Bitter Sweet (29 page)
“It’s anybody’s guess how severe
the sentences might be,” Beau said. “But the prosecutor plans to come down
hard.”
Still feeling for Debbie
O’Malley, whose rotten spouse couldn’t resist even her small cash hoard, Sam
asked Beau how soon he thought the stolen funds might be recovered. “Could we
see that Debbie gets her money back?”
“It’s done,” he said. “I raided
Ted’s wallet and sent her the two thousand dollars I found there. We’re still
tracking down what he did with the bulk of Lila’s money.”
Her heart filled with love for
this man who cared more about justice than about whether he might get in
trouble for doing a good deed.
Sam thought of Iris. Beau saw the
shadow cross her face. “At least we know that Mama wasn’t one of their victims.
If she had been, you’d have had a hard time keeping me from smashing a few of
those guys to smithereens. Not that Lila and Sadie weren’t just as important.”
“I know what you’re saying.” Sam
squeezed his hand. It was a bittersweet resolution to the cases.
Jen stuck her head through the
new curtain in the doorway. “Sam? Someone to see you.”
She started to pick up her order
pad but Jen shook her head. “It’s not that.”
Puzzled, Sam walked to the newly
cleaned and refreshed sales room. A huge bouquet of red roses filled the
doorway. Then it dawned on her that the flowers were surrounded by people.
Zoë rushed forward to hug her,
and Sam spotted Darryl, Ivan the bookseller, Riki from Puppy Chic, her longtime
friend Rupert
Penrick
, Kelly, and a number of her
regular customers—all the friends who’d helped so much. Beau stood close by as
each person offered hugs, congratulations and good wishes for the shop.
“You had something to do with
this,” she said, twisting to stare up at him.
He spread his arms wide. “Not me.
I can’t take any credit. You’ve got a big bunch of friends and admirers, is all
I can say.” His smile lit up his face.
“I can’t even—” Sam’s voice
cracked.
The crowd divided and someone
began to step forward. Slowly, learning how to operate her crutches, Renata
Butler came toward her.
“Samantha, you have saved my
life. Your shop has made very many people happy. We want you to have—how do you
say?—greatest of success. This really is ‘bakery of magical delight’.” She got
a little round of applause and Sam watched through blurry eyes as Darryl helped
her to a chair.
Sam turned to see where her
employees had gone, wanting to publicly thank them.
At that moment Jen pulled the
doorway curtain back and Julio and Becky emerged carrying a cake Sam had not
seen before. Made in the shape of a baker’s jacket, it had Sam’s name in purple
script over a tiny replica pocket, with the store logo on the other side.
Candles stood where the buttons would go, sending a glow onto their faces.
“Make a wish, Sam, and then we’re
all having cake!” Becky announced.
Sam could think of only one wish.
She closed her eyes and blew out the candles.
Discover all of Connie Shelton’s mysteries!
The Charlie Parker Series
Deadly
Gamble
Vacations
Can Be Murder
Partnerships
Can Be Murder
Small
Towns Can Be Murder
Memories
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Honeymoons
Can Be Murder
Reunions
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Competition
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Balloons
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Obsessions
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Gossip
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Stardom
Can Be Murder
Phantoms
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Holidays
Can Be Murder - a Christmas novella
The Samantha Sweet Series
Sweet
Masterpiece
Sweet’s
Sweets
Sweet
Holidays
Sweet
Hearts
Bitter
Sweet
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Bitter Sweet
Published by Secret Staircase Books, an imprint of
Columbine Publishing Group
PO Box 416, Angel Fire, NM 87710
Copyright © 2012 Connie Shelton
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be
reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or
mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by an information storage and
retrieval system without permission in writing from the publisher.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters,
places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are
used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons,
living or dead, is entirely coincidental. Although the author and publisher
have made every effort to ensure the accuracy and completeness of information
contained in this book we assume no responsibility for errors, inaccuracies,
omissions, or any inconsistency herein. Any slights of people, places or
organizations are unintentional.
Book layout and design by Secret Staircase Books
Cover image ©Dmitry
Maslov
First e-book edition: September 2012
Also published in trade paperback
First trade paperback edition: September 2012