Mango Madness Murder: A Frosted Love Cozy Mystery - Book 15 (Frosted Love Cozy Mysteries) Read Free

talking to Cheryl and looking decidedly glum.
    “Hey
girlfriend, long time no see,” Missy greeted her, putting the tray of luscious
cupcakes on top of the display case.
    “Is
that Carob Cappuccino?” her friend asked, sounding weary.
    “Yes
it is,” she replied handing one over. “You okay?”
    “I
will be, but it’s gonna take two of these at least before I get there,” she
sighed.
    Missy
handed her another cupcake. “Go sit, I’ll be there in a minute with fresh
coffee,” she ordered, giving Cheryl an apologetic look.
    “I’ve
got this,” the young woman smiled with understanding. “I think Grayson just
made a fresh pot of Costa Rican,” she gestured toward the kitchen, letting her
boss off the hook.
    “Thank
you,” Missy mouthed silently, turned so that her distressed buddy couldn’t see
her.
    “What’s
wrong, sugar plum?” she asked, upon returning with two piping hot mugs of java.
    “I
don’t know exactly,” Echo sighed. She took a gargantuan bite of her cupcake and
chewed slowly, as though the very act of chewing was wearing her out. “I think
I might be depressed,” she shrugged her shoulders limply.
    “Depressed?
But, honey, why?” Missy brushed a stray lock of slightly frizzy, naturally
fire-red hair back from her friend’s brow.
    “I
don’t know. I think part of it is that I’ve been really homesick for California
lately. I miss the beach, and the sunsets…” she trailed off and took a bracing
swig of her coffee.
    “Well
there are pretty sunsets here in good ole Loosyana too,” she was reminded
lightly.
    “Yeah,
I know, but they’re just not quite the same. Particularly when I don’t have
anyone to share them with,” she looked down and swiped her forefinger across
the top of her second cupcake, licking it clean.
    “Sweetie,
are you lonely? I’m so sorry, I’ve been a terrible friend,” Missy moved her
chair closer and hugged her. “We can spend a lot more time together, I’m going
to be hiring several more people anyway, so I won’t need to be here as much,”
she reassured her.
    Echo
smiled ruefully. “No offense, dearest, but you don’t exactly have the right
equipment to cure my loneliness,” she raised her eyebrows meaningfully.
    “Oh!”
Missy exclaimed, her cheeks flushing crimson. “You mean…umm…”
    “No,
that’s not what I mean,” her friend sighed. “I just want a man who’ll be nice
to me – who’ll take me to the movies, eat ice cream with me, give me a hug when
I need one,” she wished dreamily. “No offense, my beloved friend, but your arms
are not nearly strong enough or hairy enough,” she teased, finally cracking a
genuine smile at having made her friend jump to a conclusion that made her blush.
    “Oh,
right, of course,” Missy grinned, recovering.
    “Not
everyone has a Mr. Wonderful,” Echo mused wryly.
    “Well,
I’ll see if I can find you one,” Missy promised, meaning it.
    “What
would I do without you?” was the fond reply.

Chapter 4
    “Graysooooooon!”
Missy’s normally calm, cool, collected demeanor had temporarily taken leave as
she prepared for the mayoral debate reception.
    “Yeah,
boss?” the youth came trotting over from where he had been putting finishing
touches on a display.
    Closing
her eyes, taking a deep breath, and trying to remain calm, she said, “One of
the star cupcakes for the flag has lost two of its points.”
    Her
voice wavered just a bit, but Grayson was perceptive and knew that she was
close to the end of her rope for some reason. Everything was going smoothly,
but the young man knew that she was also consumed with wedding plans and
finding replacements for Ben and Cheryl, so her stress level was completely
understandable, if not entirely warranted.
    “Ms.
G.,” he said, taking her by the shoulders and looking her dead in the eye, a
bold move for the reclusive youth, “I’ve got this, okay? There are at least a
dozen star replacement cupcakes in the van, I’ll just grab one and