Read Online A Mouthful of Murder: A Frosted Love Cozy Mystery Book 4 (Frosted Love Mysteries) by Carol Durand, Summer Prescott - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Carol Durand, Summer Prescott
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the next day, just to chat, and was a bit concerned when her
friend didn’t answer the phone, so she planned to walk over to Sweet Love once
her shop was closed for the day. Heading across the street around 3:30, she was
surprised to find Echo’s helper, a high school gal named Donna, standing
outside in front of the ice cream shop.
“Hi
Donna,” Missy smiled. “What are you doing out here in the heat?”
“I
showed up for my shift a few minutes ago, but Miss Willis isn’t here yet. She
must be running late or something,” the teenager mused, scrolling through text
messages on her phone.
“Hmm…that’s
odd. Echo is usually here well in advance of opening time,” Missy frowned,
pulling her phone out of her back pocket. She tried Echo’s number again, still
no answer. Her next call was an urgent one to Chas Beckett. Walking around the
side of the shop to have some privacy, she dialed his number.
“Chas!”
she exclaimed when he answered. “I’ve been trying to reach Echo all day, and
she’s not answering her phone, and now she’s not here to open Sweet Love, I
think something may be terribly, terribly wrong,” she spoke urgently into the
receiver, trying to keep her voice down.
“Echo
is safe, but it’s a long story that I don’t have time to go into right now,”
Beckett said, sounding distracted. “I’ll call you tonight to explain. You can
go ahead and send Donna home, the shop won’t be opening today.”
**
Missy
hugged her pale and shaken friend when she appeared on her doorstep, looking
bedraggled and tired.
“Echo,
oh my goodness, I’ve been so worried about you, please come in.” She led the
somewhat dazed woman to the couch, and once she was seated, tenderhearted
Toffee came over and gently laid her head on the distressed woman’s knee,
peering up at her with sad brown eyes. The dog’s kindness was her undoing, and
Echo burst into tears, reaching down to bury her face in Toffee’s fur as she
cried, her arms around the dog’s neck.
Missy
sat down beside her and put her arm around Echo’s shaking shoulders, letting
her cry into Toffee’s silken fur, having done exactly that on several occasions
lately. When her sobs eased a bit and she sat up, wiping her face, Missy gave
her a huge hug.
“I’m
going to make you some tea and warm up a Mango Madness Muffin for you, you look
like you could use a snack,” she observed kindly, handing Echo a tissue.
“I
don’t want to be any trouble,” her friend replied weakly.
“Oh
honey, you’re in the South now, this is what we do,” Missy smiled.
Echo
stroked Toffee’s silky ears. The sensitive animal stayed by her side, seeming
to know the simple comfort that she was providing. Missy puttered around in the
kitchen, coming back moments later with a warm, fluffy muffin and a hot cup of
tea, placing them on the coffee table in front of her friend.
“Darlin,
what happened to you?” she asked, brushing a tangle of auburn curls away from
Echo’s face.
“Oh,
Missy, it was awful,” she bit her lip. “So…I told you how excited I was that I
had a date with Ian Barker,” she began. Missy’s stomach lurched at the sound of
his name, now that she knew that he had most likely murdered not only his aunt,
but Echo’s creepy ex-boyfriend as well.
“Yes,
I remember,” Missy said, careful to not let her revulsion show.
“Well,
he picked me up for a lunch date and he was, I don’t know, agitated. So I asked
him what was wrong, and he started yelling about how he had found out that one
of my ex-boyfriends was in town and how I should’ve told him and then he
started talking crazy, saying how he had not only taken care of it, but how he
had enjoyed it. I got really scared and told him that I wanted to go home, but
he refused to turn around, saying that I was his now, and that I had to do
whatever he told me to do. He drove really fast and recklessly and I didn’t
know what was going to happen. Oh Missy, it was so scary, I didn’t
friend didn’t answer the phone, so she planned to walk over to Sweet Love once
her shop was closed for the day. Heading across the street around 3:30, she was
surprised to find Echo’s helper, a high school gal named Donna, standing
outside in front of the ice cream shop.
“Hi
Donna,” Missy smiled. “What are you doing out here in the heat?”
“I
showed up for my shift a few minutes ago, but Miss Willis isn’t here yet. She
must be running late or something,” the teenager mused, scrolling through text
messages on her phone.
“Hmm…that’s
odd. Echo is usually here well in advance of opening time,” Missy frowned,
pulling her phone out of her back pocket. She tried Echo’s number again, still
no answer. Her next call was an urgent one to Chas Beckett. Walking around the
side of the shop to have some privacy, she dialed his number.
“Chas!”
she exclaimed when he answered. “I’ve been trying to reach Echo all day, and
she’s not answering her phone, and now she’s not here to open Sweet Love, I
think something may be terribly, terribly wrong,” she spoke urgently into the
receiver, trying to keep her voice down.
“Echo
is safe, but it’s a long story that I don’t have time to go into right now,”
Beckett said, sounding distracted. “I’ll call you tonight to explain. You can
go ahead and send Donna home, the shop won’t be opening today.”
**
Missy
hugged her pale and shaken friend when she appeared on her doorstep, looking
bedraggled and tired.
“Echo,
oh my goodness, I’ve been so worried about you, please come in.” She led the
somewhat dazed woman to the couch, and once she was seated, tenderhearted
Toffee came over and gently laid her head on the distressed woman’s knee,
peering up at her with sad brown eyes. The dog’s kindness was her undoing, and
Echo burst into tears, reaching down to bury her face in Toffee’s fur as she
cried, her arms around the dog’s neck.
Missy
sat down beside her and put her arm around Echo’s shaking shoulders, letting
her cry into Toffee’s silken fur, having done exactly that on several occasions
lately. When her sobs eased a bit and she sat up, wiping her face, Missy gave
her a huge hug.
“I’m
going to make you some tea and warm up a Mango Madness Muffin for you, you look
like you could use a snack,” she observed kindly, handing Echo a tissue.
“I
don’t want to be any trouble,” her friend replied weakly.
“Oh
honey, you’re in the South now, this is what we do,” Missy smiled.
Echo
stroked Toffee’s silky ears. The sensitive animal stayed by her side, seeming
to know the simple comfort that she was providing. Missy puttered around in the
kitchen, coming back moments later with a warm, fluffy muffin and a hot cup of
tea, placing them on the coffee table in front of her friend.
“Darlin,
what happened to you?” she asked, brushing a tangle of auburn curls away from
Echo’s face.
“Oh,
Missy, it was awful,” she bit her lip. “So…I told you how excited I was that I
had a date with Ian Barker,” she began. Missy’s stomach lurched at the sound of
his name, now that she knew that he had most likely murdered not only his aunt,
but Echo’s creepy ex-boyfriend as well.
“Yes,
I remember,” Missy said, careful to not let her revulsion show.
“Well,
he picked me up for a lunch date and he was, I don’t know, agitated. So I asked
him what was wrong, and he started yelling about how he had found out that one
of my ex-boyfriends was in town and how I should’ve told him and then he
started talking crazy, saying how he had not only taken care of it, but how he
had enjoyed it. I got really scared and told him that I wanted to go home, but
he refused to turn around, saying that I was his now, and that I had to do
whatever he told me to do. He drove really fast and recklessly and I didn’t
know what was going to happen. Oh Missy, it was so scary, I didn’t
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