A Cuppa Trouble

by Angela Ruth Strong

Tandy chuckled and punched him in the arm. “I’d rather drink tea than kiss Connor again.”

  “Hey!” Connor’s voice echoed over the phone.

  Oops, she’d uncovered the mouthpiece when punching her boyfriend.

  “No offense, Connor.”

  “I might be more offended if I didn’t know you drink tea now.”

  “Shh…”

  Greg narrowed his eyes. “What?”

  Oh well. Her secret was out. Marissa knew, so the whole town would know soon. Plus, she was supposed to be practicing honest communication. “I like té con leche.”

  “No. Really.”

  Tandy laughed. “I do. It’s made with warm milk. Very comforting.”

  Humor faded from Greg’s eyes. “Then you’d better rephrase your statement about kissing Connor.”

  Like there was still a question. “Okay…I’d rather eat shellfish than kiss Connor.”

  Tandy barely heard Connor’s “now I’m offended” as Greg leaned over and kissed her lips.

  “Try to avoid all life or death situations, okay?”

  “I’ll do my best.”

  Marissa should have been kissing Connor. Instead she was listening to Lauren Daigle on repeat, drowning her sorrows in a cup of tea, and stuffing her face with all the leftover cookies and pastries that didn’t get eaten during The Dating Game.

  Ugh. The Dating Game. Connor’s confessions. The near miss of her dream proposal.

  Tea wasn’t going to cut it. It left her feeling as lifeless and depressed as when she started rewriting the icing on the conversation heart cookies. She took a big bite out of the sugary Miss Me cookie and stared at the espresso maker.

  Why not? She wasn’t going to sleep anyway. Better to energize herself to come up with ways to win Connor back than try to give herself a carb coma.

  She switched on the machine and scooped rich, nutty-scented coffee beans into the grinder, reflexively checking over her shoulder to make sure Tandy wasn’t coming in to find her giving in to liquid temptation. No Tandy, but the realization of what Marissa was doing stopped her cold. She was being dishonest. In the same way Connor had been dishonest.

  She was no better. In fact, she was worse. She was a hypocrite.

  Memories of her judgement on Connor flooded her mind. Compared to her “lie,” he’d actually had an excuse. He was both afraid of her blowing up as well as trying to make his proposal perfect. Whereas, she was simply saving face.

  Pride. Vanity. Whatever you wanted to call it. It caused her to pretend she was something she wasn’t. And it was destroying their relationship.

  Her guts churned at the idea of coming clean. But if they were going to start fresh, she had to. If only there was a way to sweeten Connor’s response like sugar in a bitter brew.

  She took a deep breath and inhaled an invitation from the coffee beans she’d abandoned. A smile snuck out from the deep inside parts that only tea and coffee could warm. She pushed the button on the grinder as a plan whirled in her mind to the very appropriate whirring sound of the machine. She’d take Connor coffee.

  Grabbing two paper cups, she added a shot of espresso to straight black coffee then stopped to pull on the ugly snow boots Connor gave her. They clashed with her fluffy red skirt, but at least they had pockets, and they would also help prevent her from tripping and pouring her peace offering all over Connor. Perhaps even seeing her dressed so horribly for his sake would be a peace offering in itself.

  She stuffed her phone in one boot pocket, then, for good measure, stuffed the portable phone charger in the other. If Connor wasn’t impressed by how she’d dressed, she’d impress him with how practical she could be.

  With the coffees securely in a drink carrier and her feet securely on the ground, Marissa shut down the shop and headed to The Farmstead. The place was dark with only a few lights coming from the windows of the farmhouse and Connor’s apartment, but that helped her with her goal of sneaking in to talk to Connor without his parents noticing. She flipped off her headlights and parked behind the corn silo so as not to be seen from the main house.

  As the car engine and coffee cooled, so did her resolve. Was she doing the right thing? When they’d broken up last year, Connor had been the one to pursue her. Having the tables turned was a lot harder.

  He could get angry at her about the way she’d also secretly started drinking coffee. He could send her home. Then she’d be even more alone.

  Watching the bright orange square of Connor’s upstairs window like a stalker, Marissa tugged her phone out of her boot. “Call, Tandy.”

  The device responded to her voice command, beeping as it dialed.

  Marissa wasn’t really a stalker. She was going to go knock on his door. But she needed to practice her coffee confession on her friend first and see how that went over.

  The phone rang on the other end.

  Tandy probably wouldn’t answer. She’d made it very clear that she wanted to spend the evening with Greg.

  The phone rang again.

  The form of a woman appeared in Connor’s window. His mom? Consoling him over his messy relationship with Marissa? Good thing Marissa had waited before going up there. That could have been awkward.

  The phone rang again. Marissa bit her lip. She might as well go home.

  The woman in the window picked up a phone. She pressed a button and held it to her ear.

  “You okay, Marissa?” Tandy said over the phone.

  Marissa gasped and covered her mouth. Tandy was in Connor’s apartment. On Valentine’s Day.

  “I’m sorry to interrupt you and Greg…” Marissa’s voice didn’t sound too strangled, did it?

  “Don’t worry about it. What do you need?”

  Yes, Greg had to be there too. They were both consoling Connor after they consoled her. “Is Greg there?”

  Pause. Why was Tandy pausing? Had she really been interested in Connor all along, and now that he’d decided not to propose to Marissa, was she swooping in? She had kissed him after all.

  No, that was a ridiculous idea. But why was Tandy taking so long to answer. She needed to say something.

  “Greg went into his office for a bit because of this new development.”

  Marissa pointed at the woman in the window, though Tandy couldn’t possibly see her or even know she was there. “Aha! You got tired of him choosing work over you, so you decided Connor was the better boyfriend. I never would have imagined that you’d tell me not to go to the farm so you could swoop in.”

  “You are imagining it.”

  Marissa’s heart hammered like a carpenter at work. “No, I’m not. I can see you in Connor’s apartment. You probably kissed him on purpose too, didn’t you?”

  The woman in the window turned to face Marissa and leaned forward toward the glass. She sighed over the phone. “Come inside, Marissa. We’re up here because McNeil is setting up a trap for the car thieves with Abigail’s Porsche, and he didn’t want our presence in the farmhouse to scare them away. I was about to leave anyway.”

  Marissa gripped the phone until her fingers cramped. She wanted to believe her friend, so she’d go see for herself. “Fine.”

  She jabbed at the red phone icon to disconnect then shoved the device into her boot. This night had gone from bad to worse. All the coffee she’d drank on the way over was not enough to handle the possibility of another betrayal. She grabbed Connor’s coffee and guzzled it down like Thor. She would have liked to shatter a mug on the ground like Thor too, but then she’d have to clean it up, and she already had enough messes to deal with. Not to mention that the mug was made out of paper.

  With a surprising calm, she tugged at the door handle and stepped into the cold night that would probably sting her face had she not gone numb. She didn’t want to break up with Connor. Especially on Valentine’s Day. She’d never hated the holiday more.

  She clicked her door shut then looked up to the lighted window as she walked. What was she going to do when she got up there? If only she hadn’
t drunk all the coffee, then she could have used it to splash in someone’s face. Whose face would she have splashed it in? Tandy or Connor? They both deserved it.

  A chain jangled from the barn. If someone was over there, they could see her now. But what did it matter if she got caught by Connor’s parents? It wasn’t like they had a relationship to mend now.

  Feet crunched on rock and some kind of electronic beep gave the farm a sci-fi feel.

  Marissa paused and squinted through the dark. Two shadows stood on either side of a car. Abigail’s car. Someone was stealing her Porsche.

  “Hey!” The word burst from her lips before she had a plan for what to do after she interrupted the burglary.

  The shadows jolted, and more rocks crunched. The doors swung open. The ignition turned over, and headlights blinded her.

  She shielded her eyes and yelled. “Stop!” They probably wouldn’t, but her yelling could attract help.

  No help came before the driver slammed his door and stepped on the gas, heading directly toward her.

  Chapter Twenty

  Cold pin pricks exploded down Marissa’s arms and legs, rocketing her into action. She pumped her arms and legs, her only focus that of reaching the stairway to Connor’s apartment before the car reached her.

  The Porsche sped forward and swerved to cut her off course. These thieves weren’t trying to get away. They were trying to run her over. And she’d thought ruining her boyfriend’s proposal was bad. If only getting out of this life and death situation was as simple as kissing Connor.

  With renewed energy, and the warmth of the engine fanning her exposed calves, Marissa pushed off the hard ground and dove for cover on the side of the shop. Her roll ended with frozen gravel lodged into the flesh of her legs and in her skirt. The Porsche peeled past.

  She propped herself up on her elbows and heaved in oxygen with the gratefulness of someone aware that it might have been her last breath. Red taillights dimmed when another light appeared overhead. Connor and Tandy clattered onto the landing.

  “Marissa?” Connor pounded down the stairs and knelt beside her like the devoted boyfriend he used to be. “Are you okay?”

  Was he talking about her body or her heart? They both throbbed against an attempt at destruction. And they both would survive. “Yeah.”

  “I’m so glad you wore the boots I bought you.”

  Marissa narrowed her eyes. Did it make him feel better for cheating on her if he thought he saved her life? Now she wished she’d worn her heels to spite him. Only, in her heels, she would have definitely rolled an ankle then been run over. She smirked. She’d survived worse.

  Tandy joined them, but only took a second to check on Marissa before looking past toward the taillights shrinking in the distance. “They stole your mom’s car. Where’s the FBI?”

  Connor supported Marissa’s head and shoulders so she could roll to a sitting position. He shot a glance down the road then reached under Marissa’s arms to heave her higher. “I don’t know where McNeil is, but we can’t let them get away. Call him now.”

  Marissa tested out her appendages slowly. She was able to stand without the ache of any broken bones, but her legs did burn where her tulle skirt brushed against scraped skin. Nothing that a hot bath wouldn’t cure. And she’d be taking many, many hot baths to soothe her bruised emotions.

  Connor raced away like he was aware of the direction her thoughts had turned. She should have expected as much. He’d been racing away all day.

  Except this time, he raced to her Jeep and jumped behind the wheel. He’d taken her keys. He was a car thief too. Good riddance.

  The headlights blinded her, and her pulse reverted to her earlier fight or flight mode, ready to outrace all attempts at hit and run. Whether it was the caffeine or the adrenaline, she had the energy to sprint a marathon.

  Only Connor turned the wheel and spun the car to a stop in front of them. He popped his door open. “Get in. We’re going to see where these guys go and report to McNeil.”

  Marissa didn’t know whether Connor was more intent on getting his mom’s car back or wanting justice for the attempt on her life, but she was in either way. Without thought, she grabbed the handle nearest her, yanked, and dove into her backseat.

  Tandy only froze for a second before racing around to the front of the vehicle and hopping in the passenger side. She already had the phone to her ear when Connor gunned it. “Agent McNeil, this is Tandy Brandt.”

  Marissa righted herself against the force of propulsion. She buckled loosely into the middle so she could lean forward between Connor and Tandy. Connor had driven her car before, but never with her in the back. Had she made herself the third wheel?

  Oh well. There were bigger problems at stake. Like the wheels that had almost ran her over.

  Tandy explained it better. “We just witnessed Abigail’s Porsche get stolen for real this time. They even tried to run over Marissa.”

  Marissa rocked side to side and finally gripped the inside edges of the front seats as Connor took corners like a NASCAR driver. The Miss Me cookie churned in her stomach.

  “No, I didn’t see the thieves. But it looks like they are headed toward the dock.”

  Marissa glanced around in surprise at their location. If the taillights ahead took the next left, they’d be headed to the barge owned by Joseph Cross. She’d been right about the smuggling.

  “Have you found any of the other cars?” Tandy asked the law enforcement agent on the other end of the line.

  Had he been looking?

  “Okay. Well, if you can catch these guys with Abigail’s Porsche, then maybe that’s all you need.”

  The taillights took a hard left.

  Marissa leaned forward and pointed in case Connor had missed the road they’d turned on. “Did you see that?”

  “Yes.” Connor slowed and flipped off his headlights.

  Marissa’s heartbeat pounded in her ears as the world outside slid silently by.

  “They turned toward the barge. What do you want us to do?” Tandy said over the phone then waited a moment before motioning toward the turn. She hung up and whispered over her shoulder. “McNeil wants us to wait until his team gets here so they can take our statements.”

  Marissa nodded. She needed to tell the FBI agent about the attempted hit and run. The cars didn’t matter as much, but if these guys were the thieves, they’d also killed George. They needed to be stopped so they could never kill anyone else.

  Connor slowed as they got closer. Did the thieves know they’d been followed? Would they go about their business like they’d gotten away or were they currently setting a trap and waiting for Connor and Company to arrive. No silhouettes the size of little European cars emerged from the shadows of surrounding trees and brush. Her Jeep continued to creep forward until they could make out the glint of moonlight off the river and the outline of the barge bobbing by the dock.

  Connor pulled off the main road and shifted into park. He kept the engine running, either for heat or a quick getaway, but Marissa didn’t see any movement that might be a threat. She combed the woods with her eyes before her gaze settled on the two people in the front seat. “If our lives are threatened, you two better not pretend you’re here to make out and expect me to hide behind the seat.”

  Tandy shot Connor a look she couldn’t decipher. “I told Greg I would rather eat shellfish than kiss Connor. I’ll call him now.”

  Marissa watched skeptically. Did Greg know Tandy had been at Connor’s house?

  Connor twisted to face her. “Tandy came over to talk to me about you, Marissa. Because I’m really confused about our relationship.”

  Marissa did a double take. She’d take confusion over betrayal any day. But this wasn’t any day. This was Valentine’s. “Me, too,” she said with more sarcasm than intended.

  “Greg, we’re at the docks. The thieves stole Abigail’s car for real this time and tried to mow Marissa over. McNeil is on his way down now. We’re waiting here.”


  Marissa couldn’t see as well as she could hear, but if Tandy’s expression was as sincere as her tone, there was no aloofness between her and her boyfriend. Which meant Connor could be telling the truth.

  Connor tapped Marissa on the shoulder and pointed the direction of the side road they’d come from. A dark SUV rolled past toward the river. McNeil?

  Her belly flopped. This was the moment they’d been waiting for all week. This made her glad she’d found the fancy device in George’s coveralls and had the blowup with Connor that helped her connect the corn shipping to the car smuggling. Maybe this was how it had to happen so George could have justice.

  She wasn’t ready to fully trust yet, but she could lean back in her seat with relief.

  A knock on the window reignited the pulse throbbing underneath Marissa’s jaw. She jerked upright, reaching for anything that could be used as a weapon. Normally her stilettos would work but getting hit with a snow boot wouldn’t pack the same punch.

  Tandy had seen McNeil’s big, shiny forehead before he knocked on the window and lifted a flashlight. Marissa must not have noticed him with the way she jumped, but Tandy didn’t blame her. The tea lover had been through the wringer that night, and Tandy’s assessment didn’t even include the way the car thieves had tried to run Marissa over. She reached back to smooth a hand over the bunched muscles in Marissa’s forearm.

  Connor rolled down his window to get the FBI agent’s next direction.

  “We got ’em,” McNeil said curtly. Probably all in a day’s work for him.

  Marissa flopped to the side with such dramatics that Tandy almost expected her to hold the back of her wrist to her forehead and whimper, “My hero.”

  Enough joy bubbled up inside Tandy that she felt like a hero, as well. They were all heroes. She’d called the police, Connor had tracked the enemy, and Marissa had made it all possible by having a very public fight with her boyfriend.

  Tandy leaned toward the window. “You should call for EMTs to come look over Marissa. She got banged up when avoiding the hit and run.”