Read The Root of All Evil (Hope Street Church Mysteries Book 4) for Free Online Page B

coconut frosting, topped with macadamia nuts.”
    He pointed to the third kind of cupcake. “That’s just standard red velvet with a cream cheese frosting. It’s nothing special, so don’t feel obligated to sample that, if you don’t want to.”
    “I don’t feel obligated,” Cooper replied. She leaned over, took one of the red velvet cupcakes and added it to her sampling plate. “But I want one.”
    Before she could take her first bite, Quinton cleared his throat loudly. Cooper turned her attention from her sample plate to see that he was nodding expectantly toward her Magnolia’s Marvels boxes.
    “Oh, right!” Cooper set down her cupcake and opened the first box. “These are salted caramel banana.” She set a cookie on a plate, moved the box and opened the next one. “And these are chocolate chip cocoa cookies.” She handed the plate to Quinton, and as he tasted the cookies, Cooper went back to her cupcakes. She sank her teeth into the s’mores cake first. The marshmallow fluff melted in her mouth, combining with the rich dark chocolate cake and the crunch of graham crackers.
    “Mmm,” she hummed. “This actually tastes like a s’more!”
    Quinton chuckled. “That’s the idea.”
    “Yeah, well, I may not leave any for the kids.”
    “In that case, they’re out of luck, because I call dibs on the rest of your mama’s cookies.”
    Cooper smiled and popped the other half of the s’mores cupcake into her mouth. Before she’d finished chewing, she reached for the white chocolate. The flavor was smooth and light, with the sweetness of coconut and the richness of the nuts. It tasted like a Sunday afternoon summer picnic, and for a moment, she imagined she was running in a grassy field in a white dress and broad hat.
    “What do you think?” Quinton asked.
    Cooper held up a hand to quiet him. “Just a minute. I’m in the middle of a reverie here.”
    Quinton chuckled. “Glad to hear they’re up to par.”
    “That’s an understatement.” Cooper downed the rest of the white chocolate cupcake quickly and then tried the red velvet. They were easily the best red velvet cupcakes she’d ever had—so moist and with the perfect amount of sweetness. “I think I’ve died and gone to heaven.”
    Savannah laughed. “Don’t leave us just yet, Coop. We need you to serve cookies!”
    “Oh, right. Volunteering.” Cooper took a last, longing look at the cupcakes before turning to Savannah. “What’s the plan, exactly?”
    “Pastor Matthews wants us to do the serving,” Savannah explained, feeling around for her stool as she spoke. She took a seat. “He doesn’t want the students to gorge themselves, and he thinks the parents might be less inclined to eat if the students come through touching all the desserts.”
    “I’m in charge of cupcakes,” Quinton said. “And you’re in charge of cookies. They’ll grab a plate and tell us what they want, but they’re limited to one of each.”
    “For the whole evening?” Cooper asked.
    Quinton nodded.
    “I’m not sure I’ll be able to keep track of who had what all evening.”
    Savannah waved away her concern. “You just have to make them think you can keep track. That’s the trick.”
    Jake wielded his ladle like a sword of victory, holding it up over his head. “And I’ll be divvying out the drinks . . . Uh-oh . . .”
    Cooper looked for something askew but couldn’t figure out what it was. “What’s wrong?”
    Jake glanced at his watch. “I forgot to get the ice out of the kitchen freezer. I’ll have to break it up, too, before it goes in the ice bucket. And we’re supposed to be all set up in about a minute.”
    “I’ll help,” Quinton volunteered. “It’ll go faster with the two of us.”
    The men hurried off to the kitchen, leaving Savannah and Cooper together. Cooper helped herself to a cup of decaf.
    “Working on any new art lately?” Cooper asked.
    Savannah turned on her stool so she faced Cooper. “Jake found an old wagon