Football is Murder (Bee's Bakehouse Cozy Mysteries Book 4) (Bee's Bakehouse Mysteries) (2 page)

Jessie glanced around, trying to remember where she’d left her phone. Seeing it on the kitchen bench, she walked over and grabbed it. She was surprised to see the time: two in the morning. It didn’t feel like she’d slept for that long.

Her attention was drawn to the window again. It looked like there was a spotlight trained right on her home. But who could be out there at two in the morning? Jessie shivered and wrapped her arms around herself. She hated having the drapes open when it was dark outside.

She tiptoed to the window and glanced out, making a mental note to get some blinds for privacy. If she had turned on the lights, she knew, anybody out there would have seen straight into her home.

Her heart pounded even harder at the thought.

“Stop it, Jessie,” she muttered to herself. “It’s just your over-active imagination. You’re thirty-seven. You’re not afraid of the dark.”

No
, she thought.
I’m not afraid of the dark. But that light is so intense…

It didn’t help that she and Julia had had a horror movie marathon just a couple of nights before.

Jessie swallowed and forced herself to look out. Seconds later, it all made sense. Directly across the street, her new neighbor’s headlights shone full beam into the darkness.

“Huh?” she murmured.

Back in the city, it would have been no strange thing. But this wasn’t the city. Springdale pretty much shut down after nine at night, especially on weekdays.

Jessie shook her head and pulled the drapes closed. It amazed her how quickly she had fallen into small town mode. So what if the guy left his home in the middle of the night? It was none of her business. She moved away from the window and scooped up Toby. She needed to get some sleep or else she’d fall asleep over the stove in the café the next day.

* * *

It felt like only five minutes had passed when Jessie’s eyes flew open again. Startled and blinking, she stared around in the darkness. It took her a moment to realize she wasn’t in Aunt Bee’s cottage, but in her own new rental home. Toby had gotten out of the room and was barking like crazy someplace in the house. She reached over and scrambled on the nightstand for her phone.

She blinked, dazzled by the bright light of the screen.

It was four in the morning. Heart thumping, she shuffled out of bed and felt around the bare floor with her feet. When she finally located her slippers, she slipped them on and got out of bed. She hadn’t unpacked her fuzzy bathrobe yet, so she wrapped an oversized cardigan around herself instead.

She was about to call Toby, but she stopped herself just in time. Instead, she crept through the house as silently as she could. She soon found him—he was barking at the living room window just like he had been before. Satisfied there was nobody else in the house, Jessie crept to the window and pulled back the drape.

She saw a flash of red across the street before everything went dark again. She looked down. Toby was running in circles around himself, but he appeared to have calmed down a bit.

“It’s okay, boy,” she whispered. “Come on, let’s go back to bed.”

Before she did, though, she pulled back the drape one more time. She shook her head. Who was her new neighbor? And more importantly, where could he have gone between two and four in the morning? There was literally nothing to do at this time, especially for somebody who was new in town and likely knew nobody.

Jessie padded back to bed, telling herself it was none of her business. But her curiosity was piqued.

* * *

“Calm down, boy,” Jessie said as she turned to bolt the door before they headed to the café for the day.

It didn’t help that Toby was straining at his leash. She wondered if he was as tired and agitated as she was. She’d barely got back to sleep again before her alarm buzzed and it was time to get up for work.

Closing the gate behind her, she saw a familiar figure across the street. She waved despite his rude reaction the previous day, assuming he must have been having a bad day. He just scowled back at her without acknowledging her greeting at all.

She wasn’t sure if it was her tiredness or his rudeness, but something inside her snapped. Before she could stop herself, she was marching across the street with Toby trotting by her side.

“What kind of reaction is that, huh? I was just trying to welcome you to the neighborhood.”

Cold blue eyes regarded her and she found herself revising her assessment of him. He didn’t have the warmth required to be considered handsome in her book and she couldn’t stand rudeness.

“Thanks,” he snapped, before turning to walk away without saying another word.

Beside her, Toby growled with a menace she hadn’t heard from him before. It was interesting, she thought, that her little pug was as wary of this stranger as she was.

“Well, you could at least have a little more consideration and not keep the neighborhood up all night.”

He spun around. He moved surprisingly quickly for such a bulky guy. His eyes narrowed—if she had thought them cold before, they were positively arctic now.

“Keeping the neighborhood up all night?” he repeated in a low, menacing voice.

Jessie jutted her chin. There was something intimidating about this guy, but she refused to be cowed by him. “Yeah,” she snapped. “Your juggernaut back there.” She jerked her head in the direction of his driveway. “Toby went crazy barking because you were driving around at all hours of the night.”

His tan face seemed to blanch then. He recovered a moment or two later. “Excuse me,” he said smoothly. “Let me get this straight. Is there some kind of curfew in effect here?”

Jessie pursed her lips. She’d allowed her irritation to do the talking without stopping to ask herself if it was justifiable. He had a point, she knew.

She shook her head. “No. There isn’t.”

“Well then,” he sneered. “Maybe don’t blame me. You should muzzle that yappy little brat if he’s keeping you away at night.”

Jessie tightened her grip on Toby’s leash. She stared at him in disbelief. “How can you say something like that? He’s just a puppy.”

Her new neighbor didn’t say another word. He turned and walked up his driveway, tapping his mail against his leg. Jessie seethed in his wake.

Chapter 3

Jessie had calmed down by the time she reached the café. She knew it was her own fault for snapping and that Aunt Bee was right—there was no law that said you had to be friendly to your neighbors. It was strange, but it was none of her business. She made a mental note to stay out of his way in future.

What was he doing in the middle of the night?

She couldn’t shake her curiosity any more than she could shake the sense that she knew him from somewhere. She chopped vegetables and made a mental list of everything else she needed to do before they opened. She popped out regularly to check on Toby. He had curled up in his doggy basket as soon as they arrived. Jessie would have loved to do the same.

Instead, she fixed herself a double-shot latte and prepared herself for the early morning rush. It wouldn’t be so bad, she knew. Tania was still around for another couple of months and Bee herself would be along shortly to prepare.

Sure enough, the bell rang over the door and Jessie looked up to see her aunt bustle inside. She smiled.

“Missing me yet?”

Bee swatted her hand. “Are you kidding? My home isn’t crammed full of junk shop furniture anymore. I’m in heaven.”

Jessie feigned offense. “You know how much that hurts?”

Bee walked across the café and through to the kitchen, ignoring her. Jessie followed her inside, clutching her coffee mug in two hands.

“You seem a little bleary-eyed,” Bee said, dropping her purse and scrutinizing her niece. “Trouble sleeping in a new bedroom?”

Jessie shook her head. She felt embarrassed about her encounter with her neighbor now and she just wanted to forget it. “I guess. Maybe. Toby was up in the middle of the night barking.”

“Really? But it’s very peaceful on your street.”

Jessie shrugged. “Maybe it’s taking him a while to get settled in a new house.”

“You should ask Clarice. See if she’s got any tips to help him settle.”

Jessie nodded, feeling guilty for misleading her aunt.

The bell above the café door rang and they both left the kitchen to see who it was. Jessie grinned at the sight of her aunt’s face—it always lit up when Chief Charles Daly was around.

“Hey, Chief,” Jessie grinned. She had to admit that having the chief around brightened up her day too. They had worked on a number of cases together—unofficially of course—and Jessie had grown fond of Springdale’s Chief of Police. On the surface he was a very traditional man, but underneath she knew there was a light-hearted man with a great sense of humor.

“Jessie,” he said, nodding in her direction. “Keeping yourself out of trouble?”

She rolled her eyes and grinned. “Moving has kept me busy, that’s for sure.”

He smiled at Aunt Bee. “Ah, yes. I’ve heard you planned it all wrong.”

He winked as Jessie turned on Bee. She knew the chief was baiting her, but she couldn’t resist the opportunity to goad her aunt.

“How could you say that?”

Bee swatted her arm. “Oh come on now, dear. You know it’s true. And besides. I’d never say anything behind your back that I wouldn’t say to your face.”

“That’s true,” Jessie conceded, grinding some more coffee. “The usual, Chief?”

He shook his head. “I’ll take the coffee and hold the pastry.”

Jessie and Bee both snapped their heads around to look at him. Chief Daly was a creature of habit—he never took his coffee without a sweet treat to accompany it.

He held his hands up. “Don’t round on me like that, you two. It’s terrifying. I’m in a hurry, that’s all. I’ll take the coffee to go, please Jessie.”

Jessie nodded and reached under the counter for a to-go cup. “What’s got you in such a rush?” she asked as she steamed the milk.

He leaned on the counter and massaged his temples. “There’s been a murder over in Rockfield.”

“Oh?” she said, glancing up. Before, she might have been surprised. But after the recent spate of crimes in Springdale, she wasn’t so easily shocked anymore. And anyway, Rockfield was about three times the size of Springdale.

“Yes,” he nodded. “They’ve heard about our work over here and they’ve asked me to consult. It’s their first murder case in years and it’s got the chief there stumped.”

Jessie paid little attention, focusing on making a heart shape on the top of the coffee.

“Maybe I should take you with me, Jessie. After all, you helped solve several cases here.”

Jessie laughed. “Oh come on, Chief. We both know that was just luck.”

He raised an eyebrow.

“I’m really busy with the café and the move.”

“Don’t you want to know the details?”

She shrugged. The truth was, if it hadn’t happened in Springdale, it wasn’t close enough to home to rattle her. If anything, she felt relieved that there hadn’t been an incident in Springdale. That might have kept her up at nights, watching the front door and clutching her phone.

The chief appeared to take her silence as a ‘yes’. “Chief Carston is stumped. The victim is a football player. Quite high-profile. That’s why they want to get this solved quickly and cleanly. Otherwise, there could be a lot of negative publicity for the town. People act weirdly when there’s a celebrity involved, or so I’m told.”

Jessie finished pouring the milk and scooped some foam out of the jug. She wasn’t a football fan, so the details washed over her. She did feel a jolt of recognition at something the chief said.

“What was that?” she asked, almost tipping over the cardboard cup.

He frowned. “What was what now? I was just saying they’re stumped. Johnny Cooper. Used to play for the Ravens.”

That was it. Jessie knew that name well. Her ex-husband, Roger, used to support the Ravens. Probably still did, for all she knew. She had gotten used to zoning out every time she heard the word
Ravens
, because it was usually the precursor for a lengthy speech about their position in the league and their recent performance.

She knew that name, though.

“Johnny Cooper,” she repeated. “I’ve heard that. My ex-husband is a Ravens fan.”

Chief Daly stared at her as if she was crazy. “Of course you’ve heard that name. He’s a legend. Or was. Just about the best defensive player they had. And I’m not even a football fan. They need to solve this fast if they want to keep it out of the papers.”

“Here’s your coffee,” Jessie said, still trying to remember. She wished she’d paid more attention to the games now. She could definitely remember them talking about Cooper. “And good luck with the case.”

“You sure you don’t want to help out?”

She shivered. “No. I’ve had just about enough murder cases as I can take. This one’s not close to home so I’ll sit it out.”

“Okay,” he nodded. “It’s a pity, though. Let me know if you change your mind.”

Jessie nodded, even though she knew there was no way that was going to happen. She was sticking to making coffees and decorating furniture—not chasing criminals.

* * *

Bee rushed into the kitchen so fast that Jessie looked around in terror, afraid she was going to slip on the just-mopped floor and go flying through the air.

“Slow down,” Jessie hissed. “Just looking at you is making me nervous.”

It was only then that she noticed the look on her aunt’s face. Aunt Bee was beaming from ear-to-ear as if she’d just won the lottery.

Intrigued, Jessie turned down the heat on the stove and turned to scrutinize her aunt. “What’s going on with you?”

Bee stared at her, eyes sparkling.

“Seriously? I’ve never seen you look so happy this early in the morning. What is it?”

“It’s Melanie,” Bee said breathlessly. “She’s coming to visit.”

“Oh my goodness,” Jessie gasped.

Now she could see why Bee looked so happy. Melanie had a demanding job working for a large international management consultancy firm. She traveled all over for work, but she very rarely had the chance to take vacation time. Jessie couldn’t remember the last time she had seen her cousin face-to-face. Sure, they spoke on the phone all the time, but that was different.