Baker’s Law (2 page)

Her first instinct was to run and hide. It had been years since anyone had called
her that. Lulu. The nickname had started when she was in the seventh grade and a little
pudgy. Moo-Moo Llewellyn had stuck for a few months, then been shortened to simply
Lulu. By her senior year, some of the kids hadn’t even known her actual name. Thankfully,
after graduation it had died away. She’d never have guessed Jax Carlisle knew it or
would remember it.

She wasn’t that awkward teen any longer, and she wasn’t going to let Chief McHottypants
get to her. “My name is Marissa. And if there’s nothing else…” She pushed him out
the door. “Good night.”

Jax moved aside to avoid getting hit by the door. Once Marissa locked it, she turned,
headed back through the small shop and never looked back. The lights went out, leaving
the bakery barely lit, and all the while he stood in front of the shop holding a box
of desserts.

What had he said that had made her so mad, so quickly? And there was no doubt he’d
upset her. He frowned. She had been one of the few students who hadn’t fallen over
themselves to be near him. At the time he’d soaked up the attention, taken advantage
of his godlike status.

It had made him cocky back then. Now he hoped no one remembered.

When the call had come in to the station, her name hadn’t immediately registered.
He’d known several Llewellyns growing up. Two boys, both older than him, and two younger
twin girls. They’d lived on the other side of the tracks. Literally. The railroad
separated the tax brackets in Oak Hollow. His mom had never out-and-out forbade him
to hang out with someone from “the other side,” but as they didn’t spin in her circle—and
couldn’t pay the ridiculous annual club dues—she didn’t acknowledge them.

It was his mother’s narrow-mindedness that had kept him away for so many years. Partly
because of how wrong it was and partly because his senior year of high school he’d
started to buy into it all. When he’d gone off to the University of Texas he’d been
a nobody. The school was huge and he’d melted into the crowd like every other freshman.
At first it had grated on his over-inflated ego. Then he’d realized how hard it’d
been to keep up the pretenses the Carlisles were “obligated” to foster.

Once he’d gotten out of school, Austin was as good as place as any to put down roots.
He’d gotten a basic degree and wasn’t entirely sure where he wanted to go with his
life once he graduated, but law enforcement ran in his blood. It was too blue-collar
for his mother to ever acknowledge, but in the back of his mind he’d always entertained
the idea of joining the force, so he decided to give it a try. Once he got out of
the academy, he’d known it was a great fit for him and he’d settled into his job and
his adopted town.

As the years went on, though, there were days when he longed for the familiarity of
his hometown, his friends and, even if it was hard to admit, his family. He had stayed
in touch with several of his true friends, the ones who had stuck around when his
mother cut him off for not following in the long Carlisle steps.

Then when Otto Kendal had told Jax his father was set to retire as the Oak Hollow
police chief, Jax immediately inquired about his replacement. It had taken several
interviews, but the mayor had finally decided to go with someone who was familiar
with the town rather than a couple of the other applicants with a slight experience
advantage. Both of those men were from out of state and that had been Jax’s ace in
the hole despite his mother’s objections. Had the mayor hired him just to spite Bunny
Carlisle?

No surprise, he’d gotten a call not ten minutes after he’d signed the contract. His
mother had heard the news before he’d had a chance to tell her. Not that she’d have
been able to talk him out of the job. She hadn’t been able to get him to quit any
of the years he’d spent on the Austin police force. She was happy that he’d moved
back home, but in the weeks since his relocation, she’d been vocal about his choice
of profession.

When he was a teen, he’d let her influence him. He’d long since broken that habit.

He shook his head. He’d expected frequent trips down memory lane while he settled
back into the routine of life in Oak Hollow. He just hadn’t expected it to take up
most of his waking thoughts. Especially when he’d been called to his old stomping
grounds. He’d hung out on Flower Tree, the main street of Oak Hollow since its founding
in the early nineteen hundreds. In high school, there’d been a burger chain, a donut
shop and a florist. The florist was still there, but the two staples from his teens
had been transformed into a chic woman’s boutique and the cupcake shop.

Jax had been up at the police station when the call came in from Marissa Llewellyn.
Hell, he’d been up at the station late almost every night the past week. He hadn’t
anticipated the amount of paperwork he had to do on a daily basis. Working as a detective
in Austin for the last six years had prepared him to take over some aspects when Chief
Kendal retired. It hadn’t prepared him for the mounds of paperwork that came along
with it.

The department had a small staff. Six full-time officers and two reserve officers
as well as two dispatchers. He and all the officers were on call even when they were
off. One month into his term, he’d gone on several routine calls, mostly small-town
non-emergencies. The crime rate in Oak Hollow was well below average, and this was
the first B and E call for him here if you didn’t count the fact that the “suspect”
snuck out before he could get so much as a look at him. And the fact that nothing
appeared to be missing save a single cupcake…

He walked back to the old SUV cruiser he’d inherited with the job. He set the cupcakes
on the seat beside him, then set his hat atop the box. Back in high school, he wouldn’t
have been caught dead wearing a cowboy hat. Going off to college had changed so many
things in his life—all for the better as far as he was concerned.

Another light went out in the shop, but no further movement. He scanned the lot. There
were no other cars. He guessed Lulu— no, he’d better think of her as Marissa—had parked
around back. He drove around to the back of the shop just as she was shoving a trash
bag into the dumpster. She jumped when he neared her. He rolled down the window. “Didn’t
mean to startle you. You heading home?”

She shook her head. The long dark ponytail swished over her shoulder. “I have to be
back up here in a few hours anyway, so no point in wasting gas.”

Jax shifted the SUV into park. “I came to take a better look at the door. See how
the guy might’ve got in.”

Marissa glanced between him and the door then back again. “Oh, sure.” She let the
door swing shut. “Knock yourself out.”

Jax unclipped the flashlight from his belt and examined the door. He’d caught a glance
of it as it swung shut. It was an ancient push handle exit, one small lock and a plain
handle. He squatted. “How long has this hole been here?” He ran his finger over a
small drilled hole just under the handle.

Marissa squinted and leaned over his shoulder. Her dark brown ponytail brushed the
edge of his shoulder, she was so close. “No idea.” she said. “Why?”

Jax scanned the area around the door and found an umbrella skeleton. “Is the door
locked right now?”

“Yeah.” Her warm breath feathered over his cheeks. He had to fight to keep his attitude
professional. Having her lean over him like this was damn distracting. Not to mention
her smell—all sweet and sugary.

She reached out and traced her finger over the hole. “It stays locked. Automatic.
When it closes.” After a moment her eyes rounded and she stood away from him. “The
hole means something?”

He nodded, then picked up the umbrella skeleton and shoved it through the hole. He
gave it a little wiggle, then pulled. The door opened enough for him to get a hold
of the edge and open it. The broken umbrella was open and pushed down the bar.

Marissa fisted her hands at her sides and let loose a low growl. “I’ll be damned.”
She rubbed a hand over her crooked ponytail. Little strands of hair, loose from the
band, stuck out every which way. “Wonder how much that’s going to cost me to repair
or replace?”

Jax held the edge of the door until she came over and set her foot alongside the bottom,
then he walked the umbrella over to the dumpster and dropped it inside. “On the upshot,
if the kid had wanted to rob you, you’d be cleaned out by now. Ten times over, probably.”

“That makes me feel so much better.” She hugged her arms over her chest.

He tried not to look at the way her breasts mounded over her forearms. She’d already
caught him all but leering at her once. No matter how hot she was, the woman was a
citizen who’d called him for help. And at three in the morning, out behind a bakery
was the last place he should let his mind run wild. His eyes strayed downward again.
She had magnificent breasts.

She fidgeted, drawing his attention back up to her face. “Thanks again for coming
out. ‘Night. Or morning or whatever.”

“I’d get that fixed as soon as you can. You going to be okay here by yourself?” He
didn’t want to make it seem like he was making light of the burglary, but it wasn’t
every day that someone broke into a shop to do their homework.

“Yeah. Enjoy the cupcakes.” She motioned to his vehicle. “Congratulations on the new
job, Jax.” She walked back into the bakery and let the door shut behind her.

Jax tried the handle just to make sure it was truly locked. It didn’t budge. Why would
a teen break in to simply eat and do homework? Trouble at home? Or could it be something
more? A kid with no place to go. He hadn’t heard of there being any homeless kids
in town. When he got back to the station, he’d ask around and see if any reports had
been filed. Later.

Unlike Marissa, though, he needed to get some sleep. In his bed. He was getting too
old to pull all-nighters.

Inside the SUV, he called the dispatcher.

“Ada, Sweets by Marissa is all clear. I’m headed home.”

“10-4, Chief.”

He clipped the mic back into place and drove slowly down the alley behind the bakery,
keeping an eye out for the intruder. While he did believe Marissa Llewellyn, he hadn’t
seen anyone in the shop but her when she came to the door thanks to the painted advertising
on the front windows. But he wouldn’t be doing his job if he didn’t at least look
for anyone hanging around and at three in the morning; folks didn’t just walk around
Oak Hollow unless they were up to no good.

Jax snatched up the mic again. “Ada?”

“Yes, Chief?”

“Have one of the officers patrol Flower Tree first thing in the morning just to make
sure all’s well.”

“Will do.”

It took less than ten minutes to get from the bakery to the house he’d bought—as far
away from his mother’s estate as possible, even though it didn’t take long to get
from any one place to another in Oak Hollow. Despite having a population of just over
ten thousand, the town was laid out in a close community. A far cry from close to
a million in Austin.

Jax was dog tired as he crossed through the kitchen to set down the cupcakes Marissa
gave him, but the tantalizing smell made him hold off on bedtime just yet. He popped
open the box and planned to sample only one treat. A few minutes later, he’d eaten
two of them and was eyeing a third, but the twenty-hour day was creeping up on him.
He shut the box to save the rest for breakfast.

A few hours of sleep and Jax would be good. He didn’t even bother to undress, just
laid on top of the comforter his sister had given him when he moved in. As soon as
he woke, he was going to head back to Flower Tree, look around a little more and check
in on Marissa. Maybe buy a few more of those cupcakes. He’d seen strawberry ones in
the case. It would give him another excuse to see her again—unofficially.

“That’s your fourth cup.” Kya set a batch of red velvet cupcakes into the display.

Marissa’s hands shook slightly from the caffeine. “It’s the only thing keeping me
awake.”

“Go home.”

“Soon.” She’d gotten a little sleep after Jax Carlisle left. But not nearly enough.
Inappropriate, yet delicious thoughts about the new chief of police had plagued her
sleep. Just after daybreak, she’d given up and started baking.

When Kya had come in around noon, Marissa hurried home and got a couple more hours
of sleep. She’d finally banished her wayward thoughts of Jax but she couldn’t stop
thinking about the boy. Who snuck into a business to do homework? And like Jax said,
the boy could have robbed her several times, but he hadn’t.

When she woke, she headed back to the shop just before the high school let out. Several
kids usually came in and she wanted to try and spot the one from earlier that morning.
Plus she had to meet her oldest brother. She’d called Duff to come look at the door
and see if he could fix it. He’d promised to be by after he got off work.

Twenty minutes later, several girls came in giggling and whispering. Marissa recognized
one of them from down the street. She was about to wave her over when a lanky frame
across the street caught her eye. “It’s him.” She bolted from her perch behind the
counter and raced out the front door, flour on her face and apron. “Hey. You!”

The teen turned. She saw the moment he realized who was yelling at him—his eyes widened
and he darted between the dry cleaners and the animal hospital.

Traffic up Flower Tree was too heavy for her to run across on foot. She needed her
SUV if she wanted to see where he ended up. Back in the shop, the girls looked up
from the counter. One turned up her nose like Marissa had just walked out of the bathroom
with her skirt tucked into her undies. The one from her neighborhood kept her back
to her—like she’d never met Marissa before. Teenagers. They were a good portion of
her patrons so she tried to ignore their lovely mood swings. And now she had to deal
with them breaking into her shop.