by Carol Durand
Echo welcomed her with open arms. “I missed you, my friend,” she exclaimed, moving in for a hug. “Tell me all about your adventures in Mexico,” she urged.
“Honey, if I’m gonna do that, I’m gonna need a dish of your finest,” Missy shook her head, remembering.
“Coconut-Pineapple Dream, coming right up,” she stood with a swish of her gauzy skirt and a rattle of beads. “Start talking!”
Missy related to her friend the crazy experience that she had in Mexico, taking most of the afternoon and a second dish of Dream to do so.
“Well, sounds like Prince Charming saved the day as usual,” Echo teased, a bit envious of Missy’s easy-going relationship with the handsome detective.
“He always seems to, doesn’t he?” Missy nodded.
“And I definitely think that you should make a vegan version of your guava tequila cupcakes and the margarita ones. They both sound delicious!”
“Deathly delicious,” Missy joked.
The two chattered on for more than an hour, then Missy had to get back to LaChance to take Toffee for her pre-dinner walk. Driving out of Dellville, she thought about the many wonderful things in her life, she headed for the sunset, thankful to be alive.
Chapter 16
Melissa Gladstone had an idea brewing that she thought would be a wonderful surprise for her LaChance manager, Cheryl. While completely capable, intelligent and accomplished, the young woman lacked confidence. There was a cupcake competition coming up in East Texas that Missy wanted to take her to. The entry would be under her name, but she wanted Cheryl to collaborate with her on the creative development process and go through the rigor of participating in an all-South competition, just to show her how capable she is, and how well she’d measure up against some tough competition. Even if they didn’t win or place, the experience would be good for a gal who hadn’t spent any time outside of Lausanne County, Louisiana.
Ben, Chris and Grayson were more than capable of shuffling schedules in order to provide adequate coverage in the three stores, and when Missy had mentioned the idea to Ben, he’d agreed wholeheartedly. He saw the potential in his girlfriend and would happily be a part of any plan to unleash it. The timing of the competition was perfect. It took place over a weekend and would have no impact whatsoever on their preparation for the upcoming holiday season, their busiest time of the year. She planned to make the arrangements and then spring it on an unsuspecting Cheryl, counting on Ben to help keep her schedule clear so that she’d be available to go.
Missy hadn’t seen nearly enough of Chas Beckett since they’d returned from their trip. He came over every chance that he had, but his desk had been piled high with files when he got back to his office, and he’d spent many long, tedious hours trying to catch up. Consequently, she was delighted when he came into the LaChance shop, where she and Cheryl were preparing to close after a busy day. Cheryl discreetly disappeared into the back when she saw the handsome detective come in and kiss her boss soundly.
“I’ve missed you,” Missy confessed, her arms wrapped around his neck.
“I’ve missed you too,” he said, kissing her again. “And I have news.”
“Oh! What’s the news?” she asked, excitedly.
“Michelle Perez was convicted today on six counts of murder and one count of attempted murder. She was sentenced to seven consecutive life sentences. I thought you would want to know.”
Missy nodded, dropping her arms. “It’s sad that she made those choices, but at least now, blonde women travelling to Cozumel will be safe.”
Chas held her close. “I’m just glad that one particular blonde is safe,” he said, gazing into her eyes. The emotion that rose up within Missy when he looked at her like that was overwhelming, and she looked away, blushing. Someday she hoped that she’d be able to return that clear, calm, gaze, but she just wasn’t there yet, even though she longed to be.
Chapter 17
“Okay, Cheryl, today is all about creativity, Missy announced, breezing into the kitchen at Missy’s Muffins and More, carrying bags full of ingredients. “I have a variety of interesting things to choose from, and you’re going to pick out your favorites and create something wonderful.”
Cheryl brightened at the prospect, eager to see what was in the bags. Grayson shyly asked how he could help, and Missy made his day when she told him that he was in charge of the shop while she and Cheryl baked.
“Ms. G.?” he said, hesitant.
“Yes, Grayson?” Missy smiled at her shy, sensitive assistant.
“So…Cheryl and I came up with an idea for a cupcake while you were gone, and…” he began.
“Oh, no worries, Grayson, she told me about the Black Tie thing. It’s no biggie, I’m glad that you two got creative” she interrupted him.
“Umm…no, that’s not what I’m talking about. We, uh, came up with another idea when we were both hungry one day, and I decided to try out the recipe at home last night. I baked some for my mom and she said that it was the best thing she ever tasted. I brought some for you and Cheryl, if you’d like to try them,” he offered.
“Awesome!” Cheryl exclaimed.
“Of course we’d like to try, bring it on,” Missy encouraged.
He went into the employee break room and returned carrying a foil-covered platter. Uncovering a plate of snowy-capped cupcakes, he held the dish out to his boss and co-worker so that they could take one. Missy peeled the paper away from her cupcake and took a bite, chewing thoughtfully.
“Oh my goodness, Grayson, these are fantastic!” she enthused, tasting elements of sweet and savory that blended perfectly. Cheryl’s mouth was too full to speak, so she just made an ‘mmhmm’ noise and nodded happily. “What’s in them?”
“Well, like I said, we were hungry because we hadn’t eaten breakfast, so we thought about different breakfast foods that we liked and came up with these. The cupcake is chocolate chip, with tiny, freshly chopped bacon bits mixed in. For the topping, I whipped some heavy cream with cream cheese and maple syrup, making it taste like chocolate chip pancakes with bacon,” he explained, trying to gauge her reaction.
“Grayson, you have outdone yourself, these are fabulous!” Missy gushed. “These will be our Cupcake of the Day on Friday. The morning work crowd is going to love them. What did you guys name it?”
Exchanging a glance they spoke accidentally in unison, “Breakfast Bonanza.” Cheryl raised her hand for a high five, which Grayson gladly gave, grinning ear to ear. “Way cool,” he said, blushing. He turned to take the plate back to the break room and was stopped by Cheryl.
“Hey…wait, wait, wait!” she laughed. When he turned around, she grabbed two more cakes from the plate, handing one to Missy. “These things are addictive, you can’t just limit us to one.”
Grayson nodded happily, then returned the cupcakes to the break room and headed for the front door to flip the sign from ‘Closed’ to ‘Open.’
“Alright, young lady,” Missy said to her protégé after swallowing a mouthful of Breakfast Bonanza. “Let’s do this!”
The two unpacked Missy’s bags of goodies, with Cheryl oohing and ahhing over the selection. Once all of the ingredients had been laid out on the counter top, the young woman paced back in forth in front of them, her brow furrowed in concentration. Missy stood back and watched, eager to see what she would select.
Cheryl picked up a bar of dark, Mexican chocolate, cut off a corner of it and nibbled it thoughtfully, setting it aside as one of her choices. She then moved to a pile of vanilla beans, held one up to take in the heavenly scent, then set it beside the chocolate. Her next selection surprised and intrigued Missy. She picked up a red chile, sniffed it, and put it in her pile, satisfied. Her last choices were a mound of Mexican coffee beans.
“Well, you have a unique selection of items,” Missy nodded her approval. “Walk me through what you’re going to do with them.”
“The dark chocolate and chile are both very strong flavors, so I’m going to blend the
m together in a neutral medium, and surround them with smooth, sweetness,” she mused, more to herself than to her boss. “I’ll melt the chocolate and combine it with cream cheese and a bit of cinnamon, then add the tiniest bit of powdered chile to make a filling. The cupcakes themselves will be a light, moist vanilla, which should balance the strongly flavored center nicely. Since nothing goes better with spicy chocolate and vanilla than a cup of coffee, I’ll make a light espresso buttercream frosting, and top it off with a dark chocolate-covered espresso bean. What do you think?” she turned to Missy, eyes sparkling with excitement.
“I think we’re going to make a great team, young lady,” she grinned, giving Cheryl a hug. “Let’s get these made, I can’t wait to taste them!”
They baked the treats, which Cheryl named Flaming Fiestas, and used Grayson as their guinea pig for testing them. He gave the cupcakes an enthusiastic thumbs up, and suggested that they arrange a platter of them in the glass case to sell. The unique sweets were sold out in short order, and Missy knew that they had another winner, congratulating Cheryl for her creativity.
“Oh girl, do I have surprise for you!” she told her mysteriously, making up her mind to definitely enter the East Texas cupcake competition.
Epilogue
Missy jogged alongside her best friend, Toffee’s golden coat gleaming in the early morning sun. The duo had risen early, determined to make the most of a beautiful late-summer Louisiana day. They played a vigorous game of fetch, with the panting dog eventually giving up and flopping at her feet, panting happily. Missy took a small dog dish out of the backpack that sat next to her on the park bench and set it on the ground, pouring a bottle of water into it to refresh her tired pooch. Toffee lapped at the water and was instantly re-energized, standing to her feet, ready to play.
“Later, girl,” Missy promised, knowing that the dog would need the energy for the walk home. She stood, shook the last drops left behind in the water dish out, and put it in the backpack. Sliding her arms into the straps, she gathered Toffee’s leash and snapped it onto her collar, signaling that it was time to go. The loyal retriever walked in perfect step with her best friend, content to sniff the fresh air and occasionally turning her head to plant a sloppy kiss on Missy’s knee.
When the pair turned the corner, Missy saw a figure sitting on her porch swing. Her heart leapt within her when she got close enough to realize that it was Chas Beckett waiting for her. Conscious of the fact that she was bedraggled and sweaty after her morning of playing with the dog, but happy enough at seeing him that she didn’t care, she climbed the stairs, greeting him with a kiss and an apology for her appearance.
“You look beautiful,” he observed. “But I’m thinking you need some coffee and a bagel this morning.”
“You know, I believe that you are correct in that assessment, Detective,” she flirted. “But I’d really like a shower first.”
“I’m not going anywhere,” Chas responded easily. “I think your girl, here, is going to make certain of that,” he gestured to the adoring golden who had flopped unceremoniously on his feet, demanding to be petted.
“I knew I loved that dog,” Missy winked, heading for the front door.
“Her owner isn’t so bad either,” he remarked after she was out of earshot.
A letter from the Author
To each and every one of my Amazing readers: I hope you enjoyed this story as much as I enjoyed writing it. Let me what you think by leaving a review!
I’ll be releasing another installment in two weeks so to stay in the loop (and to get free books and other fancy stuff) Join my Book club.
Stay Curious,
Carol Durand