Red Velvet Cupcakes to Die For (A Liana Campbell Cozy Mystery Book 1)

by Alaine Allister

  “Come to think of it, do I even have food coloring on hand?”

  Liana scratched her chin thoughtfully. She couldn’t remember. So she grabbed a package off the shelf and tossed it into her cart, just to be on the safe side. There was nothing she hated more than being short an ingredient while in the midst of baking.

  As she neared the end of the aisle, a speeding shopping cart nearly ran her over. Liana shrieked and jumped out of the way, nearly spilling her own groceries in the process. The rogue cart narrowly avoided her before slamming into a display of soft drinks.

  A little boy of about five stood there looking surprised as bottle upon bottle fell to the floor.

  “Connor! What did you do this time?”

  The frazzled-sounding mother Liana had heard before came racing around the corner, a squirming toddler in her arms. She took one look at the mess in front of her and smacked her forehead in frustration.

  Immediately, Connor turned on the waterworks.

  “Are you hurt?” the mother demanded, the expression of exasperation on her face immediately giving way to one of worry. She set her toddler on the ground. Then she crouched down in front of her older son to assess the situation.

  “He didn’t fall or anything,” Liana offered, taking a tentative step forward - and nearly tripping over a bottle of Coke in the process. “Maybe the loud noise just startled him?”

  “Maybe,” the woman agreed, her back still to Liana. She peered into her near-hysterical son’s face. “Is that it, honey? Did the loud noise scare you?”

  “N - n - no!” the little boy sobbed, his face red and his nose runny.

  “Then why are you crying?” his mother pressed.

  “Cuz I don’t wanna get in trouble!” he wailed.

  “Oh for Pete’s sake,” his mother said as Liana tried not to laugh.

  The woman turned the shopping cart upright. Then she scooped the older child up and deposited him inside it. Something about the woman’s demeanor made Liana suspect it wasn’t the first time the little boy had misbehaved while out in public.

  “Don’t move, understand? When we get home we’re going to have a talk about why it’s dangerous to run in grocery stores. You could have hurt someone!”

  The mother picked up her toddler, who was happily pulling items off the shelves.

  Then she whirled around as though a thought had suddenly occurred to her.

  “Did you get hurt?” she asked Liana as the toddler wailed to be put down.

  “No, I’m fine.”

  “I’m sorry about my son. He’s five years old but seems stuck in the terrible twos! They both are,” she added as her toddler grabbed ahold of her dangly hoop earing and tried to yank it off. “What did Mommy tell you about pulling on her earrings, Tyler?”

  Suddenly Liana realized she recognized the woman with the two little hellions. She was older and more tired-looking than Liana remembered...but that was hardly a surprise given what she was dealing with! The almond shaped brown eyes and button nose hadn’t changed one bit.

  “Darla? Is that you?”

  The woman set her toddler down in the shopping cart next to his brother. Then she looked at Liana as though she was just seeing her for the first time. “Liana!” she exclaimed, her weary face breaking out in a smile.

  “I thought that was you! I haven’t seen you in years!”

  “Yeah, I moved away after high school.”

  “And had kids!” Liana added.

  “Yes,” Darla nodded. “Do you have any?”

  “Me? Oh, no. No, not yet. I’m single.”

  “Ah. Me too,” Darla confided. Then she lowered her voice and added, “But with these two consuming my every waking moment, who has time to date? I swear, some days I don’t even have the energy to comb my hair!”

  Liana furrowed her brow. She remembered Darla from high school. She and Billy Bates had been inseparable. In fact, they had gone away to college together. Liana vaguely remembered hearing they had gotten married. She was dying to ask a million questions, but didn’t know how.

  “Billy and I are separated,” Darla volunteered, sensing Liana’s curiosity. “We tried to make it work, but…” She let out a deep sigh. “Anyway, I’m back in town now. I’ve moved in with my parents while I get back on my feet.”

  “Oh, I’m sorry to hear that.”

  Liana wasn’t sure if that was the appropriate response. As soon as she said it she wondered if it sounded like she was insulting Darla’s parents. That hadn’t been her intention at all. Immediately, Liana winced and wished she could take back what she’d said.

  “Yeah, well…” Darla shrugged. “Hey, we should go for coffee sometime. I heard there’s a new coffee shop in town that’s really great. I think they sell desserts too.”

  “They do,” Liana confirmed. Then she informed Darla, “It’s my coffee shop.”

  “Oh! Good for you! My parents just rave about the place. I will have to stop by sometime.”

  “That would be great.”

  Suddenly Liana heard the distinctive click-clack of Mrs. Meddler’s cane.

  “What is this?!” the elderly woman cried in disapproval. “Look at this mess! Did you two do this? A person could fall! Are you trying to make me fall and break a hip? I’ll sue you!” she threatened, waving her cane around for emphasis.

  Liana and Darla exchanged a look.

  “Mommy, Tyler’s peeing!” Connor shouted.

  Liana glanced over and saw a heap of clothes lying on the floor next to the shopping cart. Beside them was a telltale puddle that most definitely wasn’t water. Her eyebrows shot up as she tried not to giggle at the absurdity of it all.

  “Oh! Oh no!” Darla wailed, looking distraught. She frantically grabbed her toddler’s clothes from the floor and wrestled him back into them. Then she grabbed hold of the shopping cart and practically raced away.

  “That’s a biohazard!” Mrs. Meddler complained. “I’ll sue!”

  Apparently threatening to sue people was her new thing. How lovely.

  “Clean-up on aisle three!” a voice announced over the loudspeaker.

  “See? Darla called someone to come clean up the, er...mess,” Liana assured Mrs. Meddler. “Everything will be okay.”

  “She should have cleaned it up herself!” Mrs. Meddler huffed.

  “Yes, well...it looked like she had her hands full,” Liana reminded the old woman.

  “Humph!” Mrs. Meddler scoffed. “Back in my day, children wouldn’t dream of misbehaving like that. Children were to be seen and not heard! Or better still, they weren’t to be seen or heard! I blame the downfall of society on cell phones.”

  “On cell phones?” Liana asked incredulously.

  “They melt people’s brains,” the old woman said with utter seriousness.

  “I, uh…” Liana didn’t know how to respond to that. She was tempted to inform the nasty curmudgeon that there was a fine selection of tinfoil in aisle four. But she figured a tinfoil hat joke would be completely lost on the hateful old woman.

  “There you are!” Mrs. Meddler screeched at a young man in a janitor’s uniform. “It’s about time you showed up to clean this biohazard! What kind of an establishment is this?! There shouldn’t be urine in the aisles! I’ll sue!”

  Rolling her eyes, Liana decided to make a run for it. While Mrs. Meddler was busy berating the poor grocery store janitor, she could slip into the next aisle and enjoy the rest of her shopping in peace. It was an excellent plan.

  Then she got a look at the janitor.

  It was Joel.

  Liana froze.

  She hadn’t seen him since the day he had quit working for her. Joel’s head was down as he busied himself with cleaning. He hadn’t noticed her yet. Liana wondered if she should speak to him and, if so, what she should say.

  “Is that yours?” Mrs. Meddler demanded, interrupting Liana’s daze.

  “Huh?”

  The old woman pointed to a bottle of peppermint extract that was lying in th
e middle of the aisle. It must have fallen out of Liana’s shopping basket when Darla’s hyperactive five year old had made an attempt on her life.

  “Oh, yes. Thanks,” Liana said, bending down to pick it up.

  “I nearly tripped over it!” Mrs. Meddler complained, even though she was standing a good three feet away from it. “I could have fallen and broken a hip!” she continued, sounding like a broken record. “How dare you leave it lying there in the aisle! I’ll sue!”

  There was no point trying to argue with Mrs. Meddler. The crazy old woman was set in her ways and logic had no place in her world. With a sigh, Liana bit her tongue. Then she decided that for her own sanity, it was time to put some distance between herself and Sugarcomb Lake’s least liked resident.

  “Have a nice day, Mrs. Meddler.” With that, Liana continued on to the next aisle.

  “Don’t you walk away from me when I’m talking to you, young lady! It’s rude! I’ll sue!”

  All Liana could do was shake her head in utter disbelief. Try as she might, she had never been able to figure Irene Meddler out. All she knew was that the more distance between herself and the delusional old grump, the better.

  That was the bad thing about small towns, Liana decided as she grabbed the last remaining items on her shopping list. It was impossible to avoid people...even the people one would desperately like to avoid.

  With one last glance over her shoulder in Joel’s direction, Liana headed to the checkout.

  Chapter 14

  Liana wasn’t a bad person.

  At least she liked to think she wasn’t.

  She tried to be polite and respectful to everyone she encountered...even Mrs. Meddler. She didn’t like the thought of somebody trash talking her, especially when she didn’t think she had done anything to deserve it.

  But that was exactly what Joel had been doing.

  Liana kept hearing alarming things through the grapevine. Joel was apparently telling people she had been a terrible boss. She was appalled. She thought she had been fair, kind and patient.

  Oh, had she been patient.

  As a matter of fact, she had probably employed Joel for far longer than she should have.

  But there was a tiny bit of doubt in the back of Liana’s mind. What if she hadn’t been as fair, kind or patient as she thought? What if she had made Joel feel foolish or burdensome when he had worked for her?

  Truthfully, Joel was foolish and burdensome...but that wasn’t the point. The point was, it was a small town. Joel’s parents were chummy with Liana’s parents, for goodness sake! It would be reckless to not at least make an attempt to bury the hatchet.

  That was why Liana showed up at the grocery store bright and early the next day.

  It wasn’t even open yet, but that was exactly what she wanted. She parked her car and watched as, one by one, store employees began to file in. When she saw Joel, she jumped out of her car and ran over to him.

  “Joel! Hi!”

  Joel took one look at her and stopped dead in his tracks. His face had gone white.

  “Sorry to accost you at work like this,” Liana babbled, feeling nervous. “I just...I wondered if we could talk for a moment? This is kind of awkward but, well…” She stopped and cleared her throat. “I heard you’ve been saying some not-so-nice things about me.”

  Liana waited for Joel to either confirm or deny her assertion, but he did neither. He was staring at her with his mouth agape. He looked like he wanted to run away but had forgotten how to operate his feet.

  Unsure of what else to do, Liana continued rambling.

  “I’m new to owning a business, and I’m definitely new to having employees. Though I suppose I don’t need to tell you that, do I?” Liana laughed nervously. “Anyway, I just want you to know that I appreciate the time you spent working for me and I’m sorry we weren’t a good fit.”

  “I have to get inside to clock in,” Joel mumbled, eyes downcast. “My shift is starting.”

  “Oh, okay. Right, right. Well if I did anything to offend you, I truly apologize. That was never my intention at all. And I would very much appreciate it if, from now on, we can be cordial to one another. Truce?”

  Liana took a deep breath and then stuck out her hand in an offer of peace. She very much hoped Joel would shake it. Otherwise she could very well be about to start a nasty war!

  Joel hesitated. Then he shook Liana’s hand, much to her relief.

  As they shook, Liana noticed something on the cuff of Joel’s jacket. It almost didn’t show up against the dark fabric; she had to take a second look to make sure her eyes weren’t playing tricks on her. But there was definitely a dark, tarry stain of some sort.

  Liana was tempted to tell Joel. After all, if he wanted to make a good impression at his new job, looking tidy and well-groomed would go a long way. But she thought better of saying anything. She didn’t want him to think she was criticizing him.

  Abruptly, Joel pulled his hand away and hurried into the store.

  With a shrug, Liana got in her car and drove back to work.

  When she got to Just Desserts, she found the coffee shop bustling like usual. There was a faint aroma of freshly baked cookies in the air. The smoke detector was silent. The air was clear and breathable. The atmosphere was one of calm.

  Reese stood at the counter chatting with a customer.

  It looked like he had everything under control.

  Liana made her way to the back, nodding hello to friends and acquaintances as she passed them. Fluffy was curled up beside the heat register, snoring loudly. She gave the slumbering feline an affectionate pat on the head before washing her hands and putting her white apron on.

  It was going to be a good day. She could feel it.

  With a smile on her face, Liana headed out to the front. She nearly ran into Reese, who was on his way into the kitchen. He managed to regain his balance before he fell. Instinctively, he reached out to steady Liana.

  “You okay?” he asked.

  “Oops!” she giggled, feeling butterflies in her belly.

  “We need a traffic light at this door,” he joked.

  “Yeah,” she agreed. “Hey, when did you want to go get ice cream?”

  “Huh? Oh. Can we talk about that in a sec. I’m just on my way back here to grab an order for a customer. I’m scared I’ll forget what it was if I don’t hurry,” Reese said apologetically.

  “Oh, of course. Work before play!” Liana grinned. “You’re my dream employee,” she blurted out. Then immediately she wished she could take it back. Had it sounded desperate? Ugh. Why did she always say stupid things? She had a serious case of foot-in-mouth disease.

  When Liana emerged from the back room, she grabbed a coffee pot and began making rounds. She made small talk with her regulars and tried to get to know her not-so-regulars. She did everything she could to make sure people knew she was a hospitable, friendly businesswoman who was most certainly not a murderer.

  For the most part, people seemed receptive to her. Most folks were cheerful and kind. Liana only caught a few people giving her curious sideways glances, and that was mostly the gossip brigade. Those women were a species all of their own.

  She also couldn’t help but notice that Barbara Norman was sporting a gigantic, gaudy, over-the-top pearl necklace that had to be three times as expensive as her stolen one. Liana imagined that must have set Morris back a pretty penny.

  When Liana turned her attention back to the counter, she saw that Reese was deep in conversation with a brunette woman. Curious to find out who it was, Liana made her way over.

  “Can I get you some coffee?” she asked, deliberately interrupting the conversation.

  “Liana! Hi!” Darla smiled at her. “This is a great little place you have here.”

  “Oh, thanks Darla! Where are your boys?”

  “My mom is babysitting them this morning. Can you believe they act like little angels for her?” Darla scoffed. “She doesn’t believe me when I tell her what rascals they
are with me. I think maybe they’re acting out now that I’m single,” she added, shooting a look at Reese.

  Liana’s spidey senses were tingling. If she didn’t know better, she’d think Darla was trying to let Reese know she was available. But surely that wasn’t the case. Hadn’t Darla said she was far too exhausted and overwhelmed to even think about dating?

  “Reese here was just telling me that he’s new to town too,” Darla smiled.

  “You’re not new to town,” Liana reminded her. “You grew up here.”

  “Ah, yes. But I’ve been away for so long that I feel new to town. Some things are the same, but so much is different! Have you seen the size of the leisure center? It’s impressive. I was just telling him it would be great to do some exploring together.”

  “Oh?” Liana asked, visibly bristling.

  “Yeah, since we’re both new to town we could go on some adventures!” Darla beamed.

  “What about your boys?” Liana asked pointedly.

  “Apparently there’s a rock climbing wall at the leisure center,” Darla replied. “I think that would be a wonderful place for the boys to let off some steam. Connor would just love it! Tyler is probably too little, but I think he’d enjoy watching his big brother climb.”

  “Great,” Liana said in a monotone.

  Inside she was screaming at the top of her lungs. She wanted to tell Darla to get away from her man! Well okay, technically Reese wasn’t her man...yet. But she had seen him first. Didn’t that mean she got dibs?

  “Reese, do you like hiking?” Darla asked suddenly. “Because I was thinking we could -”

  “Excuse me,” Liana interrupted sweetly, cutting Darla off in mid-sentence. “Reese, could you please check on the cookies for me? They smell like they’re ready to come out of the oven.”

  “I don’t hear the timer,” Reese pointed out.

  “Trust me, they’re ready to come out.”

  “Whatever you say, boss.”

  Liana stood there motionless, horrified at what was transpiring. She was painfully aware that Darla was watching Reese walk away with a smitten expression on her face.

  To make matters worse, Darla looked fantastic. The bags under her eyes had diminished and she seemed much more relaxed than she had been at the grocery store. Her makeup was flawless and not a single hair on her head was out of place.