CHAPTER 13
“ O kay, start from the beginning.” Jasper gives me a sharp look, and no matter how irritated he might be that I questioned a suspect, those silver eyes of his still manage to give me the butterflies.
“The beginning?” I tease as I shove a fat marshmallow onto the wooden skewer in my hand and wave it over the fire. “I met you, and then we lived happily ever after.” I bat my lashes up at him and he waggles his brows.
It’s well into the evening, and since Jasper came home bearing boxes of Chinese food, we decided to eat out on the back patio of the café.
It’s dark out, the air is perfectly glacial, and the sound of the Atlantic churning out wave after wave is an almost deafening backbeat to our conversation.
The patio behind the café is empty save for the two of us. The twinkle lights above crisscross over the expanse of the outdoor area, and just beyond that the velvet night looks like magic.
The café has several fire pits set out for the guests, and we always have a s’mores kit at the ready to entertain with as well.
Jasper and I are no fools, we’ve been indulging in s’mores nightly since about the Fourth of July.
I can’t help it.
As of late, I seem to be craving them more and more. It’s my end-of-the-day treat, I tell myself. But truth be told, I wouldn’t mind starting my day off with them either.
I already fed our furry friends, and all four of them are out on the sand running from one end of the cove to the other, happily chasing one another while barking and mewling away. I’m exhausted just looking at them.
“All right,” I say to Jasper. “I’ll tell you everything.”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” a chipper voice sings from behind and we turn around to see Georgie heading this way with my mother not too far behind, along with her boyfriend, Benedict Arnold—aka Ben , Georgie’s much younger brother.
I just love Ben to pieces, and lucky for Ben, my mother does, too.
“If you’re about to spill the killer beans, I’m ready to listen.” Georgie puts her fingers in her mouth and gives a sharp whistle at my mother and Ben. “Get your patoots movin’ in this direction! Bizzy is about to spill a deep, dark killer secret.”
Mom appears faster than an apparition with Ben flailing behind her like a kite, and both Jasper and I exchange a quick hello to them both.
“I was not about to spill any deep, dark secrets.” I laugh. “At least not mine.”
“ Ooh ,” Ben teases. “You’ve got the dirt on someone else. Even better.” Ben has an overall boyishness to him with a wide smile that grows all the way to his eyes. He’s classically handsome and has his own business just up north a bit. He’s no-nonsense, yet has a wicked sense of humor. In other words, he and my mother are a perfect fit.
“It’s true,” Jasper says. “Bizzy went out to Rose Glen and spoke with a suspect.” His smile fades fast and soon my handsome husband is glowering at me. “You know how I feel about that.”
I make a face. “I simply went to the grocery store. The Cozy Corner Grocer and Gourmet,” I say to the inquiring minds to my left. “Besides, I bumped into Macy and Jordy there. It was perfectly safe. The three of us had lunch. Did you know they serve the best smoked chicken I’ve ever had in my life? And the dogs went wild for their biscuits.”
“Bizzy Baker Wilder!” Georgie gasps so loud you’d think a killer just materialized behind me. “I can’t believe you went out to shake down a suspect without us.” She looks up at my mother. “You hear that, Ree? She thinks she can ditch us.” Her attention is quickly pointed right back at me. “Well, you can’t, Toots. We’re the shake-’em-down-and-make-’em-cry trio. Have cats and dogs will travel. I warm them up, your mother makes them cry, and you ask them the hard questions. Get it? Got it? Good. And don’t you forget it either.”
Mom clucks her tongue. “I’m less concerned that she went after a killer without us than I am with the fact she didn’t think to invite us to have the world’s best smoked chicken.”
“And that brings me to my second point”—Georgie wags a crooked finger at me—“there was gourmet food to be had. Hear that, Ree? She’s been eating good without us! We can’t let this girl out of our sight.” She narrows her eyes in on mine. “Who’s on second? And how do we get in on this killer good time?”
“Actually”—I shrug a little as I glance at Jasper—“I really just want to talk to Blythe’s best friends, Claudia and Vera. I think they might have some good insight as to her frame of mind lately.”
“Well, that’s easy enough,” Mom says, plucking Georgie out of her seat. “Georgie and I have a booth at the Crafters Warehouse down by the marina. And Claudia and Vera just so happen to have a booth near ours.”
“Oh? What are you selling?” Jasper seems genuinely interested, and that’s what I love best about him. He genuinely cares for people.
“Our wonky quilts,” Mom says. “We rented a booth for the next month, and that will take us right up until Christmas Eve. Junie will be minding our shop for us while we’re away.” Junie would be Juniper Moonbeam, Georgie’s hippy daughter who is just as quirky as her name sounds. “It’s just a few hours in the morning and early afternoon,” Mom continues. “We usually sell out by then.”
“That’s because you won’t let us bring more than six quilts,” Georgie grouses.
“Everybody knows that having a limited inventory drives up demand,” Mom grouses back.
“And she’s smart.” Ben makes moony eyes at my mother before landing a kiss on her lips. “Have a good night, you two,” he says as the three of them drift away.
“You as well,” I say. “And I guess I’ll be seeing the two of you at the Crafters Warehouse tomorrow!”
Jasper shakes his head at me as they take off. “You know as well as I do that those women are suspects.”
“They might be your suspects, but they’re not mine.” I flash an innocent smile his way. “They were Blythe’s very best friends. And besides, they’re friends of my mother’s. And my mother and Georgie will both be present when I’m speaking to them. How much safer can I get?”
He tips his head my way. “With Georgie in the mix? I’m moved to hire a bodyguard for the occasion.”
“Very funny,” I say as we roast a few marshmallows to a puffy and crispy perfection before smashing them between two graham crackers along with a generous piece of milk chocolate. We both take a bite at the very same time and moan as the ooey, gooey goodness sinks in.
“Is there anything better in this life than this right here?” I ask, holding up the last bite of my treat before I make quick work of it and gobble it right up.
“I can think of a thing or two,” he says, pulling me onto his lap and I rest my head on his chest for a moment. “What makes you so sure Blythe Betty was murdered? You do realize she was holding the weapon that did her in.”
I look up at him. “The murder weapon was found in her right hand. Blythe Betty was left-handed.”
“You really are good.” He shakes his head as a sly smile crops up on his face.
“You knew?” I say, smacking him lightly on the chest. “Jasper Wilder! How could you not tell me?”
“I found out last night. Actually, in the wee hours of the morning while doing some research on the woman online. And you?”
“This morning at the café with Emmie. I sort of conducted the same research. So it’s officially a homicide investigation?”
He nods. “It is. But I think we should keep that to ourselves for now. Whoever planted that gun in her hand thinks they’ve gotten away with it. And that’s exactly what we want them to believe.”
“I agree. Although Magda already knows I’m investigating. I guess I’m not as polished as some detectives.” I give him a kiss and he returns the favor.
“Bizzy, you’re plenty polished—as an innkeeper. You’re not a detective. I’m the detective in the family. Please let me do this. Consider it an early Christmas gift to me.”
“Giving you my case?” I tease.
“And how exactly is this your case?”
“I found the body.” I shrug up at him. “I’ll tell you what. I’ll share any intel I happen to glean tomorrow if you promise to do the same.”
“And what do I get in return?” His brows pitch in the middle as if he’s got a few ideas.
“I’m more of a show rather than tell kind of a girl. How about we head back to the cottage and I’ll give you a preview of your reward?”
“Just a preview?” His lips tug at the corners, but he’s holding back his smile.
“Okay, fine. I’ll give you a full-fledged sample. And if you like what I have to offer, we can repeat the effort tomorrow night—right after we exchange everything we know about the case.”
“You drive a hard bargain. You do realize I’m breaking at least ten different commands from my superiors.”
“I’m the only superior you have to worry about,” I say with a wink.
“And that’s exactly why I’m going to comply.” Jasper picks me up and whistles for our fur friends before he races us back to the cottage.
I offer up my preview—twice.
And come tomorrow, I’m going to shake down Blythe Betty’s besties for all the intel they’re willing to give me.
Someone out there thinks they’ve gotten away with murder.
And sadly for them, they are dead wrong.