04 Cold Case and Cupcakes

by Harper Lin

  Like you didn’t for a while? The thought made her shudder. The last thing Amelia wanted was to fall asleep to thoughts of her ex-husband and the mockery he’d made of her and their life together.

  “Don’t think about it,” she mumbled.

  Instead, her thoughts went to the beautiful children she had. The one thing that John had done right.

  Amelia wondered if John ever thought that Adam and Meg were his greatest accomplishments, if they were the only thing he had done right. In that respect, the flabby, smart-mouthed, thickheaded Kyle Spoon was more of a man than John would ever be.

  Chapter Five

  “Well, you’re looking adorable today,” Lila chirped as she stepped into the Pink Cupcake. “Are we being photographed again? You’ve been reviewed in all the magazines that count. Who is it this time?”

  Amelia laughed.

  “No. We aren’t being reviewed again. And might I remind you that we were reviewed in the Gary Tribune food section and the Gary Eats section of NUVO. That paper is free. So I wouldn’t say we’ve cracked the crust just yet.”

  “It’s just a matter of time. If the pickle-on-a-stick people down the row can get a review in Bon Appetit, we certainly can.” Lila pulled a bag out from her purse. “Surprise for you.”

  She handed the bag to Amelia.

  “What?” Amelia gushed. “You shouldn’t be spending your money on me.”

  “I’m investing in the Pink Cupcake,” Lila argued, jerking her chin at the bag. “Besides, I have lots of money. If I don’t spend it, the government will take it when I’m dead.”

  “Can you not talk about dying?”

  “Hey, it happens to everyone.”

  “Lila. Please? One day without inviting the Grim Reaper, please?”

  Shaking her head, Amelia looked in the bag and pulled out the gift Lila had bought for the truck.

  “Are you kidding? Hot-pink aprons! With our logo! Lila, these are fantastic!”

  “There is one for you, one for me, and two for the kids, plus an extra if we get so big we need to bring on more help.”

  “Meg is going to flip!” She hugged Lila tightly. “You are too good to me.”

  Lila hugged her back then pulled away quickly.

  “Okay, enough public displays of affection. Let’s get these on and start baking. Except that maybe you shouldn’t, because I mean it when I say you do look very stylish this morning. What’s up?”

  Amelia smiled mischievously and tugged at the sides of the simple gray skirt.

  “I wanted to look pretty when Dan left this morning.”

  Lila flopped down in the chair by the ordering window and stared.

  “Oh, relax,” Amelia teased her. “It isn’t as scandalous as it sounds. He brought food over, and it got late while we were talking, so I invited him to stay in the guest room. End of story.”

  “Were the kids home?”

  “Yes, we got the okay from the bosses right off the bat.”

  “And he stayed in the guest room the whole night?” Lila’s right eyebrow rose suspiciously, and she looked at Amelia sideways.

  “Of course he did.”

  Lila slumped as if she’d just found out she flunked a test she had studied for.

  “And for that you got dressed up?”

  “Lila, I’m crazy about you, but you really need to get your mind out of the gutter. I’m forty-four years old. I’m not the wild woman of Borneo anymore.”

  “I don’t believe that,” came a male voice from outside the order window.

  “Who said that?” Amelia mouthed the words to Lila, who pointed toward the back of the truck.

  Before she could go peek, Gavin poked his head in and gave both ladies a cheerful good morning. Amelia’s stylish outfit didn’t escape his attention either.

  “Whoa.” He smiled as he let his eyes look her up and down. “You look pretty. What, do you have a date? Some guy coming to take you out for dinner, maybe a movie or a walk in the park?”

  “No.” Amelia blushed.

  “No? No date tonight?”

  She shook her head and folded her arms over her chest.

  “No. I have no plans tonight.”

  “Great. I’ll meet you here after lock-up. I know just the place.” He winked. “Don’t work too hard, Lila.” He grinned a grin that was irresistible, as Kyle Spoon’s probably had been about five years ago.

  “Never do, Gavin.” Lila choked back the laughter as she stared at Amelia’s shocked expression. “You walked right into that one. Didn’t see the lights? Hear the bell?” She slapped the table and continued laughing.

  “Oh my gosh!” Amelia started laughing herself. “Did I just get robbed? I feel like I did.”

  “No. You just accepted a dinner invitation from the Food Truck Alley’s very own Casanova. I’m jealous.”

  Turning on the ovens to get them heated, both women cracked up over Gavin’s straightforward manner of showing Amelia he was interested in her.

  But as it got closer to lock-up time, Amelia began to get nervous.

  “I don’t know about this, Lila. Dan just stayed overnight last night for the very first time.”

  “He slept in the guest room.”

  “Yes, but still. That’s a big step for me, and here I am already going out with another man. How do I say this? I feel a bit trampy.”

  “Goodness, if that makes you feel trampy, I should be calling myself the whore of Babylon,” Lila mumbled.

  “What did you say?” Amelia finished wiping down the ovens and flat surfaces for tomorrow’s batches.

  “I didn’t say anything. Pay no attention to me.”

  “Lila, I’m asking you seriously. Should I go?”

  Lila pushed a few stray red curls from her face and took both of Amelia’s hands in hers.

  “Yes.” She smiled kindly. “Not because he’s hot or because you should spread it around. But because you might need a friend to fix a flat when Dan is stuck at work. It’s as simple as that. And I’ll go to your house and feed your kids.”

  Amelia felt her nerves settle down.

  “Gavin obviously likes you. It’s hard not to.” Lila bumped Amelia with her hip as she passed her on her way to the back door of the truck. “But that doesn’t mean he calls the shots.”

  When she left for the night, Lila told Amelia to call her if she needed anything, like a quick exit or a place to bury the body.

  While waiting for Gavin to come over, Amelia thought about what Lila had said.

  She was right. Grabbing something to eat with another guy who worked the same kind of job in the same area was no big deal. She’d had lunch with him, after all. He wasn’t a complete stranger.

  Yeah, but that was lunch. This is dinner with wine and dark lighting.

  She shook her head, trying to dislodge that voice.

  “Hi.” Amelia turned around to see Gavin leaning in the door. “I had one of my guys watch the place so I could run home and change. I didn’t want you to feel like you were going out with a slob.”

  Amelia crept forward and took a look.

  “My gosh.” She beamed. “You look great.”

  Gavin was just wearing a simple pair of khakis and a black T-shirt, but he looked amazing. He had told Amelia he was in the military, and that must have been how he got his creases so perfect.

  “Thanks.” He nodded as if he appreciated her noticing how he had tried.

  “So where are we headed?”

  “Well, I hope you don’t mind, but I know a great Indian restaurant just a few blocks from here.”

  “Are we walking there?”

  “Yes, I’ll lead the way.”

  Amelia kept the conversation going as they walked. “How was your day?”

  “Actually, I had one crazy day.”

  “Oh yeah? What happened?”

  “Well, first I got a call from the city telling me that they hadn’t received my payment for my space. I told the girl that was funny because I had paid for the entire year an
d didn’t owe anything.”

  “Did you talk to a girl named Jeanine?”

  “How did you know?”

  “She is one of two people who work in that office, and I hate to say it, but she’s the smart one. You might need to go down there to get things straightened out.”

  “I was afraid of that. That’s an all-day affair.”

  “Right?”

  Amelia instantly felt relaxed and was ready to tell Lila she was right.

  As soon as they made it to the restaurant, Amelia inhaled the sweet aroma of cilantro and heard Indian music piping through the place.

  “I think they stole your decorating ideas,” Gavin said, slipping his arm through Amelia’s and leading her to the hostess table.

  “Why do you say that?”

  Gavin pointed to the banquet room just across from the restaurant’s very crowded dining area. It was hot pink with gold and teal trim.

  “Funny.”

  “What? It’s a compliment.”

  “I’ll have you know that The Pink Cupcake just acquired hot-pink aprons to match the truck.”

  “I bet you look amazing.”

  The tiny hostess, wearing a maroon sari, led them to a small table for two that was in a dark and quiet corner.

  “Now, I tasted your Tex-Mex muffins, and if I could make a suggestion...”

  “Please do. I don’t get offended by suggestions. I just ignore them if I don’t like them.”

  “A little more heat.”

  “Oh, you like things spicy. Well, I thought it could use that too, but I wanted to see if the concept would work first. I think it turned out pretty well.”

  “I’m amazed at some of the cupcakes you offer. So far, everything I’ve had has been delicious.”

  “I’m sorry.” Amelia placed her hands in her lap as the waiter poured them some water. “I’ve never even tasted your Philly cheese steak sandwiches. I know. I’m a big loser. It’s just that when I get to work, I’m all about the work. I usually don’t even get a chance to eat throughout the day. Then I hurry home to see my kids and have dinner with them.”

  “I didn’t say that so you’d come and try my sandwiches. I said it because it’s true. And because I thought if I stopped by enough times, you’d start to talk to me. Which you did.”

  “Gavin, I’m just going to be blunt and up front with you.” Amelia felt her heart pounding. “I think you are really nice. And you know as well as I do that you are a really good-looking guy. Please don’t pretend you don’t know that.”

  “What are you talking about? Me? Good looking? What have you been smoking, lady?”

  “Stop making me laugh, or I’ll never finish what I’m trying to say.”

  Gavin sat back and folded his arms over his wide chest. Amelia tried to finish her thought, but when she looked at his eyes, she saw he was crossing them, and she burst out laughing, making every patron in the restaurant look in her direction.

  “That’s it.” She put her hands up. “I surrender. I’m outgunned.”

  Wiping her eyes with her napkin, she looked at Gavin, who was thoroughly enjoying himself.

  “You have a great laugh, Amelia.”

  “Ask those people over there if they think so. I think I might have shattered their eardrums.”

  As she laid her forearm on the table, Gavin took her hand in his. He held it gently, rubbing his fingers across the top. Amelia could feel the roughness of the calluses. His skin was warm, but she pulled her hand away and tucked it back in her lap. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to hold his hand. She did. And, suddenly, that made her nervous.

  “So, Amelia. What did you do yesterday with your free time?” he asked innocently.

  Taking a deep breath, Amelia would have liked to tell him that she didn’t do much. Stopped at the grocery store, put gas in the truck, you know, just the normal things.

  How could she tell him that she had taken a trip to Brookhaven to visit a person she didn’t know whose nephew was the strangled boy that murdered reporter was researching? He’d look at her as if she were crazy. Amelia wasn’t sure she wanted Gavin to see her in that light. She wasn’t sure how she wanted him to see her. So she lied.

  Chapter Six

  “I’ve got to tell Dan.”

  “Tell him what?” Lila looked at Amelia as though she had grown a third eye in the middle of her forehead. “That you went out with Philly Cheese Steak Guy?”

  “His name is Gavin. Can you just call him that?”

  “Gavin.” Lila sighed. “And you had a nice time. End of story.”

  “He tried to kiss me.”

  “But you didn’t let him. You said you gave him a hug, and he kissed your cheek, and when he moved in closer, you pulled away.” Lila popped a batch of blueberry cupcakes still in their batter form into the oven, closing the heavy door and pressing the timer. “Unless you didn’t pull away?”

  Amelia shook her head while she looked down, concentrating on the dainty flower design she was putting on her vanilla cupcakes.

  “No. I did. But I feel like that is the difference between dealing with Dan and dealing with Gavin. I lied to Gavin. He asked me what I did after work the other day, and I couldn’t tell him the truth. Only Dan would understand what I did.”

  “Heavens, Amelia, what did you do?”

  With a sigh, Amelia spilled the story of her visit to Brookhaven.

  “Okay, perhaps that isn’t something to brag about to a possible love interest.”

  “See? But Dan knows, and he understood why I did it. He wasn’t happy, but he understood. Plus, I was honest with Dan after the fact. I’m not as sure about Gavin. He works right there.” She pointed out the order window to the left where the big blue-and-silver Philly Cheese Steak truck sat. “What if things went south after he heard what I did, who I was talking to? Is it worth it?”

  “Only you can decide that, honey.” Lila brushed off some flour that was on Amelia’s cheek. “What do you think Dan will say when you tell him about dinner?”

  “I don’t know. I thought I’d bring it up after I went to visit Timothy Casey. That way there would be more work-related substance involved.”

  “Who is Timothy Casey?” Lila squinted as if the name was familiar but she couldn’t pull up a face to go with it.

  “He’s the boyfriend in the Preston Dwight case. He’s got a plumbing business over on LaPorte Road called Waterware. There’s a red-and-white sign for it. I thought I’d stop by and see what he has to say about things.”

  “Yeah.” Lila snapped her fingers. “He was a suspect for a while, but they cleared him, too.” Lila nodded while she started to wipe down the counter and peeked at the cupcakes still baking.

  “According to Sandra Dwight, the aunt, Timothy was the cat’s meow compared to Preston’s real father,” Amelia said.

  “Really?” Lila folded up the rag she had been using and took a seat to wait for the timer. “When are you planning on doing that?”

  “The kids are with their dad this weekend. I thought I’d go then.” Just as she finished her sentence, Amelia’s phone began to buzz. “Speak of the devil.”

  John O’Malley, Amelia’s ex-husband, had agreed in their divorce to take Adam and Meg a minimum of every other weekend.

  John was true to his word, picking the kids up when he said he was going to and calling if there was any trouble or delay. It was a blessing and a curse. She certainly didn’t want her children to suffer over the mistakes their parents had made. But she couldn’t deny part of her wished he were a little more like Kyle Spoon with his crass comments and drinking problem.

  As it was, John had gotten in shape after the divorce. In order for him to keep up with his twentysomething girlfriend, Jennifer, it was a necessity.

  But Amelia didn’t feel she had let herself go. She just didn’t have a gym membership or indulge in spa treatments or pay more than twenty dollars for a haircut. She kept her nails trimmed, but it had been over a year since she indulged in a manicure.
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br />   “Hello, John.” She winced. John never called just to say hello or see how Adam did on a history test or if Meg helped out on the truck recently. There was always an order to be barked or a complaint to be lodged.

  “Amelia. Are you having someone come to prune the oak that’s on the southern side of your house?”

  “What? Not that I know of.” She pinched her brow and searched her memory for such a request. Nope. Nothing rang a bell.

  “I just got a call from Daryl Limski. He said that he drove past your place and the branches of the oak were getting too close to the roof on the southern side of the house.”

  “And?”

  “And, Amelia, that can cause damage to the gutters and the shingling of the house. If you have to pay for those repairs yourself, that can cost anywhere from four thousand to six thousand dollars.”

  “Okay, John. I’m at work right now, and worrying about branches and gutters just isn’t on my radar. Do you remember how you used to act when I’d call you at work to tell you the dryer was on the fritz or the tile in the bathroom was cracked?”

  “When you called me at work, I was busy.”

  Amelia’s blood ignited, and she felt the string of swears rising up in her throat. But she wouldn’t say them. Clearing her throat, she stroked the nape of her neck and took a deep breath.

  “Unless it’s an emergency, John, I need you to stop calling me at work. I’ll talk to Mr. Mezenio, the landlord, and let him know your concern. Until then, tell Daryl Limski to quit spying and mind his own business.”

  “Calm down, Amelia. Don’t get all excited over nothing. You can never take any kind of criticism.”

  “Good-bye, John. The kids will see you Friday.”

  Amelia growled as soon as she hit the disconnect button. Why didn’t John ever ask what she did in her off time? She’d love to see the expression on his face after telling him she was visiting people not only at their Brookhaven residence, but also at a Brookhaven corner tavern. What would Daryl Limski do if he saw that? The thought made her smile.

  “That went well.” Lila patted Amelia’s hand over the counter.

  “Lila, what am I doing even worrying about Dan and Gavin? John can call and talk to me for thirty seconds, and I’m ready to take a chainsaw to any man who comes within twenty feet of me.”