As you said, with very little in the way of options. Whax20optionst happened to the job?”

“The skills aren’t relevant to what you do here, but if you really need to know, I was let go.”

“Why?”

“It wasn’t directly performance-related, so again, I don’t think it’s all that relevant.”

He was hooked. He had to know. He was sure it was something worth hearing.

“Spill it,” he said. “Lay it on me.”

Kate bit her lower lip. “I had a little incident changing the black ink cartridge for the printer I shared with a couple other people. Maybe it was because we’d switched to a generic brand, or maybe it was because someone-perhaps with the name of Melvin-had messed with it, but whatever the case, I got ink all over the front of my dress. And then while I was in the bathroom trying to soak what I could from the dress, the fire alarm went off.”

“Sounds like something you’d see on Cinemax after midnight.”

“Let’s just say that when presented the choice between potential death and a bit of semi-nudity smack in the middle of downtown Royal Oak, I let the skin show.”

“You didn’t have much of an option.”

She raised her right shoulder in a half shrug. “True. As it turned out, someone-perhaps with the name of Melvin-had pulled the fire alarm. There was no fire, but between the scene on the street and the fact that the video from the building’s security camera somehow hit the Internet and went viral, my boss let me go. He said I had become a liability to the magazine. No one could take me seriously. And so someone with the name of Melvin got my job.”

“That stinks,” Matt said.

Kate nodded in agreement. “It did. But I learned a few good lessons, including always use brand-name ink and watch out for guys named Melvin.”

Matt laughed. Kate Appleton might be an involuntary exhibitionist, but so far she’d shown herself to be smart and quick with an answer, and she wore her emotions on her face. His gut told him she was possibly a little nutty, but beyond that a decent person. And Matt generally went with his instincts.

“Now, about that job?” she asked.

He leaned forward, elbows on desk. “I’ll start by saying that the bad beer at Bagger’s was a problem on his end of the system. Granted, there’s a remote possibility it happened here, but that part of the process is under tight control, so I’m not talking to you to redeem my honor or anything like that.”

She nodded. “Okay. So long as the talk involves a job, I’m listening.”

Kate Appleton did not appear to be a believer in the theory of leverage, in that he had it and she did not. Still, she was bold. He appreciated that about to that aher. And, at the moment, she might just be exactly what he needed.

“There have been some incidents over the past few months,” Matt said, lowering his voice. “They didn’t start out as anything big or all that awful. In fact, for a while there, I just kind of put it down to a streak of bad luck.”

“What kind of bad luck?”

He leaned back in his chair and considered when it all started. “Well, call it ego, but I’d like to think that last spring, my first failed batch of beer in years was more than just a slipup on my part. Since then, it’s been small stuff… misrouted deliveries, flat tires on the delivery trucks… that kind of thing.”

“All of which, pardon me for saying this, could be put down to employee screwups.”

Matt nodded. “I know, but they’re happening more and more often. I really think one of my employees is trying to sabotage my business.”

Kate leaned forward in her seat. “What makes you think it’s an employee?”

“Access. Whoever is behind it knows my schedule and my business. And, most of the incidents have occurred in employee-only areas, where a customer would be immediately noticed.”

Kate raised her eyebrows. “So you want me to help find some deranged lunatic with a beer vendetta.”

“I’d hire a private investigator, but this time of year, it would be nearly impossible for a stranger to go unnoticed for more than a day. You, on the other hand, are not a total outsider. And, between the impressive performance you just gave convincing me to hire you and your degree in drama, I’m guessing you can act a part if you have to. That makes you a great candidate for the job I have in mind.”

She tilted her head. “And that would be what?”

“I’d be hiring you to be a floater. If someone is out sick or there’s a crunch in a certain area of the operation, you’d be the one to step in.”

“Even though it’s likely that eighty percent of the time, I won’t know what the heck I’m doing?”

“I get the sense you’re a quick study.”

“Absolutely. Definitely. I’m your girl. And since I’m so smart, I get the sense that I’ll be more than a floater.”

“Your job will be to tell me what’s going on around here. What am I missing? What don’t people want to say to my face? Who have you seen that shouldn’t be here?”

“You want me to be a snitch ?”

“How about a secret agent?”

She sat silent a moment, trying on the phrase for fit. “I like it. I’m 9;s IȊppleton. Kate Appleton. Licensed to Snoop.”

“Good. You’ll be my eyes and ears. If someone in Keene’s Harbor has a grudge against me, you’ll let me know.”

“Sounds doable. From what I heard behind the bar at Bagger’s, folks around here still do love to talk.”

“Well, don’t take the buzz too literally. The colder the weather gets, the bigger the stories around here grow. Town is pretty quiet after Labor Day, and we need something to keep life interesting.”

“Fair enough. How much are you offering for the position?”

“Minimum wage,” he replied.

“I’m sorry, but don’t think so. I’m desperate, but not shortsighted. Sooner or later, someone is going to figure out that I’m bringing gossip back to you, and at that point, I’m not going to be worth anything.”

Matt grinned. “So what do you suggest?”

“How about minimum wage and a $20,000 bonus if I’m directly responsible for finding your saboteur?”

“You’re kidding.”

“Nope.”

Matt considered his options, and they were limited. He couldn’t hire a full-fledged townie any more than he could a PI. If word got out that some crazy was targeting Depot Brewery, it could scare away a lot of customers.

Kate smiled. “Hey. It’s no more than you’d pay to a PI, and I only get paid if I actually solve the mystery. And, it could end up costing you a lot more to just ignore the thing and hope it goes away.”

Matt paused to consider her argument. The truth was, the “accidents” were starting to add up and had already cost him more than $20,000. “Okay, deal.”

Kate beamed. “I promise I’ll be the best secret spy you’ve ever hired.”