Easy Bake Coven: Book One of the Vivienne Finch Magical Mysteries (3 page)

Clara
winked at them both and straightened the lace collar on her uniform. “You’ve
heard right, Mister…”

“I’m
Joshua
Arkins
, the sheriff’s new deputy.”

Vivienne
swallowed hard and began to choke on a piece of pecan pie. Her face turned
bright red as she tried to contain the loud hacking.

Kathy
handed her the coffee mug. “Drink some of this.”

Vivienne
took it from her and downed the hot liquid. It did the trick and sent the
stubborn pecans down her throat where they belonged. “Thank you.” She squeaked
out.

Joshua
and Clara stared at Vivienne making sure she could breathe.

“Everything’s
fine.” Kathy defused their concern. “Thank you.”

Joshua
removed his brown deputy hat and allowed his thick black hair to gleam in the
afternoon sunlight that was streaming through the window blinds of the diner.
“Glad to hear it.”

Clara
waved Stephanie over to the front. “Here at Clara’s we always have a
complimentary cup of coffee for the sheriff and his deputies.”

Stephanie
quickly filled a ceramic mug with some coffee.

Clara
grimace in response. “Use one of the paper cups and be sure to put a cardboard
sleeve on it.”

“Oh
right.” Stephanie blushed and rushed to complete the order per Clara’s
instructions.

“I
could have it here I suppose.” Joshua smiled at Clara. “Sheriff
Rigsbee
wants me to get to know the town better.”

“Why,
of course!” Clara smiled warmly and directed him to one of the little stools
that lined the counter. “Would you like to see a menu?”

“No
thanks, I don’t want to spoil my appetite for dinner. I’ve been setup on a
blind date tonight.” Joshua sat down on the stool, where his long legs barely
folded under the counter.

“Just
kill me now.” Vivienne whispered to Kathy.

“What
are you talking about?” Kathy whispered back. “He’s adorable.”

“I’m
the blind date tonight.” She tried to lower herself in the booth.

“Get
out.” Kathy tapped her hands with excitement.

“Nora.”
She explained.

“Damn.”
Kathy admired Joshua’s body a few more times and then pouted. “This may be the
only time I wished your mother was my own.”

“Stephanie,
can we have our check please?” Kathy snapped her fingers.

“What
are you doing?” Vivienne’s eyes widened.

Kathy
winked at her. “I have a business to run and you need time to get ready for
your date with mister tall, dark, and handsome.”

“You
sound just like her.” Vivienne muttered under her breath.

“Hey,
if you don’t want to go out with him I’m more than happy to act as the proxy.”
She grabbed the check as Stephanie dropped it off. “This is on me.”

“Okay,
okay. I’ll do it.” Vivienne snuck a glance at him and for once wasn’t
disappointed by her mother’s choice. He was a very handsome man and, based on
how he was charming Miss Clara, had a good personality to match.

“Color
me so surprised.” Kathy raised her finely shaped eyebrows and handed a ten
dollar bill to Stephanie. “Keep the change, sweetie.”

“Thanks!”
Stephanie gushed at the generous tip.

“Excuse
me.” Kathy removed herself from the booth and walked slowly, her hips swaying
side to side with great effect to show off her trim figure. As she passed
Joshua, she pretended to drop her purse. “I’m such a butterfingers.” She tossed
her hands up to her mouth and feigned embarrassment.

Joshua
bent down to retrieve her purse which afforded all the women a great view of
his rear. He filled his fitted brown pants out quite nicely, a testimony to the
many hours of hard work spent at the gym.

Clara
mouthed a silent ‘Oh my God!’ to Kathy in response.

“Here
you go, Ma’am.” Joshua handed her purse back with a smile.

“Ma’am?”
Kathy extended her hand with perfectly French-manicured nails to him in
response. “I’m Kathy Saunders, owner of the
Trade
Winds Clothier
on Main Street.”

“Joshua
Arkins
.” He took her hand in his where it disappeared
into his enormous grip.

“Feel
free to stop by when you’re out and about on patrol.” She cooed. “I like to
know those brave souls who serve and protect the public.”

“I’ll
do that.” He smiled at her, flashing white teeth that were straight and well
cared for.

“Always
nice to see you, Miss Clara.” Kathy waved goodbye and exited the diner with a
little extra swish in her step.

“You
too, Kathy.” She waved back as the door to the diner slammed closed, ringing
the bell.

Vivienne
chose that moment to try to make a quick exit from the diner. She smiled at
Joshua and waved to Clara. “See you soon, Miss Clara.”

“Don’t
be a stranger, Vivienne.” Clara smiled back.

“Vivienne?”
Joshua looked at her in surprise. “You wouldn’t happen to be Vivienne Finch
would you?”

Her
cheeks flushed warm. “Uh, yes I am. I’m opening the new bakery on Main Street.”

“Your
mother is a very nice lady.”

“Yes
she is.” She was surprised how weak and hollow her voice sounded.

“Honestly,
I was a little worried about this blind date tonight.” He took a little sip of
coffee. “I’ve never had good luck with them before.”

“Oh?”
She tried to force a smile but feared it came across as a pained grimace across
blushed cheeks.

“Your
mother suggested seven thirty to pick you up, is that still okay?” His steel
blue eyes seemed to look right into her soul.

“Actually,
eight would work better. I have something to take care of when I finish at the
bakery tonight.” She made a mental note to stop at the
Monarch Grocery
and pick up a hair coloring kit on her way home.

“See
you then.” Joshua nodded and turned his attention back to Clara. “You’re right.
This coffee is the best I’ve had Miss Clara. Is it a dark roast?”

Vivienne
stepped out the door and enjoyed the cool autumn breeze that blew across her
face. She could actually feel her heart flutter a bit, which was a welcome
change from the butterflies in her stomach.

“Damn!”
Vivienne mumbled as the bottle of auburn number three slipped from the grip of
her gloved hand and splashed into her pedestal sink with a thud. A splatter of
red, not unlike the color of blood, sprayed the shiny white bowl and proceeded
to drizzle down in crooked rivulets toward the drain. Keeping one hand on her
lathered hair, she reached for the bottle and set it back on the shelf above
the spigot.

 
Why had she decided to color her hair tonight?
She was usually better at warding off her mother’s barbs about her declining
appearance. No, it wasn’t because of her. It must be the stress from opening a
new business. No, she changed her mind again. Deep down it wasn’t all that bad.
She had worked out a five year business plan, crunched the numbers, and
conducted local research. All signs pointed to a recipe for success. The actual
answer, she feared, was much worse. It was Joshua and those stunning steel-blue
eyes. For the first time in many moons, she actually had a crush.

She
set the egg timer for thirty minutes and proceeded to clean up the mess of red
that had invaded her normally pristine white-tiled bathroom. Every so often,
she would catch a glance into the mirror at her reflection and she wasn’t
thrilled with what she saw.

There
were times she could still see that awkward teenager girl who didn’t fit in
with the popular crowd at the high school. She had to work at the local
pizzeria carrying pitchers of beer and slices of supreme pizza while all the
popular girls drove to the mall in Ithaca on Friday nights and bought the
latest designer fashions and expensive makeup that the magazines raved as ‘must
haves’.

Not
that she regretted her formative years for a minute. Truth be told, they gave
her a sense of how a small business should run. She would often stay late with
the owners, watching as they balanced their books and took inventory of what to
re-order for the next big weekend. There was no doubt that she was able to
start her own business thanks to the long hours spent near those searing hot
ovens.

 
As for the popular girls, a few of them
probably found a husband with a good job and settled down to start a family. A
handful most likely came to their senses and worked on degrees in college to
create the life they dreamed of. But most probably had their youth slip away
and had no choice but to work menial jobs at whatever corporate retail chain
was hiring. She wondered if they ever had any regrets as the new generation of
popular girls walked by the store windows with their noses in the air,
mortified to be seen shopping in a discount chain. Father time was indeed cruel
when he began to take back the fleeting gift of youth.

The
timer buzzed her back to reality and Vivienne completed the coloring ritual by
dunking her head under the faucet of warm water and letting the excess dye
drain away. After she finished, she admired the new red color that reflected
back from the mirror. Gone were the wisps of white that betrayed her illusion
of youth. She was once more a confident woman in her mid thirties who wasn’t
afraid to give her appearance a little spit and polish to look her best when
needed.

A
half hour later, she reverted back to that shy teenager when she used her
fingers to part the blinds in the living room window. It was ten minutes after
eight and there was still no sign of Joshua. She had called her mother earlier
to confirm that she had given him her address and to fish for any more
surprises that she should be aware of. Nora was famous for laying little traps
for the men she set her daughter up with. There would be the little photo album
filled with blank pages that she would produce from her purse, explaining how
much she wished to fill with pictures of grandchildren.

Or
the time the owner of
Cameo Bridal
had asked Vivienne to model a dress at a wedding show in
Syracuse
and her mother made sure the picture was front and center
in the style section of the
Cayuga
Tribune
. Nora was an old pro at making sure the men she sent out into the
field of battle were properly trained to capture her daughter’s heart.

At
twenty-five minutes past the hour, she could take no more and dialed Kathy’s
number from her cell phone. It rang three times before she answered.

“I’m
sincerely hoping this is just a random purse dial while on your hot date.”
Kathy’s voice was stern.

“Guess
again.” Vivienne peeked once more out the window at Sunset Terrace, which
remained quiet and free of traffic. Normally, this was something she loved
about renting the simple two-bedroom Cape Cod that she called home. Tonight,
however, it really irked her.

“Oh,
honey. What happened? You didn’t chicken out did you?”

“Trust
me, I did not put myself through two hours of hair, makeup, and wardrobe
changes to sit on the sofa and catch up on the television shows stored on the
DVR.” She paced back and forth on the cream wall-to-wall carpet, somewhat
unsteady in the heels she wore only to funerals, weddings, and the occasional
holiday party.

There
was an awkward silence between them before Kathy cleared her throat. “I’m sure
you look fabulous.”

“Don’t
sugar-coat it for me.” Vivienne demanded. “Am I being stood up?”

Another
awkward silence passed. “He is a man of the law. Perhaps there was an accident
out on the highway?”

“Or
maybe he took one look at me at the diner and thought better of tonight’s
date.”

“Vivienne,
you know that’s not the case.” Kathy’s voice was emphatic enough to almost be
believed.

She
parted the blinds once more to peek out. “Well, he did bring up the date at the
diner in front of Miss Clara and Stephanie…”

“And
why would he do that if he was going to stand you up?” Kathy asked.

“I
suppose you’re right. I can’t believe I’m this nervous about going out on one
of my Mother’s blind dates. Usually, I’m cool as a cucumber.” Vivienne was
surprised to hear a little laugh emerge from her mouth.

“That’s
because the men she sends rarely make it up the front steps before you shoot
them down.” Kathy laughed back. “Remember the guy who bought those organic
gluten-free, sugar-free, fair-traded chocolates?”

“The
ones that tasted like tree bark?” Vivienne laughed out loud.

“I
believe you said that tree bark, dipped in swamp water, probably tasted
better.” Kathy continued with a snort.

“I
didn’t send him away because of those foul chocolates. I sent him away because
he didn’t believe in deodorant.” Vivienne cackled.

“The
alluring scent of natural musk,” Kathy continued, “How on Earth could you
resist that?”

A
knock at the door startled Vivienne. “Oh my God, I think he’s here.” She
dropped her voice down to a whisper.