Champagne Murder: A Frosted Love Cozy Mystery - Book 27 (A Frosted Love Cozy Mysteries) Read online

  Thanks for your purchase!

  Book 28 is now available

  for $2.99 or Free on Kindle Unlimited. Go here to purchase NOW!

  Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  Copyright 2015 by Maven Publishing & Summer Prescott Books - All rights reserved.

  All rights Reserved. No part of this publication or the information in it may be quoted from or reproduced in any form by means such as printing, scanning, photocopying or otherwise without prior written permission of the copyright holder.

  Get Early Access to My Books For FREE!

  Every two weeks you’ll get a new Cozy Novella from me absolutely FREE.

  Sign up now! http://bit.ly/AuthorCarolDurand

  Table of 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 1

  Bed and Breakfast and cupcake shop owner, Melissa Gladstone-Beckett, was excited to start the New Year in Calgon, Florida, and hummed cheerfully to herself in her spotless commercial kitchen, as she put another batch of cupcakes in the oven. She had developed a special recipe after having several magnums of champagne left over from the New Year’s Eve gala that was held at the Beach House Bed and Breakfast. Missy added champagne to the batter, cream filling, and buttercream frosting, creating a cupcake that positively sparkled with flavor – she couldn’t wait to have her friends sample the new creations when they came in for morning coffee.

  The busy baker and owner met nearly every morning with her best friend, Echo, whom she’d known when she owned two cupcake shops in Louisiana, and who had moved to Florida shortly after she did, several months ago, and with local, but internationally renowned artist, Phillip “Kel” Kellerman. The 60-something artist had been born and raised in Calgon, and felt that it was his civic duty to bring newcomers Missy and Echo up to speed on all of the current gossip in town, and enjoyed meeting the two ladies for his morning cupcakes.

  The first couple of batches that Missy had baked that morning were cooled and ready to frost, so she made artful swirls of frosting on top of each cupcake, and sprinkled the tops with glittering gold sugar crystals, placing a pretty candy pearl in the center of each one. The tasty treats were almost too pretty to eat…almost. She quickly finished up with the frosting, happy with the delicious results, and put four regular cupcakes and two vegan cupcakes, for Echo, on a platter, and went to the front of Cupcakes in Paradise to start the coffee.

  “I’m way ahead of you, girlfriend,” Echo called out cheerfully when she saw Missy step through the door to the kitchen. She held up a pot of freshly brewed coffee, and poured three mugs of the fragrant brew.

  “I have something new for you two to try,” Missy said, breezing past her friend, headed for their favorite table in the corner of the eating area, where Kel sat, reading his newspaper.

  “Well, if we must,” the artist teased, lowering his paper to examine the cupcakes. “What delights do you have for us today?”

  She told him about how she’d creatively found a use for some of the leftover bottles of champagne, and he nodded appreciatively, taking two of the beautifully decorated cakes and placing them on his plate.

  “So what’s new in our fair city today?” Missy asked, seating herself across from Kel.

  “Not much to report, I’m afraid, although I did have a European collector call to make an appointment to come see my latest collection.”

  “Well, that’s good news,” Echo exclaimed, happy for her friend and boss. Echo helped out in the cupcake shop during the morning, served as Kel’s Gallery Manager in the afternoon, and was building an inventory of hand-dipped candles, in her home, in the evenings, that she planned to sell at the cupcake shop and the inn.

  “We’ll see. He sounded only vaguely interested,” the artist shrugged.

  “I’m sure once he sees your work, he’ll definitely be impressed,” Missy reassured him. She and husband, Detective Chas Beckett, had several of Kel’s pieces in their home and decorating the inn.

  “Here’s hoping,” he raised his mug and toasted, before taking an appreciative sip of the dark brew.

  The trio chatted for a while about everything and nothing, just enjoying each other’s company, and, precisely at nine o’clock, when Missy turned her sign from Closed to Open, a tiny, elderly woman with a cotton candy cloud of fluffy white hair, tottered carefully into the shop, leaning heavily on a three pronged cane.

  “Good morning,” Missy smiled at the woman. “How can I help you today?”

  “Oh honey, whatever smells so good in here is helping me already,” she chuckled, making her way to the display case. “I don’t indulge in treats very often, but for some reason, I just have a sweet tooth today.”

  “Well, you’ve come to the right place. Take a look in the case and let me know if you have any questions.”

  “I surely will,” she scanned the case. “Are you the new owner of the Beach House Inn too?”

  “Yes, my husband and I own it. I’m Missy Beckett.”

  “It’s a pleasure to meet you, dear. I’m Cora Greitzer. I own Past Thyme, it’s a little antique shop downtown.”

  “Really? I’m so glad that you came in. I love antiques, and I’m actually looking for a few pieces for some of the guest rooms at the inn,” Missy replied.

  “Then you need to come in and see me,” Cora exclaimed with delight, handing her a business card.

  “I certainly will,” she promised, taking the card that was patterned with bright floral designs.

  Cora took her time and selected a dozen cupcakes in several different flavors, including a new champagne one, and Missy carried the box out to her car for her.

  “You know, I think that it would be a good idea to have some cupcakes in my shop for my customers. I already have coffee and tea available for them. I think I’ll stop by a few mornings a week to buy some, if you don’t mind. I’ll put a little placard by them so that folks will know where to come and order them if they’d like,” Cora proposed.

  “I think that’s a lovely idea,” Missy beamed. “That way I’ll get to visit with you more often.”

  “Thanks so much, my dear. I feel as though I’ve made a new friend, and at my age, one can’t have enough of those,” she placed her cane in the passenger seat and gingerly climbed into her luxury sedan, settling behind the steering wheel.

  “What a sweet thing to say, Cora. Thank you.” Missy waved as the elderly woman drove away.

  Chapter 2

  Spencer Bengal, a young, handsome, Marine veteran who served as handyman, server, and general go-to-guy at the inn and cupcake shop, arrived at Cupcakes in Paradise early so that he could cover things while Echo and Missy explored Cora Greitzer’s shop downtown.

  “Good morning, Sp
ence,” his boss greeted him with a smile. “We’re going to go to the antique shop and then probably grab some lunch, so if I’m not back by two, will you please just go ahead and close? There are cupcakes that need to be frosted, and the frosting is already made, and of course, you can help yourself to whatever you’d like while you’re here.”

  “No problem, ma’am,” the young man grinned, already anticipating his mid-morning snack.

  Missy knew that she was leaving the shop in good hands. Spencer Bengal never sat idly. Typically, when she left the shop in his care, he cleaned, reorganized and made things more efficient. She and Chas had truly found a gem in this conscientious Marine.

  Echo breezed in, grabbed a vegan cupcake for the road, and the daring duo headed for Missy’s car, ready to shop.

  “So, what are we looking for today?” she asked, chewing a bite of champagne cupcake.

  “I need to find some cool, quirky end tables for the parlor, some fun, colorful objects for the fireplace mantle in the ballroom, and I’m always on the lookout for china pieces for the breakfast table. Beyond that, who knows? I usually manage to find quite a few things that I didn’t realize I needed until I saw them,” Missy chuckled.

  “Sounds good. I’m looking for a more rustic coffee table, so I’ll keep an eye out for your items if you keep an eye out for mine.”

  The two friends were both glad to have some free time, and chattered like magpies all the way to town. Missy parked directly in front of Past Thyme, a small shop tucked gracefully into a historic building with Victorian architecture, between a hat-maker and a bookstore.

  “Oh, this is going to be fun,” she breathed, seeing the stained glass and gleaming woods of pieces featured in the multi-paned front window.

  The ladies entered the store, which was devoid of customers, and were startled when a huge, round grey tabby cat wound its way through their ankles.

  “Aww…hi, kitty,” Missy cooed, stooping to scratch between the purring animal’s ears.

  “I see you’ve met Mr. Boots,” Cora observed, making her way to the front of the shop.

  “Oh, he does have boots, how cute,” Echo grinned, seeing the white fur paws.

  “I’m so glad you came in,” the shopkeeper beamed. “It’s been so quiet in here now that the holidays are over. Take a look around and let me know if I can help,” she waved a hand.

  “Thank you,” Missy smiled. “I brought you some cupcakes. Where should I put them?”

  “Right over there by the register would be fine, dear, and thank you. The ones that I had yesterday were delicious. I’m going to have to work extra hard at watching my girlish figure.”

  Missy put the bakery box down on the counter by the register and wandered through the shop, oohing and ahhing as she went.

  “Oh my, this is beautiful,” she exclaimed, stopping to look at an ornately carved sandalwood trunk. She opened the cover and was enveloped in a heavenly scent.

  “Smells amazing too,” Echo observed.

  “That just came in yesterday. A man I’d never met before brought it in to sell, and I gave him cash for it on the spot. If it never sells, I’d be happy to keep it here,” Cora said.

  “Well, actually, I think I might have to take it off of your hands,” Missy said, carefully closing the top of the trunk. “This would make a perfect sofa table in my parlor.”

  “Oh yeah,” Echo nodded. “You can have a piece of glass made to cover the top. It’ll protect it.”

  “Great idea. I think I see a pair of candlesticks over there that’ll go on the fireplace mantle too,” Missy pointed, heading in a different direction.

  “Shall I put a SOLD tag on the trunk?” Cora called after her.

  “Let’s just make it a HOLD tag until I talk with my husband about it, please,” she called over her shoulder, making her way through the store. She had nearly reached the table with the candlesticks when she almost ran down a young man ambling out of a doorway that looked like it led to a storage room.

  “Oh, goodness, excuse me. I was in such a hurry to get to those candlesticks, that I didn’t even see you,” Missy exclaimed, stopping short.

  “It’s whatever,” the thin, pale youth with a scraggly beard and mustache drawled. He was dressed in shabby jeans, and a well-worn, long-sleeved t-shirt, and smelled vaguely of some kind of herb.

  “Oh…well, okay then,” Missy looked at him oddly. One would think that an employee of such a nice shop would be well-spoken and better dressed, but she supposed that he must be a warehouseman or something.

  “I see you’ve met my grandson, Michael,” Cora panted, walking toward them as quickly as she could.

  “Oh, this is your grandson?” Missy was a bit taken aback. Cora Greitzer was cultured and sweet, not bearing a bit of resemblance to the somewhat sullen youth.

  “Hi Mike, I’m Missy,” she held out her hand to introduce herself.

  He looked at her hand, then at her, expressionless, leaving his own hand at his side until she awkwardly put hers back down.

  “It’s Michael,” he mumbled, then shambled past, headed for the cupcakes.

  “Mind your manners, Michael,” Cora scolded, not receiving a response of any kind. “I’m sorry about that…he’s just so…shy, sometimes,” she shrugged, embarrassed. Echo snorted and Missy shot her a look.

  “That’s okay. Teenagers can be a challenge,” Missy patted her arm.

  “Oh, he’s not a teenager. He has his degree in Philosophy,” she announced proudly. Missy grabbed Echo and headed toward the candlesticks before her friend had a chance to snort again.

  “Well, that’s nice,” she called back over her shoulder with a smile.

  They shopped around for another half hour, finding vases, tables, china, and other assorted things with which to decorate in the inn, before making their way to the cash register, which was thankfully manned by Cora, not Michael. Echo was happy to have found some vintage jewelry that would go perfectly with several outfits that she loved.

  “I’m so glad that you ladies came in today,” the shopkeeper beamed at them after ringing up their purchases.

  “So am I,” Missy enthused, happy with her bounty. “I may end up putting that beautiful trunk in my home rather than in the parlor at the inn if I buy it…I just love it.”

  Cora nodded sagely. “Special pieces like that don’t come in every day. When do you think you’ll be able to let me know for sure whether you want it?”

  “Oh, it shouldn’t take me long to talk with him about it. Can I call you tomorrow, or the next day?”

  “That’ll be fine, dear. If I don’t hear from you by the end of the week, I’ll give you a buzz.”

  They loaded the various pieces into the back of Missy’s car themselves, Michael was nowhere to be found, and headed back to the inn. Spencer unloaded the car for them, and Missy directed him where to place which items. She’d take Chas to Cora’s shop to take a look at the trunk, and if he loved it as much as she did, she’d place it in front of their sofa in the owner’s quarters. If he didn’t react as favorably, it could still be relegated to the parlor for the guests to admire and enjoy. Either way, she’d at least get to see the exquisite piece every day, if they ended up buying it, and it would provide extra storage as well.

  Chapter 3

  Echo had been busy dipping candles all evening. Her scents were inspired by Missy’s cupcake flavors, and this particular evening, she was concocting colorful candles that smelled like vanilla bean and strawberry. Yesterday, she’d done Cocoa Mocha, and the day before that, it had been Mango Madness. She used soy products and essential oils that she ordered from companies that she’d found online, and was receiving deliveries of product ingredients almost daily.

  She had just begun dipping what would ultimately be a red, pink and white candle that would have twirls and swirls, when her front doorbell rang. Sighing at being interrupted in the midst of a process that had to be perfectly timed in order to execute properly, she rested the candle that she was curr
ently dipping against the side of a wax container, wiped her hands on a towel, and headed for the door, expecting another delivery.

  Exasperated to find her neighbor, Steve, whom she’d nicknamed “Loud Steve” on the other side of the door, Echo tried her best to maintain a pleasant expression. The man was a nuisance. She called him “Loud Steve” because he played his heavy metal music so loudly in his mini pickup truck, that one could hear him, even with his windows rolled up, the moment that he entered the neighborhood, more than two blocks away.

  One of Steve’s favorite things to do was sit on his porch, the one that faced Echo’s house, and smoke cigarettes, just staring into space. He always seemed to be outside whenever she was coming or going, and she’d removed the bushes underneath her bedroom window because he’d hidden in them, trying to catch a glimpse of her at night. In short, he was not her favorite person, but she tried to get along with everyone around her, so she humored him whenever he happened to be around.

  “Hi Steve, what’s up,” she faked a smile.

  “I got some barbequed ribs from my smoker, and some tater salad and beans over here, if you’re interested,” he leaned against the doorjamb in a way that she supposed he thought was alluring.

  Echo took a deep breath and let it out slowly, trying to be patient.

  “I told you before, Steve, I’m vegan,” she said slowly, hoping the words would penetrate his brain this time.

  “I know it, and I’m more of a libertarian myself, but that don’t mean we can’t share a meal,” he shrugged, ever magnanimous.

  Desperately fighting the urge to roll her eyes, Echo tried again.

  “I follow a special diet, there are certain foods that I…” she began to explain, but he cut her off.

  “Oh, darlin, you don’t need to be on no diet, you look mighty fine as it is,” he leered, his eyes traveling up and down her lithe form. She gave up.

  “I’m not hungry, Steve, thanks anyway,” she said, ready to shut the door.

  “You’re missin out, sweet thang. You just come on over if you change your mind,” he waggled his eyebrows suggestively.