A Cuppa Trouble

by Angela Ruth Strong

  Greg nuzzled the back of Tandy’s ear with his nose, and for the first time she was aware how close they were. Very cozy. Of course, it helped that neither of them was headed to the Emergency Room with an allergy or gunshot wound or anything. “It’s my best Valentine’s ever,” he said.

  “Really?” Tandy twisted to smile at him over her shoulder. “Because I find it a little corny.”

  Despite the cold and the near-death experience, Marissa didn’t want to get out of the Corvette for three reasons. One, it now felt safe like a security blanket. Two, Tandy’s bad puns made her laugh. And last but certainly not least, Connor held her in his arms. Unfortunately, the owner of the car had arrived and was storming through the warehouse like he thought they’d gone for a joyride and crashed his car rather than having rescued it from real thieves who’d been trying to ship it out of the country.

  Randon’s arms waved in the air as if he were conducting a symphony. “What did you do?”

  Connor gave a small growl, his chest rumbling behind Marissa’s back. “Tandy, think you could hotwire this thing again and get us out of here?”

  Tandy clicked her tongue. “That might give him a real reason to be mad at us.”

  Greg stepped a foot outside the car. “I’ll handle this.”

  Tandy climbed off his lap. “This is when I’m glad I date a lawyer.”

  Marissa watched the other couple get out, leaving her alone with Connor. She twisted around to face him. “We can’t get in trouble, can we?” she asked, but when she looked into his solemn gray eyes, the remaining adrenaline from fight or flight mode kicked back in. Yes, she was in trouble.

  “No,” he said simply, and she wondered if it was because he also had trouble thinking when their lips were in such close proximity.

  Could she kiss him and pretend everything was better? She pouted at the answer she already knew. If she really wanted to communicate better, she needed to be vulnerable.

  His gaze dropped down to her pout, and he grabbed for the door handle. Before she knew it, he’d propelled her out onto the cement floor. If only she was wearing high heels, then she’d have an excuse to trip so he could catch her.

  No, no, no. That’s not what she wanted. She wanted a secure foundation. Not only for her feet but for their relationship.

  Randon stalked around them to look at his car from every angle. “Oh man. You even broke a window and ripped off part of the dashboard? Do you know how much I paid for this thing? I hope insurance…” He shook his head and looked down as if he couldn’t handle anymore. His gaze snagged on Marissa’s feet and traveled up to her face. “What are you wearing, Marissa?”

  She smiled hesitantly at Connor. “It’s the latest fashion.”

  Randon rolled his eyes then continued on with his rant.

  A fireman Marissa dated in high school brought her a blanket.

  She wrapped the stiff and scratchy material around her legs. “Thanks, Troy.”

  “Sure.” Troy gave his boyish grin. “Though I heard it’s nothing compared to what Connor gave you.”

  Marissa tilted her head. “The boots?”

  “No.” Troy laughed like she’d told a joke. “Let me see your rock.”

  The rock? As in diamond? As in engagement ring? Her stomach churned with a mix of disappointment and dread. She should be wearing Connor’s engagement ring right then, but instead she feared she might never wear it. She glanced at Connor to see if he was going to explain. Because she didn’t really know where to begin.

  Connor made a slashing motion in front of his throat. He stopped when she caught him.

  “Oh. Uh…” Troy took a step back. “I guess Valentine’s Day isn’t over yet. But it’s certainly a memorable one, huh? I’m going to go…uh…try to put out fires instead of starting them.”

  Marissa sighed. If the whole town knew Connor had been planning to propose, then they were certainly all going to hear about The Dating Game disaster.

  Griffin strode over as Troy left. “Let me make sure I got my facts straight.”

  Law enforcement officers and emergency workers continued to pour in. Greg and Tandy joined their circle. Marissa stepped closer to Connor to make room for them. And because she wanted to.

  He rubbed her back. That was good, wasn’t it?

  Griffin held his stylus over his phone. “McNeil is in charge of the car theft ring. When the ports on the East Coast started cracking down, he used his knowledge of Snodgrass’s and Knibbs’s history as an excuse to investigate out here, only instead of investigating, he was actually smuggling his cars in shipping containers with the help of the two newest hires at the Thomases’ farm.”

  Randon kept shaking his head in disbelief. “The farmhands stole my car?”

  Connor nodded. “Yeah. If McNeil was telling the truth about that, when they got it stuck, they accidentally left behind the attack relay unit that they used on newer cars.”

  Griffin scribbled furiously. “But it was McNeil who attempted to steal the car off George’s tow truck, and when George caught him, McNeil killed him, knowing he could pin it on George’s brother?”

  “Yes.” As Marissa connected the pieces in her mind, more fell into place. She scrunched her nose. “And he was probably the one who broke into Billie’s shop and destroyed the video footage.”

  Tandy pursed her lips to one side. “That means he was never really suspicious of Vic. That was simply bad timing. Though if Vic hadn’t come, I never would have learned how to hotwire a car.”

  Randon muttered something indiscernible under his breath.

  Marissa nudged him with her shoulder. “And you never would have met Susan.”

  He quit muttering.

  She smiled up at Connor before remembering that they weren’t a happy couple at the moment. Though… “If we hadn’t had a fight, we might never have caught McNeil.”

  Connor smirked. “Happy Valentine’s to us.”

  Griffin paused in his writing and raised his eyes to look at them without lifting his face. “Connor, I’m going to be keeping your mom’s Porsche a little longer until evidence is collected, but you’re free to go. I’ll find an officer to give you a ride unless Marissa wants to drive you home.”

  “I do,” she blurted. Hopefully, if she ever got to say those words in a wedding ceremony, she’d be a little more eloquent. She peeked at him to see how he’d taken them.

  Connor stuffed his hands in his pockets. “That’s fine.”

  He was giving her a chance.

  Her pulse skipped a beat in the same way it had when she’d been hanging from the inside of the shipping container. Choosing to be vulnerable in a relationship was almost as scary as being captured by killers.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Marissa had already clicked the remote to start warming up her Jeep, but as she climbed behind the wheel, she still had to adjust the settings and turned on the seat warmers. Her teeth chattered from cold, though the shivering could very well be her nerves.

  Connor dropped in beside her. He motioned to the empty coffee cups snuggled in the console. “Too bad those aren’t full of something warm.”

  Ugh. He would have to bring up the coffee.

  Rather than shift into drive, she closed her eyes. “Connor, I have a confession.”

  “Okay…”

  She took a deep breath and peeked an eye open. “I’ve been drinking coffee.”

  He didn’t move, only stared at her. She opened both her eyes to try to better read his expression in the dim light, but it was as legible and stony as hieroglyphics. “What are you thinking?”

  She braced for the worst—for their relationship to go the way of those hieroglyphics.

  “I have a lot of thoughts.”

  “Such as…?” Now that she was vulnerable, she needed to be understanding. She’d listen to whatever he had to say.

  “Well, my first thought is that in a normal relationship, this would be the most ridiculous confession ever.”

  Hope warmed her
heart and stilled her shivering. She’d be okay with writing off their conversation as ridiculous. Except… “We’ve never had a normal relationship, so…?”

  “So, it is a big deal. In fact, it’s so big, I’m having trouble believing it. When did you start drinking coffee?”

  Marissa curled her toes in a cringe. “The day George died. I grabbed your cup that I thought was tea and took a sip. When I realized it was coffee, I figured it must have been Billie’s. I was grossed out at first, but remember how much energy I had that day?”

  Connor rubbed his jaw. “That makes sense now. You still hate the taste, but you like how the caffeine gets you going.”

  “Yeah, it kept me too busy to think about my sadness for George.”

  His eyes warmed. He was much better at this communication thing. In fact, what kept them together was probably how understanding Connor had been.

  “Why did you hide it from me?” Connor’s lips twisted on one side.

  A good question. Too bad she didn’t have a good answer. “It was more about hiding it from Tandy. I mean, we had this rivalry thing going where we were competing to see how many customers we could sway to our side, so I didn’t want her to know that I was on her side.”

  Connor lifted a shoulder. “Well now that she’s confessed to drinking tea, it sounds like you’re on the same team.”

  Marissa could understand her best friend and business partner without agreeing on everything. Billie said so. “Tea tastes better.”

  “I disagree.” Connor gave a sad smile. “That’s our biggest problem, isn’t it? I was afraid to disagree with you, and when you blew up at me, it seemed I was right to be afraid. And now that you confess to also hiding what you’ve been drinking, I can’t help thinking how hypocritical that is.”

  Marissa didn’t like admitting she was wrong. It took vulnerability to a whole new level. It was always easier for her to get angrier at the person who was angry with her, or twist things around to make it seem like she was really the victim. Or, and she hated admitting this even to herself, but she’d been known to toss her long hair and charm her way out of an argument.

  This was where Billie’s final key to communication was either going to open or close the door to their relationship. “You’re right. I expected you to be vulnerable and understanding, but I didn’t want to have to do the same. I made my needs and desires more important than yours. I didn’t treat you as an equal, and…” Her throat clogged in an attempt to block the words from coming out. She swallowed it down. “If I don’t change, you are better off setting up boundaries and moving on without me.”

  Connor leaned his head against the seat and stared at the roof of the car, but his hand reached across the console and encircled hers with power and warmth. The lump in her throat came back, but for a different reason this time. He was choosing connection.

  “Have you been reading How to Win Friends and Influence People?”

  “What? No.” Was the whole vulnerability thing that powerful? “I’ve been talking to Billie.”

  Connor rolled his head to the side and gave her his lopsided grin. “What else has Billie said?”

  Did he want the whole lesson or just an object lesson? “She said to be honest with you and to appreciate your thoughts even when they differ from mine. So, I wore the boots.” She motioned toward her feet. “And I was headed to your house to bring you coffee.” She pointed at the cups.

  Connor lifted his head in delight. “You were going to drink coffee?”

  She pressed her lips together and nodded.

  “With me?”

  She nodded again. No words were needed.

  “You must really love me.”

  A laugh burst out. “More than tea,” she admitted.

  Connor turned to face her, his smile fading into sincerity. His eyes narrowed to peer into hers. “You were right about me needing to put up boundaries.”

  Oh no. She squeezed his hand tighter. She didn’t want to let go.

  “But that’s different than a wall.”

  Marissa blew out her breath. She’d lost Connor once before, and she didn’t want to do it again.

  Connor squeezed her hand in return. “With a wall, I would block you completely out of my life. With a boundary, I step out of the dirt of dysfunction and through a gate into a healthy lawn, and I invite you to join me.”

  He was inviting her into something better. “I want to join you.”

  “I was hoping you would say that.” He leaned forward and nuzzled her nose.

  The feather light tickle of his touch was more than skin deep. It soothed her soul like only his touch could.

  His lips hovered above hers, warm and magnetic. “I also need to apologize.”

  For what? “For not kissing me already?”

  He pulled away far enough for her to see his lips turn up. “No. For making a scene at the grand opening of your tea loft.”

  Oh. That. She’d practically forgotten about it in the wake of almost dying a bunch of times. Hopefully the town would too. “Well, do you want to know how I would have answered the question about a perfect wedding proposal?”

  He studied her. “I thought I knew, but it hasn’t been working out so well.”

  Time to start afresh. Being together was all that mattered anymore. Especially since she’d almost lost that opportunity. Twice. “You’ve really gone all out in the romance department. Your first proposal on the cruise was magical. And today would have even topped that. But I don’t think I need a show anymore. You are enough. I’m good with simple and heartfelt, like Greg figured Tandy wanted.”

  “I will keep that in mind.” He leaned in. Finally. And after the kind of kiss that could steam up the windows if they continued, he pulled away slightly. “You still willing to drink coffee with me tonight?”

  She smiled. “Are you asking me out?” Now that Valentine’s Day was getting good, she didn’t want it to end. She stepped on the brake and shifted into drive.

  “Always.” Connor turned toward his window, but not before Marissa spotted his huge grin. “Plus, I want to be at the shop when Tandy sees you drink it.”

  “You brat,” she said without any anger. Probably because being vulnerable had freed her from the fear, pain, and frustration that Billie said was always behind anger. She stepped on the gas and followed the path lit by headlights. “That’s truly why you want to drink coffee tonight, isn’t it? You want to see if I’m going to humble myself even more and confess to Tandy.”

  “Maybe,” he said. And she loved him for it.

  Tandy handed Greg a cup of cocoa. Except it didn’t look like hot chocolate or even something she would serve. It was pink.

  Greg took the drink with one hand and felt her forehead with the other. “You okay there, Tandy? Did you hit your head a little too hard on the steering wheel when driving the Corvette out of the shipping container? Should I have you checked by the EMTs again?”

  Tandy pulled his hand down and smiled up at him. Now that the adrenaline had drained away, she’d begun noticing some bumps and bruises, but nothing as ER worthy as Greg’s first kiss. “No, I just thought I’d serve you a cup of cocoa to thank you for hiring Connor’s mom to paint that picture of my dog. The only cocoa Marissa made today is from white chocolate with half and half. If you can ignore her addition of red food coloring, you’ll find it really quite palatable.”

  Greg sipped, leaving a tiny whipped cream mustache on his upper lip. He licked it off. “Mmm…palatable.”

  She picked up her own mug and let the sweet cream coat her tongue. Not a bad way to end the day. She circled the counter to sit beside her boyfriend. After the Valentine’s Day they’d had it was simply good to be alive, but, as much as she hated to give in to the cheesiness of the holiday, the truth was that love is what made life worth living.

  Greg was there for her when it mattered. The trick was that he wasn’t going to be able to read her mind and know when it mattered to her. That’s where Billie’s little communica
tion advice came in. Tandy would have to speak up about her needs, and when they weren’t met, she’d have to give Greg a chance to explain his intentions rather than assume the worst. Otherwise, they’d be no better off than she’d been with Vic.

  “I want to thank you again for the painting you had made of Cocoa. It showed me how much you really do care.” She met his gaze with an apology in her heart. “If Connor hadn’t accidentally told me about it, I might have written you off as indifferent about our relationship and gotten back together with Vic. Not because I cared for him more, but because I thought he cared for me more. I’m glad I didn’t.”

  Greg set his mug down. “I’m glad you didn’t too. And I need to apologize. When Vic showed up, I retreated. I was afraid you were going to leave me, so I busied myself with work, when I should have told you how I felt.”

  Tandy’s lips parted in new awareness. “So you aren’t always this busy?”

  Greg shook his head. “Nope.”

  “What a relief.” Tandy sighed. “Of course, if you hadn’t been so busy trying to prove Derrick Snodgrass innocent, I wouldn’t have worked so hard to try to find him guilty, and we never would have solved George’s murder.”

  Greg took her hand. “I’ve always enjoyed being with you as friends, but now that we’re more than that, we’re going to have to remember that dating isn’t always going to be roses and…pink hot chocolate. It’s going to take work. But, as you know...” He stood and pulled her to her feet. “I’ve got a pretty strong work ethic.”

  Tandy wrapped her arms around his neck. “Workaholic,” she whispered against his lips.

  The bell over the door rang. Tandy spun to find Marissa leading Connor through with hands clasped. They must have done their work as well. Or perhaps life and death circumstances had a way of bringing people together.

  “Hey.” Connor’s tone dropped. “Just because you guys won The Dating Game doesn’t mean you get the whole place to yourself for Valentine’s.”

  “It should.” Greg’s chest pressed against Tandy’s back and he wrapped his arms around her waist. “You two are interrupting what was a very sweet moment.”