Last night swims through my mind—the part where Everett and I finished off that argument the right way in my bedroom
As much as I hate to admit it, Carlotta was onto something. Let me set the record straight. By no means does Everett have a temper.
Does he have a reputation as a tough judge? Yup.
Can he be ornery and tough as nails with the worst of them? Double yup.
But he has a heart of gold, and that man has never said a cross word to me. That is, up until last night. And to be truthful, those words he spoke were given in the spirit of protecting our child.
I get it.
But that didn’t stop this wild surge of hormones inside of me from rearing its ugly head, and boy, did things get even uglier once he stepped into my home, but after about two minutes of sharp disagreement, we spent more than two hours engaged in the urgent tug and pull of limbs. On an ordinary day, Everett is a warrior of the highest caliber in the bedroom—his moves have got moves—but last night he was a tiger.
And no matter how many times we’re together, he’s forever able to surprise me with something new. And heaven help me, did he ever bring new things to table—or rather the mattress last night. Big, breathtaking, animalistic, soul-rendering new things that sent me to the edge of my existence in the best way possible. I may never share another nice sentiment with that man again.
I sigh hard as I stare off dreamily at the Hobart mixer taking up a third of the kitchen in my bakery. I’ve got a new batch of individual apple crisps just about ready to pull out of the oven, and the scent of warm cinnamon and brown sugar is pulling everyone right off of Main Street and landing them inside my sweet shop. Lily is up front helping the masses load up on the crisp apple treats because, true to my mother’s word, she sent the folks from her tour over and they gobbled up just about every last apple crisp we had, thus landing me in the kitchen once again to mass-produce more.
A spray of lavender stars appears by the walk-in refrigerator and I gasp.
“Grandma Nell?” Her name slips from me with such fervent hope. I haven’t seen her since Keelie’s wedding this last June, and I’d love more than anything to have another one of her supernatural visits now that I’m about to be a mother, which she predicted not all that long ago.
But the form that appears is smaller than a breadbox and a heck of a lot furrier than my Grandma Nell ever was. It’s the paranormal Pomeranian I met up with last night, with that cute little smile on her face, button eyes, and adorable ears that point straight to the ceiling.
“It’s you,” I say, dusting her tiny nose with my finger as she swims in close. “Now what’s your name, missy?”
“Ginger,” she squeaks it out in an adorable little voice. “I met Carlotta last night. And I understand your name is Slutty. So nice to meet you, Slutty.”
“What?” A breath hitches in my throat. “No! My name isn’t Slutty. It’s Lottie. Lottie,” I say a touch louder than before. “Leave it to Carlotta to turn everything into a circus, starting with my birth story.” Tears come to my eyes, because soon enough I’ll have my very own birth story to share. I turn my back to the little creature as I struggle to gain my bearings.
“Oh dear, I’m so very sorry! Perhaps I misunderstood.” She floats around until we’re eye to eye once again.
“You heard her clearly, I can assure you.” I dab my eyes with my apron. “Carlotta loves to tease. She doesn’t mean any harm by it. And you’ll have to excuse me. I’m a bit of an emotional mess as of late. I just found out I’m having a baby, and I’m not sure if it’s my husband’s child or my boyfriend’s. It’s just a big mess.”
A sharp bark comes from her. “My apologies, but you caught me off guard. My goodness, I had that very same problem before they fixed me. I had an entire litter of tiny balls of fluff. I wasn’t sure if they belonged to Emmet, my house husband, or my park boyfriend, Nolan.”
I take in a quick breath. “Emmet or Nolan?” I give a suspicious glance around the ceiling. “Why do I feel as if someone up there is toying with me?” I take a step closer to the glowing pup. “Well, don’t just float there, whose were they? Am I having Emmet’s litter or Nolan’s?” I shake my head abruptly. “I mean you.” But I really mean me.
“Let’s see.” She tips her tiny head as she considers this. “Emmet was strong and handsome and really liked to lay down the law around the house. Not with me, of course. He had a cute little habit of calling me Berry. That was our surname. We belonged to the Berrys.” Good Lord. I roll my eyes before motioning for her continue. “But then, there was Nolan.” She sighs hard at the thought of him, and I so get it. “He had a habit of policing everyone at the park. We had a great time together, but it turns out, he was keeping a furry little sidepiece a secret from me. Oh, he said they were old news and they were, but the fact he didn’t tell me sooner, it was a seismic shift in our relationship.”
“I’ll say.” I make a face. “Well, if you could do your best to remember, I’d sure appreciate it. I have a feeling it might be the key to my own personal paternal mystery.”
“Is that what I’ve been called here for? And here I thought it had something to do with my sweet Brenda. She could be a bit sour, too, but that was simply her way.”
I nod. “You’re right. You’re here to help me bring down Brenda’s killer. If you can remember anything about last night at all, anything you think might help with the case, please let me know.”
“Will do.”
“Lottie?” Lily calls from up front. “You’ve got people who want to see you.”
I shrug to the tiny poltergeist. “Just a minute, Ginger.” I pull the apple crisps out of the oven and pause a moment to take in their heavenly scent. “You’re welcome to come on out front if you like.”
“I think I’ll head over to your place if you don’t mind. Carlotta introduced me to Pancake and Waffles. I must say, I haven’t had these feelings stirred up since those days of trying to choose between Emmet and Nolan.”
My cheek twitches just hearing her say it.
“I’ll see you later. Have all the fun you like with my cats.” My sweet kittens are a pair of Himalayan brothers. I had Pancake originally, and when Grandma Nell died, I inherited Waffles along with almost all of Honey Hollow and a beach house in Nantucket.
I speed out front, momentarily surprised to see Keelie with baby Bear in an infant carrier sitting on the counter, and gathered around the sweet sleeping angel I find Carlotta, Evie, and Naomi.
“Well, lookie here,” I say, cooing over at the adorable little peanut. “A cutie pie in the Cutie Pie. How about fresh donuts all around?”
Evie lifts a finger. “Cheesecake for me. I’m trying out for cheer, and I need to build my stamina.”
“The cheer squad!” A touch of pride beams from me. “Oh, Everett and I are coming to every single game. We’ll even go to the away games. We won’t miss a single minute.”
Carlotta slits her throat as she stands behind Evie.
And Evie gags on cue. “Never mind. I’m not trying out for cheer. I’d rather poke my eyes out with a butter knife, put them on a skewer, and eat them than spend every Friday night with my parents.” She sticks her finger down her throat to punctuate the sentiment.
“Okay then,” I say. “We won’t go.”
Naomi snorts. Naomi is Keelie’s twin sister, but she chooses to dye her blonde locks a luscious shade of midnight, and she’s got the brooding personality to match.
“Don’t listen to her, Evie,” Naomi offers up her commentary. “Lottie is your classic helicopter parent. She’ll be up in your social junk until you fly the coop to come live with your cool Aunt Meg.”
I take a moment to scowl at Naomi. She’s never liked me. And who the heck knows exactly why. It could be because Keelie liked me better than her. Or it could have something to do with the fact my high school boyfriend Bear slept with everyone but her—and Keelie. And thankfully so, since he’s just married my bestie. Nevertheless, Naomi’s hatred f
or me is old news.
Lily smirks. “Don’t listen to her, Evie. Naomi is as vindictive as they come. She’s just trying to make Lottie think you’re going to grow up and dance at that fancy club Meg works at.”
“Pfft.” Evie averts her eyes. “I’m not waiting until I grow up. In fact, I’ve already got—”
Carlotta’s eyes bug out as she threatens Evie with a single heated look, and Evie buttons up so fast you’d think she knew what the brunt end of Carlotta’s warped wrath could bring.
I lean in hard. “What have you already got?” I ask, but Evie is mute as a church mouse. “Carlotta?” I look to the twisted version of myself. “So help me, if you lead Evie astray in some way…”
“Settle down, girls,” Lily says as she lays down a platter of donuts that I fried fresh this morning, and the entire lot of us attacks them like donut hungry vultures. I scoop up the apple fritter myself. Thankfully, my nausea hasn’t bothered to hit yet this morning. And I’m hoping it’s over with for good.
“Don’t get Lottie all worked up,” Lily says. “All she does is cry, yell, and talk to herself when she thinks no one else is listening. I’m afraid the men with the big nets are going to come around one day, and it’ll be up to Meg and me to run both the Honey Pot and the Cutie Pie.”
I make a face. It’s true, though. Meg is doing a bang-up job managing the place while Keelie is on maternity leave, and Lily basically runs the bakery more than I do these days.
“Hey, I just thought of something.” Keelie perks up. “Lottie, if you have a girl, maybe she’ll fall in love with baby Bear and they’ll get married? We’ll be family forever.”
“We are family forever,” I point out. “I’m your cousin, remember?” I couldn’t blame her for not having it on the forefront of her mind. We just found out a year ago.
Evie nods. “That would mean he was marrying his second cousin, or his aunt, or his grand something. Who the heck knows? And who the heck cares? They don’t call this place Hillbilly Hollow for nothing.”
“Evie,” I step in close, “I thought you liked Honey Hollow.” Prior to moving in with Everett several months ago, she was living the high life at a ritzy boarding school. It took her a while to warm up to our small town, and now I’m wondering if it was all an act.
“Oh, I do.” She gives a frenetic nod before biting off a piece of her cheesecake. “I’m going to be the queen bee of Honey Hollow High. This is going to be the best time of my life, isn’t that right, Carlotta?”
My lips part with horror. “Carlotta?”
Evie looks startled before clearing her throat. “Say, have you noticed that all the women Uncle Noah and Dad have in common have names that start with C? Cormack, Cressida, and now this Cokie chick?”
Naomi leans my way and starts to sing. “One of these things is not like the other. One of these things just doesn’t belong.”
Carlotta gives her niece the stink eye. “Oh, hush, you. My Lottie Dottie here broke the mold.”
“True,” I say. “Besides, I don’t think Noah was ever with Cressida.”
The bell chimes as the door swings open and in strides Noah Fox himself.
Evie hops up. “Let’s ask him.”
“Noah.” I can’t help but smile at him, and suddenly the urge to cry hits me all at once, too.
“Hey, ladies. Hey, Lot.” He gives me a hearty embrace, and I take in the woodsy scent of his familiar cologne. “Just coming by to see what you’re up to today.”
The bell chimes again, and in walks a girl from the flower shop across the street holding a giant bouquet of two dozen long-stemmed ruby red roses.
“Lottie Lemon?” she calls out. “These are for you.”
No sooner do I take them from her than she bolts out the door.
“Oh my word,” I say, putting them down on the counter and reading the tiny pink card attached. “Lemon, my apologies. Everett.”
Every woman in the vicinity coos on cue before getting back to the donuts at hand.
Noah grunts. “So what’s he sorry about?”
Carlotta zooms over with a giggle. “I doled out a little solid advice last night at that uppity shindig, and it sounds as if Mr. Sexy took to it. I’d ask if you had a big blowout once you got back to the house, but those walls of yours are made out of paper. That part when he said he’d knock your socks off if you said one more word—woo-wee! It got awfully quiet after that. Well, with the exception of a few slaps here and there.”
“What?” I buck. “Carlotta, that did not happen.” Okay, so some of it happened. Everett said that my tone was knocking his socks off. And that slapping sound? It was me clapping like a trained seal when Everett threatened to show me a damn good time—egging him on, daring him to do it.
Carlotta was right. After a few heated words, far more heated things ensued. And, oh my stars above Honey Hollow, was it ever the release my body needed.
But too bad for me, I’m right back to being all wound up again.
Noah doesn’t look so sure about it. “Lottie, if things are going south with you and Everett, I want you to tell me.”
Carlotta takes another bite out of her donut.
“Why?” she mumbles through a mouthful. “So you can swoop on in and steal her back again?”
“Yes.” Noah gives a wild nod. “Lottie, I love you. And as much as I hate to say it, I care about Everett, too. We were family once. But if things aren’t moving in a positive direction, I don’t want it to affect the baby. The last thing we need is Everett’s moody behavior putting you in a bad mood.”
“I love you, too, Noah. But Everett and I are fine. It was all an act.”
Noah is right back to being suspicious.
“So what are you doing here?” I ask. “Shouldn’t you be down in Ashford trying to figure out who killed that poor woman last night? What did toxicology say? Do we know what did her in?”
“Not yet. And I’m actually working remotely today, so I’ll be able to stay right here in the bakery and still get paid. Ivy is holding down the fort at the station.”
Ivy Fairbanks is his hot redheaded partner who happens to be more than a little suspicious of me.
Carlotta brays out a laugh. “You’re not fooling me, Foxy. You’re here watching over Lot Lot so she doesn’t run off and get herself in a potentially deadly pickle.”
“Please,” I say in an incredulous tone. “Noah isn’t here to babysit me. If anything, I would have pegged Everett for that duty.” A visual of seeing Noah and Everett having a private powwow last night flashes through my mind, and I suck in a never-ending breath. “You are babysitting me!”
The door opens, letting in an icy breeze and in walk two women, Cokie Hickman and Rachelle Dalton.
Cokie’s red hair is windblown as she pulls a black peacoat tightly around her waist. And Rachelle looks as if she’s ready for deep winter with her turtleneck and parka.
“Hello, ladies.” I give a quick wave. “Welcome to the Cutie Pie Bakery and Cakery.”
They offer pleasant smiles as they head this way.
“Noah Fox.” Cokie gives a wistful shake of the head. “You never fail to stun my good senses into submission.” Her attention turns my way. “Lottie, you are glowing and as you should. Your mother told me all about your good news. Congratulations on the baby.”
“Yes,” Rachelle is quick to add. “Your mother is very excited.”
“Why, thank you both. And yes, she is pretty excited, and so am I. Could I get either you some coffee? An apple crisp?” I cringe as soon as I say it. “I’m sorry. That was insensitive of me.”
“No, don’t think of it.” Cokie waves it off. “We just popped in to grab a quick bite. We’re still taking items for the fundraising to your mother’s B&B. She raved about your napoleons. Those are my favorite, and I see you have plenty. I might just clear out a shelf.” A warm laugh streams from her, and just like that, she sobers up once again. “Noah, it seems someone took that autographed copy of Desmond Meadows’ book last nig
ht. Is there some way we could ask the general public for information?”
Rachelle nods. “It’s a valuable copy. I’m sure whoever took it isn’t aware of that.”
“Oh, no need to put out a bulletin,” I say. “I have it. I mean, I was holding it, and the next thing I knew, I had brought it home with me in my bag. My apologies. I’ll be sure to bring it to my mother’s before the big fundraiser.” I decide to hold off on telling anyone about the envelope I found tucked in the back. I set it aside to give to Noah. There’s no reason that needs to be auctioned off to anybody.
Cokie gives a slight frown. “Not a problem. I suppose that’s one mystery taken care of. I’d better get those treats. We told your mother we’d bring back enough for all three of us.” She licks her lips as she looks to Noah. “Don’t be a stranger. How about dinner sometime?”
Noah’s mouth opens, but I intercept before he can answer.
“He’d love to.” I force a smile. “I mean, as long as you don’t mind double dating with Everett and me.”
“Good old Essex.” She gives a sly wink. “I’ll take you up on that offer any day of the week.”
“Great,” I say brightly. “How about tonight at seven? We can go for a pizza across the street at Mangias?”
Cokie’s ruby lips curve with delight. “I would love that.” She gives Noah’s hand a quick pat. “I guess I’ll see you tonight, hot stuff. Maybe afterwards we can see if you still live up to your nickname?”
They head over to the register, and Noah leans my way.
“Lottie.” He gives a slow blink. “I’d ask what you were up to, but I have a feeling I already know.”
I give a slight nod. “And if you dare try to French kiss Evie’s principal, I’ll personally cause great bodily harm.”
His brows hike a notch. “To me or her?”
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