by J A Whiting
Courtney carried the old, leather bound book that she’d discovered in Lindsay’s apartment. She clutched it tight to her chest and climbed up to the porch where she handed it to Mr. Finch. “It’s your grandmother’s recipe book. Lindsay stole it from your brother’s store. Now it’s back where it belongs.”
Mr. Finch reached for the book with shaking hands. He reverently passed his palm over the leather cover. Tears spilled from his eyes and his body shook. Courtney wrapped him in her arms.
***
Two weeks had passed since Lindsay Cooper pointed a gun at Angie, Jenna, and Courtney and threatened to kill them. Slowly, things had returned to normal.
Angie and her sisters walked up Beach Street and into the Victorian for lunch. They had finally been able to spend a few hours on Sweet Cove beach where they used boogie boards in the waves and sunned themselves on the sand.
The girls sat around the dining room table eating sandwiches and salad. Euclid and Circe each enjoyed some tuna fish on their own small plates placed on the floor at the side of the room. Ever since the cats had alerted Ellie that her three sisters were in danger, everyone in the household treated Euclid and Circe like royalty, although that was how they were usually treated anyway.
Mr. Finch opened the front door and smiled broadly at the group gathered around the table. “Hello. I was afraid I was late.”
Angie swallowed a bite of her sandwich. “Late for what?”
Ellie caught Finch’s eye and shook her head being careful that Angie didn’t notice.
“Um.” Finch removed his jacket. “Lunch. I thought I might miss lunch.” He joined the girls at the table. “Everything is all set for me to close on the ranch house next week.” Finch had made an offer to buy a small ranch-style house located on a quiet, side street of Sweet Cove just a few blocks from the Victorian.
“We’re very glad that you’re going to be a permanent resident of Sweet Cove.” Ellie passed Finch a platter of cheeses, meats, sliced tomatoes, pickles, and lettuce so that he could make a sandwich.
“We’ll have to celebrate with a get-together once I close on the house.” Finch took a freshly baked roll from the basket and cut it in half. “I’ll have all of you over for a nice dinner once I move in. The cats, too.”
The doorbell rang and Jenna, Ellie, Courtney, and Finch glanced at each other and tried to suppress smiles.
“Who could that be?” Angie rose from her seat and walked into the foyer. She opened the door to see Attorney Ford.
“Hello, Ms. Roseland. May I come in?” Ford wore a light gray linen jacket. His bow tie was flaming red.
Angie stepped back to let Ford enter the room. She wondered why he had come to the house. “Do you have an appointment to see Ellie for something?”
Ford’s face was serious. “Ah, no. I need to speak with you about the legal proceedings for the Victorian.”
Angie’s heart dropped. “Is something wrong? Is there a problem with the will?”
“Could we sit down and talk?” Ford looked into the living room.
Angie led Ford to the sofas. Her stomach felt like it was full of ice water. What’s gone wrong?
Angie’s sisters and Finch disappeared into the kitchen.
Ford opened his briefcase and slipped a folder out. He held Angie’s eyes. His face was somber. “It’s about the transfer of the Victorian to you.” He cleared his throat.
“What’s wrong?” Angie sat with her hands clutched together in her lap. Her heart pounded.
Ford removed an envelope from the folder. He glanced into the foyer before handing it to Angie. “Congratulations, Ms. Roseland. You are the official owner of this fine home.”
Angie blinked.
“Congratulations!” Happy shouts from her sisters and Mr. Finch filled the room as they rushed into the living room. Ellie carried a cake. Mr. Finch had a bouquet of multi-colored balloons clutched in his hand. Courtney carried a tray with glasses and plates and Jenna held a bottle of champagne. Euclid and Circe jumped on the sofa beside Angie. Courtney and Jenna ran to their sister and bear-hugged her.
Tears gathered in Angie’s eyes. “You all knew?” she blubbered.
“Attorney Ford told me yesterday.” Ellie placed the cake on the coffee table and she hugged Angie. “He thought we might want to know ahead of time so we could surprise you with some champagne.”
Angie stared at the envelope in her hands. She lifted her eyes to Ford. “Really? It’s done?”
Ford nodded. “The copy of the deed is enclosed in the envelope. The bank check for seventy-five thousand dollars is also in the envelope.”
Tears streamed down Angie’s face. “I can’t believe it.”
The front door opened and Tom walked in carrying his tool case. “You’d better believe it.” He smiled. “I’m starting the renovations for your bake shop today.” He placed the tool case on the foyer floor. “But first, I need a glass of champagne.”
A loud pop announced the opening of the bottle and Ellie poured the sparkling liquid into all of the glasses. She handed one to Angie. “I think you should make a toast.”
Angie brushed tears from her cheeks. “Well.” She coughed to try to clear the emotion from her voice and she held tight to the envelope containing the deed. She pressed it to her chest. “First of all … to Professor Marion Linden, for giving us all the gift of this beautiful, Victorian home.” She looked around at everyone. “To all of you … and to happy days ahead for all of us.” Angie looked over at the cats. She smiled and raised her glass to them. “And, to our two fabulous felines.”
Everyone cheered and took sips from their glasses. Ellie cut the cake and passed the slices around. The doorbell rang. Courtney answered it and returned to the living room carrying a gigantic bouquet of flowers. “Guess who these are for?” She placed them on the coffee table in front of Angie.
“Who sent them?” Angie reached for the card. She read it and her cheeks flushed. “They’re from Josh.”
“What does he say?” Jenna asked. Angie passed the card to her and Jenna read it aloud. “Congratulations, Angie! Sorry I can’t be there with you today, but how about a celebratory dinner when I get back to Sweet Cove? Love, Josh.”
“Love? Love, Josh?” Courtney teased. “Well, well.”
A brighter pink flushed Angie’s cheeks. “Oh, hush you.”
They ate cake and sipped the champagne and chatted with each other.
“I’m planning on being done with the renovations in four weeks.” Tom accepted another piece of cake from Ellie. “You’ll be able to open your bake shop before August,” he told Angie.
“I can’t believe it.” Angie collapsed on the sofa. “I’m overwhelmed.”
Jenna leaned against the sofa back and took a bite of her cake. “I’m looking forward to everything settling down and all of us having a nice, quiet summer.”
Courtney chuckled. “Things settling down? Is that even possible in this family?” She sat on the floor next to the cats and allowed each one a tiny lick of frosting.
Tom stood up. “If Angie is going to open her shop soon, then I’d better get to work. Enough goofing off.” He carried his empty plate to the kitchen.
Attorney Ford chatted with Ellie near the fireplace and when he finished his cake, he said, “I’d better get back to the office.” Ford retrieved his briefcase and said goodbye to everyone. Angie stood up and walked the attorney out to the front porch.
“Best wishes for your new home, Ms. Roseland.”
“Thank you for your help,” Angie said.
Attorney Ford started down the steps, but stopped abruptly. “I almost forgot.” He reached into his briefcase and removed a small book. “I spoke with my uncle the other day. He’s enjoying his retirement in Florida. He told me about this.” Ford handed the book to Angie. “The historical society put it together for Sweet Cove’s three-hundred-and-seventy-fifth anniversary celebration. I thought you might find it interesting.”
Angie held the publication and lo
oked at the cover.
“It has some historical information about Robin’s Point.” Ford held Angie’s eyes. “There’s also a little bit in there about Professor Linden’s father.”
Angie blinked. She couldn’t help feeling surprised that Ford brought the book for her to read. “Thank you,” she told him softly.
“My uncle and I had a long chat. Things are clearer to me.”
Angie tilted her head. She wasn’t sure what the attorney meant, but she could feel warmth coming from him now.
Ford adjusted his glasses. “Have you had time to find out anything about Professor Linden’s father? I know you have an interest in him.”
“No. With everything going on, we haven’t had a chance to do any research.”
“Well, maybe this book will be a beginning.” Ford turned to go down the steps. “Have a nice day, Ms. Roseland.”
“Attorney Ford….” Angie said.
Ford turned back to her.
“Call me Angie.”
The corners of the attorney’s mouth turned up. He held out his hand to her. “Call me Jack.”
They shook hands and Angie smiled at him. Watching Ford walk away from the Victorian, Angie still had loads of questions, but she had the feeling that one day they’d all be answered.
Circe jumped up on the porch rail and Angie turned to the cat. “You know what? Sometimes people can surprise you.” She reached her hand to scratch Circe’s cheek. The cat turned her face so both cheeks would receive equal attention. Purring filled the air.
The smash of Tom’s sledgehammer hitting the den wall inside the house made Angie jump. She chuckled. “You’re about to get your wish, Circe. Tom’s breaking through the den wall into the kitchen. Let’s go see if there’s any evidence of mice hiding in there. Then that mystery will be solved.”
The black cat trilled. She leaped down from the rail, landed softly on the porch, and led the way through the open front door into the Victorian.
Angie’s Victorian.
Thank you for reading!
BOOKS BY J.A. WHITING can be found here: www.amazon.com/author/jawhiting
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COZY MYSTERIES:
Sweet Dreams Bake Shop (Sweet Cove Cozy Mystery Book 1)
Murder So Sweet (Sweet Cove Cozy Mystery Book 2)
Sweet Secrets (Sweet Cove Cozy Mystery Book 3)
And more to come !
MYSTERIES:
The Killings (Olivia Miller Mystery - Prequel)
Red Julie (Olivia Miller Mystery - Book 1)
The Stone of Sadness (Olivia Miller Mystery - Book 2)
Justice (Olivia Miller Mystery - Book 3) Coming Summer 2015
Summoning the Earth (Olivia Miller Mystery - Book 4) Coming Fall 2015
If you enjoyed the book, please consider leaving a review. A few words are all that’s needed. It would be very much appreciated.
About the Author
J.A. Whiting lives with her family in New England where she works full time in education. Whiting loves reading and writing mystery and suspense stories.
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http://www.jawhitingbooks.com/
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www.amazon.com/author/jawhiting
SOME RECIPES FROM
THE SWEET DREAMS BED AND BREAKFAST INN
BLUEBERRY MUFFINS
Ingredients:
Streusel:
½ cup (100 g) of packed (dark or light brown) sugar
½ cup (67g) pecans or walnuts, chopped – use either kind of nut or a mix the two kinds of nuts, or leave them out entirely if you aren’t a nut person
1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
Muffins:
½ cup (115g) of unsalted butter, softened
½ cup (100g) of granulated sugar
¼ cup (50g) of either dark or light brown sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature is best
½ cup (120g) yogurt (Greek or whatever kind you like; you can also use vanilla or blueberry yogurt; if you prefer, you can replace the yogurt with sour cream)
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
1 ¾ cups (220g) of all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
¼ cup (60ml) milk (whichever kind you prefer)
1 ½ cups (250g) of fresh or frozen blueberries (do not thaw) – or use a mixture or fresh and frozen blueberries
Note: You can use any favorite fruit in place of the blueberries
Directions:
*Preheat the oven to 425 degrees
*Spray two 12-count muffin tins with non-stick spray or line the muffin tins with muffin/cupcake liners (there will be enough batter to make 14 muffins)
*Prepare the Steusel
*In a bowl, mix together brown sugar, nuts and cinnamon
*Prepare the Muffins:
*In a medium sized bowl, beat the butter on high until smooth and creamy (takes about 1 minute)
*Add the granulated sugar and brown sugar and beat on high until creamed (takes about 2 minutes)
*Add the eggs, vanilla, and yogurt (or sour cream)
*Beat on medium speed for about 1 minute, and then increase the speed to high until the mixture is well-combined and has a nice uniform texture
*In a large bowl, blend together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt until well mixed
*Pour the wet ingredients into the large bowl containing the dry ingredients. Mix with a whisk
*Add the milk, whisk slowly until combined and there are still some lumps
*Gently fold in the blueberries with a rubber spatula or a wooden spoon; It’s okay if some blueberry juice escapes into the batter
*Layer the batter and the streusel – Place 1 tablespoon of batter into the muffin tin, sprinkle in a little streusel, then another layer of the batter, etc, ending with some streusel on top. Bring the layers all the way to the top of the tins (this will make a nice tall muffin)
*Bake the muffins for 5 minutes at 425 degrees then lower the temperature to 350 degrees (leave the muffins in the oven when you change the temp) and bake for about 23-26 more minutes
Note: Reducing the temperature should cause the tops of the muffins to pop up into a nice dome-shape.
*Cool
Note: Muffins can stay at room temp up to 5 days; you can freeze them for up to 2 months !
HAZELNUT CAKE
Ingredients:
25 ounces (or 250 g) of ground hazelnuts (can also be mixed with some ground walnuts)
¾ cup of sugar
4 drops of almond extract
2 cups of flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup plus 2 ounces of milk
Directions:
*Mix hazelnuts with the sugar
*Mix flour with the baking powder
*Add the two mixtures together and blend well
*Add almond extract and milk, and blend together with dry ingredients
*Butter a loaf pan
*Transfer the mixture to the loaf pan
*Bake 45 minutes at 325 degrees – Then turn up to 350 degrees for 5 more minutes
*Cool and frost with your favorite frosting or sprinkle with confectioner’s sugar
Chocolate Brownie Cookies (rich!)
Ingredients:
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter – cut up into chunks
8 ounces of semisweet chocolate, chopped up coarsely
4 ounces of unsweetened chocolate, chopped up coarsely
4 eggs
1 cup light brown sugar
½ cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup semisweet chocolate ch
ips
Confectioner’s sugar to sprinkle on the cookies
Directions:
*In a bowl, mix flour, baking powder, and salt to blend
*In a saucepan, combine butter and the semisweet and unsweetened chocolate. Melt together over low heat. Set aside
*In another large bowl, beat the eggs with the brown sugar and granulated sugar for 1 minute; beat in the vanilla, then the chocolate mixture
*Stir in the flour mixture – combine well
*Stir in the semisweet chocolate chips
*Scrape down the sides of the bowl and cover with plastic wrap *Refrigerate the mixture for at least 30 minutes (can refrigerate for up to 2 hours)
*Set oven to 350 degrees
*Line cookie sheets with parchment paper
*Using a 2-tablespoon capacity ice cream scoop or two large spoons, scoop mounds of the batter onto the baking sheet, leave 2 inches between each mound
*Bake the cookies for 14 minutes or until the tops are just firm when pressed lightly with a fingertip (they will firm up when they cool)
*Cool the cookies on wire racks
*When completely cool, sprinkle the tops with confectioner’s sugar
Adapted from a 2011 Boston Globe recipe
Homemade Granola Bars
Ingredients:
1 ½ cups slivered almonds
1 ½ cups dried tart cherries
1 ½ cups of old-fashioned rolled oats
½ cup flour
½ cup wheat germ
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ cup canola oil
2/3 cup honey
1 teaspoon vanilla extract