Devil's Food Murder: A Frosted Love Cozy Mystery - Book 10 (Frosted Love Cozy Mysteries) (4 page)

Missy had dressed for dinner, which tended to be a dressy affair in the Beckett household, and sat beside Chas, saying little.

“You okay?” he asked, taking her hand.

She left her hand in his grasp, but didn’t respond to his touch. “Fine, thanks,” she replied quietly, reaching for her water goblet.

It looked as though Chas was going to pursue the matter further, but was prevented from doing so by the timely arrival of Reginald, who greeted Missy with a kiss on the hand before taking a seat across the table from the couple.

“Is your father going to be joining us?” Missy asked, making conversation.

“No, Pops headed back up to the funny farm this morning,” Reggie grinned wickedly.

“Not funny,” Chas responded, sipping his wine.

“Oh lighten up, Chas. Why do you always have to be such a stiff? I was just joking, trying to lighten the mood. This place has been like a morgue since Giles bit it,” he complained as Missy stared at him, not knowing what to think.

“What about you, southern belle? Has my big brother put this murder nonsense to rest yet?” he asked, taking a rather large gulp of his wine.

“I…uh…” Missy faltered.

“We’re working on it,” Chas replied.

“I don’t see what’s so difficult, other than maybe narrowing down the long line of people who would’ve been more than glad to see the insufferable bloke snuffed,” Reggie observed, refilling his glass.

“What do you mean?” Missy asked, feeling a glimmer of hope.

“As you learned firsthand, Giles Heatherington is…excuse me…was, a posturing, pompous arse who had the insane ability to get on the nerves of nearly everyone he met,” he explained dryly.

“Lose one too many wagers to him, Reggie? You’re sounding a bit bitter,” Chas raised an eyebrow.

“Merely stating fact, dear brother,” Reggie drained his glass again, shooting daggers over the rim at his brother, who was observing him with keen interest.

“Just where did you disappear to last night?” Chas asked.

“Don’t even start with me, Charles. I may have despised the pathetic fool, but my life is far too good to risk being put in a cage for the rest of my life,” his brother warned, sounding bored.

“Who do you think did it?” Missy asked, ignoring a frustrated glance from Chas.

“If I had to place bets, I’d guess that it was the senator who backed a bill that was written for the sole purpose of benefitting the Heatherington enterprises globally. The bill was passed, and somehow the donation that had been earmarked for the senator’s campaign disappeared, leaving the poor sap high and dry. He ended up losing to some grass-roots yokel. But what do I know?” he finished sarcastically, shooting his brother a withering glance.

“Was the senator at the party last night?” Missy persisted, and this time Chas was listening intently as well.

“Of course. He was trying to court Beckett funding for another run at the seat in the next term,” Reggie shrugged nonchalantly.

Missy found herself feeling even more out of her league. Politician’s tried to curry favor with Chas’s family when considering a campaign for office.

“I’ll check it out,” Chas said begrudgingly, while his brother smiled in triumph.

“What about his wife?” Missy asked, in a small voice.

“What?” Chas responded before his brother could.

“Isn’t it kind of like a police rule or something that if someone dies, the first person to be questioned is the spouse or significant other?” she asked, fearing the detective’s reaction to the accusation that she was sort of suggesting about his former fiancée.

“Impossible,” he proclaimed dismissively, making Missy wince.

“Why impossible?” she persisted.

Reggie decided to weigh in on the discussion. “Because, sweet lady, Amanda married that sow Giles because he was the next wealthiest choice after Charles.”

“Reginald!” Chas barked a warning.

“Ohhh…you hadn’t told her yet, how clumsy of me,” he said, sounding not the least bit apologetic. “At any rate, that woman is one hundred percent gold-digger, despite her family’s considerable net worth. There’s not a chance in the world that she’d jeopardize her bank account or social standing just because she hated the fop that she had the misfortune to marry after my dear brother spurned her,” Reggie finished lightly, pouring yet another measure of expensive French wine into his goblet.

The dining staff came in to serve as he finished his explanation, leaving Missy staring miserably at her plate and pretending to eat the exquisite repast.

Missy had gone to her room right after dinner, claiming a headache and feeling utterly devastated. The more experience that she had with Chas, his family and friends, the more she realized that she was entirely out of her league. She longed to return home to the simple comforts of dear, hard-working people and the busy oblivion of her businesses, which would be a welcome respite.

She had received a call the evening before, while at dinner with Chas and Reggie, from Althea Browning, the lovely bride-to-be that Mayor Felton had sent to Missy for wedding planning. To take her mind off of the ugly situation in which she currently found herself, she returned Althea’s call the next morning, set a time to get together upon her return, and began to talk about some preliminary details. Immersing herself in a world of flowers, dresses, catering and space planning did her a world of good, restoring her perspective, and renewing her sense of purpose. It was also a relief to hear a voice from home, that had the same subtle twang as Missy’s.

There was a knock on the door to her room and Chas poked his head in. “Hey, beautiful, would you like to join me for breakfast?” he asked, coming in and moving toward her for a kiss.

Missy turned her head quickly, so that his kiss grazed her cheek. “Sure, I’d love to,” she said too brightly, putting her phone in the pocket of her jeans and heading for the door. Chas caught up with her and placed a hand on her arm, making her turn around to face him. His eyes searched her face with concern.

“Missy, what’s wrong?” he asked, his hand cupping her cheek.

She averted her eyes, not trusting herself to respond.

“Look, sweetie, we’ll get this mess cleared up, I promise. I’m having lunch with the senator that Reggie mentioned last night, I have a lead that someone on the kitchen staff might’ve seen something, and I’ll be meeting with Amanda Heatherington this morning.”

At the mention of Chas’s almost-fiancee’s name, Missy turned quickly, slipping out of his grasp and going to the window as though she had a sudden compulsion to view the gardens. Blinking away tears, she wrapped her arms around her midsection, trying desperately not to fall apart. Chas appeared instantly behind her, concerned and confused. He wrapped his arms around her from behind, and she stood as pliable as stone, not turning to face him as tears coursed freely down her cheeks.

“Sweetie, I can’t help you if you don’t talk to me,” he said softly in her ear. “Please, just tell me what’s wrong.”

The feel of his strength, being immersed in the clean, masculine scent of him, made Missy’s heart ache. She stared out the window, seeing nothing, but not looking at her beloved when she responded. “I’m sorry Chas,” her voice sounded as frail as she felt at the moment. “If I’d had any idea of who you were, I would have never begun anything. I know that there can’t be any future between us now. You’re so far out of my league that we shouldn’t even be breathing the same air. You don’t have to worry about me for the rest of the time that we’re here. You can be there for Amanda, and when we go back to LaChance, we’ll just go our separate ways,” she said, her voice breaking as sobs overtook her.

Chas took her by the shoulders and turned her around to face him, making her look at him. His heart broke at the sight of her tearstained face, but what she had said frustrated and angered him.

“You’re making a lot of assumptions here that have no basis in fact,” he said firmly. “I have no interest whatsoever in Amanda. We went on a few dates as teenagers and people in both families made too much out of it. I could never, ever, shackle myself to someone like that, and in case you hadn’t noticed, I left this pretentious society garbage behind me a long time ago. As far as not knowing who I am…you, Melissa Gladstone, know more about me and who I am than any other human on this planet. So don’t try to tell me who I can and can’t be with just because I happened to be born with a silver spoon in my mouth that I spat out at the first opportunity,” he said quietly. “If you want to leave because you can’t handle being in a relationship, then do what you have to do, but don’t even think about blaming it on me. I’m in this for as long as you want me, and I’ve never, ever said anything even remotely close to that to anyone else.”

After probably the longest speech he’d ever made in his life, Detective Chas Beckett dropped his hands from her shoulders and stepped back, never dropping his gaze. “I won’t impose myself upon anyone, Missy. I’m leaving now. Whether I come back is entirely up to you.” The hurt in his deep blue eyes was unmistakable, and Missy’s heart lurched, knowing that she had caused it. He turned from her and walked out the door, and she let him go.

Missy stayed in her room for the next few days, not venturing out even for meals. Maggie brought her anything she needed, continually admonishing her to eat.

The maid entered Missy’s darkened room just before 11:00 am, and shook her head. “Wake up, lil miss,” she sang out, throwing the curtains open wide to let in the sunlight. Missy sat up in bed, blinking at the bright light streaming in. “You’re gonna take a stroll in the gardens today, and then I’m gonna serve yer lunch to ya right out there among the trees and flowers. Yer fadin’ away to nuthin’ and I’m not gonna let you turn into a pale slip of a girl. I’ve laid yer clothes out fer ya, and I’ll be back to check on ya in 15 minutes. If ya haven’t dressed yerself by then, lil miss, I’ll be dressin’ ya, mark my words,” she advised lovingly.

Missy did as she’d been told, mostly because there were few alternatives and she didn’t want Maggie to worry about her. She had lost weight in the past few days, barely eating, unable to sleep other than when she passed out from sheer exhaustion after another gut-wrenching sob session. The beauty of the sculpted gardens escaped her notice as she wandered listlessly toward the willow tree where Maggie had promised that her lunch would be waiting.

True to her word, the compassionate Irish maid had set two chairs and a bistro table with a feast under the gently swaying branches. Tears swam in Missy’s eyes, thankful for the concern of the stout, motherly woman. She sat in one of the chairs, took a bottle of pinot grigio from the ice bucket, and poured herself a glass of wine.

“A snack with that would probably be a good idea,” Chas’s voice said quietly behind her.

“Probably,” Missy said tonelessly, sipping her wine and longing to run into his arms.

“May I join you?” he asked, coming around to the other side of the table. Missy shrugged, taking another drink and not looking at him.

“Maggie set me up,” she murmured, sighing.

“No, actually, I set you up. I just used Maggie to facilitate it,” he said, sitting and leaning toward her.

“Why?” she asked dully, still avoiding his gaze.

“Because I realized that I’ve allowed this nonsense to go on long enough,” he admitted with a faint smile. “I told you that I won’t impose myself upon you, and that’s still true, I won’t, but there are some things that you should know before you make up your mind to write me off as undate-able, for whatever reason.”

“Chas, you don’t have to…” she began to protest.

“Yes, I do,” he interrupted. “Please, just hear me out,” he insisted, taking her wine glass from her hand and setting it on the table.

“I’m listening,” she said softly, beginning to feel the effects of the wine.

For a man of few words, Chas Beckett was about to speak volumes, and it quite frankly scared the heck out of him. “I left New York because I wanted to change the world, and was naïve  enough to believe that I could. Still do actually. My family saw my idealistic values as frivolous and basically cast me out of their lives without a second thought, except for my mom. She always called me her little crusader, and I was devastated when she died,” he admitted, looking down for a moment.

“Because of the treachery and deceit that I had witnessed in my family’s social circle since childhood, I pretty much decided that I would avoid relationships entirely so that I wouldn’t be hurt. It was a strategy that worked for me…until I met you,” he gazed into her eyes.

“Suddenly the work that had meant everything to me, and gave me my only sense of purpose, became secondary to seeing your beautiful smile at the end of the day. When I didn’t see you, I thought about you. Even in the midst of sensitive work, you’d cross my mind several times a day,” he confessed shyly.

“I never thought I’d feel this way about anyone, Missy. You rocked my world and broke my heart when you said you didn’t want to see me anymore. I couldn’t even fathom what my life would be like without you,” he shook his head, looking down at his hands, then stood and moved over to her.

“C’mere,” he beckoned, holding out his hands. Missy put her hands in his and stood, a bit wobbly, but spellbound by what Chas had said, and the look in his eyes. Cupping her face in his hands, he gazed at her for a long moment. “I love you, Melissa Gladstone,” he husked. “I’ve known it for quite some time, and just didn’t know how to tell you, but it’s true. I love you and I believe I always will. I just wanted you to know that before you decided whether or not you’re going to break my heart by walking away,” he whispered, his voice thick with emotion.

Missy’s eyes widened as she grasped what he was saying, and she threw her arms around his neck, sobbing. “Oh Chas, I love you too! I have for a long time and I didn’t know if you felt the same way and I didn’t want to scare you away, and I didn’t know how to tell you,” her words came out in a relieved and heartfelt flood as she held onto him for dear life, sobbing into the hard planes of his chest.

“That’s what I wanted to hear,” he confessed, kissing her hair and holding her close. “Can we please go back to being normal with each other now, sweetie? I’ve missed you,” he hugged her tightly.

“Yes, yes, a thousand times yes,” she nodded, tilting her face to receive his kiss.