Sugar And Spice (Holidays: Valentine)

by Charlotte French

  Crissy blinked, startled at the suddenness of it and she pulled back. Quinn reached for her hand, inching closer to her.

  “Wait, Crissy,” he said. “I’m not saying that to get something out of it.”

  She shook her head. “But you can’t mean it. We’ve only known each other for a few months.”

  “I know, it’s fast. I just…” He sighed and stared at the floor for a moment, composing himself, searching for the right words before he looked up at her again. “I wanted you to know, no matter what happens between us, that’s how I feel about you.”

  She studied him, her breath coming shallow and fast, her heart stuttering against her rib cage. Quinn squeezed her hand.

  “I don’t mean to put any pressure on you in any way,” he said.

  “I’m…” She bit her lip. She wanted to say it back but she couldn’t. Not yet. All of this felt surreal as it was. How could she possibly say it back to him right now when she could hardly believe they had lasted this long as it was? She liked him, of course she did. He was handsome and caring and gentle but…it was too soon.

  Quinn brushed his thumb over her chin and pulled her closer again.

  “I don’t expect you to say it back right now, sweetheart,” he said.

  She huffed a small laugh. “Of course I have to. It wouldn’t be right if I didn’t say it back. And I do like you, I don’t want to give you the wrong idea…”

  Quinn took her other hand, his gaze steady, unwavering.

  “Crissy,” he said. “I’ve been ready to tell you that for a long time. But just because I’ve been ready to say it doesn’t mean you have to be. I’m telling you because you’re special to me. Because I never get tired of seeing you every single day, hearing you laugh, seeing you smile. I know it’s early but in my line of work, life is too short to not tell the people close to you that you love them.”

  Crissy traced one finger over his lips and he kissed her fingertip.

  “Take your time, Crissy,” he said softly. “I’m not going anywhere.”

  She smiled and kissed him lightly as she sat on the bed next to him. She rested her head on his shoulder and he wrapped his arms around her. After a pause, she quietly said, “Would you like to stay the night anyway? I mean…unless that’s weird after…you know. Earlier.”

  “Only if you’re okay with it,” he replied, running a fingertip up her back to curl into her hair.

  “I’d like that.”

  Quinn turned and kissed her forehead and she leaned into him, craving the smell of him, the warmth of him, the touch of him.

  The faint scent of smoke curled up the stairs and Crissy sat bolt upright. “My crepes,” she said. “I left the sauces on the stove, no, no, no.”

  She raced down the stairs and into the kitchen with Quinn close on her heels. Wisps of gray smoke plumed up from the two saucepans on the stove. She flipped the stove off and dumped the pans into the sink with a hiss of water. She swore under her breath as she looked at the blackened mess stuck to the bottom of her saucepans.

  Quinn’s hand settled on the small of her back. She looked up into his concerned face.

  “It’s not the end of the world,” she said.

  She retrieved a pint of vanilla ice cream from the freezer, scooped out two healthy helpings onto the plate of crepes and held a plate out to him. But when he reached for it, she pulled it back.

  “Upstairs?” she asked, hopeful.

  He raised his eyebrows. “Is this a normal habit for you? Dessert in bed?”

  “Only when I have special company.”

  She edged around him, teasing him with the plate until he trailed after her back up the stairs and shut the door.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  In the morning, Crissy woke to gentle, warm breath against the back of her neck with the weight of Quinn’s arms wrapped around her, his fingers laced into hers. His thumb rested against the back of her hand and the solid expanse of his chest pressed to every inch of her back. She smiled and kissed his hand.

  “Good morning to you too,” Quinn said, his voice gravel rough and deep with the lingering edge of sleep.

  She hummed in response, snuggling into his arms even more. “How long have you been up?” she asked.

  “A few minutes maybe.”

  The faint smell of coffee drifted up the stairs and Crissy glanced at the clock – ten minutes to eight. She groaned. She didn’t want to leave but Amy already had the coffee going for at least an hour and she shouldn’t leave Amy to fend for herself.

  “I should go,” Crissy sighed.

  Quinn tightened his hold on her, peppering her shoulder and the curve of her neck with kisses until she giggled and hitched her shoulder up.

  “You’re making this a thousand times harder,” she said, rolling over to face him.

  “Then I have succeeded in foiling your plans and you’re mine for the rest of the day.”

  She groaned again and kissed him long and hard and deep, tasting the linger spices of cinnamon and sugar on his lips. She trailed her fingers over his jawline and along his throat, coasting over his collarbone and down his arm.

  “You have no idea how much I wish that was true,” she replied. “We should go sledding again as soon as possible.”

  “I can work with that.”

  “And in the meantime, there should be lots of coffee and hot pastries.”

  “I can work with that too.” He brushed his thumb over her chin then hesitated for a fraction of a second. “Amy isn’t going to kill me, is she?”

  “No. Why?”

  “I spent the night.”

  “She’s fine with it. I promise.”

  “You sure?”

  She laughed and kissed him one last time before she gently pushed him off the bed and towards the bathroom.

  “There might be a fresh apple turnover waiting for you downstairs in a few minutes if you hurry,” she said.

  Crissy slipped down the stairs and as she turned the corner she spotted Ellie waiting on tables with Amy at the coffee machines, putting the finishing swirl of cream into a mug of black coffee.

  “Hey, sugar, there you are,” Amy chirped. She lowered her voice and a sly smile tugged at her lips. “How was last night?”

  “Nothing happened so you can stop looking at me like that.”

  Amy rolled her eyes but when she looked at Crissy again, there was a hint of genuine concern in her eyes.

  “Everything okay?”

  Crissy hesitated a moment, glanced back up the stairs to make sure Quinn wasn’t in hearing range.

  “When you started dating Manu, how long did it take before he told you he loved you?” she asked.

  Amy blew out her cheeks as she let out a puff of air. “God, that was a long time ago. Two years I think?”

  “Oh,” Crissy said.

  “But you have to remember, sugar, Manny was shy as hell. I couldn’t even get two words out of him for the first six months, let alone those three magical little words. I told him I loved him after dating him for three months. He looked so panicked, I thought he was going to bolt right then and there.”

  “But he didn’t.”

  Amy smiled. “No he didn’t. I don’t know why it has to be such a big deal to say it though. If you like someone, you should be able to tell them. I tell you every day, don’t I?”

  Crissy nodded, saying nothing, thinking of how those simple words, only three, only short and small, had been lodged in her throat and she couldn’t say them back to Quinn.

  Amy placed a hand on Crissy’s shoulder, drawing her back to the present.

  “I’m assuming since this question is coming up that last night went well?” she asked.

  Crissy nodded. “Just thinking out loud.”

  “Well, you’re more than welcome to do that any time.” She paused and abandoned the coffee, turning to face Crissy. “Sugar, people open up on their own time. Some people, like yours truly, don’t hesitate when it comes to these things because we like to jump in
head first, heartbreak be damned. Maybe we’re rewarded for our idiotic courage and maybe we’re not but we’re ready to take another jump all too soon because we like the adrenaline rush.

  “Others of us, like you, sweetie, are a bit more careful when it comes to taking that flying leap. There’s nothing wrong with that. When you take that leap, you know it will be worth it. You know there’s going to be someone golden waiting to catch you.”

  Crissy sighed and rubbed at her forehead. “I just don’t want to misjudge the jump again, you know?”

  Amy nodded. “And as your best friend, I don’t want to see you misjudge that jump again either. It was one of the most painful things I’ve ever had to go through in my life. Just don’t let a good thing pass you by because you’re afraid of getting hurt. Sometimes swallowing that fear makes the love taste that much sweeter.”

  She kissed Crissy’s forehead, swept up the coffee mugs and worked her way into the maze of tables and the breakfast rush.

  Crissy headed into the kitchen and retrieved the turnovers she had left to rest in the refrigerator the day before and slid them into the oven.

  A few minutes later, while Crissy was beating eggs, Quinn joined her in the kitchen, coming up behind her and resting his hands on her hips, brushing a light kiss to her shoulder and trailing up her neck, his lips barely brushing her skin before he nipped at her ear. She sighed and let her head drift back against his chest. He hummed in satisfaction and peered over her shoulder.

  “I’ve been meaning to ask you something,” he said.

  Crissy opened her eyes and turned to look up at him. “Good something? Or bad something?”

  He hesitated with a grimace. “It depends on your perspective I guess.”

  Crissy stifled a groan and set the bowl of eggs aside. “I’m all ears.”

  “Ever since the Valentine’s Day party, my sister has been pestering me to ask you to come over for dinner,” he said. “Meet the family. All that.” As he spoke, his gaze slid to the side, fixated on a spot just over her right shoulder.

  “That was months ago,” Crissy pointed out.

  Quinn’s gaze flicked back to her, studying her face. “My family can be…a bit of a handful. All the kids will be there. My mom will be there. She lives with Megan, helps with the kids sometimes. And they’re all very curious, asking tons of questions all the time. Which can get overwhelming fast if you’re not used to it and…”

  “Quinn,” Crissy said, interrupting his flood of words.

  He stopped, raised his eyebrows in a silent question.

  “I’d be happy to have dinner with you and your family,” she said.

  He let out a small breath of relief and squeezed her hand. “You would? Because you don’t have to. I wouldn’t blame you.”

  Crissy placed her hand in the middle of his chest. “You never blame me for anything. I like your sister. She was very kind to me. And I adore kids, especially Megan’s kids.”

  Quinn laughed softly. “God, I love you so much,” he said as he shook his head then leaned in to kiss her lightly, smiling against her lips.

  “Can I bring dessert?” she asked.

  “I believe that might be a requirement.”

  “I’m totally bribing your nieces and nephews with sugar, by the way. And Megan and I will sit and watch as you chase them down when they’re hyper.”

  “You have the face of an angel and a wicked streak a mile wide.”

  ***

  It was a lazy Wednesday evening with tiny piles of snow resting against the window turned blue with shadow and blushed with the last fading golden streaks of sunlight. Ellie was sweeping up and wiping down the counter, cleaning the display case before her shift ended. Crissy and Amy sat in a window booth, Amy’s feet propped up on the booth next to Crissy as they wrapped their fingers around steaming mugs of coffee.

  “Manu surprised me with a passport this morning,” Amy said, tracing her fingertip over the rim of her mug.

  Crissy raised her eyebrows and her chest tightened with a flash of panic. “You’re leaving?”

  Amy looked up suddenly and reached across the table hurriedly. “No, absolutely not. But with a baby on the way, Manny wants me to meet his family in person. Skype is hardly the same thing as face to face.”

  “When?” Crissy asked.

  Amy sighed, shook her head. “June, maybe July. Before I get too big to travel.”

  Crissy nodded. “They’ll love you.”

  Amy laughed slightly, a faint nervous note to the sound. “I just have to remember to behave myself.”

  Crissy shook her head, smiling. “That’s exactly why Manu fell in love with you and you know it.”

  Amy rolled her eyes. “Maybe. But I hate admitting your right so you’re not getting anything more than that on the subject.”

  “It’s about time you had a vacation anyway,” Crissy said. “And the beaches of Venezuela will be perfect.”

  “I don’t tan, sugar, I burn.”

  “No you won’t, not if Manu has anything to say about it. I can just see him smothering you in lotion and asking you a thousand times if you’re all right until you’re ready to strangle him.”

  Amy laughed a little easier this time. “He won’t be pleased to hear you have him pegged so well. He hates being predictable. But he’s sweet. And I want to do this with him. I do want to meet his family. They’ve been polite in the few times I’ve talked to them. I just hope I don’t embarrass him.”

  “I think that’s pretty much impossible, Amy,” Crissy said quietly.

  Amy slid a little further into the booth, pleased.

  Movement out of the corner of Crissy’s eye made her turn and look out the window. She just caught a flash of Pete’s coat as he turned the corner and hurried into the coffee shop, the bell jangling in the silence. Ellie put the broom aside and beamed, looking him up and down.

  “Hi, how can I help you?” she asked.

  “I’m looking for Crissy?”

  Ellie pointed. Pete turned and Crissy waved.

  “Crissy, hey,” he said. “I have a…slight culinary emergency.”

  Crissy pushed her mug aside and sat a little straighter. “That happens to be my specialty.”

  Pete shifted, hesitant. It looked strange on Pete, this unease and lack of confidence.

  “I kind of have a date tonight,” he said. “I promised I’d make dinner.”

  “And that’s a problem, isn’t it?” she asked.

  Pete nodded then shook his head. “Well, it wasn’t at first. But I managed to screw the whole thing up. I burned the sauce. I burned the meat. I don’t…exactly know what to do. And this guy…”

  A flicker of panic flashed in Pete’s eyes as he realized what he’d just said.

  “I mean…” he started.

  But Crissy held up a hand to stop him.

  “I’m sure Stephen won’t care,” she said.

  Pete blinked, surprised. “How did you know?”

  Crissy glanced at Amy with a knowing smile. “Lucky guess,” she said. “You two looked very comfortable together when you were her to install my stove. So what’s wrong with ordering out?”

  He sighed. “I thought about that and I was going to. But I wanted to do something special for him. I wanted to surprise him. Ordering out feels like cheating. Do you think you could just…walk me through starting over?”

  Crissy nodded and stood. “I’m all yours. Lead the way.”

  Pete took her shoulders in a bruising grasp of enthusiasm and kissed her cheek.

  “Thank you, thank you, thank you,” he said. “I owe you one. Big time.”

  Crissy laughed and hooked her arm through Pete’s elbow as she grabbed her coat.

  “Just don’t open up a coffee shop across the street when you surpass my cooking abilities, okay?”

  Pete pushed the fire station door open and gestured for her to go inside first. The garage was deserted, the two fire trucks tucked in next to each other like sleeping dragons.

&nbs
p; “It’s pretty quiet around here these days,” he said, leading her through the garage and around to a door in the back. “It’s not a big town and with the weather starting to warm up a big, people don’t use their heaters as often. The guys are probably playing cards in the living room.”

  “Do you like it here?” she asked, following him into the modest kitchen. “It sounds like you’d get bored without much to do…”

  “Oh, trust me, it’s worth it. I tried living in Chicago for a few years. It’s hard to control fires in tightly packed areas. It gets away from you before you know it. Out here, in sleepy little towns like this one, it’s one or two houses mostly. I’m not saying it’s easier. It’s still hard to watch people lose their homes, their entire lives. But I feel like I’m making a difference here rather than fighting a losing battle. Besides,” he added with a grin, “gives me more free time anyway.”

  Pete swept his hands towards the stove where a rack of charred chicken sat, along with a pot of soup, rice, and green beans.

  “The guys won’t stop ribbing me about boiling the green beans to mush,” he sighed.

  Crissy nudged him with a shoulder and picked up the pans, emptying them into the sink. “Then let’s give them something else to tease you about. Like your fantastic cooking skills after tonight.”

  Crissy walked Pete through preparing a meal of pasta with goat cheese and fresh herbs. She showed him how to make the perfect garlic bread, with olive oil, roasted garlic to sweeten the flavor, and a sprinkle of paprika, fresh basil, and parmesan. She watched over his shoulder as he heated the sauce, added a touch of white wine, and not once did she touch any of it, as much as her fingers itched to help. This was his dinner and he needed to take the full credit for it. Pete dipped his finger in the sauce when it was done and tasted it. His eyebrows shot up.

  “You are a goddess among us mere mortals,” he said. “We don’t deserve you.”

  Crissy laughed. “It’s just food.”

  Pete shook his head. “Out here, we’ve been living on beans, bad coffee, and stale doughnuts. Nothing as fancy as this.”

  “Well wait until dessert,” she said. “It’s going to be stupid simple but it’ll look fantastic.”