Cheesecake and Chills Read online

“Older than me! Tell me they don’t use a walker.”

  Nessa shook her head at how silly he was being. “No, she doesn’t use a walker, and she’s just a capable as either one of us.”

  “All of those qualities add up to not being Bizzie Eadler that you want to hire,” Lex said, smirking.

  Bizzie Eadler was her rival, new neighbor, and Daniel’s sister. The woman was part of Nessa’s life in nearly every way now that the bakery bought cookies from her company, Bizzie’s Cookie Cottage.

  “Absolutely not. But it is someone that we know well, and that knows the bakery,” Nessa said slowly, hoping he’d catch on and not make her say it.

  “Who is it? I’m not very good at guessing games.”

  Nessa sighed. “Faye.”

  She knew it was an odd choice since Faye already had a job and had never expressed any actual interest in working at the bakery, but she’d worked plenty of shifts there, sometimes even all on her own. She knew the recipes, the customers, and most of all, she was fast. She could get all the work done with her eyes closed.

  “Faye has a job. Didn’t you hear that Heather is paying her now?” Lex asked. “Faye always volunteered, but after Shelfies became so popular, Heather thought it was necessary to pay her. She’s paid pretty handsomely, too. I highly doubt she’d be interested in leaving.”

  It wasn’t her place to tell anyone that Faye didn’t seem as happy as people believed her to be. The only thing she could do was express her desire to hire Faye and hope for the best.

  “I know, but things over there are getting busy and crazy. Maybe this would be a good change for her. Do you think that maybe…” Nessa hesitated, seeing the look on his face. “Maybe you could say something to her about it?”

  “I don’t know. Do you really think it’s wise to bring in someone my age? I thought we were looking for someone younger. Someone who could handle the long hours and heavy lifting.”

  “We are.” Nessa understood where he was coming from. She did say she thought it was important to have someone who could easily handle the long hours, but it was Faye who she really wanted. “What if we check to see what she thinks and if she’d up for it, then we can look for someone part-time in addition to her? Someone who could maybe take the early shifts, or weekends, or something, I don’t know.”

  Nessa didn’t know, and that was the problem. Her brain told her that hiring one full-time person who wanted to work long hours was smart, but in her heart, she wanted Faye at the bakery. She wanted her not just because she thought of her as part of the family but because she knew Faye didn’t love being at the bookstore. Nessa believed that it was important to do what you loved. Otherwise, you’d be unhappy overall, and she didn’t wish that upon anyone. Not even Bizzie.

  “You mean, how about I check with her? You said we, but if you meant we, you’d have already asked her yourself.”

  Nessa grinned. “I think it would be better coming from you. Don’t you think she’d be awesome here?”

  Lex gave it some thought but didn’t take long to agree. “I don’t dislike the idea. She wouldn’t need any training. We could trust her on her own if we had to. It’s not a half-bad idea. I’ll see how she feels about it.”

  Nessa looked up, hearing the door to the bakery open. She saw Ranger and instantly felt uncomfortable. He made eye contact with her for all of two seconds before looking away. “I think I’ll go wash my hands,” she said, patting her grandfather’s arm.

  “You need to hear this,” Ranger said. “I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but there’s been an accident down at the radio station.”

  Nessa stopped, barely turning around. Why did Ranger think it was important for her to hear this?

  “An accident? What happened?” Lex asked.

  “As you’re probably aware, Phil and Martina no longer run the show around there. Phil sold the station to some young gent about Nessa’s age. He’s flashy and wants the world to know about it. It’s his assistant. He was found at the bottom of the stairs leading to the basement of the building.”

  “What a shame.” Lex frowned. “I can’t imagine falling down a set of stairs. They can be so dangerous if you aren’t careful.”

  “That’s the thing,” Ranger said. “It’s not the stairs that are dangerous. It’s the people that push someone down a flight.”

  “What are you saying?” Nessa asked.

  Ranger huffed. “He was killed. Someone pushed him down the stairs.”

  “How do you know?” Nessa asked, feeling sick. What sort of person would do something like that?

  “I’d say I’m surprised you don’t already know the answer to that, but I guess it’s all about the way the person lands. I mean, if you knew you were about to fall, you’d try to protect yourself, right? Well, sadly, this guy didn’t get a chance to do that. The police know how to properly handle an investigation, Nessa. It’s not all about the amateur sleuth asking questions and hoping for the best.”

  She blinked slowly, stunned by his comment. “I’m very sorry to hear the news. I appreciate you coming in to tell us, but I’m not sure I understand why you seem to be so upset with me. Have I done something to you?”

  “To me? No. Not yet anyway.” Ranger shook his head and stormed out of the bakery, leaving Nessa and Lex even more confused.

  Chapter Four

  Nessa heard Faye’s voice in the kitchen. She must have come in through the backdoor, and all Nessa could think about was how fast her grandfather had moved. He must have called her soon after Ranger left. The timing was off, though, because now Nessa’s mind was stuck on whatever Ranger had going on rather than hiring someone to work with them. She was aware that if she didn’t just get it done, the cycle would continue until both she and her grandfather were far too burnt out to continue on their own.

  She busied herself with tasks to pass the time while Lex talked to Faye about the job, barely able to contain her excitement. If Faye agreed to work with them, it would solve so many of her worries. It would also help out whatever anxiety she was having about hiring a stranger. Part of her wondered if the problem was less about whoever she ended up hiring and more about herself. She was attempting to fill a pretty big pair of shoes by taking over the bakery and essentially for her grandmother, who had put everything she had into the place. Nessa had to do it justice.

  Faye came out of the kitchen and went right for Nessa, who was tidying the cash register area. “Come with me,” she said, all but dragging her outside.

  “Where are we going?” Nessa asked, looking behind her as they went, hoping for a sign as to what was going on.

  “We need to talk,” Faye said abruptly.

  Nessa followed Faye until they reached the sidewalk, where Faye began to slow down and walk at a normal pace. “We’re going to go for a walk and have a little chat.”

  “Did I do something wrong?”

  “Nessa.” Faye sighed. “Your grandfather told me that you mentioned me working at the bakery full-time.”

  “You think it’s a terrible idea. I’m so sorry I even let it cross my mind. You already have a job, and I was out of line to ask you.” Nessa looked around as they walked, noticing people driving by much slower than the speed limit as they passed. Everyone’s eyes were on her.

  “That’s the problem. You didn’t ask me. You’re right, I do have a job, and you know very well that I don’t like it much anymore. But it’s important to me that you feel comfortable talking to me. We’re family, and I never want you to think that you can’t tell me how you’re feeling.”

  “I just thought it would be better coming from him. You and my grandma were best friends. Somehow, I felt like I wasn’t doing as good of a job if I had to ask you for help,” Nessa admitted the truth, as hard as it was.

  “Want to know what’s funny about all of this?” Faye asked, stopping to sit on the bench in front of Wilawalo Wash and Curl, the beauty parlor she visited weekly. “I wanted your grandmother to ask me to work with her for the last thirty some od
d years. She never did because she didn’t want to bother me.”

  “Bother you? From what I can tell, you love being there,” Nessa mused and sat down.

  “I do love it there. I told her that a hundred times, but she always believed that I was just being nice. She felt that it would be asking too much. Of course, over the years, I helped out, but even that made her feel guilty. After she passed, I helped out more and more, and I know Lex was trying to stick to his wife’s belief that I didn’t want to be there other than because it was the right thing to do. That was never the case.”

  “So, you’ve wanted to work at the bakery for that long?”

  Faye nodded. “This is another sign that you taking over the bakery is the right thing. You waltz in here and give me exactly what I’ve wanted all these years. It doesn’t hurt that my current job isn’t my favorite place to be lately, either. It’s like Heather is a totally different person now that she’s experienced a little fame. I’m not cut out for fame.”

  “Well, then.” Nessa clapped her hands, more excited than ever. “You are officially Crumbs and Confection’s newest employee!”

  “I can’t wait. Now, if you’ll give me just a moment, I need to run inside and make sure my beautician can see me first thing tomorrow morning. I’ve got to look perfect for my new career.”

  Faye dashed off inside Wilawalo Wash and Curl, leaving Nessa on the bench alone. She’d thought it was odd that Faye wanted to take a walk instead of talking inside the bakery, but now it made sense. It was just a kill two birds with one stone sort of thing.

  As she waited, Nessa thought about Heather and how she’d be losing an employee. Nessa may have had a hard time finding someone, but she didn’t think Heather would. There’d no doubt be a long line of young people looking to work there. They’d like the fame, the attention, and the busyness. Maybe that’s why Nessa had had such a hard time picking someone. Faye was the answer the whole time.

  She looked up, people watching and realized that everyone was still driving by slowly to stare at her. There was even a group of people across the street pointing at her. She stood to get a better look and saw Ranger leading the way. He noticed that she’d spotted them and directed them inside his office building.

  Faye came out just as Nessa was ready to cross the street to find out what was going on.

  “Thank goodness. Rose can fit me in tomorrow. I’ll talk to Heather this afternoon and… Nessa… Earth to Nessa. What’s wrong?” Faye asked, waving her hand.

  “Is there something going on that I don’t know about? It feels like everyone is looking at me.”

  Faye grabbed her hand. “I assumed you knew.”

  “Knew what?”

  “There’s a rumor going around that someone is targeting all the small businesses in town.”

  “I knew that, but what’s it got to do with me? Ranger was supposed to have a meeting about it, but I never heard any more about it.”

  “Oh, honey.” She put her arm around Nessa. “Ranger seems to believe that you have something to do with it.”

  “He what?” Nessa yelled, drawing the attention of passersby. “That’s the most absurd thing I’ve ever heard in my entire life. Why would he think that?”

  “Ranger can be a bit out of touch sometimes. It’s possible that he’s just looking for someone to blame, and you happen to be who he’s set his sights on.”

  “So, what? He thinks I’m running around town killing people?” Nessa asked, trying to lower her voice. Obviously, she wasn’t killing people, but anything she said could be misconstrued if others thought she was.

  “I can’t be sure what he thinks, and I’d rather not speculate or feed into his nonsense. You didn’t do anything, be it kill people or have any reason to go after anyone or their business. He’d blame his own mother if he could. He’s desperate to get his neighborhood watch thing on its feet, and unfortunately, he’s making some poor choices on his way there.”

  Nessa sighed and, for a brief second, almost didn’t take the high road. She wanted to yell and scream and tell Ranger that if anyone was after people in town, it was him. He wanted his neighborhood watch thing to work so badly that he was the one targeting people in order to give himself business. Instead, she plastered on a smile and began waving to everyone that looked in her direction. She wasn’t killing anyone, except with kindness.

  Chapter Five

  “I’ve got good news,” Lex said, pointing to the steaming mug of coffee on their kitchen table.

  “It’s 3 o’clock in the morning. No news is good right now,” Nessa joked and rubbed her eyes.

  She’d decided to stay at her grandfather’s the night before since they had a busy day ahead of them. They’d both agreed to wake up early and go into work together in hopes of getting a few large orders ready as early as they could. Judson, the mayor of Lake Wilawalo, had doubled his weekly order, and Bizzie’s cookies had gone over so well that Nessa was ready to place another order with her.

  “You don’t have to worry about that mess with Ranger anymore,” he told his granddaughter.

  She’d told him about what Faye had said, and surprisingly, he didn’t have any knowledge. Either that or he’d been trying to protect her.

  “Oh? Did he decide that I’m no longer a threat?” Nessa rolled her eyes and sipped her coffee.

  “Not exactly, but there’s other news on the horizon that I think will distract him and everyone else.”

  She thought about the guy from the radio station and the news about his death. Ranger had been the one to tell them, but that hadn’t stopped him from talking about her.

  “Something more important than the poor guy who was killed?” she asked. The sarcasm came through strongly, but she knew her grandfather wouldn’t take it personally. Not only was she dealing with something, but it was early, and she’d never been much of a morning person.

  “I think it might tie into that, yes. As you know, there’s a new owner, and he was running that contest. The guess how much money is in this box thing. Well, the money is missing. The guy kept it in his office in a glass box, and the whole box is gone.”

  “We already knew that,” Nessa reminded him. “Raff told us that’s why he was late.”

  “Yes, but not everyone knew. It’s public news now, and there’s an uproar. I mean, a new owner with lots of money, his assistant gets pushed down a flight of stairs, and now his contest money is gone. Seems a little fishy to me.”

  “What, like the assistant stole it, and his boss caught him, so he pushed him down the stairs?”

  “The new owner, Robby, was out to dinner at Juniors Chop House just outside of town. He’s got a receipt, and the restaurant has a security system proving he was there. It wasn’t him.”

  “That’s interesting. If Robby didn’t do it, someone did. Have they found the money yet?” Nessa asked. She thought about how sad things could sometimes be. She felt bad for people who needed things so badly that they thought resorting to stealing was the right thing to do. She didn’t have the kind of money the radio guy did, but she did okay and always believed how important it was to donate or spread a little cheer. Sometimes that meant paying for the person in line behind her, or one of her favorite things was to leave a kind note and a twenty-dollar bill in a book she borrowed from the library. It wasn’t much, and she hated to believe that money made the world go round, but it helped, and it was a small gesture. Whoever had stolen the money from the radio station and from Chloe’s college group had taken much more than a twenty-dollar bill.

  “Not that I’ve heard. There are some rumors going around that it was a lot of money, though. Like somewhere in the range of five to ten thousand dollars. I’m not sure who has that kind of money to blow on a contest or why he thinks he needed to have one in the first place, but I guess that’s the least important part of this.”

  “Did you ever meet either of them?” Nessa asked.

  “Not really. They’ve both been in the bakery before, but we didn’t have
more than a quick introduction. Both men seemed nice enough, but I guess that isn’t what it’s all about.”

  “I can’t say that I’m glad to hear Ranger might leave me alone. Not when it has to do with missing money and death. I’d rather be whatever he needs me to be to make himself feel better than to have someone die. I wonder if we know anyone that knew the assistant. Do we know his name? I hate to keep calling him that guy or the assistant.”

  “Liam. And yes, I do believe we know someone that knew him pretty well.” Lex sipped his coffee slowly, not letting the cup leave his lips.

  Nessa knew that meant she wasn’t going to like the answer.

  “Great. Do I even want to know?” She drank down the last of her coffee and got up for more. Chances were, she was going to need it.

  “Liam and Bizzie were seeing each other. I don’t know any more than that, and the only reason I know that much is because of Rose McDevitt.”

  “Faye’s hairdresser?” Nessa’s interest was piqued. She knew that Faye had an appointment with Rose later that morning, and if she got the chance to talk to Faye before she went, maybe she could find out more. After all, a prime place to hear rumors was a beauty salon. They wouldn’t all be true, but something was better than nothing.

  Lex nodded. “Rose told me about it last week. She said she’d seen Bizzie and a young man out to eat at Extra Fries in Southport.”

  “That’s not the same as Bizzie dating Liam,” she pointed out.

  “No, but personal business isn’t always so personal around here. Rose didn’t know who Bizzie was with, so she walked right up and introduced herself. She only told me about it because she’s Judson’s aunt and was under the impression Bizzie had some feelings for him.”

  “She definitely does.” Nessa thought back to how awkward Bizzie had been around Judson when they were both in the bakery together.

  “Maybe, but she was also on a date with Liam. Now, I’m not saying I think she had something to do with it because as much as that girl drives me crazy, I don’t believe she’s a killer, but she was dating him and would know way more about him than anyone else around here.”