Stamped Out

by Tonya Kappes

  “I guess you know about Ellie now.” Mac’s big smile was long gone. “I’m not sure she’s Richard’s, but Tasha claimed she is.”

  “So this was Richard’s Tennessee business?” I could hardly believe I was saying these words.

  “He and Tasha had been together a really long time. They met when he came to see me, and I’m sorry.” His voice cracked. “I’m so sorry. I tried to tell Richard…”

  “I don’t want to hear any more excuses.” I watched Ellie cross the street. My heart broke for that little girl. “Her dad is dead, and now her mother will go to prison for murder.”

  “Tasha has a long history of telling lies to keep Richard. They’d not seen each other for a few months because Richard tried to break it off.” As Mac told me about Richard’s affair, I did recall that a few months before he died, he was home more than he’d ever been. “She told Richard she was pregnant with his baby. He was sick over it. Richard had set me up with an account to make sure money was funneled weekly to Tasha. When he died, I should’ve come clean, but I took over his payments and kept giving her money. I’m not even sure if Ellie is his kid.”

  “The business plan for the condos.” I gasped. “The debt you owed was to Tasha.”

  It was becoming very clear the steps Mac took to make sure he kept Richard’s secret.

  “Yeah. She was going to tell you and Grady. I just couldn’t do that.”

  “Richard didn’t deserve you as a friend.” I was so mad the tears poured out.

  “No. Not Richard. You. I couldn’t do that to you.” His eyes searched my face. “Richard didn’t deserve you. Tasha put a strain on our relationship. You. You.” He gulped. “Bernadette, if you’ve not noticed, I’ve been single since the day I met you.”

  “What are you trying to say?” I blinked past the tears.

  “I’ve been single all these years because no woman has ever been able to stand up against how I feel about you.” He cupped his hand around my face and used the pads of his thumbs to wipe away my tears. “Richard knew I’ve been in love with you since the day you two started dating.”

  I blinked, trying to process what I was hearing.

  “Did you think I really wanted to take the country club? It was the only land available for me to make money on and pay Tasha to keep her mouth shut. Madame’s? Do you honestly think I’d go there? No. Tasha likes hard rock, and it was to keep her mouth shut.” His hands slid from my face to my arms. “Can’t you see that it was all for you?”

  He pulled me to him. I melted into his body as he brought his lips to mine and sealed his words with a kiss that sent an electric shock wave to my tiptoes.

  “I’ve seen it all now.” Angela walked past with Tasha Linder in handcuffs, taking her to her car. “Mac Tabor saved the country club, solved a murder, and stole Widow Butler’s heart all in one day.” She snickered. “We got someone to drive your truck back to Sugar Creek Gap, Bernadette.”

  I was glad Angela knew I was in no shape to drive.

  “Saved the country club?” I questioned Mac.

  “Yeah. I figured I might as well put the money into the country club restaurant and pool instead of tearing everything down just to build some condos.”

  I started to see a glimpse of the old Mac I had known just two days ago—the real Mac Tabor.

  “Ashley Williams agreed she’d get the city council to help the neighbors pass a homeowners’ association fee so we won’t be in this mess again.”

  “Widow Butler? Is that what people call me?”

  “Not anymore if I can help it.” Mac wrapped his arm around me and walked me to his car, and I knew he was going to take me home. “Let’s get you home so you can make that gumbo for all the folks waiting at your house.”

  The entire way home, I stared out the window. I wasn’t sure what my future with Mac was, and I wasn’t sure how I was going to tell Grady he might have a little sister, but there was one thing I knew for sure.

  Mac had been right. There was a houseful of people who loved me and were waiting for me when I got home. And I couldn’t wait to get there into their warm embrace, exactly where I belonged.

  OUT NOW FROM ADDISON MOORE & BELLAMY BLOOM

  Hello all! Have you checked out the new series by friend Addison Moore and her partner in cozy crime, Bellamy Bloom? It’s a cute but deadly new series that centers around a mind reading innkeeper. The best part? The innkeeper can talk to animals. Fun! Be sure to grab a copy of Kittyzen’s Arrest (Country Cottage Mysteries 1), it’s a killer read.

  https://www.amazon.com/Kittyzens-Arrest-Country-Cottage-Mysteries-ebook/dp/B07TP2BYY7

  A little about the book:

  An innkeeper who reads minds. An ornery detective. And a trail of bodies. Cider Cove is the premiere destination for murder.

  My name is Bizzy Baker, and I can read minds. Not every mind, not every time, but most of the time, and believe me when I say it’s not all it’s cracked up to be.

  *Bizzy Baker runs the Country Cottage Inn, has the ability to pry into the darkest recesses of both the human and animal mind, and has just stumbled upon a body. With the help of her kitten, Fish, a mutt named Sherlock Bones, and an ornery yet dangerously good-looking homicide detective, Bizzy is determined to find the killer.

  Cider Cove, Maine is the premier destination for fun and relaxation. But when a body turns up, it’s the premier destination for murder.

  SNEAK PEEK-

  HOLIDAY ROAST MORTEM

  Book 7 in the Killer Coffee Mystery Series

  ONE

  The twinkling Christmas lights wrapped around the wooded deck of the Watershed Restaurant, sparkling on Lake Honey Springs and a nice romantic evening with Patrick was exactly what I needed to get into the spirit of season.

  I’d been working so many long hours at The Bean Hive, my local coffee house, getting all the holiday coffee blends and baked sweet treats that were ordered by my customers ready that I’d not taken a lot of time for my relationship with my husband or our fur babies, Pepper and Sassy.

  Pepper was a Schnauzer who found me when I went to I went to Pet Palace, our local SPCA, to find a roommate. It took me a second to look into his eyes and he stole my heart.

  Pepper and Sassy went to work with me on a daily basis, but it wasn’t the quality snuggles I was used to or they liked getting.

  “You look beautiful.” Patrick Cane reached over and laid his hand on mine. “I’m glad we made time for me and you.”

  “Me too.” I put my other hand on top of his and rubbed it.

  He owned Cane Construction and the economy had been booming around our small town of Honey Springs, Kentucky that he was just as busy as I had been at the coffee house.

  Neither of us were complaining because we certainly had seasons of dry spells where the money just trickled in.

  Patrick’s big brown eyes and tender smile along with his sensitive heart was what drew me into when we were just teenagers and I would come to Honey Springs during the summers to visit my aunt.

  It wasn’t until years later, a law degree, a divorce under my belt and opening a coffee house that Patrick and I were reacquainted and now married. Practically perfect.

  “Geez, buddy!” The man sitting next to us jumped up when the waiter accidentally knocked their table and spilled the man’s water in his lap. “Watch what you’re doing.”

  “Calm down, Ryan,” the woman across from him had turned red. She looked around the restaurant to see if anyone was watching.

  “Are you joking?” Ryan glared over at her. The poor waiter looked to be a busboy and he quickly replaced the man’s glass with more water and apologized before walking away.

  “No I’m not joking,” she spat. “You can be such a jerk. Things happen.”

  The man grabbed the glass and took a drink, glaring at the woman across from him before he went back to finishing his meal.

  “That looks delicious.” Patrick and I pulled back our hands so Fiona Rosone, our waitress, could put our plates o
n the table, taking the attention off the couple next to us

  Patrick’s loving gaze had turned from me to the honey glazed salmon on his plate.

  I had gotten the panko encrusted chicken, one of the Watershed’s specials along with a sweet potato and asparagus. I would definitely be taking some of the sweet potato home with me to the dogs. Not only did they love it, but sweet potato was good for their digestion and their coat.

  Since they came to work with me, I tried to keep an eye on them so customers wouldn’t slip them something they’d ordered from the counter, but it was hard to police that. Plus, Pepper was a wonderful vacuum and sniffed out any little morsel of food.

  “The babies?” Patrick’s smile light up his face.

  “Of course.” I shrugged knowing how much I treated them like real human babies. Though having children were something Patrick and I did want, it just wasn’t in the foreseeable future.

  We’d only been married a year and the night of our honeymoon, my Aunt Maxine Bloom along with my mother, , started in on dropping hints about a bundle of joy.

  “It’s so pretty here tonight.” I looked out the window of the floating restaurant. The Christmas tree on the outside deck was glowing with colored lights and fun ornaments that were lake themed. The Christmas trees inside of the Watershed was decorated a little more elegant with white lights and fancy ornamental ornaments, large ribbons, and bows. There was a sign sitting on a fancy gold stand with Logsdon Landscaping Co. being recognized as the decorator.

  Amy Logsdon had taken over the family landscaping business and when she did, she saw a need for people’s help in decorating for all the seasons because we did celebrate every holiday on the calendar and decorated for them. We even just had our annual * festival in the town square last weekend. But what Amy did was amazing. She took the landscaping business to a whole ‘nuther level. She take clients, like the Watershed, and completely decorates the entire outside of buildings and inside of them. This part of Logsdon Landscaping focus primarily on the outside decorations. Some people have hired the company to come to their homes and put up their lights, their large yard displays and more.

  It really did help cut back on all the work the beautification committee had to do and frees up their time to focus on more of the business side of the festivals.

  It’s a very nice option to have, but I love to decorate and had made it part of my life to help me get so excited for the holidays.

  They had beautiful views of the lake from their tables and they also did dinner cruises. The prices were steep and it was only special occasions that brought us there to eat. Spending some quality time with Patrick definitely was a special occasion.

  “Is it?” Patrick looked over the candlelight at me. “I only notice how pretty you are.”

  “We are already married. You can stop laying it on thick.” Fiona knew us so well, she’d already brought a to-go box over to the table for me to put in the dog’s portion for me to take home.

  “That was so good.” Patrick pulled his wallet out of his pocket and took out the cash for the bill and leaned back in his chair. “Now we can go home, snuggle with the kids by the fire.”

  “Heaven.” Sometimes I couldn’t believe how I’d hit the jackpot in my thirties. In my twenties, it was a bumpy ride, but worth every up and down it took to get to this moment right here.

  Both of us smiled at each other before another couple next interrupted with their loud argument.

  “I told you that I’ve had it.” The woman pointed her the steak knife at the man. “I won’t put up with this behavior anymore.”

  “Keep your voice down,” the man shushed her. “When we got married, you knew exactly what you were getting into.”

  “I’ve had enough.” She picked her napkin up from her lap and wiped her mouth. “After Christmas, I’m filing for divorce.”

  “Over my dead body.” He threw is napkin on his plate.

  “So be it.” She slammed her napkin on the table, the water splashed out of her glass.

  The scoots of their chairs did cause others to look around, but since they were next to me and Patrick, I think we were the only ones who heard them arguing.

  Patrick and I watched the couple rush out of the restaurant.

  “I hope we don’t ever get like that when we reach their age.” Their sadness gnawed in my gut and I couldn’t help but wonder if they were all goo-goo eyed like Patrick and I were.

  “Never. Ever.” He shook his head. “Unless Penny and Maxi stop getting along, then we might have a problem,” he joked.

  “I wouldn’t be joking about them because they’ve already had a fallen out this week about who was going to bring the fruit cake to Christmas.” I let out a long sigh.

  “You decide.” Patrick thought it was as easy as that when it clearly wasn’t.

  You see, my mom, Penny Bloom and my Aunt Maxine Bloom had never gotten along in my entire life, until recently. My mom had been really jealous of my relationship with my Aunt Maxi. And well…let’s just say that I’ve always had a connection with my Aunt Maxi I’d never had with my mom and when I got divorced, it was obviously Aunt Maxi I’d run to. Here we were a few years later and some history under my belt, my mom had moved to Honey Springs. They were the reason Patrick and I were married by the Justice of the Peace.

  “I’ve got enough people to coordinate besides refereeing them.” I was now rethinking my decision to host a big Christmas supper for my friends and family at the Bean Hive Coffee Shop.

  My friends and I had become family in our small community and I wanted to be surrounded by them during the holidays. Everyone has something special to bring to the occasion and it’s going to be a joyous one even if mom and Aunt Maxi decide to not get along.

  “Will that be all?” Fiona asked and picked up the check with the cash.

  “Yes. Very good.” Patrick pointed to the money. “Keep the change.”

  “Delicious as always.” It was a treat to come to the Watershed and took some effort to actually get dressed, put on makeup and look presentable. Not like when I went to work at the coffee house with my hair pulled up, baking clothes on underneath my Bean Hive apron.

  Patrick, being the southern gentleman he was, got up from his chair and walked over to help me out of mine.

  “Let’s get home and we can talk about grabbing one of the trees from the tree farm tomorrow.” Patrick was speaking my language and he knew it.

  “Fire, snuggles, decorating.” I took his hand in mine. “Patrick Cane, you are something else.”

  “I just want to keep you happy during this Christmas get together.” We walked toward the back of the restaurant so we could walk outside to look at the decorations. “I know how stressed you can get and if I can help out, I’m going to. So you,” he opened the door to the outside and had me walk past him, “my dear, will be pampered by me.”

  He pulled me to him once the door shut behind us and shield me from the winter night wind as it whipped across the lake and over us, sending chills along my body.

  Patrick stood behind me with his arms wrapped around me and we looked across the lake the Bee Farm where Kayla and Andrew Noro had big wood cut outs of bees with Santa hats on them all light up so the people on the land side of the lake could see them.

  The Bee Farm was a small island in the middle of the lake. It was amazing to visit and see exactly how the bee farm did work. I got all my honey from Kayla. It was so fresh and tasty not only in the coffees and teas I served at The Bean Hive but also the baked goods.

  “Everyone seems to be really ready for this season compared to last year,” Patrick’s warm breath tickled my ear. He rested his chin on my shoulder.

  “Why did you mention that?” I jerked around and looked at him. “You are giving us bad ju-ju.”

  Last year we had a murder in Honey Springs at Christmas. Something I wanted to forget forever.

  “It’s not bad ju-ju.” He laughed and grabbed my hand. “Let’s get home to the kids.”


  We walked along the Watershed’s pier toward the parking lot when we heard that same couple from inside the restaurant arguing outside near their truck.

  “I’m telling you that I’m not going to stand for this. Do you understand?” Ryan yelled at the woman, who I assumed was his wife sense he’d said something about how she knew before they got married this was how it was.

  “You know what.” The woman jerked the door open. “I’m going to call a lawyer!”

  The couple both slammed their doors. The tires squealed as their truck took off.

  Patrick’s grip tightened on my hand.

  “I don’t think they are going to have a good Christmas.” He opened the passenger side door for me.

  “Don’t worry.” I kissed him before I got in. “It took me a divorce to find you, I’m for sure not going to let you go.”

  I hooked my seatbelt while he got inside the car and started it up.

  “The Logsdon Landscape really had done a fantastic job.” Watershed was on one far left side of the boardwalk as we drove back to our cabin, passing by the entire pier where The Bean Hive was located.

  The coffee house had a perfect location right in the middle of all the shops. Directly in front of the coffee house was a long pier that jutted out and perfect for people who liked to fish deeper out into the water.

  “I love how they put the lighted garland around all the carriage posts,” Patrick said about all the lights along the boardwalk. “It’s prettier than just the wreaths.”

  “Yes, but the beautification committee did the best they could.” I still had to give * credit. She did work hard on trying to make Honey Springs gorgeous during the festive times of the year. “It’s so pretty.”

  Our cabin was located about a seven minute drive from the boardwalk. It was a very windy road running along the lake. I usually drove my bike with Pepper nestled in the front basket while Sassy went to work with Patrick at the construction sites for most of the day until he’d stop in for a cup of coffee. That’s when she liked to stay at the coffee house with me and Pepper.