Page 27 of A Dash of Wolf

“Hey, sweetheart. It’s no bother, you know that. How’s the bakery?”

Mason blinked. Had the prosecuting attorney just called Adeline sweetheart? The man was at least twenty years older than her.

“Business is booming,” Adeline said. “I have some Bad-Day Brownies with your name on them to help ease this situation if you want to come in and get them.”

Thaddeus laughed again. “You got it.” He paused. “Tell you what, Chief. We’ll plead it down to ten hours of community service if that’s agreeable to Adeline. No court date, no hearing, no paperwork beyond the standard form. Judge Harlan likes when things get taken care of without cluttering his docket.”

Mason nearly laughed out loud as Adeline folded her hands in her lap like she was the innocent party here and nodded. “Of course, Thaddeus. I’d be happy with ten hours.”

Ivan sputtered. “That’s it? That’s all she gets?”

“Mr. Johansson,” Thaddeus’ voice came out sharply, “she threw mud. Not a fireball. Not a curse. Mud. Be grateful it wasn’t a hex, because based on what I’ve heard, half the town would’ve cheered.”

“This is unbelievable,” Ivan muttered.

“Chief,” Thaddeus said, “I’m sure you’ll find this out the longer you stick around, but most of our docket involves Adeline and Emory in some form or another. We’ve got the process down to a science at this point.”

“And me!” Princess Muffin Top shouted from the cell. “I’m also a repeat offender!”

Thaddeus laughed. “Sorry, Princess Muffin Top. Didn’t know you were there. Yes, you are also a formidable adversary.”

“Thank you, Thaddeus,” Princess Muffin Top purred. “I appreciate the recognition and compliment.”

Mason shook his head as he ended the call. “Why am I not surprised?”

Ivan Johansson stared at Mason, then at Adeline, then at the cat in the cell, then back at Mason. His mouth opened and closed twice, his face turned red, but in the end, he just turned on his heel and stormed out, slamming the door behind him hard enough to rattle the windows.

Adeline clucked her tongue. “That man is going to give himself a heart attack one day.”

Officer Casswell chuckled. “Wonder if he’ll blame it on you, Adeline?”

“He probably will,” Beulah said. “And want her immediately arrested.”

Mason opened the top drawer of the desk and took out the paperwork for community service and handed it to Adeline. He was a little surprised and disappointed when she took it and didn’t tell him not to worry, she already had a huge blank stack at home she kept handy for just such an occasion.

“Ten hours,” Adeline said, standing up from the chair. “Piece of cake. I’ll have that knocked out by next week, Chief Wolfe.”

Mason stood at the same time she did. They were closer than he’d expected. Close enough that her shoulder brushed his chest, and her hair—that beautiful red hair that always smelled like sugar and vanilla even when sitting in a marsh—swept against his arm. She looked up at him, and neither of them moved. Even Princess Muffin Top had stopped singing.

“Sorry,” she said softly. But she didn’t step back.

“You’re fine,” he said. But he didn’t step back either.

Beulah finally cleared her throat loudly from her desk, and they both sprang apart.

“You can call me Mason,” he said. “You don’t always have to call me Chief Wolfe.”

She smiled. “I’ll think about it.” She turned toward the cell. “Come on, Princess Muffin Top, we’re breaking out of prison.”

The cat hopped down from the cot and sauntered between the bars and out of the cell. She stopped at his desk and looked up at him. “Keep my seat warm in there, Wolf Boy.”

Mason watched them go. He watched the door close. He stood there for a beat too long, and he knew it. He could feel eyes on him, but he didn’t really care. All he could think about was how much Adeline Beaumont was getting to him. Was she doing it on purpose? Had she cast some kind of spell on him, and he didn’t know it? Could she do that?

“Do you really think she’s behind the truck sabotage?” Casswell asked, breaking him from his stupor.

Mason shook his head. “No.”

“Then why do you keep hauling her in?”