A Frightening Fangs-giving

its branches, and in a few weeks she’ll decorate it for Christmas as well.
It’s hard to believe the same woman who owns and runs this innocent establishment is a person of interest in an active homicide investigation. That is, unless you’ve met my sister. Then it’s entirely believable.
Macy looks up from helping out a small group of customers and quickly excuses herself as she makes her way over. Her hair is loose and freshly washed, and her blue eyes are heavily outlined with dark kohl and it really makes them pop. She’s donned her signature leather jacket, this time in a dark maroon, and she’s got a pair of cute little booties on her feet to match.
“Well, look who the cat dragged in.” Her hot pink lips stretch into a smile. “You don’t really have a cat with you, right?” She eyes my purse because I’ve been known to haul a feline or two around with me.
“Not today,” I sing, trying not to sound too suspicious.
She squints over at the two us. “Oh, I get it. You’re here to up your game in the bedroom.” She makes a face at Jasper. “She’s stalling out on you already, huh?”
I scoff at the thought. “I’m not staling out.”
Her chest bucks with a laugh. “If she’s as fun in the sack as she is on the street, I feel sorry for you. Hot tip: my sister gravitates toward dessert-scented candles. And if you really want to get her in a good mood, I’d feed her something sweet to go along with it. Ooh”—her eyes grow wide—“like those poison donuts I supposedly fed to Ember?” She makes a face as she glances behind her. “You know, when I came in this morning, I found all the front displays toppled over.” She nods my way as if I should know where this is headed. “I think she’s after me.”
“What?” I shake my head. “I don’t think that was the work of a ghost. That was probably a break-in. Jasper”—I turn his way—“that’s exactly what happened to the shop across the street. Maybe we’ve got a candle-loving burglar on our hands?”
His brows bounce with amusement. “I’ll check on that as soon as I get back to my desk. Macy, I’m going to help you set up a security camera in your shop.” He purses his lips. “But we’re not here for candles this morning. I’m sorry, but I’m going to have to ask you to come down to Seaview with me. We need to take your fingerprints and a few samples of your hair and skin cells.”
Her eyes sharpen over mine. “Well, well. It looks as if I’m about to spend the rest of the morning at the Seaview Day Spa. But I’ll have to be home in time for dinner. I have a hot date tonight.”
Jasper chuckles to himself. “You’ll be back in plenty of time. But I wouldn’t leave the state if I were you. If Ember has your DNA on her person, this is going to get serious quickly.”
Macy takes a breath. Perfect. Not only have I set myself up to look like the killer, I’m probably going to fry for killing the witch. If only I had done the deed, it would have been worth it. A smile flickers on her lips. But I’ll have the last laugh. I always do. And I’ll have it with both Hunter and Flint.
I groan at the thought that just blew through her mind.
“Excuse me, Jasper. I’d like to have a word alone with my sister.” I pull her over toward the discounted Halloween merchandise, one of which is a tin haunted house no bigger than a foot high that holds about a half a dozen votive candles to make it look as if it’s glowing from the inside. I’ve had my eye on it ever since last year, and now that it’s practically free, it’s coming home with me. “That hot date you have tonight”—my lips press tightly because I’m half-tempted to out the fact I just pried into her depraved mind—“who is it with? And don’t lie to me. I can read you like a book.” More than she’ll ever know.
She sighs a moment. “Okay, fine. It’s with one of Ember’s exes.”
I suck in a hard breath. “Hunter Knox?”
“You know him?” She looks momentarily thrown by the fact. “Of course, you do. You’re Bizzy Baker Wilder, supersleuth extraordinaire. Boy, what you lack in the kitchen or the bedroom, you certainly make up for in the investigative field. And good thing, too, because you’re running out of rooms.”
“Would you leave me out of this? How could you date her ex? Why are you dating her ex? Don’t you know you look guilty enough?”
“Calm down. I was talking to Hunter as early as last week.” Right after Ember threatened me for dating her current boyfriend.
I close my eyes a moment.
“Macy Baker,” I hiss as I swat her on the arm. “You were seeing Flint, too?” I couldn’t help it. I can only hold back so much.
Her mouth rounds out. “You really can read me like a book. And so what? He’s hot, and he kept coming around to meet his future constituents while campaigning for city council. You know I have a stud muffin radar that I can control no more than you can control being a killjoy. How was I supposed to know he was dating my nemesis? And by the time we had gone out a few times, it was too late. She found out and accused me of trying to steal her man. She told me to watch out because she was about to take a bite out of what was mine. That’s back a few weeks ago when she still had long brown hair. Fast-forward to the other day and I wasn’t just looking at a doppelgänger of my shop, I was looking at a mirror image of myself. Not as cute, of course. And those boots she had on? It just