Scarlett shook her head and continued, “It turns out that being a mom means that you have to stop being stupid simply because you want to be independent.”
Gus didn’t drive her back to the bakery. He took her to his family’s victorian mansion, brought her inside, and made her a sandwich with bacon and veggies.
“You know I’m a vegetarian.”
Gus laughed before he said, “I know the Oaken women eat bacon by the case.”
Scarlett laughed and then took a large bite of the sandwich which was heavy on the bacon. “I forgot how good you were at making these.”
“I haven’t,” he said. “I haven’t forgotten anything about you and me.”
You and me were such powerful words from him. There had been a him and her once. They’d been nearly inseparable. She’d missed him every single day since she’d left Mystic Cove, but she wasn’t ready for a her and him now. Was she?
Scarlett took a breath and her voice had a bit of a plea to it when she said, “Gus…”
“Scarlett I don’t want you to slide into something with Lex without giving me a chance.”
“It’s not like that,” she said and meant it. Yes, Lex had kissed her. Yes, Gus had smelled it. But a single kiss did not a couple make. Not now. Not ever.
“We all have our little talents, don’t we? I could smell him on you.”
“That’s true,” she said, “But-- ”
Gus didn’t give Scarlett a chance to explain. Before she could say how it didn’t mean that she loved Lex, that a single kiss didn’t mean she was somehow committed to him he leaned in and kissed her like the man he was, making sure she knew that he wasn’t the anemic, pale, little thing he had been. He was vibrant and strong. He stole her breath and with it the will to fight the desire that had been growing between them.
“Gus,” she finally said, pulling away. She pressed her hand to her forehead and said, “I’m not ready for any of this. I’m…”
“I just wanted you to know,” he said. His gaze searched hers. His eyes might be as dark as night now instead of the red she’d known as a child. He might be strong now instead of the weak thing he’d been as a child, but the same vibrant spirit and a kind heart possessed him. It had an appeal to it that she couldn’t deny.
He didn’t need to expand his thoughts. She knew him too well for that. She had already wondered about him, had already been aware of him, had already felt desire for him. All kissing her had done was cement him in the forefront of her imagination.
“I know,” she said. “I promise I won’t forget.”
“Then take all the time you need,” he said and this time he cupped her jaw, leaned in, and kissed her forehead. He let his forehead press against hers and let their breath mingle, and all the time her heart was racing and she wanted.
He drove her back to the bakery while she finished her sandwich giving her time to think, letting her think, not pressuring her. But when his fingers tangled with hers, she didn’t pull away. For once, she had no idea what he was thinking because all she could hear in her head was the sound of her Gram’s voice describing Scarlett faceplanting into love.
But Scarlett was sure that—first, she hadn’t faceplanted yet. And second, that she wasn’t ready to love again. And third, that she was attracted to two men. And most of all, that none of it mattered if something happened to Luna.
When Gus parked his car near the bakery, Scarlett took her fingers from his and said, “We have got to find the killer.”
Gus nodded, not needing her to explain either. He knew she would leave before she’d let something happen to Luna—and if that happened—she wouldn’t be coming back again.
* * * * *
“Henna,” Scarlett said as she opened the bakery door.
She glanced around, saw that it wasn’t empty and that Henna was sitting with her feet up next to Gram. The bakery should have been long since closed, Lex and Henna weren’t even alone. They’d been invaded by a crew of the elderly, and if the look on Lex’s face was any indication, he was about to flee the madness.
Gram, Mr. Throdmore, and Mr. Jueavas sat around a table, an empty plate in front of them with crumbs sprinkled across the table. Scarlett’s eyes narrowed on Gram.
“You been spreading tales again, Gram?”
The fresh reading of Scarlett’s path brought back what Gram had done the last time Scarlett’s path had been read. The look that Gram gave Scarlett was dirty and mean. Scarlett grinned at her Gram and then smirked at Lex.
“Having fun?”
His eye twitched and Gram cackled at the look on his face.
“The key to these old coots,” Scarlett said, “Is to point out they’re dirty, nasty, juvenile ways. For example, Mr. Throdmore has the hots for Henna.”
Mr. Throdmore choked and started coughing. “You fiend, I’m gonna cough up my dentures.”
“Don’t let his sidestepping throw you off. He really digs Henna. And,” Scarlett said, examining her nails, “Mr. Jueavas uses charms to sneak into Gram’s bedroom because they prefer to sneak around like teenagers then act like the elderly, nasty, corn-ridden, old devils they are.”
“You’re a terrible granddaughter,” Gram said. The lascivious look she gave Mr. Jueavas left the rest of them uncomfortable.
“You need to accept that you love Mr. Jueavas,” Scarlett said. “Follow your own damn path, Gram.”
“Oh, did you want to talk about paths?” Gram raised a brow and her sharp sense of vengeance prodded Scarlett into snapping her mouth shut.
“Gram,” Scarlett said and crossed the bakery to face off with her. And then she saw the regret in Gram’s face. The love. The sadness and Scarlett knelt down next to her Gram and said, “I love you.”
Gram searched Scarlett’s face and then lifted a hand to tuck her hair behind her ear. “I know you do, little brat. When you were little, you used to run to me and beg for stories. I should have known better than to think you’d be a staid woman when you made friends with the east wind. What druid makes friends with the east wind? Devil children.”
Scarlett smiled sadly and then said, “I’m sorry I got so mad at you and stayed angry so long.”
“I’m sorry I told your story,” Gram said. “I’m proud of you for following it despite knowing the end. I couldn’t have been prouder of you for doing that.”
Scarlett took a deep breath and then said, “I’m still going to tell my girls to be naughty for you.”
Lex choked and Gus laughed and Gram said, “I’d expect nothing less. You always were slightly evil.”
“Maybe they’ll get all their hair-pulling, scratching, and wailing out for you and Mom.”
“Keep on wishing, little brat.”
“You would think,” Scarlett said petulantly, “With Harper in the family that I’d be the good one.”
“And yet, Harper is still living in her room down the hall from us.”
“That friend of hers is in town. She’s not all good.” Scarlett felt instantly bad for throwing Harper to the wolves like that.
“Yes, darling, I know. I’ve taken care of it.”
Scarlett blinked, glanced frantically around as if to check that the others had heard it too. And everyone else didn’t seem to know what Gram meant.
“What did you do?”
Gram shrugged innocently. She seemed to try for batting her lashes and then thought better of it.
“Oh my goodness,” Scarlett said, she sat down next to Henna and said, “Gram, you can’t interfere in Harper’s life.”
“I didn’t.”
“Yes, you did. Don’t lie.”
“I made a little suggestion.”
“What did you do?!” Scarlett took a long breath in and hoped that Gram wouldn’t have set Harper off to the point that she forgot she was on guard duty.
“Your grandmother,” Mr. Jueavas started. Gram growled at him, and Mr. Jueavas snapped his mouth shut.
“Don’t you tell on me,” Gram snapped. The couple faced off and
then Mr. Jueavas caved. Scarlett felt a smidge of empathy for him, but it was the tiniest smidgen.
It took him only a moment to recover and say, “If you expect me to win over your family, I have to throw you under the bus. That way your granddaughters will push you into life with me. It’s the only way as far as I can see.”
“Please take her away from all this, Mr. Jueavas,” Scarlett said fervently. “I’m thoroughly on your side. Gram needs to get out of Mystic Cove! She needs to travel. She needs to swim in the seas and harass some other group of poor devils. Take your time. Lots and lots of time.”
“Is your family like this?” Lex asked Gus.
Gus shook his head. His gaze darted between Scarlett and Gram, and the smile hovering at the edge of his mouth said he loved what was happening.
“And yours?” Lex asked Henna.
“Oh, my children are sweet. Unlike, Gertrude here and her little Scarlett—both of whom have bonds with the east wind. The east wind is their problem. Whereas my daughters and granddaughters bond with flowers and herbs. These two. Please, not all druids are sweetness and light.”
“Gram,” Scarlett interrupted Henna to demand, again, “What did you do?”
“Have you seen Wally around town? Has he been out to harass Harper at the property? Has he been tracking Lex down? Has he come into the bakery demanding free cookies and blathering at you?”
Lex shook his head and then admitted, “I have been trying to avoid any place where that idiot Wally might look for me.”
Scarlett glanced at Lex, paused, and then asked, “Where have you been sleeping?”
“Wouldn’t you like to know?” Lex’s confident and charming grin made Gus silently snarl while Henna and Gram both cackled.
“So, you set Wally on Harper?” Lex asked, and then shook his head. “That doesn’t seem right. Not even for you two.”
“Of course, she didn’t,” Scarlett said, walking into the kitchen to start a batch of cookies. She needed warm chocolate chip cookies. “She set Wally after Jeddie.”
“Who is Jeddie?”
“Harper’s foster care friend,” Gram said. “He cut her.”
Scarlett paused in cracking eggs into the dough to say, “How do you know?”
Gram’s look of disgust made Scarlett wince, but Gram explained, “Harper keeps her promises. She said she wouldn’t cut herself anymore. You made her pinky swear.”
Scarlett considered and then nodded. It was obvious and Scarlett deserved the crap Gram was throwing.
“But she won’t talk about what happened to her hand.”
“True,” Scarlett agreed as she dumped the vanilla into the dough. “I…”
She wanted to say that she understood now, but Gram was going to explain thoroughly to ensure everyone else knew how stupid Scarlett had been.
“Well think! Harper would only cover for one of us or him.”
Scarlett sighed as she turned on the mixer.
“None of us would hurt her. Keep up, Scarlett. You didn’t used to be so dim-witted.”
“I get you, Gram,” Scarlett said as she took a chunk of dough from the mixer and popped it in her mouth. “It must be Jeddie that hurt Harper.”
Scarlett didn’t want to think about it anymore, but she felt a lot better about Jeddie being harassed by Wally. The stupid sheriff and the kid who’d hurt Harper deserved each other. But Harper would never forgive them if they didn’t find the real killer. Harper loved that idiot, Jeddie. Harper considered him family. Damn it.
Scarlett took one long look around and then said, “I don’t know how you expect poor Lex to get anything done, breathing on his neck. Now we really have to find the killer. Otherwise, both of your granddaughters will be holding grudges.”
“Amen,” Lex said instantly.
“I have three more granddaughters,” Gram said idly.
Scarlett laughed and then laughed harder when she heard Gus’s evil snort. “We all know they don’t count. A farmer? A painter? They’re not nearly exciting enough. Especially for you. They didn’t even know about Jueavas. I mean…I knew the second I talked to him after getting back here. They’ve been here forever, they should have figured it out long ago.”
Scarlett began scooping cookie dough onto trays. Mr. Throdmore cleared his throat. He was eyeing Henna and laughing at Mr. Jueavas. Whereas Henna was ignoring the way Mr. Throdmore’s gaze lingered on her, and she was muttering under her breath to Gram, probably egging her on.
“What are you doing?” Mr. Jueavas asked, tilting his head up and eyeing Scarlett as she scooped the dough.
“I need a chocolate chip cookie. Fresh from the oven.”
“With walnuts?” Mr. Jueavas asked instantly and Scarlett scowled at him.
“Walnuts taste like dirt, Mr. Jueavas.”
“Call me José,” he replied. He tried a charming smile, and she didn’t need to know it was an attempt to get walnuts.
“Look,” Scarlett said as she started a second batch of cookies with walnuts. “Just because you’re doing my Gram does not mean you can manipulate me into walnuts.”
Gus choked and then hid his face behind his cup of coffee and Lex cleared his throat and Gram said, “Scarlett Oaken!”
Gram used Scarlett’s name with power and the look Scarlett gave her Gram was a blatant challenge.
“What are you even doing here?” Scarlett glanced at Gram and her crew and thought they needed to get rid of these folks before they could really get working.
“We decided we can’t leave solving the murder to you kids. Especially since Harper isn’t talking to me.”
“Well, let's get to solving this. You three. Eating cookies. This is a murder,” Gram said and sniffed righteously. “No time for cookies.”
“Lex says you think Lacey was embezzling from Mystic Cove?” Mr. Jueavas was attempting to sidetrack Gram and Scarlett who’d started glaring at each other again.
Scarlett shrugged in reply to her Gram’s question and then said, “Have you seen Lacey’s house?”
“Is it nice?”
“It makes the Oaken house look like a shack,” Scarlett replied. “Maybe even Gus’s house.”
Lex looked up at that and Gus’s expression said he didn’t think that was the case. But, of course, the Augustus Frost house was almost legendary for its size and beauty. It had been handed down from one generation to another. And each generation had added to the beauty, the collection of expensive little oddments, the details that reflected the money in a way that little else could.
“I don’t see how Lacey could embezzle without help.” Gram glanced at Henna, Mr. Throdmore, and Mr. Jueavas for support and they all seemed to agree. “Not from the town.”
“We assumed the money was from Mystic Cove,” Scarlett said. “Where else would it be from?”
“That’s true enough. As the mayor, she’d have access to the money.”
“I donated money last year,” Gus said sourly. “I wonder if it bought her that new BMW.”
A laugh escaped Scarlett and Lex’s gaze landed on Gus with an evil smirk.
“Who would have to help her?” Scarlett asked to keep Lex from poking at Gus.
“Mystic Cove has a double-layer approval for budgets,” Mr. Throdmore said. “Certainly the accountant would know. Maybe the accountant and the assistant mayor.”
“Who is the assistant mayor?” Scarlett asked and then added, “Kelly?”
“How does it work?” Gus asked. “Could she use someone else’s ID and password? I bet that Kelly would give that to Lacey without a blink.”
Scarlett’s brows rose as she considered and then she nodded. “That would mean that Kelly didn’t have to be involved to make it possible, but surely there’s an accountant? Someone to audit things?”
“There is. It’s Abby,” Mr. Throdmore said.
Everyone nodded. And Scarlett’s mouth twisted in pure frustration. “How did things get like this?”
Gram was the one who answered and she sounded as frustrat
ed at Scarlett, “I think we assumed that we were a bigger family. Mystic Cove, I mean. Why shouldn’t we be able to trust the mayor? She’d been raised among us. It would be like expecting your daughter to steal from you.”
Lex cracked his neck, and you could see how from the outside that Mystic Cove must have been epically stupid. They’d voted in a spoiled princess who had zero problem stealing from her people and didn’t have the precautions to protect themselves.
“She isn’t what you thought she was either,” Scarlett said to Lex defensively.
He took a deep breath and said, “I’m looking for someone from Mystic Cove who stole some things from a client of mine. Those things were…precious to my client. They’d be around Lacey’s age.”
“Or Scarlett’s,” Gus said. His gaze was fixed on Lex who nodded.
Scarlett’s gaze narrowed. He was trying to pass off not being as interested in Lacey as he had been. But Scarlett was sure that even if he didn’t have wedding plans in mind like Lacey had, he’d liked Lacey. Liked her enough to regret her passing. If she hadn’t died, he’d have continued to date Lacey.
None of that, however, reflected on his face as Lex said, “But, Scarlett isn’t who I’m looking for. I ruled her out the first day I came to town.”
“How? I wasn’t even here.”
“Harper. She cleared herself and you. She pointed the finger at several others.”
“Harper knew you were a P.I?”
He nodded. Scarlett’s gaze narrowed and she vowed to call her sister as soon as she could.
“But you did like Lacey. You dated her. You were sad when we talked about her, I know you were.”
Lex shrugged and then said, “Am I on trial for enjoying her company?”
“Who else have you checked out?” Henna asked. “What did they take?”
Scarlett didn’t listen. But Henna and the others seemed genuinely willing to help Lex figure it out. He’d have been here for months figuring this out and in the meantime, they’d be able to tell him in a few minutes. Scarlett could see Gus realizing it too and smiling evilly.
“Don’t pretend you aren’t laughing about it,” Gus said.
Bedtimes and Broomsticks Page 19