Sweet Time in Seconds (A Sweet Cove Mystery Book 11)

by J A Whiting

  Sweet Time in Seconds

  A Sweet Cove, Massachusetts Cozy Mystery Book 11

  J. A. Whiting

  Copyright 2017 J.A. Whiting

  Cover copyright 2017 Susan Coils at www.coverkicks.com

  Formatting by Signifer Book Design

  Proofreading by Donna Rich

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, or incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to locales, actual events, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this publication can be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without permission in writing from J. A. Whiting.

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  www.jawhitingbooks.com

  Created with Vellum

  For my family with love

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Thank you for reading! Recipes below!

  Books/Series By J. A. Whiting

  About the Author

  Some Recipes From The Sweet Cove Series

  Tomato Pie

  Cream Cheese and Lemon Muffins

  S’Mores Fudge

  Cinnamon Crumb Cake

  1

  The early June sky was a clear, deep blue and the sun’s rays sparkled off the ocean. The white foam of the waves glittered like thousands of little diamonds as the water crashed against the white sand beach causing Angie and Ellie Roseland’s shrieks and laughter to fill the air.

  On the spur of the moment and because the day was so beautiful, Ellie suggested they take the first jump of the season into the freezing ocean and when the two sisters stepped their feet into the water, they almost backed out as their toes and ankles went numb from the cold.

  “No turning back now,” Ellie called as a big wave rose up and headed towards them. Crashing into their legs and sending spray over their heads, the wave hit the two young women as they rushed headlong into the ocean and dove under the water. When they bobbed back to the surface, Angie and Ellie scrambled to their feet and ran for the shore, stumbling in the waves and screaming from the shock of the cold.

  “This was a crazy idea,” Angie said shivering, but exhilarated as she reached down for the towel she’d left on the sand and wrapped it around herself.

  “It’s not the earliest we’ve ever been in, but I think it’s the coldest the water has been for our first dip of the year.” Ellie used her towel to wring out her long, blond hair.

  The young women sat in the sand to warm themselves by soaking up the golden rays of the sun and Angie’s engagement ring sparkled in the light. Every time she looked down to see the ring on her finger, her heart swelled with love for Josh Williams, her new fiancé.

  “Wait until Jenna and Courtney hear we went in.” Angie smiled watching three more people at the water’s edge getting ready for a plunge.

  Angie’s twin sister, Jenna, and Tom were newly-married and had taken a long weekend away to Maine to stay in an historic inn in a pretty town on the coast. The youngest Roseland sister, Courtney, was on a bike ride with her English boyfriend, Rufus.

  Ellie stood up and reached into her tote bag for her phone. “Let’s take a picture to send everyone as proof of what we just did.”

  Angie put her arm around her sister’s shoulders and they stood with their backs to the sea smiling for the camera with their hair and swimsuits dripping wet. Ellie texted the photo to their two sisters and to the family friend, Mr. Finch.

  Walking up the sidewalk from the beach to their Victorian mansion home, Angie and Ellie discussed the upcoming week. “The bed and breakfast is almost sold out this week and we have tons of summer reservations. The season seems to be kicking into full gear earlier than usual.”

  Angie agreed. “The bake shop has been bustling. Lots of tourists stopping in, more than I’ve ever had at this time of year.”

  Passing Jenna and Tom’s house, Ellie admired the flowers in the front bed. “Look how nice these are filling in. I need to water the flowerpots tonight.”

  Angie slipped her sunglasses on. “It’s been hot. The heat is kicking in early this summer, too.”

  When they approached the house, they saw Mr. Finch and their two cats, Euclid, a huge orange Maine Coon, and Circe, a sweet black cat with a little patch of white at her chest, sitting on the big front porch watching the people stroll by. Finch waved and the cats trilled as Angie and Ellie climbed the steps to the porch.

  “We saw your photograph,” Finch told them. “It must have been delightful.”

  “You can join us next time, Mr. Finch.” Angie gave the man a big smile and touched his arm with her icy hand. “It’s very refreshing.”

  Finch adjusted his eyeglasses and chuckled. “I must say I do prefer warm water, Miss Angie. I’ll leave the ice cold ocean to you.” Mr. Victor Finch, a spry, older man who walked with a cane, met the four Roseland sisters a year ago and was now an adopted member of their family.

  The girls went inside to shower and change and Finch and the cats headed to the kitchen so the man could put the tea kettle on. When Angie and Ellie finished changing and came into the room, they sat at the table with Mr. Finch, sipped their hot teas, and each had a slice of cinnamon crumb cake.

  “Jenna and Tom will be back tomorrow,” Finch noted. “I miss them even though they’ve only been gone for three days.”

  “I know. I do, too.” Ellie added a dollop of whipped cream to her cake.

  When Angie grinned, the corners of her blue eyes crinkled a little. “They aren’t allowed to have any more vacations without us.”

  “The funny thing is,” Finch said, “Tom and Jenna would probably be happy to agree to that.”

  Euclid and Circe trilled from their perch on top of the refrigerator, leapt down, and tore out of the room for the front foyer.

  “What’s up with them?” Ellie watched the two furry whirlwinds rush from the kitchen.

  They heard the front door open and Jenna’s voice call out. “Where is everyone? Anyone home?”

  “They’re back?” Finch’s face beamed with delight.

  Jenna and Tom walked into the kitchen just as Angie, Ellie, and Mr. Finch stood up to go and greet them.

  “We came back a little early,” Tom announced with a smile. “Turns out, there’s no place like home.”

  Jenna’s long brown hair slid over her shoulders as she hugged the three people standing before her. “We know it’s silly, but we missed home so we came back.”

  Everyone took seats at the table, tea was poured, and the cake was sliced for the two surprise arrivals. Chatter moved from the short trip Tom and Jenna had taken and what they’d done and seen to their recent wedding festivities, Angie’s engagement, and Ellie and Angie’s jump in the freezing ocean.

  “It certainly is a busy household.” Finch raised his teacup and happily sipped.

  “What’s cookin’?” Carrying her
bicycle helmet, the youngest Roseland came in through the back door dressed in shorts and a colorful short-sleeved biking shirt. Her honey blond hair was pulled up in a high ponytail. “When did you two get back?” Courtney asked.

  “Just a few minutes ago,” Jenna told her sister.

  “We didn’t want to miss out on anything so we decided to come home.” Tom kidded as he gave Courtney a hug. “Where’s Rufus?”

  “He went home to change. He’ll be back for dinner.”

  “Speaking of which.” Ellie stood up. “I’m going to make a tomato pie and there are chicken kebobs for the grill. Let’s eat outside on the patio tonight. It’s going to be a beautiful evening.”

  Courtney put her bike helmet on the floor near the back door and when she turned around, she lifted both arms so the family could see the red, raw scrapes running from her wrists to her elbows. “I had a little accident.”

  Ellie’s eyes were as wide as saucers and the others let out gasps of surprise.

  Angie hurried to her sister’s side and clucked over the injuries firing questions at her about the accident. “What happened? We need to clean the cuts so they don’t get infected. Did you hit your head? Are you okay? Do you feel dizzy? Why don’t you sit down?”

  Courtney couldn’t help but chuckle. “I’m okay, sis. It was just a spill.”

  Angie maneuvered her sister to a chair. “Sit for a minute and rest. I’ll get a face cloth.”

  “What caused the tumble, Miss Courtney?” Finch looked over the long scrapes on her arms.

  “We were riding on the rail trail and there was a sandy spot. My front tire went deep into the sand and the bike wobbled and I went over the handlebars.”

  Ellie put her hand over her mouth. “Did you hit your head?”

  “My arms took the impact of most of the fall.” Courtney used her index finger to lift her lip a little. “I broke my tooth.” A small piece of a premolar had broken off.

  “Does it hurt?” Jenna asked, standing up to get a closer look at the tooth.

  “Not bad. A little sensitive.”

  “Call your dentist,” Tom suggested. “Get in to have it fixed before more of it breaks off.”

  “Way ahead of you.” Courtney smiled. “I called from the trail. I have an appointment bright and early tomorrow morning.” Her eyes clouded and her smile faded when she whispered, “I hate the dentist.” Turning to Angie, she asked, “I know I’m being a baby and should go by myself, but will you come with me?”

  “Of course.” As Angie walked to the sink with paper towels and a wash cloth, a shiver of unease ran through her body, and not knowing what caused the uncomfortable sensation, she tried to brush it off by focusing on her sister’s injuries.

  Courtney was always anxious about visiting the dentist so she often brought Angie along for moral support. Angie was born only a few minutes before her twin, Jenna, yet the family considered her the oldest sibling and she took the designation to heart, always looking out for everyone and making sure things were all right. Sometimes, minutes … and seconds … could make a world of difference.

  “Here’s what you need to use to clean the scrapes.” Angie waved her sister over and Courtney stood and went to the sink, turned on the water, and took care of her torn up skin.

  “Good thing you had your helmet on.” Angie leaned against the counter absent-mindedly watching Courtney wash her cuts. Something worrisome was bouncing around in the air and she wondered if Courtney could feel it, too.

  Ever since moving to the seaside town of Sweet Cove, the Roseland sisters had been developing some interesting skills. Angie had the unique ability to put intention into what she baked. She could make people feel happy or feel compelled to tell the truth about something. Once, her intention backfired when preparing some muffins and Mr. Finch fell in love with her for a few hours. Angie was a lot more careful with her baking after that experience.

  Ellie, although not happy about it and would only use it in an emergency, had the skill of telekinesis … which had come in handy more than once.

  Jenna could see or sense ghosts and Courtney….

  Courtney leaned close to Angie. “I feel something weird on the air. It’s making me anxious and it has nothing to do with having the dentist work on my tooth. I’ve felt it since I fell off the bike.” When she shifted her eyes away from her scrapes to Angie’s face, she didn’t need to ask the question that was on her mind. “You feel it, too, huh?”

  Angie let out a sigh and she and Courtney looked across the room to Mr. Finch who sat at the table listening to Tom and Jenna talk about their long weekend away. He lifted his eyes to Courtney and Angie and both of his eyebrows raised a little as he gave them the slightest of nods.

  Mr. Finch felt the very same thing.

  From the top of the refrigerator, Euclid let out a loud, howling screech that made everyone in the kitchen jump.

  “Here we go again,” Courtney said to Angie.

  2

  Angie sat in the dentist’s waiting room reading a book on her phone while Courtney jiggled her leg, fiddled with a few strands of her hair, and let her eyes flick about the room like a crazy person. Her cheeks were flushed pink. She let out a long sigh. “I can’t stand waiting in the dentist’s office. It makes me so nervous.”

  Angie glanced at her sister’s jumpy leg twitching away. “Yeah, I know what you mean.”

  “Sorry.” Courtney knew her jiggling distracted Angie, but it was hard to keep it from happening when she was so nervous. She consciously stopped her leg from moving, but after a few seconds of inattention, the limb began its rhythmic jerking all over again.

  Unable to keep reading, Angie closed the app on her phone and placed it in her lap deciding she’d wait to continue with her book until her sister was called by the dental assistant and led away to the examination room.

  The receptionist looked over at the Roselands with an apologetic expression. “I don’t know what’s keeping them. Maybe they’re having car trouble.”

  The husband and wife dentists worked together in the practice in the center of Sweet Cove. Courtney, who had the earliest appointment of the day, had been waiting for over forty-five minutes.

  The receptionist added, “I called the house and their cell phones, but no one is answering. This never happens. I’m so sorry to keep you waiting.”

  An icy rush sped through Angie’s veins and she shifted nervously in her seat. She’d been on edge ever since she and Courtney had arrived at the office.

  “Maybe they’ll show up in a minute.” Courtney gave a little smile to the woman at the desk. In reality, she hoped the two dentists never showed up so that she could run home to escape from the dental work.

  “Other than worrying about your tooth, how do you feel?” Angie asked.

  “I’m just a jumble of worry. I don’t know if it’s the same feeling as yesterday or I’m just freaked out about being here.” Courtney rolled her eyes. “Or both.”

  “Courtney,” the receptionist spoke from the desk. “Can I reschedule you for tomorrow? I don’t think it’s worth you waiting any longer.”

  Courtney hurried over. “Oh, sure. I don’t mind.” Her voice was practically joyful.

  After making the appointment, the sisters stepped out of the office onto the brick sidewalk into the bright, June sunshine and strolled through the pretty town of shops and restaurants. It was still early in the morning and most places hadn’t yet opened. Trees lined the streets and their leafy branches provided cooling shade over the walkways.

  “I still feel weird,” Courtney said. “Even though I’m out of there.”

  “How do you feel?” Angie asked. “Like what?”

  “Jumpy, nervous. Something’s wrong, but I don’t know what it is.” Courtney ran her hand over her arm to rid her skin of the goosebumps that had formed.

  “I feel the same. It’s getting more intense.” Angie stopped walking and pointed to the bench at the edge of the sidewalk. “Let’s sit for a little while, pu
t our heads together, see if we can figure out what the cause of the tension is.”

  When they were settled, Courtney said, “It started for me after I fell off the bike.”

  “Right away? Think back.”

  Courtney took in some deep breaths while she thought about the crash. “It started when I felt my tooth, when I realized I’d broken it.”

  Angie looked sideways at her sister. “It started for me when you told us you broke your tooth.”

  They held one another’s eyes for several seconds as Courtney moved her hand to her cheek.

  Angie said softly, “Dr. Chase and Dr. Streeter are over an hour late.”

  “The receptionist told us the dentists are never late.” Courtney’s voice sounded tight. “She called their phones and no one answered.”

  Angie felt the blood run out of her head. “It’s them, isn’t it?” she whispered.

  Courtney’s cheeks had lost their color. “What should we do? We know where they live. Should we walk over there?”

  The two dentists lived on the edge of town, about two miles away, on ten acres of land in a big, beautiful, twenty-room manor house. The Roselands had been to the house last year as one of the stops on the town-wide house and garden tour and discovered that their dentists now owned the place.

  “If we walk, it would take about thirty minutes to get there.” Angie checked the time. “Let’s call Jenna and tell her what’s going on. She can pick us up and drive over. I’ll text Louisa at the bake shop and tell her I’ll be in a little later than expected.”