Baker’s Law (4 page)

Mrs. Humphries and Cherry had their heads bent over a computer and looked up together.
The two women smiled broadly and stood.

“Marissa.” Mrs. Humphries held open her arms for a hug. She smelled of Chanel No.
5 and bread. It was one of the most familiar scents from Marissa’s childhood.

Marissa’s own mother had run off when she and Marlie were only two years old. It was
six months later that the Humphries moved in down the street. Glen Llewellyn, at his
wit’s end trying to raise two boys and twin girls, had jumped at the chance to set
playdates for his girls with the Humphries children. Mrs. Humphries hadn’t hesitated
to give Marissa and her sister a mother’s love despite having three girls of her own.
She and her husband Chuck had been surrogate parents when her father was bogged down
with work.

Marissa and Cherry and Marlie had been glued at the hip all through grade school and
even into junior high. Marissa was the one who kept them all grounded when Marlie
and Cherry tried their best to get them into trouble. She had always wanted them to
be
good,
so they didn’t end up like her mother.… Once they reached their teens, though, Marlie
drifted off into her own little world of high school fashionistas and Marissa simply
tried to blend into the woodwork with Cherry nudging her out of her social sequestering
from time to time.

Still, over all the years not a week had gone by in which she hadn’t spoken to Cherry—more
often than not in person. She gave her friend a little extra squeeze. Just seeing
her friend released several knots of tension she hadn’t realized had built up in her
shoulders.

When all the small talk was exhausted, Cherry finally pulled her aside. “We’re going
to eat, Momma.” Cherry looped her arm with Marissa’s. “Sorry, my mom’s been on a family
bent since Lily moved away.”

Marissa nodded. She remembered when her brother, Tanner, had moved away from Oak Hollow
she’d cried for days. To this day, she still got a wobbly pull in the pit of her stomach
at her brother all the way in Iowa.

Cherry gave her a quick pat on the arm before motioning to the family’s booth. “You
look like crap.”

“You always know just what to say.” Marissa gave her a wan smile. “I’m just tired.
Didn’t get much sleep last night.” She told her about the break-in and Hill but left
off her growing suspicions about his living arrangements. “But I don’t think he was
trying to steal anything.” Besides the smallest amount of food.

“Hon, why would someone break in without the intent to steal?”

“I don’t know.” She wiped her hand across her face. “I think my brain’s too tired.
My judgment’s off. When I saw Hill this afternoon I ran after him down the street.
Hell, I even got in my car and chased in the direction I thought he went.”

“Hill? You know who he is?” She frowned. “Why does that name sound familiar?” She
waved her sister over after she seated a couple. “Vi, why do I know the name Hill?
He’s a teenager?” She looked at Marissa, who nodded.

Vi tilted her head and tapped her index finger to her pursed lips. Finally she snapped
her fingers. “There was a woman who worked here a few years back. Patricia Hillman.
She had a son, I think. I think they called him Hill.”

Cherry nodded. “I remember her. She died, didn’t she? Seems like it was a car accident.”

“Aw man.” Marissa slumped back in her seat. “What about his dad?”

Her friend shrugged. “Sorry. Don’t know.” She sipped from the water the waitress set
down in front of her. “Did you tell the police you know who it was?”

“I didn’t know ‘til later. Oh.” Marissa widened her eyes. “Do you know who the new
police chief is?” She fanned herself and gave a low whistle.

“Do I know? He’s eaten here every night this week. I think he’s—” Cherry twisted around
in her seat “—here right now. Yeah, there he is over near the bar.”

Jax Carlisle was sitting alone eating his dinner. He wasn’t dressed in his dark uniform,
but had on jeans and boots and a tan button-down shirt. As if he knew they were talking
about him, the new chief of police shifted his gaze in their direction. A quick smile
spread across his mouth and he nodded hello.

“Well, isn’t that pretty interesting.” Cherry straightened in her seat and waggled
her eyebrows. “When did you and Jax hook up?”

Marissa choked on her water. “Hook up? I’ve seen him exactly one time since he moved
back. I didn’t even know he was back until he walked into the shop this morning.”
She wouldn’t tell her friend how she hadn’t been able to stop thinking about the man.

“Not a bad choice. You’ve had a long dry spell.”

“He’s not a ‘choice.’ He was just responding to my call.”

Cherry waggled her eyebrows again. “The guy was good-looking in school. Now he’s an
outstandingly fine specimen. I wonder if I should have some sort of ‘emergency’ myself.
See what his, um, response time is.” She laughed herself silly until the waitress
approached, then sobered enough to order food for the both of them—a Cobb salad for
her and the meatloaf special for Marissa, the same meal they’d eaten a thousand times
before; there was something satisfying in routine, especially when Marissa’s day had
started off as anything but.

Marissa glanced back over to Jax’s table several times and every time he caught her
at it, he smiled. She had to make herself not look again and eventually managed to
relax into the evening with her dearest friend. Halfway through dinner, though, Cherry
was called to the back to deal with a vendor.

A moment later, Jax slid into the booth with her. “How are you?”

The bite of potatoes Marissa had just stuffed into her mouth threatened to choke her.
Luckily she managed to swallow without gulping too loudly, or needing CPR, though
mouth-to-mouth with the chief… She had to shake herself before she could answer. “Fine,
Chief. Yourself?”

A slow smile quirked up the corner of his gorgeous mouth. “I’m off duty. You can call
me Jax.”

Marissa dropped her fork onto the edge of the plate knowing there was no way she could
take another bite in front of the man. What, was she sixteen again? She gave herself
a quick pep talk.
You’re a grown woman who owns her own business.
He’s just a regular man.
Talk to him like any old customer.
She settled her arms on the edge of the table and leaned forward. “Are you really
ever off duty?

Am I?
Jax smiled wider at her question. “No, I guess not.” She hadn’t changed her clothes
since he’d seen her earlier in the morning but her hair was down around her shoulders.
For a brief moment he imagined that hair floating around his as she lay atop him.
He shifted and cleared his throat. “Any other troubles at your shop?”

“Nothing worth mentioning. I saw a cruiser go by. Thanks for that.” She ran her finger
over the edge of her water glass, and then tilted it toward herself.

He started to rise. “I didn’t mean to interrupt your dinner.”

She set the glass upright, reached out and set her hand on his forearm. “You’re not.
Interrupting me, that is. Stay for a minute. I’m finished.” Just as quickly as she’d
touched him, she pulled her hand back and pushed her plate to the side. “I bet your
mom is glad to have you home.”

Jax shrugged. His mom dithered between giving him the cold shoulder to making so many
demands of his time he had to screen his calls from her. “Bunny is Bunny.”

Marissa’s eyebrows lifted quickly. “I can only imagine. Did she throw you a big gala
event for a homecoming?”

There was a hint of derision in her voice. Bunny rubbed many people the wrong way.

“Believe it or not, no big gala. For which I am grateful.” He drummed his fingers
on the tabletop. “But I’ve also been crazy busy since I took over for Chief Kendal.”

“How has the change in jobs gone? Actually, I don’t know what you did before you came
home. Maybe it’s not such a change.”

It was still weird to be “home,” but that wasn’t what she’d asked. “I was a detective
in Austin. Same type of job more or less. Way more responsibilities now, though. And
lots of paperwork. Probably easier than owning your own company.” He leaned his elbows
onto the table. “Have you always baked?”
What a stupid question.
Jax all but groaned and wanted to kick himself in the ass.

Marissa gazed at him for a long moment and didn’t answer at first. Then she said,
“I’m sorry. It’s just a little surreal to be sitting here with you. Chatting.” She
shook her head.

Jax chuckled. “Why?”

“I don’t know. We didn’t exactly know each other in school.” She ducked her head for
a moment. “What did you ask me?” She waved off the trip down memory lane. “Have I
always baked? For pleasure, sure. I didn’t get into the business end of it until just
a few years ago. I was working in an office and it just wasn’t fun.” She shrugged.
“I needed a change and
voilà,
my shop was born.”

The waitress came and cleared the table.

“That’s got to be scary.” Jax leaned closer. “Starting something from the ground up
can’t be easy.”

“There were days when I didn’t think it would work. And days when I was so tired I
didn’t know if it was worth it. But it’s gotten better and it’s all mine and I love
doing it.” Marissa’s eyes lit up. “Now I can’t even imagine not baking every day.”

The waitress came back and set a single dish in the middle of the table with two spoons.
It had a thick slice of chocolate cake with a huge scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Marissa picked up the spoon and scooped a bite, barely taking her eyes off him. “The
best part is coming up with new recipes. I like experimenting and playing around with
ingredients.” She licked a small speck from the spoon and waved it at Jax. “It’s fun
to try new combinations or toppings. I like paring up flavors you might not think
to use.”

“It doesn’t hurt—” he picked up a spoon and followed suit “—that the food tastes fantastic.”

A smile creased her mouth. “You tried the cupcakes I gave you?” She scooped up another
bite and ate. “The orange one,” she said after she swallowed, “is new.” She scrunched
up her nose. “I wasn’t sure at first.” She scooped half a spoonful of cake and half
ice cream and took a bite.

His dick got hard as he watched her lips close over the spoon.

“It kept coming out way too sweet,” she said, snapping him from his fantasy of her
savoring him the same way.

“What?” He shifted slightly to ease the constriction of his jeans.

She frowned for a moment. “The orange crème. When I first started working on it, it
took me a while to get the right balance of orange and vanilla without it practically
giving you cavities.”

“I think you found your balance. It was good. Reminded me of the orange-vanilla ice
creams from when I was kid.”

She rewarded him with the biggest smile yet. “That’s what I was going for.” She tilted
her head to the side. “Would you be interested in trying another flavor? I’ve been
working on a maple and bacon cupcake. Something a little different for the men who
come in.”

“Maple and bacon. In a cupcake?”

She laughed. She had a musical lilt to her voice when she laughed. It went straight
to Jax’s gut.

“It’s not as gross as it probably sounds, I promise.”

Jax’s phone vibrated. He didn’t want to look at it, and he was off duty, but like
Marissa had said, he was never
truly
off duty. If something came up, he had to go in. He glanced at the screen. Ada, the
dispatcher, had texted him. One of the stores downtown had a break-in and the two
other officers on duty were out on other calls.

“Thanks for letting me cut in on your dessert.” He waved his cell at her. “Unfortunately,
duty calls.”

“Oh sure.” She licked at a bit of chocolate from the corner of her mouth.

Jax fought off a moan as he stood.

She waved the spoon at him. “Be safe.”

Marissa blinked several times at Jax’s departing back.
“Be safe.”
How stupid was that to say to a cop? The chief, no less. She looked down at the plate
in front of her. She’d never even realized there was food in front of her. And she’d
eaten half of it. In front of Jax.

Cherry slid back into her seat.

“Where the hell have you been?”

Cherry waggled her blond eyebrows. “I was giving you and
the chief
time to talk. You swear you haven’t hooked up with him?”

“Don’t you think I’d remember if I had?” Marissa set her spoon down. “Why’d you send
this over? I looked like a pig eating all of it.”

“No you didn’t. And he was too busy staring into your eyes to worry about a little
cake.”

“Shut up. He was not.” Marissa’s heart pounded. “Was he?”

“Swear to God.” Cherry held up her hand. “He looks just like he did in school but
so much more. Bigger. Sturdier. I don’t know what else, just more.”

Marissa nodded. “Protective. Like it’s personal for him.”

“Exactly.” Cherry glanced at her watch. “I need to get back to work. Are we still
on for the Blue Spur this weekend?”

“Absolutely.” Marissa smiled, but going out to a honky-tonk Saturday night was about
the last thing she wanted to do. Jax’s face flashed in her mind. She would much rather
sit and talk to Jax. Getting knocked into and hit on by a bunch of sweaty guys… It
had taken her a while to be able to accept positive attention from men in a way she
hadn’t in high school. The Blue Spur, however, wasn’t her favorite spot.

She shook her head. Jax hadn’t asked, and she wasn’t about to presume he would. Hell,
she didn’t even know if he was single. Even if he was, she wondered if he had weekends
to himself. He’d barely made it through dinner before he was called into work.

* * *

Jax was fastening his badge to his belt as he walked into the stationery store. He’d
gone out back behind the building as soon as he’d gotten to the scene. He wanted to
check and see if his hunch would pan out and it had. The back door had a hole similar
to the one at Marissa’s shop. Just below the push bar. The stationery store hadn’t
fared as well, though. Stock had been knocked off shelves. The registers were broken
and several high-end gifts had been taken along with a small safe that had sat under
the manager’s desk in the office.