Baker’s Law Read online

  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.

  Chapter Two

  “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.

  Marissa snagged her purse and keys and was coming out to tell Kya she’d be back as the girls all received their orders. The lot of them headed back out the store. At the door, the one from Marissa’s neighborhood paused—they’d met at block parties several times over the past couple of years. “I forgot my book. I’ll catch up.” She waved her friends away and walked back toward the counter. She checked over her shoulder a couple of times until the other girls were out of eyeshot. “You liv
e up the street, right?”

  “Yeah.” Marissa leaned her hip against the display case, then waved her hand at herself. “Marissa.”

  The teen’s eyes widened for a moment, then she glanced at the cup in her hand with the store logo on it. “Cool.” She gave a quick nod of approval. “I’m Lexi. Why were you running after that boy?”

  “You know him?”

  Lexi nodded, then took a long sip of her drink. “He goes by Hill. He’s a senior at my school. Why were you yelling at him?”

  “He forgot his change,” Marissa lied easily. “Do you know where he lives?”

  Lexi’s cheeks flushed. “He, um, I don’t know. I should go. My friends are waiting.” She hurried to the door.

  “You forgot your book.” Marissa scanned the counter and the table they’d stopped at momentarily, but there was no book. By the time she turned back to Lexi, the girl was already out the door.

  Marissa shook her head as she removed her apron. “Kya, I need to run out for a bit. I promise I’ll be back in time to meet with my brother for the door.”

  “Okay, boss.” Kya came out of the back with the broom.

  Marissa headed out to her SUV. Was she being silly to chase after a teenage boy—one she’d unsuccessfully tried to turn in to the police chief?

  “Maybe it’s sleep deprivation,” she muttered as she slid behind the wheel. Lack of sleep or no, it didn’t stop her from driving the direction she’d seen the boy—Hill—go. She was being stupid. There were any number of places a boy could hide, not to mention he might have just gone home. She was crossing the bridge into one of the main neighborhoods in Oak Hollow as she shook her head.

  “Might as well go back.” Her brother was due at her shop any minute. Marissa made a U-turn as soon as there was a break in traffic. As she was pulling into her lane, a flash of color caught her attention. Bright green and blue. Whatever it was, it hung from a tree branch next to the small creek that bisected the business end of town from the soccer fields. It caught her attention more when she remembered where she’d seen something similar before, on Hill—his backpack.

  What in the world would the boy be doing next to the creek?

  She gnawed her lip. Stop or not, she wasn’t sure, but since she’d been going on foolish impulse since grabbing her keys, she went ahead and pulled over to the side of the road and got out. The small area off to the side of the bridge was more cluttered than she might have expected for a town that boasted its civic pride on every posted sign.

  “I must have lost my mind.” Marissa turned to head back to the SUV and the dirt under her foot gave way. She slid down the short embankment on her butt, squealing the entire way down until she hit the bottom. The air jerked out of her lungs. It took a moment to catch her breath, then she stood and scanned the area. Her heart hammered as much from her quick ride as it did from the realization of how isolated she was. So far off the road, no one would be able to see her unless they came down the embankment as she had. Nor would anyone know if she needed help.

  Luckily, no one was lurking about.

  She twisted and checked the back of her pants. No holes, but dirty. She shook her head and dusted off her butt.

  For some reason she tiptoed as she crossed over to the small tree that held the backpack. She checked around her, feeling a little guilty and slightly exposed while snooping. When she was sure she was alone, she unzipped the largest of the compartments of the backpack. There were several schoolbooks and a notebook. She slid out the notebook. Paul Hillman was written across the front in small, precise black letters.

  It was the boy’s backpack. But what did that mean?

  Under the bridge overhang, Marissa found a clean sleeping bag. She studied it until a car horn honked. She looked at her watch. Time to get back to the shop to meet Duff.

  She breathed a little easier once she was back in her car and headed back to work. All the while her mind tried to process a young man breaking into her shop, taking only a few day-old cupcakes and…doing homework. It made too much sense when she considered the backpack and the sleeping bag. She got a terrible feeling in the pit of her stomach.

  When she arrived at the shop, she headed straight to the restroom to clean herself up before Duff got there. She didn’t want to explain what she’d been doing since she wasn’t entirely sure she could explain it. Just as she finished cleaning the last of the grit from her palms, Duff walked in.

  “Hey, little sis.” He gave her a quick hug, then pushed her to arm’s length and frowned down at her. “You look like hell.” One of his blond eyebrows cocked upward as he grabbed her by the shoulders and gave her a good onceover.

  She elbowed her oldest brother in the ribs. “Well, you’re just a ray of sunshine, aren’t ya.”

  “You love me anyway.” He gave her a quick noogie as she tried to swat him. “What do you need fixed?”

  Marissa showed him the hole in the back door, then skirted the issue when he asked how she’d found it. He told her it had rust around the edges, so it was probably pretty old.

  “I need to run up to the hardware store to get some supplies. Shouldn’t take me too long to get it done once I get back.”

  “Thank you, big brother.” She reared up on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek quickly.

  Duff snorted. “None of that brother-sister kissy stuff. I want cupcakes.”

  She chuckled. “Okay.” She hurried over to her desk and snagged a notepad. “Give me a list of flavors and I’ll have them ready for you when you’re done.” Duff’s sweet tooth was only surpassed by his wife’s. He and Libby were often two of her first tasters when she was working out new flavors for the shop.

  After he finished the order, he left for the hardware store.

  Marissa grabbed two Black Forest cupcakes, two of the vanilla bombs and four of the new orange crèmes. And for good measure she added in two of the new maple bacon and nestled them into the pink-and-white bakery box with a note atop for Duff to let her know what he and Libby thought of the new flavor. Then she took the rest of the quiet time in the back to get to work on the paperwork she’d fallen asleep over the night before. Her eyelids were again growing heavy as she scanned her employees’ time sheets. It shouldn’t be that difficult with one part-time employee and Kya working full-time, but the numbers kept swimming around the page.

  Maybe if she took a quick break. She crossed her arms over the sheets and laid her head down.

  The next moment, someone was tapping on her forehead. “Wake up, sleepyhead.”

  Marissa lifted her head to find Duff standing over her.

  “You’re lucky the only markers on your desk were permanent.” He tapped her forehead again. “You’d be sporting some wicked eyebrows and a ’stache.”

  “Small favors, I guess, that you do have your standards for your sibling torture.” She leaned back in the chair and massaged a kink in her neck. “So how long do you think it will take you?”

  Duff gave a quick snort. “Mar, I’ve already finished.”

  Marissa’s eyes widened.

  “You were sleeping like a rock.” Her brother gave her a long look. “What’s up with that? Are you having troubles?”

  She debated telling him about the break-in, but what could he do about it other than worry? “No trouble. Just a lot of paperwork that seems to be interfering with my sleep.” She lifted the time sheets in front of her.

  He looked like he didn’t believe her but didn’t comment further on the subject. “Come, let me show you what I did.” He motioned for her to follow him to the back door. “The patch will hold, but I would suggest you think about getting a new door altogether. And an alarm. This door’s not even wired for anything.”

  She opened her mouth to complain about funds being low, but he raised his hand.

  “I know they’re expensive. I’m just throwing that out there as an overprotective big brother.” They stopped at the door and he showed her the small panels he’d fastened on both sides of the door with some superglue
. “And just in case someone gets the bright idea of prying the panel off, I filled the hole with caulk.”

  “Thanks, Duff.” When he straightened he merely held out his hand and batted his eyelashes at her expectantly.

  Marissa rolled her eyes. “Let me get your cupcakes. I’d tell you to go easy on them, but I think Libby will be lucky if there are any left by the time you get home.” She patted his belly. “And I threw in two of a new one I’m working on.”

  He clapped his hands together. “What is it this time?

  “Maple bacon.”

  “Hmm.”

  That was a noncommittal response if she ever heard one. “Trust me. You’ll love it.” She handed him the box. “You’ll be calling me begging for more. Just you wait and see.”

  Once Duff left, Marissa finished the rest of the time sheets. Paying her employees was much more important than leaving a little early if she wanted to keep said employees.

  Kya popped back into her office about an hour before close. “Boss, there’s a group of teens loitering outside the shop.”

  Teenagers on their own weren’t that big a deal—their orders made up probably a third of her business—but for Kya to come back and bring it to her attention… The fine hairs on the back of her neck stood but she shook it off. It was probably nothing. Or it could be someone returning to the scene of the crime. Marissa sat up straighter in her chair. Would Hill be brazen enough to come back to the shop when she was open? She pushed back in her chair and followed Kya out to the front of the shop. “Where?”

  “Right now they’re across the street but they’ve walked past the front of the shop at least three times.”

  “Did they come in?”

  The younger woman shook her head.

  Under the guise of wiping down the tables, Marissa moved to the large window next to the door. A group of three guys stood next to a trash can on the opposite side of the street just as Kya said. It was hard to determine their ages, but they were dressed like typical teenagers. Hill was not with them. One of the guys, dressed in khaki pants and a loose button-down shirt, looked over at her. With his close-cropped blond hair, he didn’t stand out—he looked like any young man from the local high school—other than the way he kept eyeing her. When it looked like he might cross the street, an Oak Hollow officer drove slowly down the street. The boys walked in the opposite direction, not fast enough to look like they were running, but enough to see they didn’t want any part of the OH police force.