Hit Me With Your Best Shot

One high-stakes espresso competition. Two stubborn hearts. And a shot of murder.Clara Calloway survived her first brush with the law, but she's not out of the woods yet. Thatcher Grey, the brooding and dangerously attractive High Council Inquisitor, has been permanently assigned to Wickham Falls to keep an eye on "e;unregistered magical activity."e; Meaning: he's watching Clara like a hawk.To prove The Daily Grind is a legitimate business and not just a hub for accidental spellwork, Clara enters the "e;Northeast Barista Battle,"e; hosted right in town. The prize money would fix her leaking roof, and the prestige would get Thatcher off her back.But things go cold fast when the competition's head judge—a celebrity chef known for his savage insults—is found dead behind his espresso machine, drowned in a vat of cold brew.The murder weapon? A tamper missing from Clara's station.With the High Council threatening to bulldoze her shop and Thatcher torn between his duty and his growing attraction to the prime suspect, Clara has to find the real killer. But her magic is acting up again: a batch of "e;Liquid Courage"e; espresso shots has the whole town acting recklessly brave, turning the investigation into a chaotic circus. Clara needs to take her best shot at solving the crime—before she takes the fall.