Cupid's Corpse: A Cozy Mystery (Gemma Stone Cozy Mystery Book 3) (12 page)

And then that beautiful, bright red car slid easily into drive and rolled away down the street with barely a sound.

G
emma stood there for a moment staring at the empty street and then she went back inside, closed the front door and leaned back against it. Then she sank to the floor and burst into tears. How could this be happening?

Holly found her three hours later, curled up in a fetal position on the sofa, an empty half-gallon ice cream carton sitting on the table in front of her.

“Gemma, honey, it scared me when you didn’t answer the door,” Holly said, smiling in relief when Gemma’s eyes flickered open.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t even hear you. I must have fallen asleep,” Gemma said, shifting to a sitting position. Her whole body ached. The sticky spoon she’d been using to eat ice cream was stuck to the front of her shirt. She peeled it off, wrinkled her nose at it, and tossed it into the carton.

Holly took off her coat and flopped down beside her.

“Celebrating your break up with Nick?” she asked, nudging the empty ice cream carton with her toe.

“And Ross,” Gemma said.

“Ross?”

“Yeah, he decided Valentine’s Day would be the perfect day to tell me he needed a little space. Breathing room. Whatever you want to call it,” Gemma told her friend.

“Oh, Gemma, honey, I am so sorry,” Holly said, squeezing her hand.

“That has to be some kind of record, right? Getting dumped by two separate men on Valentine’s Day. I’ll bet that’s never happened to anyone before,” Gemma told her.

“I don’t know...”

Gemma interrupted her. “Maybe I should call those Guinness people. You know they would probably put me in their World Record book or something.”

“I don’t think so,” Holly said, struggling to keep a straight face.

“Or maybe for the most ice cream eaten in one day. I have another carton in the freezer, you know,” Gemma was up straight and smiling now. “I’m a contender.”

“And you could go get more if you wanted to,” Holly reminded her.

Gemma looked down at her outfit. “Nah, then I’d have to put on pants. I don’t think I’m ever getting dressed again. Just gonna wear this forever. The perfect breaking up outfit. I’ll see if I can just get ice cream delivered.”

Holly giggled. “Ice cream delivery?”

“I know, I’ll order it from Amazon. It should be here within minutes.”

By this time they were laughing hysterically, both of them thinking of more and more outrageous ways to get ice cream to the house as quickly as possible.

When they caught their breath and the laughter died down, Holly said, “I brought wine.”

“Just one bottle?”

Holly shook her head and grinned. “Nope. Two.”

Gemma smiled, hopped to her feet and headed toward the kitchen. “And I just happen to have two wine glasses. How convenient.”

Holly followed her into the kitchen and perched on the stool at the bar while Gemma poured the wine.

“What time is Mitch going to pick you up for dinner?” Gemma asked. “You probably should still be able to walk when he gets here.”

“I asked him if we could do it some other night. He’s already given me a bunch of presents and we’re going to have lots more Valentine’s Days together,” Holly said with a shrug. “I figured you might need me here.”

“That’s really sweet,” Gemma said. “Thank you.”

“That’s what best friends are for,” Holly added.

They clinked glasses in a toast to friendship and then burst into giggles when Gemma spilled some on her shirt, adding that to the tea stain.

“You know, sweetie, I really have been worried that something like this might happen. Love triangles hardly ever end well.”

Gemma picked up her glass. “You’re right, but it could have been a lot worse. A lot, lot worse,” she added thinking about Mr. Muzak, his wife and Joel Cunningham.

After a few minutes, Gemma turned, got the second carton of ice cream out of the freezer and grabbed two spoons.

“Come on, bring the wine,” she said to Holly as she headed back into the living room. “I want to tell you about a love triangle that ended in murder.”

Did you love
Cupid's Corpse: A Gemma Stone Cozy Mystery
? Then you should read
Mall Santa Murder: A Cozy Christmas Mystery
by Willow Monroe!

Gemma Stone normally hates the Black Friday shopping rush, but this year she’s excited – she and her best friend Holly have opened their very own jewelry boutique, and they’re pretty proud of it. The only downside might be that their fancy new mall kiosk is directly in front of Santa Land, the noisiest spot in the mall.

Santa is a drunk, the elves are kind of mean, and to top it off, security is left up to a wannabe cop who can’t pass the police academy entrance exam. As if that isn’t enough, Gemma discovers Santa dead, propped up against a poinsettia and strangled with garland. 

Suddenly everyone is a suspect, and Gemma can’t keep her nose out of police business. Things are getting dangerous, but even with handsome detective Ross Ferguson tracking her every move, Gemma has to solve this crime before she ends up dead.

Genre: Cozy Mystery
Length: 30,000 words