Beach Body Bingo: Cozy Cove Mysteries

By Carolyn L. Dean

When Flora headed across country to her 40-year college reunion, she never expected that somewhere near the bar or in the pool luked a desperate killer. Tropical Drinks and Florida beaches give way to police procedures and a friend who's the prime suspect!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Freeform Publshing
• Release date: Aug 24, 2022
• ISBN: 9798224919017

Book preview

Beach Body Bingo

(A Cozy Cove Mystery prequel, with a visitor from Ravenwood Cove)

By Carolyn L. Dean

Want to know about new releases, sale pricing, and exclusive content? My email newsletter is HERE. It is spam-free, and only sent out when there’s something new, on sale, or FREE. I PROMISE. I hate junk mail, too.

Dedication:

For all the Krakens who inspire me

For Eunice, who is the Queen of Bingo and who accepted me unconditionally when she didn’t have to.

And For Chuck, who was prepared to hate me and didn’t.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Want to read the first chapter in the best-selling Ravenwood Cove series?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR – Carolyn L. Dean – USA Today Bestseller

Want to know what else I write?

Chapter 1

W ell, they say you can’t go home again, Flora Landon said with a smile. She set her overstuffed shoulder bag down on the beach and looked out at the glittering arc of open ocean in front of her. Apparently, they were wrong, because here I am.

The tropical afternoon sun was high above the broad horizon of Cozy Cove, and the Florida beach was dotted with people stretched out on towels or napping under huge, colorful umbrellas. A lone lifeguard hut towered over the flat sand, and a man in a neon green t-shirt was busy selling cold drinks from his pushcart in its shadow. Several white-headed seagulls sidestepped warily away from Flora as she kicked off her pink flip-flops, and she dug her toes into the warm sand with a grateful sigh. It had taken two airplanes, three airports, and a whole lot of planning to get her here from her home in Oregon, and she was going to enjoy every second of her time in her old college town. A gentle breeze ruffled her nearly white curls, and she put a hand up to sweep a lock of hair away from her eyes. You know, I love the Pacific Ocean and living in Ravenwood Cove, but I have to say— she gestured at the row of brightly colored beach umbrellas and lounging sun worshippers, —Florida has a charm all its own, doesn’t it?

The woman beside her gave her a short grunt in reply, apparently unimpressed. Sure. Charm. Sand inside my swimsuit. Peeling sunburns and dizzy hangovers. Behind her oversized sunglasses, Lillian Dexter squinted, then frowned in obvious disapproval. Look, it’s been forty years since we went to college around here, and things have changed a lot since we roomed together. Our hotel room doesn’t even have an ocean view, Flora. I don’t see how you can be so excited about this trip. You’re 3000 miles from your home in Oregon, and the college reunion committee should be boiled in a vat of their own oil for how they’ve handled things so far. What were they thinking, sticking us in a little beach town like this? It’s so... she gave a small shudder, touristy.

Oh, you just need to give this place a chance, Lil! Maybe it’ll grow on you. Besides, the committee said the fire at the college’s main building made it so we couldn’t have our reunion there. Flora turned to her long-time friend with a wide smile. Try to be positive about this week, please? Cozy cove a classic gulf beach town, and I still love it.

Even though Lil had been complaining a bit, Flora didn’t really mind. She couldn’t have chosen a better person to room with for her trip away from home. She’d been friends with Lil since her junior year in college, and they still talked or texted nearly every week. Lil was taller than Flora by at least four inches and was built lean and rangy, with nothing like Flora’s middle-aged curves. In all the years Flora had known her friend, she’d never seen her wear makeup or alter the way she styled her wavy blonde hair: cropped short around her clean-scrubbed face. Lil was smart, funny, and eminently practical, but also had a surprisingly tender side which came out at the most unexpected times. Not everyone knew that side of her, though, and Flora felt privileged she did.

Okay, okay. I’m glad you’re set on having a good time, Lil said, then sighed. "All right, fine. I’ll smack my attitude around and get it under control, I promise. No more griping."

Flora watched a multi-colored kite sailing by, caught on the coastal wind and held by a thin string attached to a young boy. Thanks, Lil. I know it may not be what we expected, but this reunion is the first time I’ve been able to go on a trip since Donald recovered from his stroke. I just want... I just want to get a bit of a break. She paused, suddenly feeling guilty. I hope that doesn’t sound awful.

Not at all! Lil said quickly. You deserve this trip, after all you’ve been through.

The truth was Flora’s husband of over forty years, Donald Landon, had been the one who had urged her to fly across the country. She’d objected at first, but he’d been insistent that she should go. Even though her husband was fiercely independent, she had cared for him every day since he’d become ill. It was hard to think of taking a break from that, but the more he talked about her going, the more it sounded like a good idea. When her sons all promised to take turns stopping by or staying at their ranch so Donald would have company, she’d finally booked her plane ticket.

This is my first chance to have any time away from Ravenwood Cove in,—she paused for a moment, thinking— well, I don’t even know how long it’s been. Except for that trip we took up to Canada when the kids were little, I’ve pretty much been on the ranch nonstop for decades.

Lil’s eyebrows went up. Decades? Girlfriend, if that’s true, it means you’re overdue to have some serious fun. You’ve been so busy being a wife and mother and grandmother you haven’t had time for yourself. She caught Flora’s eye. Okay, you’ve convinced me. You came all the way cross-country to see some old friends and let our hair down. Let’s enjoy it!

Oh, I completely agree! Flora flashed her friend a sideways grin and picked up her tote bag. She brushed a bit of sand off the bottom of it. "Now