Jessica Beck - Donut Shop 18 - Dangerous Dough

The First Time Ever Published!

The 18
^th
Donut Mystery

From
New
York Times
Bestselling Author

Jessica Beck

DANGEROUS DOUGH

Other Books by Jessica Beck

The Donut Shop Mysteries

Glazed Murder

Fatally Frosted

Sinister Sprinkles

Evil Éclairs

Tragic Toppings

Killer Crullers

Drop Dead Chocolate

Powdered Peril

Illegally Iced

Deadly Donuts

Assault and Batter

Sweet Suspects

Deep Fried Homicide

Custard Crime

Lemon Larceny

Bad Bites

Old Fashioned Crooks

Dangerous Dough

The Classic Diner Mysteries

A Chili Death

A Deadly Beef

A Killer Cake

A Baked Ham

A Bad Egg

A Real Pickle

A Burned Biscuit

The Ghost Cat Cozy Mysteries

Ghost Cat: Midnight Paws

Ghost Cat 2: Bid for Midnight

Jessica Beck
is the
New York Times
bestselling author
of the Donut Shop Mysteries from St. Martin's Press and Author of the Classic
Diner Mystery Series and the Ghost Cat Cozy Mysteries from Cozy Publishing.

To you, my loyal readers,

this is the one you’ve been asking for!

Dangerous
Dough by Jessica Beck; Copyright © 2015

All
rights reserved.

No
part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or
electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage
piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. This is a
work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the
product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any
resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events,
or locales is entirely coincidental.

Recipes
included in this book are to be recreated at the reader’s own risk.
 
The author is not responsible for any
damage, medical or otherwise, created as a result of reproducing these recipes.
 
It is the responsibility of the reader
to ensure that none of the ingredients are detrimental to their health, and the
author will not be held liable in any way for any problems that might arise
from following the included recipes.

Chapter 1

A honeymoon, by
its very definition, isn’t supposed to last forever, but I wished that mine
with Jake had been longer than the week we spent together in Paris after our
hurried nuptials.
 
Flying back to North
Carolina’s Charlotte Douglas Airport was bittersweet after the wondrous time
we’d spent exploring the City of Lights hand in hand as a freshly minted
married couple, but the glow was suddenly extinguished when we got back to my
Jeep in the long-term parking lot and found my mother there waiting for us.

I knew instantly
that there was trouble—that much was obvious from her face—but I didn’t have
any idea just how much until she told us the real reason she was there.
 

Chapter 2

Eight Days Earlier

“Can’t you do
that any faster?” Jake asked me as I finished making out the day’s deposit
slip.
 
He’d just proposed and I’d
readily accepted, but that didn’t mean that I could drop everything and just
go.
 
After all, Donut Hearts needed
to be taken care of before I could leave.

“I’m working as
fast as I can,” I told him with a grin.
 
“Who knew that you could be so impatient?”

“I’m afraid that if
I give you too much time to think about it, you might change your mind,” he
said with a smile matching my own.

“There’s not a
chance in the world of that happening, mister,” I said after I took the time to
give him a quick peck on the lips.
 
“You’re not getting rid of me that easily.”

“That’s good,
because I feel the same way about you.”
 
He frowned for a moment before he spoke again.
 
“Don’t forget, you need to call Emma.”

“As much as she
means to me, I’m not inviting her to our wedding, Jake.
 
If I ask more folks than Momma and Grace
to be our witnesses, where do I draw the line?
 
Do we have to invite Chief Martin?
 
How about your friend Terry Hanlan?
 
Can we exclude Emily Hargraves?
 
If we invite her, then what about Max?
 
I don’t know about you, but I’d rather
not have my ex-husband attending my wedding, but that’s not all.
 
What is Gabby Williams going to say if
we invite the others but we exclude her?
 
Before we know it, it’s going to be completely out of control.
 
Don’t worry; Emma will understand.”

“I’m not talking
about the ceremony, Suzanne.
 
You
need to ask her to take over the donut shop while we’re gone.”

“You’re right,” I
said with a laugh as I reached for the phone.
 
“That’s something I really have to take
care of before we take off.
 
Let me
call her right now.”

“Hang on a second,”
Jake said as he put a hand on mine.
 
“We need to figure something out first.
 
Are you going to tell her the real
reason we won’t be here for the next week?”

“Why not?
 
We’re getting married, and I want the
whole world to know,” I answered with a smile.
 
I couldn’t help it.
 
Grinning now seemed to be my resting
face.

“Well, they certainly
all will if you tell Emma the truth.
 
Can you imagine Ray Blake not putting it on the front page of his
newspaper?
 
Last week he ran a
headline about the volunteer fire department getting a cat out of a tree.
 
I’ve got a feeling that he’s going to
think this is a lot more newsworthy than that.”

“Let him,” I
said, “unless you don’t want folks to know.”

“He can put it on
a billboard for all I care,” Jake said.
 
“I just wanted to make sure that you were okay with it.
 
Go on.
 
Make the call.”

“Isn’t there
someone else you need to call yourself?” I asked him before I dialed Emma’s
number.

“Not me.
 
I’m all set.
 
George will be ready for us at one,
Grace and your mother are on standby, I’ve made our plane reservations for
seven tonight, and we’re staying a week at a quaint little place on the Isle de
Saint Louis that a guy on the force recommended.”

“Where exactly is
that in Paris?” I asked him.

“Trust me; you’re
going to love it.
 
It’s on an island
in the Seine, the one right next to Notre Dame.
 
I checked it out a month ago online, and
it looks awesome.”

That was
touching, since I’d told him time and time again that I’d wanted to go to Paris
all my life.
 
Who knew that he’d
actually been listening?
 
“You
already looked into it?
 
Jake, how
long have you been planning this honeymoon?”

He grinned
sheepishly at me.
 
“To tell you the
truth, I was planning to take you anyway; going there on our honeymoon sounded
like a perfect excuse to me.”
 
As he
was saying it, he must have realized how that sounded, because he quickly
added, “Not that I need an excuse to go anywhere with you.”

I had to
laugh.
 
“Don’t worry about how it
sounded.
 
Today, of all days, you
get a Get Out of Jail Free card from me.
 
After all, it’s our wedding day.”

“It is at that,”
he said, and then he frowned slightly.
 
“Does that mean that it’s bad luck for me to see you before the
ceremony?”

I kissed him
again before I replied.
 
At that
rate, I was never going to get my deposit done, but who cared?
 
I was getting married!
 
“As far as I’m concerned, it’s
never
bad luck when I see you.”
 
I made the call, swore Emma to secrecy
first, and then told her our news.

“You’re getting
married!” she shrieked happily.
 
“That’s wonderful.”

“Emma, you can
tell your father, but could you at least wait until three o’clock this
afternoon?”

“Sure, but why
the delay?” my young assistant asked.

“Because the
ceremony will be over by then.”
 
I
hesitated, and then I knew I had to tell her that she wasn’t invited to the nuptials.
 
“You know that you are one of my dearest
friends, but we’re just having two witnesses today, and there will be no guests
at all.
 
Can you forgive me for
excluding you?”

She laughed at
the news, which was a good sign.
 
“Suzanne, I’d think you were insane if you did it any other way!
 
If Grace or your mother can’t make it,
you can call me to be a witness, but otherwise, you have my blessing not to
invite me.”

“How did you know
they’d be our witnesses?” I asked her.

“Who else would
you ask?
 
Mom and I will be
delighted to step in at the shop while you’re gone.
 
I’m assuming you’re going on a
honeymoon, aren’t you?”

“Jake is taking
me to Paris,” I said happily.

“Mom’s going to
be jealous that you’re going to France and she isn’t.”

“To tell you the
truth, I still can’t believe that it’s happening,” I said.

“Well, don’t
worry about Donut Hearts for one second.
 
She’ll be in good hands.”

“I know she
will,” I said.
 
“Thanks.”

“It’s truly wonderful
news, Suzanne,” Emma said happily.

“It is, isn’t
it?” I replied, and then I hung up.
 
“It’s all set,” I told Jake.

“Good,” he
replied.
 
“
Now
are you finished?”

Thank goodness
the money we took in balanced the first time I ran my report.
 
If it hadn’t, I wasn’t sure that I would
have even cared.
 
“I’m ready to go,”
I said.

“Then let’s get
out of here.
 
We can pack our bags
and leave right after the ceremony,” Jake said.

“Why the
rush?
 
Our flight doesn’t leave
until seven, so we’ll have plenty of time to make it.”

“I’m trying to
avoid anyone making a fuss over us,” he admitted.

I had to
laugh.
 
“We both know that’s not
happening.
 
Momma’s going to insist that
we have some kind of celebration before we go.
 
You can bank on it.”

Jake’s brow
furrowed for an instant.
 
“Suzanne,
we don’t really need to share this moment with anyone else, do we?”

I patted his arm
gently.
 
“Do you honestly think it
would be for us?
 
It’s just Momma’s
way of saying she’s pleased with our decision, and she wants the world to know
it.”

“Maybe it will
just be a few people,” Jake said.

My groom could
believe that if he wanted, but I knew in my heart that he was delusional.
 

My mother was
many things, but low profile wasn’t one of them.

To my great surprise
and relief, there wasn’t a huge crowd waiting for us when we got to the
courthouse.
 
Jake must have sensed a
shift in my mood, because he glanced over at me.
 
“You’re not having second thoughts, are
you?”

“Not on your
life.
 
I was half expecting a mob to
be here waiting for us, though.
 
In
all honesty, I’m kind of relieved that no one else is here.”

He patted my arm
gently.
 
“Your mother is respecting
our wishes.”

“I know.
 
That’s what is so crazy about it.
 
Maybe they’re all waiting inside to
ambush us.”

Jake’s laughter
was infectious, and I found myself joining him.
 
“Suzanne, are you ready to do this?”

“Always and
forever.”

I was happy to
see Momma and Grace waiting just inside the door for us.
 
After a round of quick hugs, I told my
mother, “Thank you so much.”

“For being
here?
 
You know that I wouldn’t have
missed it for the world.”

“Sure, for that,
but most of all for not making this a mob scene.”

“I know how to
show restraint when it’s called for,” Momma said a little diffidently, and then
she smiled at me.
 
“Shall we?”

The four of us
made our way to the mayor’s office, and again, I held my breath as Jake opened
the door.
 

I was relieved to
see that our officiant was alone.
 
Dressed
in his finest suit, the mayor smiled broadly as we entered.

“Let’s get this
thing rolling, folks.
 
You’ve got a
plane to catch,” George said with a hearty grin.
 
“Are you both ready?”

“We are,” Jake
and I said in perfect unison, as though we’d practiced beforehand.

George’s grin
broadened.
 
“That’s what I like: a
couple in perfect synch.”

The mayor moved
in front of his desk as Jake and I joined him there.
 
Momma and Grace were just a few steps
back, but it felt as though no one else in the world was there but my fiancé
and me.
 
Jake squeezed my hand, and
then he winked at me as I turned toward him.
 
I smiled back, and we moved to face
George together.

As the mayor
finished reading from his script, I saw that there were a few errant tears in George’s
eyes, though they were difficult to see through my own.
 
Jake wiped absently at his own cheek,
and I was certain that if I looked backward, Momma and Grace would be weeping
as well.
 
There was no sadness in
any of it today; they were all tears of joy, and I welcomed them, a proper
beginning for the new life that Jake and I were embarking on.

“Go on.
 
Kiss your bride,” George urged as he
finished the ceremony, and Jake took me in his arms and did just that.
 
The applause behind us was lost on me.

I had myself a
brand-new husband, and I couldn’t have been happier about it.

Once we had all
signed the documents George had laid out for us, I turned to my new
husband.
 
“Just think.
 
Tomorrow we’ll be together in Paris.”

“I’m starting to
think that you might have married me just for the honeymoon.”
 
He reddened a little before he added,
“You know what I mean.
 
I’m talking
about the trip.”

I kissed his
cheek.
 
“Of course you are.”

My mother coughed
a bit to get my attention.
 
“Suzanne, there’s something you both need to see before you go anywhere.
 
It’s important.”

I knew this was
just her way of trying to whisk us off to whatever festivities she’d planned
for us, but I didn’t have to make it easy on her.
 
“What could possibly be that important to
us today, of all days?” I asked her.

“Come downstairs
to the basement with me and you’ll see,” she said.
 
I recognized that enigmatic smile, and I
knew that something was about to happen.

“You arranged some
kind of reception for us, didn’t you?” I asked her.

“Now, don’t be angry,”
Momma said.
 
“I thought your friends
might like the opportunity to wish you well before you jetted off across the
ocean.”

Well, it wasn’t
as if I hadn’t been expecting it.
 
Jake was just going to have to grin and bear it until it was time to
leave for the airport.
 
“How many
folks did you invite?”

“Just a few,” she
said, and I could tell instantly that she was lying.

“Which means the
entire town,” Grace said happily, and then we all started laughing.

“Why not?
 
Let’s go,” I said, and then I put my arm
around my husband’s.
 
My, I liked
the sound of that.
 
“We might as well
pretend it was our idea all along,” I told him.

“It’s going to be
fine,” Jake replied, much calmer than I’d expected.