Murder By Muffin (Lucy McGuffin, Psychic Amateur Detective 3)

“Yeah, I know. I can’t have them both, so you decide. One bark for Will. Two barks for Travis.”

Paco stares back at me.

“Well?”

He barks once. Then he barks again. Then he barks a third time. Then he slumps to the ground and places his head on his paws. Big help that was.

“I take it that means you can’t decide?”

Sarah walks into the kitchen. “Who are you talking to, Lucy?”

“Paco. I was hoping he’d help me decide between Will and Travis.”

She chuckles. “Seriously?”

“Yes, seriously. I have a big dilemma here. On the one hand, there’s Will, who I’ve been in love with my whole life and is my best friend in the world. He totally gets me. Except I’m beginning to wonder if I totally get him. Do you know that he plays pool every Wednesday night in Panama City and I just found out the other day by accident? It’s like he’s living some kind of secret life. Plus, Brittany really likes him so that makes the whole thing messy.”

Sarah crosses her arms over her chest. “I get the whole girlfriend loyalty thing, but you shouldn’t let Brittany’s feelings for Will get in the way of yours.”

“And then there’s Travis, who I’ve known for just a month. He’s the most irritating, egotistical … thing I’ve ever met. But he smells really good, and he kisses even better.”

Sarah’s blue eyes twinkle with laughter. “Girl, you do have a problem. You’re in love with two men.”

“I’m not in love with Travis. I hardly know him.”

“I fell in love with Luke in three days. I just didn’t want to admit it to myself.”

I cover my face in my hands. “What am I gonna do?” I mutter.

“Simple. You’re going to date them both and decide which one you like better.”

I drop my hands to look

at her. “I don’t know that Will wants to date me. And … could I really do that?”

“Why not? As for Will, you need to tell him how you feel and see where it goes. Which is what I’ve been telling you.”

Paco sits up and barks.

“See? Paco agrees with me.”

I flop down onto a stool. “I think I need a vacation from my life.”

“I think we’re going to be able to close on time today, so why don’t you and Paco go out and get some fresh air? Take a break from all this,” she says, waving her hand around the kitchen. “Oh!” She spies the freshly baked muffins. “Can I have a chocolate chip to take home to Luke?”

I box up a few of the cooled-off muffins for Sarah to bring home, which gives me an idea. “Do you mind if I leave now?”

“No problem. Jill and I can clean up.”

“Thanks. This is Darren Winters’s last day in town, and by the time he and Brittany came by this morning, we were out of blueberry muffins. He seemed so bummed out about it. I’d love to bring him over a couple.”

“That’s nice of you, Lucy.”

“They’re his favorite. Plus, I can kill two birds with one stone and take Paco for a walk down Main Street. You’re right. We both need the fresh air, and you know how much he loves to window shop.”

“You mean you want Heidi to see you bringing Darren muffins.”

“Naturally.”