Creamed at the Coffee Cabana: A Cozy Mystery (Sweet Home Cozy Mystery Series Book 1) by Constance Barker Read Free Book Online Page A

the door, Essie scooted out a chair next to her and told him to come sit with us.
     
    “Don’t be in such a rush Eli. Come sit with us hens for a bit.”
     
    He smiled and obliged. “So what are you ladies doing out and about tonight?”
     
    “We just came from Meghan Barton’s house,” Jules answered. “We took her and Trevor dinner.”
     
    Eli looked down at his cup of cherry jubilee. “That was nice of you ladies.”
     
    He was keeping his cards close to his vest, but Essie was having none of it. She leaned over to him.
     
    “Eli, why would you arrest Mike Barton? He’s a very nice man. I can’t see him murdering Fannie. It has to be somebody else. I mean no one liked the woman…I couldn’t stand her.”
     
    “You’re not confessing are you?” He asked teasingly.
     
    Essie sat back up in her chair. “Of course not! You know you’re not too old for a swatting.”
     
    Heehee…good one Eli.
     
    Eli laughed. Wow, I hadn’t seen him laugh in well, forever. He had a nice smile with dimples that creased his cheeks. Most of the time I only saw him in his uniform and he was always so serious. Now he seemed much more laid back.
     
    “Ladies, you know I can’t discuss an ongoing investigation.”
     
    “Essie leave him be. We’ll just have to figure this out on our own,” I said.
     
    Eli sat back and looked at me. “So are you ladies trying your hand at detective work?”
     
    “We might be,” Essie replied.
     
    “Since the murder occurred in our shop, we would like to know who did it,” I answered.
     
    “And you don’t think it was Mike?”
     
    I looked across the table at Eli. “Honestly I don’t.”
     
    “Then who do you think it is?”
     
    “Oh no,” Essie interrupted. “If you won’t tell us about your evidence, we’re not telling you anything.”
     
    “That’s obstructing justice,” Eli said. I could tell he was still teasing Essie, but she couldn’t.
     
    “Eli Davis, are you suggesting you might arrest me?”
     
    “Not at all Essie.” She seemed to settle down a bit. “But if you ladies do run across something that pertains to the murder, you will let me know, right?”
     
    We all looked at each other across the table. The button! That freaking button! We were all thinking the same thing but each of us nodded and said ‘oh yes, we’ll let you know if we find something Eli.’ Ugh!
     
    Eli stood up to leave. “Have a good night ladies.” We said our goodbyes and I watched as he walked to the door of the ice cream shop. Suddenly he turned and winked at me. Huh? What was that? I suddenly felt a twinge in my chest. Abruptly it was gone as my Aunt Essie’s voice loomed.
     
    “What are we going to do now?” She whispered loudly.
     
    “About what?” I whispered loudly back.
     
    “Why are we whispering?” Hildie asked.
     
    Jules shrugged and continued to devour her rocky road.
     
    “The button, girl!” Essie whisper shouted. “You gave Mildred the button back.”
     
    “I thought we all agreed to give it back to her.”
     
    “Don’t pull me in with you peeps,” Jules said out loud. “I wasn’t here for your escapade.”
     
    I was tired of whispering. “What? Now we think Mildred is the perp?”
     
    “What’s a perp?” Hildie asked.
     
    Essie ignored her. “No but…after what Eli said.”
     
    “Why did you have to ask him about the case in the first place?” I asked.
     
    Essie straightened in her chair. “It’s in my nature to be nosy.”
     
    “That’s your defense?” I asked. Suddenly I laughed. I couldn’t help it. Which got them all to laughing. It was a welcome release, one we all needed after a stressful week. We finished our ice cream and headed home separately. We would need our rest because the next day would be a doozy, one with unexpected revelations.

Chapter Eight
     
     
    While the day before ended on a lighthearted note, the next morning Essie was back to being a nervous Nelly over the button deal.
     
    “I