Muffins & Murder (Sweet Bites Book 3) (Sweet Bites Mysteries)

by Heather Justesen

  “No, Mr. Bailey, you wait until everyone else has gone down the aisle,” Honey said to Kat’s father. I was halfway down the aisle, a sort of best man, since Lenny didn’t have anyone else to be there for him. Jasie followed behind me. I lined up beside Lenny, despite the fact that I would be in a dress the next day. His hands shook with nerves, even though this was just practice. I remembered our talk earlier that day, wondering what he was thinking, and if he would make it through the ceremony the next day.

  Honey finally sent Kat and her father down the aisle. Kat walked slow and leisurely with her father looking like he’d rather never reach the front. She leaned over and whispered something to him, which made his lips twitch, but didn’t alter his speed.

  Mr. Bailey glared at Lenny as he passed over Kat’s hand, but didn’t say one nasty word. It was a surprising bit of self-control considering the way he’d talked the night before.

  The minister skimmed through things, then Honey directed the order of everyone to leave the altar to go into the reception. She wielded her organizing power with mastery, unfazed by anyone’s bad behavior. My respect for her grew by leaps and bounds when she stepped between Lenny and Rick, heading off an altercation before it devolved from hissing jabs—Lenny was nearing his limit.

  When we were all back in the main part of the yard and her back was to Rick, Honey looked a little rattled. She started across the grass to me, but had to pause as the ring bearer nearly plowed into her. Again. I wondered—not for the first time that night—if they fed him nothing but energy drinks.

  I looked around the backyard. Kat’s family had set up chairs and tables earlier that day, and we would come back through the next day to mess with flowers and ribbons. Thankfully, the plans were simple, so there wouldn’t be too much to do in the morning.

  When Rick said something I couldn’t hear to Lenny’s retreating figure and Lenny turned back to face him, fire in his eyes, I decided some mediation might be in order. I took several quick steps and slid my arm through his, yanking him away from Rick. “I just have a question about the cake placement for tomorrow,” I said over my shoulder to the others. “Give us a moment, will you?”

  I didn’t wait for a response before I started hissing at Lenny, “Don’t listen to him, don’t react, just walk away. Do you really want to have a black eye for the ceremony tomorrow?”

  “You think I care about that?”

  “Kat does—she’s the one caught in the middle. It’s her wedding too and do you really want to look back on your pictures and remember how you jumped when that idiot goaded you?”

  He scowled at me. “So I’m just supposed to take it and be the wimpy jerk he thinks I am?”

  “No, but fighting back with your fists isn’t the answer.” When he looked ready to argue with me I held up my hands. “Again, I ask if you want to hold the ceremony from a jail cell tomorrow.”

  He growled. “Do I want to do this at all? She should have just given in and run off to Vegas with me. Then this would be over.”

  “But you wouldn’t have your family and friends—she wouldn’t either, and as creepy as Rick and Jared are, doesn’t it mean a lot to her that they made the trip out here?” Appealing to his better judgment wasn’t exactly a new thing for me, but I’d never before wanted so much to smack the person I was trying to keep him from hitting.

  He was silent for a long moment. “Sometimes I hate you. All right, I’ll deal and just remind myself that it’s for Kat. Next time I see the guy, I’m not going to hold back if he pushes me.”

  “I won’t ask you to.” I stretched up on my toes and planted a kiss on his cheek. “You’re truly awesome. Have I mentioned that lately?”

  “No, and you ought to be singing my praises every day.” His eyebrow quirked.

  “Agreed. I’ll try to do that more often.” I released him. “Now, suffer through dinner with the rest of us and then spend the rest of the night doing something relaxing—just as long as it doesn’t include alcohol. If you show up hung over tomorrow, I’m going to smack you instead of Rick.”

  He bumped my shoulder with his fist and we headed back for the cars. We just had to make it through the rehearsal dinner and then we could part ways from the men tonight. I couldn’t wait.

  Honey and I rode to the restaurant together. “You’ve been quiet,” she said when I hadn’t volunteered to talk about my chat with Lenny.

  That wasn’t the only thing on my mind, but I settled for, “It’s been a crazy couple of days. I’m exhausted, and tomorrow won’t be much better. If it weren’t Kat, I’d skip the party tonight and just curl up in pajamas in front of the television after dinner.”

  “Poor baby, forced to party. What a tough life you have.”

  I didn’t respond to her teasing.

  “What else?”

  “What else?” I echoed, knowing what she wanted, knowing what was bothering me—the whole fiasco with Shawn and Jack—but there wasn’t time to get into it before dinner. Maybe I could get her alone for a while that evening instead.

  “Are you playing dumb on purpose?” She pulled in front of the restaurant and found a parking spot.

  “Yes. But you’ll have to wait because there’s not enough time to get into it now.” I took a deep breath, steeling myself for the next hour. “Now we have what is bound to be a very exciting dinner where everyone disparages Lenny, and insinuates that he’s some heathen who is ruining Kat’s life. We get to listen to the men, well, most of them, talk about how weak and stupid women are and how they should be kept under a man’s thumb at home—oddly everyone jumps when Melissa talks. I’m going to focus my effort on trying not to punch anyone. We better go in ready to be on Lenny’s side, because he already thinks he doesn’t deserve Kat, and Rick has nearly pushed him beyond his limits.”

  “I’m game if you are.” Honey pushed out of the door and we walked into the building. Two women on a mission.

  I was never so glad to finish a meal as I was that night. Thankfully Melissa kept heading off nasty remarks by asking about other topics. Honey peppered the men with questions about their jobs, acting far more fascinated than she really was. It kept me and Lenny from popping someone in the nose through dinner. Finally Kat, Melissa, Jasie and I piled into Honey’s minivan, with her at the wheel.

  “So where are we going?” Melissa asked when we pulled away from the curb.

  “The Silver Spur,” Honey announced.

  “Didn’t you say no alcohol? Isn’t that a bar?” Melissa asked, disapproval in her voice.

  “Yes, but they serve soda,” Honey said. “And they have a live band tonight. I’ve heard this one and they’re actually quite good. We can get in some dancing and girl talk and then we’ll head back to Tess’s after a while to relax and pig out on the cake she made. Can’t keep Kat out too late or she’ll have baggy eyes,” Honey teased.

  “That’s the least of my worries tomorrow. I just know something is going to go wrong,” Kat said. “There are so many details to take care of still.”

  “Which is why Honey and I are helping out,” I said. “We have the decorations under control, we’ll bring the cakes and cookies to the reception and I’ll help Lenny set them up—you’re going to flip, by the way. They’re incredible. All you have to worry about is getting dressed and to the ceremony on time. It’s your day, so just focus on celebrating.”

  Kat put her hand to her stomach, looking nervous. “What if Lenny changes his mind? He’s been kinda of quiet lately.”

  I wanted to categorically deny that such a thing could happen, but I refused to outright lie since he had expressed his concerns to me, so I focused on soothing her a different way. “Don’t you think he loves you?”

  “Yes.”

  “Do you think he’d do anything to hurt you if he could help it?”

  She shook her head, her voice dropping so I could barely hear it over the noise of the engine. “No, but things have been a little, um, rough for him the past few days.”

  “Jared
and Rick are idiots sometimes,” Jasie stated, slipping a defiant glance at Melissa. “Just ignore them, reassure your man that you love him and enjoy your day. It’ll all be okay.”

  “You’re right,” I said. “Most everyone gets jitters before the wedding. He loves you and wants to be with you. You have to trust that he loves you enough to overcome his fears. There’s no one on this earth who means more to him than you do.” I reached out to her and squeezed her hand.

  She nodded, looking less worried. “Thanks for that.”

  Honey pulled into the parking lot of the Silver Spur and we piled out of the minivan.

  “That was a nice speech,” Melissa said to me in a low voice as we walked inside. “Do you think Lenny really loves my baby girl? He grew up rough, I hear.”

  It surprised me that she bothered to ask me instead of making her own assumptions. I touched her arm to stop her, then waved Jasie along with the other two, who were ahead of us and wouldn’t notice right away that we had lagged behind. “Lenny did grow up rough. He made some mistakes and he paid for them. The fact that he’s got a good job—no, a career—he’s trained for and is very good at, I might add—should impress the heck out of you. He’s made something out of himself when most guys in his situation would have taken a leap off the deep end. That shows a lot of character. And he loves your daughter like nobody’s business.

  “You probably don’t see it as much because you all intimidate the heck out of him, but he’s so sweet with her. He adores her like any woman wants to be adored. He supports her dreams, and no matter what some people might say, her dreams are worthwhile and valuable just as they are, even if she weren’t successful as a painter—which she is. He’ll let her stretch her wings and become what she wants to be, do what she needs to do to be happy.” I saw the objections rising in her eyes and decided to cut her off at the pass. “If she wants to stay home and have six kids and put away her painting, he’ll let her. If she wants to have a family and squeeze in time for her painting, he’ll support that too, because her happiness is his first priority. Really.”

  Melissa stared at me for a long moment. “You’re sure you don’t have feelings for him, beyond friendship?”

  I chuckled. “I have no more feelings for him than Kat has for her brothers. Trust me, I’m thrilled that he and Kat are so happy. And that he’s finally gotten over his fears enough to make it all official. They’re so cute together when they don’t have disapproving parents burning glares into them.”

  “Ah, now you’re taking me to task for letting my boys be so protective.” She didn’t seem mad at me for bringing it up.

  “I’ve seen you with everyone. The guys think they run the show, but you really do. I’m not saying you control how they feel, and I like that they’re protective of Kat—a brother should be—but there’s a difference between being protective and being nasty and controlling.”

  She nodded and turned toward the bar again, setting a leisurely pace. “We almost lost Kat to a bad sickness when she was a kid. We all worried she wouldn’t make it for several days before she started to respond to medication and got better. And she dated a couple of guys in school who were bad news. Nothing serious, mind you, just a couple of dates, but her brothers had to extract her from more than one bad situation because she didn’t realize what she was getting into. She’s always been pretty sweet and naive. I guess we don’t see how much she’s grown up and matured, and it’s hard to accept that your baby is a grown woman now, you know?”

  “Yeah, but you have to at least try to get it through their heads that she’s made her decision. Now it’s their responsibility to accept it and be there for her if it is a mistake, not try to protect her from the decision. By the way, in case you haven’t figured it out,” I said as we reached the door and the noise poured out into the parking lot. “I don’t think she’s making a mistake.”

  Melissa smiled. “I kinda picked up on that.”

  We entered the cacophony and joined the others at the table they’d staked out. I went to the bar to order sodas all around, and a few minutes later we toasted Kat and Lenny then everyone but Melissa went out on the floor to line dance. We hit a couple of fast songs, and then things slowed down. I was returning to the tables with the others to glug down more of my Dr. Pepper when I felt a large hand on my arm.

  “Can I have this dance?”

  The voice made a shiver go down my spine. It was Shawn.

  I hesitated for just a moment before accepting. I still didn’t know what to say to him about his new job. Or Jack. Or what I wanted. I consoled myself that at least I wouldn’t have to try to reason it out while faced with both Jack and Shawn.

  He pulled me close and I slipped my hands up around his neck. “I thought you were too busy to see me tonight,” he said.

  “I’m here on girl’s night, a sort of tame bachelorette party for Kat. Technically this is supposed to be a man-free activity. I didn’t think about how much you like this place.”

  “Thanks for making an exception for me. I’m glad I happened to be here so I had a chance to see you alone for a minute.” His hand slid up my spine, then coasted back down to my waist again. “It seems like more than four months since I held you like this last,” he said in my ear. His voice was low and husky, making good shivers travel across my skin.

  “It’s been a busy few months. When do you start work here?”

  “After the Thanksgiving holidays. My parents are anxious for me to be home for a family meal for a change.”

  “I’m sure they are. I bet your schedule isn’t as flexible as you’d like when it comes to major holidays.”

  “Not even close.” We swayed for a moment before he broached a new subject. “Tingey said you were in an accident yesterday. I noticed you’re moving a little stiffly tonight.”

  “Funny how rolling your vehicle can leave you stiff the next day,” I tried to make a joke of it, not wanting him to go all protective on me.

  “I didn’t know when I saw you earlier. I’d ask why you didn’t mention it, but there was kind of a lot going on when I saw you.” His words were loaded with subtext.

  I nodded, appreciating the delicate way he worded it. “That’s putting it mildly.”

  “I didn’t realize you were seeing Jack.”

  My chest felt tight but this was my chance to set everything straight. “We kind of just started dating. Like, this week. We’ve been circling around the issue for a while now and haven’t discussed our relationship or anything, but there’s something there.”

  “So I’m too late? Just barely too late to have a chance with you?” His voice begged me to deny it.

  His cologne held a deep, musky note that went straight to my stomach. “I don’t know, and I feel guilty about that because I have the funny feeling I was a large part of the reason why you took the job here.” I held my breath, waiting for the admission or denial, not sure which I wanted to hear.

  “You were part of it, a nice fringe benefit, I guess,” he admitted. “Certainly not all of it. I could go back to the chief and tell him I changed my mind, it’s only been a few hours since I accepted if I wanted. I like Nogales and my friends and co-workers there, but I’m ready to be home again. I had to get out.” He paused for a moment, then continued grudgingly. “My grandpa’s health has gotten bad—he refuses to move out of his house, but he needs someone closer to check on him. It seemed like the perfect convergence of events. If things work out with you and me, well, that’s a really big dollop of whipped topping on the Oreo shake, you know?”

  I was much more comfortable with that, so I was able to give him a genuine smile this time. “Whatever happens, I hope we can be friends.”

  He shook his head, his gaze never leaving mine. “I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to see you as just a friend.” He leaned in and kissed me, taking me by surprise. His lips feathered across mine, then moved in to mold them to his. The kiss lingered for a long moment before he lifted his head.

  I had to gasp a
moment to catch my breath. I wondered if he was right—maybe we wouldn’t be able to be friends if I ended up with Jack. “You’re not going to make this easy for me, are you?”

  “Not unless easy means you decide to go out with me instead of Jack,” he said. When I grimaced, he grinned. “Look, see what’s up with him. I wouldn’t mind if you dated both of us for a while, enough time to figure out what you want. Not for months and months, mind, but for a while. It beats the alternative of not getting a chance to convince you to pick me.”

  I nodded, though my stomach was tied in knots.

  “Anyway, considering you’ve got someone trying to kill you, you shouldn’t be surprised if I happen to be around the wedding tomorrow.” I must have shown a little worry because he grinned. “I can’t stay past Sunday, but if I’m around, I might as well make sure you’re safe.”

  “You can’t shadow me everywhere I go like last time you were here,” I objected.

  “Don’t worry, I’ll be more discreet—especially since Jack will be around too. I just don’t want to risk you getting hurt.” His hands stayed steady at my waist, but his thumbs stroked up along the bottom of my ribcage making me shiver.

  The music ended and I nodded, knowing I wouldn’t talk him out of it, so I’d have to settle with his promise. “I’ll let you know what I decide about dating.”

  He released me with some reluctance, and walked me over to the table where the other women sat.

  “You ladies have a good evening, and don’t get into trouble.” He said this last with a grin before squeezing my elbow and walking back into the crowd.

  “Wow, he’s seriously hot,” Jasie said, watching his retreat.

  “Um, yeah.” I couldn’t argue about that.

  “When did Shawn get to town?” Kat’s words were full of suspicion. “You didn’t seem surprised to see him.”

  “You didn’t mention a word about him coming here,” Honey accused.

  “He popped into the shop today, unannounced,” I admitted. “That’s part of why I’ve been so distracted tonight. Jack showed up while Shawn was giving me a hug hello.”