The Cheesecake Fake: A Culinary Cozy Mystery Set In Sunny Florida (Slice of Paradise Cozy Mysteries Book 2)

by Nancy McGovern

  “Naturally,” Faith said. “And if you got something un-baking-related, it’ll probably get exchanged for something baking related, so yeah. Unless it’s teal. I might keep something that’s teal, whatever it is.”

  “What if it’s teal and baking related?” Nathan said with a smile.

  Faith grinned. “Double points. Duh.” Then she noticed a Coastguard boat in the distance and remembered the events of the previous night with a jolt. Somehow she’d forgotten all about it. She didn’t want to think about it right then. She was in her blissful bubble with Nathan, and wanted to stay there for as long as she possibly could.

  Soon they met a crag of rocks jutting up from the beach and blocking their path. It was the point at which they always turned to walk back down to Paradise Point.

  “Hey,” Nathan said, gently bringing her to a stop. “Don’t you want to see what’s beyond there?” They got closer then, though Faith wasn’t sure if she was the one that stepped closer, or he was, or if they both did simultaneously. “We always go this far, then turn back. Aren’t you… curious?”

  She looked up at the rocks, smiling. “Why not?” She was not always the most adventuring type, but she’d managed to get quite a good sleep in the end and was full of energy. Plus, a good adventure would take her mind off the whole Becky situation. She looked at the edge of the rocks, the part that met the sea. “I bet we can climb over that.”

  Nathan grinned. “I reckon so. You want me to lead the way? I don’t want you to slip.”

  “All right, Mr. Chivalrous,” Faith said, nudging him in the ribs.

  “That’s better than whatever your Grandma Bessie wanted to call me,” he said, as they slipped their sandals back on and started along the rocks. He held out his left arm against a tall rock to steady himself. “What was it again? Good-looking gardener?”

  “Handsome gardener, it was,” Faith said, laughing. “You can’t blame her. It is a pretty good description.”

  Nathan laughed. “I know I’m handsome.” He flicked his dark auburn hair out of his face like a movie star, in a self-mocking way. “But are you calling me a gardener?”

  Faith began to laugh along, but then it stuck in her throat. She was looking down at where she was next going to place her flip flopped foot, when she saw the scariest sight she’d ever witnessed in her life.

  Just below the surface was a body, the face staring lifelessly up at her.

  Becky.

  *****

  Chapter 4

  “No,” Faith said firmly. “We have to stay open. That’s the only way I’ll be able to get over it. We just have to keep going as normal.”

  Laura was leaning over the counter, cleaning supplies clutched in hand. She was so tanned by the Florida sun it was impossible for her to pale, but she kept biting on her bottom lip over and over, pushing it out, then biting it back in. “But what about this afternoon? I really don’t want to be here alone.”

  Krystle had called Faith an hour or so before to arrange a meeting with the Triggs about their open air Shakespeare production, saying they must press on despite the tragedy. Faith was inclined to agree. She didn’t want to give herself the space or time to break down, because how would she ever get going again? All she wanted to do was press forward like everything was normal, until the sinking, scary feeling in her gut passed.

  “Maybe Nathan can come over and stay with you,” Faith suggested. “We’ll sort something, definitely. I won’t leave you alone.”

  Laura was already scrubbing and spraying and scouring. She loved to clean at the best of times, but when she was stressed it became nothing short of her lifeline. “Please don’t. I just… I can’t believe this happened.”

  “I know.” Faith couldn’t sit still, so she marched around the tearoom, straightening every lacy tablecloth and arranging every tropical flower vase until everything was at exactly the perfect angle. “We actually have to find someone to cover the tearoom anyways. With this Shakespeare thing going on I guess sometimes we’ll both have to go down there. Maybe we should start interviewing people?”

  Laura scrubbed all the harder. “I don’t know. I mean, I know we need someone, but I can’t help wishing that we didn’t. It’s like… this is our place. Just how we like it. Just us. What if someone comes and messes it all up?”

  “They won’t,” Faith said. She normally would have agreed and sympathized, but she was trying so strenuously to hold it together that any talk about her feelings and she knew she would lose control. She had to hold it together, she told herself, at least until she’d been out to the Trigg ranch. Maybe she could go home afterward and cry in front of old Friends reruns, her kitties cuddled on her lap as she dug into a tub of strawberry cheesecake ice cream.

  “Well, I don’t think we should do it,” Laura said firmly. She stood and planted her gloved hand on her hip, her eyes flashing with determination. “We should ask your Grandma Bessie to cover—”

  “I know she doesn’t want to,” Faith said. Whenever Faith called, she always got Grandma Bessie’s answering machine. Grandma Bessie would call back a few hours later, saying she had been doing laps in the pool her supported apartment building had, or had been sweating it out in the gym, or going to the movies with her friend Viola, or playing poker with ‘the girls’. Since she had worked so many years, day in, day out, to keep the tearoom alive, she’d never had the chance to do anything else. Faith wasn’t about to barge into her grandma’s new colorful life and demand she tear herself away from her well-deserved fun, only to come back to babysit the front counter. No way. “She’s done enough here,” Faith said. “She’s doing what she wants to do now.”

  “Fine,” Laura said. “But if she doesn’t want to, then we should do it all ourselves. I don’t want anyone else to come here. They’re not family, not like we are.”

  “But we’re not family,” Faith said, truthfully enough.

  Laura shook her head. “Oh, okay. I see how it is. Fine.” Laura got back to scrubbing harder than ever, like she wanted the erase the counter altogether.

  “I didn’t mean that,” Faith said. “I just meant we’re not related.”

  “Yeah, I’m sure you did.”

  Faith hated to argue so much. “Look, can we just stop doing this, please, and have a regular day?”

  Laura said nothing, just continued to clean. Then she rocked back on her heels and gave Faith a mournful look. “Fine, but I don’t want anyone else here. If we have to turn down the Shakespeare job then so be it.”

  Faith felt a surge of frustration, and she was about to rant on about how Laura had always been the one going on about branding and expanding their baking empire. “Let’s talk about it later,” she managed to gain enough control to say evenly. Then she hurried into the kitchen, ready to lose herself in the familiar world of cakes, pies and puddings, which had become her haven over the years. Whenever she wanted to take her mind off something, all she had to do was come up with a creative new frosting flavor combo, or put a creative spin on a classic pie, and she’d soon forget about her troubles. But the best thing about it was, once the new creation came out the oven, a sense of satisfaction washing over her with the heat of the oven, she felt different. She felt more able to deal with difficult thoughts or pressing problems. Life’s issues didn’t seem so insurmountable then.

  Because of the contentment she found in this mystical, deeply comforting baking realm, Faith was able to keep the peace with Laura until it was time for her to leave. As it happened, Nathan didn’t have any landscaping work that afternoon, so he volunteered to come along and keep his cousin company.

  “See you,” Faith said to them both, giving them a half-hug with one arm, while the other carried a Tupperware box. She’d thought it good manners to bring something for Krystle – for the ride – and something for Graeme and Danica, seeing as they were prospective clients.

  She hurried out to the front of Paradise Point where Krystle waited in the parking lot in her purple Ford Focus. Krystle, glamor
ous as always, this time with huge aviators covering her eyes, gave Faith a cheery wave from her spot in the driver’s seat. “Hey.”

  “Hi,” Faith said, smiling as she got into the passenger seat.

  Krystle got the car moving right away. “I have to apologize for the state of this thing,” she said. Faith had a quick look around to see empty packets of chips and soda cans in the back, along with shirts and sweaters draped everywhere, a single muddy sneaker planted right in the middle. “It’s my boys. Great kids, Leyton and Sam, but not the world’s most tidy people, however much I try teaching them. Right now I’m doing the whole mom’s-not-going-to-clean-up-after-you thing.” She nodded to the rearview mirror and laughed. “It’s going really well, as you can see.”

  Faith laughed along. “Maybe they’ll get the hang of it soon.”

  “I’m not holding out any hope, Faith. I just don’t think they even see the mess, to be honest. They have selective eyes, I think, that only see computer games and women with big chests and skimpy clothes on.” She laughed. “Not mess. And certainly not homework.”

  Faith, once again, found herself in awe of Krystle. Of course, Faith’s idol was Opal Templeton, the young star who had shot to fame from her blog and cake shop, and now wrote recipe books full of gorgeous pastel-toned pictures that made Faith want to live in her world. But there was something amazing about Krystle, too. How she put herself together in such a glamorous, yet unconventional way. Her confidence, perhaps. Her sense of humor. Faith knew she had a tendency to hero worship, feeling that her chosen idol could do no wrong, and always tried to nip it in the bud. But there, sitting in the purple Ford Focus across from Krystle, she was having a hard time shaking it. Krystle was just so effortlessly calm and cool, and Faith felt like she could only dream of being that chic and collected, oozing that charisma and charm.

  “So I’m going to be doing a huge feature on this open air Shakespeare thing,” Krystle said. “Actually, a couple of huge features. One beforehand, to promote it, and one afterward, to report on how it went. Plus I’ll be sending out press releases and material to newspapers in all the nearby towns. I used to be in advertising, when I was younger, so Danica thought it would be a good idea if I was in charge of that. Come to think of it, all of that will be good publicity for you, actually. You might get more catering jobs.”

  Faith smiled, trying not to think about who she was going to get to cover the tearoom, and Laura’s resistance about it. “Sounds good to me! Although this is the biggest event we’ll have ever done, so I think we’d better just try to get through this one first.”

  “That’s not very ambitious, Faith!” Krystle exclaimed. “You’re an excellent baker, a lovely person, and very capable. You did an excellent job at the boat party.”

  “Oh, it was nothing, really.”

  “Nonsense,” Krystle said firmly. “You shouldn’t play your talents down like that. Playing small does no good to anyone, Faith. You should stand in your ability with your head held high. Be confident. What you did for our little get together last night was excellent. Goodness, was it really last night? It feels like a lifetime ago, doesn’t it?”

  “It does,” Faith said. “And thank you. You saying that means a lot.” And it did. Even though Faith knew she was good at what she did, maybe even better than good, in fact, it took a lot of courage to get out of her zone. She’d always been baking alone. It had always been a safe space. A space where she didn’t have to worry about why she’d never met her father – was there something wrong with her? And later, a space where she didn’t have to be concerned she wasn’t wearing the latest fashion in high school. A space where she didn’t have to swallow what she really wanted to say, and say something ‘cool’ instead. It had always just been a space where she could be her. So bringing that out into the open and using her talents to make a living was exhilarating, for sure, but also very scary.

  She and Krystle talked about everything under the sun except Becky and the incident-that-was-probably-murder. In fact, they studiously avoided it, and Faith learned the majors Sam and Leyton had in mind for college, and far more than she needed to know about Krystle’s husband’s golfing habit. In turn, Krystle got to know more than was necessary about the antics of Nimbus and Cirrus, and about Faith’s long term love of Volkswagen Beetles. Faith still wanted one, in teal, of course, with a cream leather interior. She had earned her driver’s license way back in her teens, but had never been able to afford a car.

  “Oh, look,” Krystle said, turning into a long driveway. “We’re here. The Triggs’ ranch.”

  Faith looked out the window as vast swathes of land passed them by. “Wow,” she said. “It’s enormous.” She wondered what Graeme’s real job was, and how he was able to afford such a place. Faith didn’t know much about real estate, but she knew enough to realize the ranch must have cost a bomb – it was nestled between two bustling Florida towns, and near the coast.

  “It’s been in the family for generations,” Krystle said, like she was reading Faith’s mind. “Way way back. But Graeme probably could have afforded it anyway. He designed some software program early in his career. Can’t remember exactly what, something for stockbrokers or something? Anyways, it’s obsolete now, but that doesn’t matter, does it? I mean, he’s got enough money to live a hundred lifetimes over, I’ll bet.”

  “Wow,” Faith said.

  Before long they met a set of imposing electric gates. Krystle leaned out of the window to press on a buzzer, and soon Graeme’s voice came through saying, “Hey, Krystle. You and Faith can come right in.”

  *****

  Chapter 5

  The ranch house was not an old rambling wooden mansion as Faith had romantically pictured. It was indeed a mansion, but was more recently built, made of light colored stone. It reminded Faith of homes her mother had always pined after in southern Europe. Diana had attended university in England, and had backpacked across Europe, staying for extended periods in the places she loved the best – Spain and Greece. And the Trigg mansion, reflecting bright in the sunlight, with trails of bright bougainvillea climbing their way up white trellis frames, reminded Faith of the snapshots her mom had brought back and went through every couple years or so.

  “It’s beautiful,” Faith said as they got out of the purple car. “I’d kill for a house like this, wouldn’t you?”

  Krystle pulled her aviator glasses down and said drily, “I’ll do it right now, Faith. Got a gun?” Then she gasped. “No, we shouldn’t be saying things like that. Not after what happened.”

  “You’re right,” Faith said, feeling awful. Carrying on with life as normal seemed to be working a bit too well. Though she was indeed forgetting the horror of the face under the water and all that it meant, whenever she did remember she was jolted back to reality in the most uncomfortable way. She thought of Becky’s lifeless face again then, and felt like she might just collapse in a heap.

  So she was glad when a lady rushed out of the house with a wide smile. “Krystle!” she said, throwing her arms open wide for a hug. “And you must be Faith!” she exclaimed, while hugging Krystle all the while.

  “Hi,” Faith said. “You’re… Mrs. Trigg, right?”

  “Danica, please,” Danica said, then gave Faith a hug, just the same. “Aw, Faith is such a lovely name. We had been thinking about calling our Erica that, but we thought that a single syllable sounds a bit harsh with our surname. Faith Trigg, or Jade Trigg, or whatever, it doesn’t quite flow. So we went with Erica.” She took each of them by the hand and led them out around the side of the house. “And you’re so pretty, too! Such nice coloring!”

  “Oh, um, thank you, if you think so,” Faith said. She found it hard to receive compliments. In truth, she thought Danica was very pretty in her own way, too. Danica must have been in her mid to late sixties, and she carried too much weight around the waist. Her dress wasn’t glamorous and she had no makeup on, but she had large, expressive brown eyes, a heart shaped face, and a kind demeanor t
hat made everything around her seem beautiful and pleasant, including herself.

  She led them out to a large lawn. “So we’ll be having the open air theater here,” she said. “Between the back of the house, and the stables.” She swept her hand across the open space. “We’re going to do it a bit differently this year, with the stage closer to the stables and then… Faith, we were thinking about having a large buffet tent here.” She pointed to the part closest to the mansion. “So that you can carry things out from the kitchen easily. It will be like a marquee, with a covered white roof and open walls, so guests can easily come in and out. How does that sound?”

  “Perfect,” Faith said with a smile. She was already imagining a hot summer day, people enjoying their Shakespeare play, and the day being rounded perfectly with a delicious feast. “What kind of food will you want us to serve, Mrs., I mean Danica?”

  “Oh my,” Danica said. “Where do we start? I’ve got a list of some ideas in the kitchen, but of course you’ll be free to innovate and surprise us. I was supposed to show Graeme but he’s been with George in the stables for ages. They get talking about something or other and they can while the whole day away.”

  Faith and Krystle laughed along with Danica.

  “So, I guess we could do some menu planning now?” Faith asked.

  “Oh yes, it does sound like good fun, doesn’t it?” Danica said. Then she clapped her hand onto her substantial hip and shot an affectionately scolding look over toward the stables.

  Faith and Krystle turned to see Graeme and Dr. George Asante coming out of the stables together, deep in conversation.

  “See, what did I tell you?” Danica said, laughing.

  Graeme and the veterinarian came over and joined them. Faith didn’t know quite what to say to Dr. Asante, considering his girlfriend had just died. Had been murdered, was the likelihood. He dodged eye contact with them all, with a fake smile stuck on his face. His eyes betrayed his hurt, though, as he looked like he was somewhere else entirely, even as his body was with them.