Salted Caramel Killer Read online

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  SALTED CARAMEL KILLER

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  SALTED

  CARAMEL

  KILLER

  Cupcakes in Paradise

  Book 3

  By

  Summer Prescott

  Copyright 2017 Summer Prescott Books

  All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication nor any of the information herein may be quoted from, nor reproduced, in any form, including but not limited to: printing, scanning, photocopying, or any other printed, digital, or audio formats, without prior express written consent of the copyright holder

  **This book is a work of fiction. Any similarities to persons, living or dead, places of business, or situations past or present, is completely unintentional.

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  SALTED CARAMEL

  KILLER

  Cupcakes in Paradise Book 3

  CHAPTER ONE

  * * *

  Melissa Gladstone-Beckett wasn’t even aware that she was frowning as she gazed out over the water, the gentle waves lapping on the beach. The quiet beauty of the view was one of the things that had enticed her to move to the sleepy small town of Calgon, Florida, after spending her honeymoon there. A strong breeze, scented with the tang of the ocean and the faintest whiff of rain, blew wispy blonde bangs across her forehead, but she didn’t notice. Her thoughts were many miles away, with her husband.

  Chas Beckett was a Private Investigator, and he’d been called away to a case in Illinois. There was a thirteen year old boy missing, and Missy couldn’t even imagine how depraved one would have to be to kidnap a child. Her brave hubby could potentially be dealing with some very dangerous people, and she didn’t like it one bit. Sleep had eluded her since Chas had been gone, and she’d spent her sleepless nights inventing new recipes for her cupcake shop and worrying about her beloved. Sighing, she stood, brushed the sand from the seat of her capris and called to her furry babies, Toffee, the aging Golden Retriever who didn’t like rain, and Bitsy, the Maltipoo who reveled in it.

  Hearing the rumble of thunder in the distance, Missy headed for home, her canine companions trotting amiably alongside her. Toffee glanced warily back over her shoulder when the occasional rumble of thunder signaled the impending storm.

  “It’s okay, girlie,” Missy soothed, reaching down to scratch behind the Golden’s silky ears. “We’ll get you home before the big bad raindrops attack,” she grinned. Bitsy gave her an excited look, her little pink tongue out.

  **

  “Oooooh! Something smells amazing,” Missy’s best friend, Echo Kellerman cooed, shaking the raindrops from her artfully tousled mass of red curls. Her beautiful baby girl, Jasmine was snoring peacefully, secured to her mother with a wrap.

  “Thanks, I’m trying out a new recipe this morning,” Missy handed her friend two coffee cups and reached for a slab of butter with which she’d start her luscious frosting.

  “Oh? What is it?” Echo poured both of them a cup of coffee and went over to peer through the glass in the front of the oven, her hand cupped protectively around little Jazzy’s head.

  “Lemon Cheesecake cupcakes. The cake itself is lemon, and it’ll be filled with cheesecake. The frosting will be lemon buttercream, with a tiny bit of zest on top,” Missy announced proudly, waiting for a reaction.

  “Are there any vegan ones done yet?” Echo eyed the cooling rack hopefully.

  “Sorry, but they’re still in the oven, the tray on the left is the first vegan batch.”

  “Can’t wait to try them, they smell delicious.”

  “Well, you can help me frost the ones that are ready to go, while this next batch cools, if you have time, and then we’ll have a cupcake break,” Missy grinned.

  “I wish I could, but Joyce signed the two of us up for personal training sessions at her gym. They have a great childcare program, so I agreed to it for some strange reason,” Echo sighed.

  Joyce Rutledge, a dedicated bookworm, who was a force to be reckoned with, managed the book shop and adjacent candle store that Echo owned in a funky old building downtown. Just recently, the young woman had apparently embarked upon a crusade to get into the best shape of her life, which baffled Missy and Echo. Joyce was plump in all the right places, as a result of some seriously wonderful kitchen skills. She was seemingly comfortable in her own skin, so the friends wondered what was spurring on her newfound fitness craze.

  Missy giggled. “Funny, I never really pictured you as the gym type.”

  “Hey, I wear yoga pants sometimes,” Echo fired back, looking decidedly less-than-enthused about the prospect of working out.

  **

  Echo Kellerman felt more than a bit out of place as she entered the foyer of the gym, trying to find a place to sit and wait for Joyce.

  “I think I’m the oldest person here,” she mused, shifting Jazzy onto her hip and observing the taut young twenty-somethings who looked fabulous, even in their workout gear.

  An extremely fit man, who looked to be somewhere in his mid-thirties and had a nose that looked like it had seen its share of bar fights, approached with a broad smile.

  “You must be Mrs. Kellerman. I’m Andre Weisman, your trainer,” he held out his hand and she shook it.

  “Hi Andre. Bet I wasn’t hard to pick out of the crowd,” Echo joked self-consciously, cuddling Jazzy closer.

  “Well, since I’d been told to look for a stunning redhead, no, it wasn’t too hard to find you,” he surprised her by saying. “Joyce is waiting for us in the training room. Let me show you where to take your adorable little girl,” he said, gesturing to a doorway, which Echo hoped didn’t lead to a torture room. She left Jazzy in the arms of a child-loving pro, who seemed to thrive among stuffed bunnies and blocks and primary colors, and felt confident that her daughter would enjoy time spent at the gym much more than she would.

  “Hey girl,” Joyce greeted Echo with a hug, jumping up from the bright purple exer
cise ball on which she’d been sitting. “You ready for this?” Her eyes were bright.

  “No. You’re fired,” Echo sighed, taking in the various weights, bands and equipment neatly arranged in the room that smelled of yoga mats with a faint undertone of dirty socks.

  Andre offered a hand to Joyce to help her stand up, and the coy, sassy look in the young woman’s eyes told Echo everything she needed to know about why Joyce was suddenly so interested in fitness.

  CHAPTER TWO

  * * *

  “Ouch,” Echo groaned, getting out of Missy’s car in front of an upscale department store.

  “You okay, darlin’?” Missy’s brow furrowed with concern.

  “I’ll be fine,” was the muttered response. “I just used muscles yesterday at the gym that I didn’t even know I had.”

  Missy suppressed a smile. “Enjoying your personal training sessions?”

  Echo shot her a look. “No. I’m doing this for Joyce. She really seems to be quite taken with our fitness instructor.”

  “Well good for her. Is the feeling mutual?” Missy locked the car after Echo eased herself out of it.

  “Hard to say. Andre is so charming to everyone that he makes even old out-of-shape gals like me feel better.”

  “Well, Joyce is pretty selective, so he should consider himself lucky.” Missy eyed the door of the shop in front of them. “Maybe I should just wear one of the dresses that I have at home,” she sighed. “It just seems so wasteful to buy an expensive dress for one event.”

  “It’s a gala,” Echo shrugged. “You buy the dress, wear it once, then use it for out-of-town functions. That’s how life works. You’d be the talk of the town if you wore a dress that’s already been seen in public,” she rolled her eyes.

  Missy shook her head. “It just seems silly.”

  “It is what it is,” was her friend’s pragmatic reply, as she hooked her arm through Missy’s and shepherded her into the store. “C’mon, it’ll be fun.”

  The gal pals made their way back to the formal wear section of the store, where stunning gowns glittered and shimmered, and Missy’s reluctance grew.

  “These gowns are expensive,” she whispered, catching sight of some of the price tags.

  “Well, since it’s for a charity function, why don’t you donate the same amount of money that you spend on the gown?” Echo suggested.

  Since she was married to the primary heir of the Beckett fortune, Missy didn’t ever have to actually worry about money, but her attitudes toward it were the same as they had been while growing up in small-town Louisiana.

  “I like that idea,” she nodded, still uncertain.

  “Good afternoon ladies,” a cheerful voice greeted them from behind.

  When they turned toward the source of the voice, Echo’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. “Andre? You work here, too?” she asked the well-dressed man with the crooked nose.

  “Man cannot live on muscles alone, Mrs. Kellerman,” he grinned. “Who is your lovely friend?”

  “This is Missy, my best friend in the whole world, and we desperately need dresses for the gala next month.”

  “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Missy,” Andre shook her hand. “I’m sure that we can find amazing dresses to complement your exquisite beauty,” he appraised both women with a professional eye.

  “I don’t even know where to start,” Missy blushed. “I’m feeling pretty overwhelmed right now,” she admitted.

  “Then you just have a seat right over here,” he led her to a plum-colored velvet couch. “I’ll have Amanda bring you some tea, and I’ll bring over a selection of gowns for you to try on,” he gestured to a thin young woman with black hair who was buttoning the back of a gown on a mannequin, and she nodded, disappearing.

  “Oh, that’s so nice of you,” Missy beamed, relieved. “My size is…” she began, a bit self-conscious.

  Andre raised a hand to stop her. “No worries, I think I’ve got this,” he reassured her and set off on a hunt for gowns.

  “He knows what size I am just by looking at me?” she whispered to Echo, astonished.

  “We’ll see how that works out,” her friend was skeptical.

  “Here we are, ladies,” the raven-haired young woman set a silver tea tray down on the alligator patterned ottoman in front of them. “If you want sugar and cream, both are here, and the cookies just came out of the oven. Please let me know if you need anything else,” she smiled and disappeared, just as Andre returned with four amazing gowns over each arm.

  “I’ve found four for each of you to begin with. Have some tea and cookies while I put them in the dressing rooms and then we can get started.”

  “I could get used to this,” Echo commented, after he walked away.

  “I feel so spoiled. This is wonderful. No wonder Joyce has a crush on Andre,” Missy bit into a cookie so warm and tender that it practically made her eyes roll back in her head. “Even if she is barking up the wrong tree.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Well, I think he probably has a boyfriend rather than a girlfriend, don’t you think?” Missy lowered her voice.

  Echo burst out laughing. “No, that’s not the vibe I get at all. Men can choose formal gowns without being gay, you know.”

  “Of course I know that, but he just seems so knowledgeable and put-together,” Missy defended herself, blushing a little bit.

  “You mean like Chas?” Echo arched an eyebrow.

  “Shush, here he comes,” Missy patted her leg and inclined her head.

  “Okay, beautiful ladies, let’s go get your glam on,” Andre grinned and led the way to the side-by-side fitting rooms. “Come out and show them off,” he called out, after they were secured in their respective rooms.

  Missy unzipped the back of a gossamer pink gown that took her breath away when she saw it. She was a bit dubious when she looked at the tag, the dress was a size smaller than what she normally wore, and she hoped that she wouldn’t damage it trying to get it zipped back up. Slipping into the gown, she zipped up the zipper easily, it was a perfect fit and looked utterly gorgeous.

  “Oh!” she exclaimed, turning this way and that, to take in every perspective in the mirrors.

  “What?” Echo called from next door. “Come out and show me,” she commanded.

  “I want to see yours too.”

  The two women came out and stared at each other in amazement, Missy glowing in soft pink and Echo resplendent in vibrant green.

  “Looks like my work here is done,” Andre nodded appreciatively.

  “I don’t know how you did it, but you managed to choose the most perfect dresses ever,” Echo was delighted, staring in the mirror.

  “That color makes your eyes even more mesmerizing,” Andre replied. “And Missy, you look absolutely regal in that gown.”

  “Why thank you, kind sir,” she curtsied deeply, playing the part in order to cover her blushing.

  “I don’t need to try anything else on,” Echo surveyed her look in the mirror, hands on hips.

  “Neither do I, this was unbelievably easy. Andre, thank you so much,” Missy smiled, heading back to the dressing room.

  “The pleasure was mine, ladies. I’ll go grab a couple of garment bags and get those wrapped for you. Just leave them hanging in the dressing room. Now, will you be needing shoes today?”

  “We’re women, of course we need shoes,” Echo laughed, closing the fitting room door.

  Half an hour later, the friends were out the door and on their way to dinner at Echo’s.

  “Andre really made that experience so nice, even if I’ll be making a huge donation at the gala after spending such a ridiculous amount on my dress,” Missy remarked.

  “It’s a win-win, you get a fabulous dress and the charity gets a boatload of cash. Who knew that Andre had so many talents? If Joyce does manage to land him, she’ll have quite the catch,” Echo agreed.

  “Here’s hoping,” Missy held up crossed fingers and smiled.

 
; CHAPTER THREE

  * * *

  Joyce Rutledge was in a great mood. She’d lost a couple of pounds since she’d started working out with Andre, and had managed to convince him to drop by the bookstore sometime. She didn’t really want to lose weight, she actually loved her ample curves, so she compensated for her extra time at the gym by having dessert a few times a week. So far it was working out well.

  The first customer of the day came in as soon as she unlocked the front door. The younger brunette, who wore her hair in a ponytail and had an adorable cotton print dress on, gave Joyce a big smile when she unlocked the front door.

  “Hi! I couldn’t wait for you to open, I’ve been looking all over town for a book and I heard that you might have it,” she announced, fanning herself in the late summer heat.

  “Well, good morning,” Joyce was delighted to see another book lover. “I hope we have it. What title are you looking for?”

  “It’s called, Your Powerfully Positive Thought Life,” the young woman replied.

  Joyce frowned. “Hmm…doesn’t ring any bells, let’s see if it’s in the Self Help section,” she turned and led the way. “You look really familiar…have we met somewhere?”

  “I was thinking the same thing. Do you go to Shoreline Fitness?”

  “Yes, I just started going there recently,” Joyce nodded absently, scanning for the book.

  “My boyfriend Andre is a trainer there, so I’m there all the time.”

  Joyce paused for a moment, her face not registering the shock that she felt inside. “That must be where I’ve seen you then. Andre is my trainer.”

  “Isn’t he just the best? Don’t get discouraged with your progress, I’ve seen him work miracles, it’ll just take a bit of time,” she meant to be reassuring, but her comment rankled.

  “I’m actually more than pleased with my progress,” Joyce replied, sounding much calmer than she felt. She wasn’t overly upset that Andre was taken, but she was astonished that he was with this wisp of a girl who had just insulted her.