Chapter 27 Lottie #2
“Please tell me it doesn’t involve me wearing a jumpsuit,” I say. “I’m still recovering from the steam spa incident. My body can’t handle any more trauma this week.”
Both Noah and Everett wince, and neither is willing to ask for an elaboration.
“No jumpsuits required,” Everett assures me. “But I can’t promise a complete absence of rhinestones. This is Vegas, after all.”
Before I can press for details, Pacy Morgan appears with a microphone as his too perfect teeth gleam under the lobby lights.
The security director has evidently decided that his part in Chuck’s downfall outweighs his previous misdeeds, and he’s embraced his role in the aftermath with suspicious enthusiasm.
“Ladies and gentlemen, visitors and guests of the Bellanova!” Pacy’s voice booms across the lobby, causing several tourists to jump and a few to spill their drinks. “As our Elvis Tribute Artist Championship reaches its grand finale, we have a brand-new special tradition to share with you all!”
The crowd gathers with the collective curiosity of people who’ve learned that loud announcements in Vegas usually mean either free drinks or entertaining spectacles. And our own family and friends form a loose semicircle with our curiosity piqued.
“Vegas is famous for many things,” Pacy continues as his voice takes on the cadence of a carnival barker. “Gambling, shows, and, of course—weddings! Tonight, we start a new Bellanova tradition of closing our Elvis competition with a mass renewal of vows, officiated by our finest tribute artists!”
The idea of what’s about to take place forms in my mind as a line of jumpsuited Elvises assembles near the grand staircase, each striking a different iconic pose.
This is Everett’s surprise—a ridiculously delicious, over-the-top, perfectly Vegas moment of romantic absurdity.
I look up at him and gasp with delight and he nods, letting me know I’ve solved yet another mystery for the night.
“Anyone who wishes to renew their vows or just celebrate their relationship in true Vegas style is invited to step forward!” Pacy announces with a catcall to punctuate his words.
Everett leans in as his glorious blue eyes sparkle with mischief and perhaps something deeper. “What do you say, Lemon? Ready to get re-hitched in the most uniquely ridiculous way possible?”
“You bet I am! Is this legal?” I ask with a laugh, as we begin to move forward.
“About as legal as anything else that happens in Vegas,” he replies with a grin.
Noah steps forward instead of back, catching my other hand with that crooked smile that’s gotten me in trouble ever since I’ve met him.
“Can’t let you two have all the fun without me.
” His fingers intertwine with mine, warm and familiar.
“Besides,” he adds with a wink, “someone needs to make sure this marriage actually sticks this time.”
“Third time’s the charm?” I squeeze his hand right back and give a cheeky grin. “Although technically, we’re already batting a thousand in the till death do us part department.”
Everett’s blue eyes shift to Noah with that razor-sharp look he reserves for perjuring witnesses. “Don’t worry, Fox. I’m sure this one will be just as legally binding as your last attempt at matrimony.”
Other couples begin to form around us—Keelie and Bear holding hands with easy affection, Lainey and Forest exchanging glances, Meg dragging an amused Hook forward. Even my mother and Wiley step up, though Mom keeps checking her phone for baby updates.
“This is insane.” Lainey laughs as she pulls Forest closer.
“Welcome to my world,” I say cheerfully. “Where insanity is just the appetizer before the main course of chaos.”
The Elvises distribute plastic rings and bouquets made of what appear to be casino chips hot-glued to wire stems. One Elvis—sporting a blue suede suit that somehow manages to be both blindingly bright and oddly appealing—takes his position in front of us, his pompadour defying both gravity and good taste.
“Dearly beloved,” he intones in a deep drawl that’s one part Memphis, two parts theatrics. “We are gathered here today to join these folks in holy matrimony... again!”
As Blue Suede Suit Elvis continues with a ceremony that’s equal parts wedding vows and song lyrics, I feel a familiar tingle in the air. Blue and pink stars materialize beside us, coalescing into Ray-Ray’s spectral form.
“I wouldn’t dare miss this shindig, sugar cube!
” Ray-Ray announces, his rhinestone jumpsuit outdoing even the living impersonators.
“Elvis-officiated weddings are kinda my specialty on the other side! I’m just passing through for one last goodbye,” Ray-Ray sings, floating a circle around us.
“Besides, I never could resist a wedding. Or three, in your case!”
The ceremony reaches its crescendo, with all the Elvises leading a chorus of faux vows that has the crowd cheering and the married couples all around us exchanging looks that range from amused to mortified.
“I now pronounce you husbands and wives!” one of the leather clad Elvises declares, striking a hip-swiveling pose. “You may all kiss your brides!”
Everett wastes no time pulling me into a kiss that makes my toes curl in my sensible baker shoes. When we break apart, I find myself face-to-face with Noah, his green eyes squinting with a smile.
“What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas,” I tell him with a wink and plant a quick kiss on his lips, too. Because sometimes life is too short not to embrace the absurdity.
Ray-Ray applauds enthusiastically, despite the fact his ghostly hands can’t seem to create a sound, but his approval is clear nonetheless. “That’s how it’s done, honeybun! A little love for everyone!”
As our faux ceremony concludes, a commotion from another part of the lobby draws our attention. Carlotta stands on a decorative planter, making her several feet taller than necessary, with both Mayor Nash and Johnny United flanking her like confused bookends.
“I’ll take both of them!” she announces to the bewildered Elvis officiating her section. “What’s the old saying? Two husbands are better than one!”
“That’s definitely not the saying,” my mother calls out.
“It is in my book!” Carlotta shoots back, throwing an arm around each man. “Why settle when you can sample?”
Mayor Nash looks simultaneously horrified and intrigued, while Johnny United appears to be calculating the publicity value of the moment.
“Typical Carlotta.” Charlie sighs beside me. “Always has to outdo everyone, even in bigamy.”
Technically, not me.
“It’s not legally binding,” I remind her.
Carlotta frowns our way. “When has the law ever stopped me from doing anything?” she calls out over the Elvis music and general chaos. “Besides, if I’m going down in flames, I’m taking both these gorgeous men with me!”
And just like that, we gather our souvenirs, which consist of plastic rings, casino chip bouquets, and commemorative photos that will be proudly displayed in Honey Hollow. I can’t help but feel a strange sense of how right everything feels in all this madness.
We came to Vegas for a baking competition and somehow along the way solved two murders, won second place despite cremating my entries, survived a steam spa treatment that would qualify as torture in some countries, and renewed our complicated vows in a ceremony officiated by dozens of Elvis impersonators while the ghost of an Elvis impersonator provided commentary.
Just another on-brand adventure for the entire lot of us, really.
“Ready to head home tomorrow?” Everett asks, landing a kiss to my lips.
“Definitely,” I say, watching as Carlotta attempts to drag both her new husbands toward the hotel elevator. “But something tells me Honey Hollow will seem painfully dull after this.”
Ray-Ray floats beside us, his spectral form beginning to fade. “Don’t you worry about that, sugar cube. From what I’ve seen of your little town, there’s plenty of excitement waiting for you back home.”
“Please don’t tell me there’s another murder on the horizon,” I groan.
Ray-Ray just winks, his form growing increasingly transparent. “Life is like Vegas, honeybun—always another game waiting to be played. TCB, baby!”
With that cryptic parting shot and a final shower of pink and blue stars, Ray-Ray vanishes, leaving me with the unsettling certainty that our return to Honey Hollow won’t be nearly as peaceful as I’m hoping.
But for tonight, I’ve got my family, my second-place trophy, and the world’s hottest husband—maybe two. And sometimes, that’s all the jackpot you need.
Until the next body drops, anyway.
Thank you for reading! Head back to Honey Hollow and CLICK to pick up Criminal Coconut Cake (Murder in the Mix 55) today!
Is that link not working for you? Try this one—> Criminal Coconut Cake (Murder in the Mix 55)
It’s Easter in Honey Hollow! Every bunny’s a suspect when the coconut cake turns criminal.
And don’t let the bunny ears fool you—this case has claws!
My name is Lottie Lemon, and I see dead people. Okay, so I rarely see dead people, mostly I see furry creatures of the dearly departed variety, who have come back from the other side to warn me of their previous owner's impending doom.
This time, a ghostly lion has me seeing stars—and not the kind you wish upon.
When the Hop Til You Drop Easter Eggstravaganza transforms Honey Lake into a pastel paradise, I’m ready to showcase my signature coconut cake and maybe win the baking competition.
With my twins strapped to my chest and my two-year-old in tow, what could go wrong at a peaceful Easter festival?
Of course, when an heir to a chocolate empire ends up dead with my Grandma Nell’s antique knife buried in their chest, I realize someone just turned Honey Hollow’s Easter celebration into a murder investigation.
Between a cheating scandal that involves a steamy romance author, a wellness guru’s vendetta, and a money-laundering operation that makes organized crime look like a church bake sale—half the festival had motive to kill the chocolate heir.
But when the investigation reveals this murder has more layers than my coconut cake, I know I’m dealing with a killer who doesn’t leave anything to chance.
With my spatula in one hand and my sleuthing skills in the other—plus a supernatural sidekick who has a mighty roar, and enough suspects to populate a small town—I’ll need to crack this case before the killer decides I know too much.
Living in Honey Hollow can be deadly.