Imperfect Heart

by Tarina Deaton

  He counted to three, waiting for her to break out into the K-I-S-S-I-N-G song. She just grinned up at him.

  “Can we get back to the graffiti?”

  Her grin somehow got bigger, but she stopped swaying. “Sure. Like Zoe said, she came in and told me about it.”

  “You didn’t notice it when you arrived this morning?”

  “No, it was still dark when I got here.”

  “You couldn’t see it under the light?”

  She pursed her lips and scowled. “No. Because the damn light’s been out for three months and George is too damn cheap to replace it. I can’t replace it myself, because I don’t have a fifteen-foot ladder.”

  He looked up at the light. Sure enough, the bulb was broken. He stepped closer to the other door and saw that light was busted as well.

  “And it wasn’t there the day before?”

  She shook her head. “No. Just the usual dirt and grime.”

  “What about the security footage?” He pointed at one of the security cameras mounted at the end of the alley.

  She braced her hands on her hips. “I highly doubt they work. If you manage to get a recording of whoever did this last night, I’ll give you free pastries for the rest of the month.”

  As good as that sounded, he didn’t hold out hope that someone who wouldn’t foot the bill to replace a light bulb had working security cameras.

  “Thanks, Elba.”

  “Sure thing. Come inside when you’re done and I’ll get you guys some coffee to go.”

  Tim walked over to the building owner, who was kicking at glass on the ground.

  “Damn delinquents,” he muttered.

  “Mr. Baker? I noticed the video cameras at the ends of the alleyway. Do they work?”

  “Psh. They’re for show. Do you know how much twenty-four-hour coverage costs? More money than it’s worth.” He had a small, light brown stain halfway down his shirt where coffee seemed to have dripped onto his paunch.

  “Right.” Tim jotted a couple of notes down to jog his memory later for the report. “So you don’t have anything to add for the report?”

  “No. I just need the report so I can file the insurance claim so I don’t have to pay for this mess.”

  Tim pulled out a business card. “The number to call for the report is on the back. It’ll take seven to ten business days for it to be ready for you to pick up.”

  “Seven to—! That’s ridiculous! How long does it take to type up a report that says ‘the building got graffitied?’”

  “Right now? Closer to ten business days.” Tim held out the business card and stared down at the man blustering in front on him.

  George snatched the business card from Tim and stormed down the alley, muttering to himself.

  “Ten days exactly,” he said under his breath. He clicked his pen, slid it into the loop on the side of his notepad, and joined Kevin and Zoe.

  “You good?”

  “Yes,” Kevin said. “Not a whole lot of information. Just the graffiti.” He glanced between them. “I’m gonna go…that way.” He pointed down the alley and left them.

  “Morning,” Tim said.

  “Morning.” Zoe’s gaze trailed down his body. It caused a physical reaction. He could almost feel the brush of her fingertips, leaving behind a trail of goosebumps on his flesh.

  “Stop looking at me like that, Zoe.”

  “Like what?” Her wide, doe-eyes weren’t fooling him with her pretend innocence. She knew exactly what she did to him. “You look really good in uniform.”

  “Should I keep it on tonight?”

  He heard her breath catch in the back of her throat. They were absolutely going to have to explore that scenario.

  “I’ll call you when I get home,” he said.

  “Okay.”

  He winked. “You going back in the bookstore?”

  “I’m going to grab a cup of coffee from Elba first.”

  “Be safe today,” he said.

  “It’s just kids being assholes.”

  “Still. You can’t be too careful. Especially now that I know those cameras don’t work,” he said.

  “All right. I’ll be careful.”

  “Thank you.”

  She stared up at him expectantly and he lowered his head and brushed his lips against hers.

  “Is that what you’re waiting for?”

  “Um…actually, I need you to step back so I can go to the Cafe. But the kiss was nice too.” She patted him on the chest.

  He took two steps back, clearing a path for her to walk past him. “Yeah.”

  Laughing, she patted him again and disappeared into the Cafe with a wave over her shoulder.

  All he could do was shake his head. He was gone. Head over heels and he had no idea what to do about it. Or whether he even wanted to do something about it. Did he pursue this thing with her? Did she want him to? What about their houses? Who gave up theirs to move in with the other?

  Whoa. Whoa.

  It was way too early to be thinking about moving in together. They’d only been together for a couple of weeks. It was entirely too soon to be thinking permanent.

  Who was he kidding? He’d move in with Zoe in a heartbeat if he thought she’d let him. Hell, Jase had gotten Bree to move in with on the second day they’d met. So what if he’d kind of coerced her into doing it? Tim wasn’t going to coerce Zoe. He’d just mention that if she had some stuff at his place, and vice versa, it’d make it easier to get ready in the morning without having to cross the lawn between their houses. It was common sense.

  Kevin stood in the middle of the alley looking at the slurs painted on the wall.

  “What are you thinking?” Tim asked.

  “Zoe said she didn’t notice any graffiti yesterday.”

  “Elba said the same thing. Why?”

  “It looks like this was done by two people.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  “‘Bitch,’ ‘whore,’ and ‘slut’ are all in one color and have similar spray patterns, but…the racial slurs are all in another color and have a different spray pattern.”

  Tim’s eyebrows pinched together and he stared at Kevin.

  “What? I was into street art for a few years in high school.”

  “Street art?”

  “Yeah. Big colorful murals painted entirely in spray paint. Street art.”

  “Pretty sure that’s still called graffiti.”

  “Not always.”

  “Okay, two people spraying graffiti. Since the cameras don’t work we can’t confirm that or get any footage to positively ID who did it. So other than making note of that in the report in the hopes they do it again, somewhere that has working cameras, there’s not a lot we can do about it.”

  Kevin sighed. “Yeah. I suppose so.”

  Tim clapped him on the shoulder. “Come on. Let’s grab a cup of coffee before we get back on the road. My treat.”

  “Didn’t Elba say she would give us a cup?”

  “Yes, but I’m ordering it so it’s technically my treat.”

  “Sure….”

  Chapter 21

  Zoe pushed out of the Cafe and checked the time on her phone. She had about fifteen minutes until the company she’d contracted with arrived to install the point of sale system.

  “Zoe.” Kevin hung out of the passenger side window of the police car as it idled behind the cars parked in front of the store. “My mom told me to ask you if she can get your number. She’d like to invite you over for dinner.”

  Stepping off the curb, she sidled between a four-door sedan and a boxy SUV. “Sure. It’s—”

  “Here.” He thrust his phone at her. “You can text it to her.”

  Trading her coffee for his phone, she spoke as she typed. “Hey Mrs. Moore. This is Zoe. Here’s my number:” She finished typing and handed Kevin’s phone back to him, taking her coffee. “Thank you.”

  “See you later,” he said.

  Tim leaned over so he could see Zoe from th
e driver’s seat. “Bye, Zoe.”

  She bent at the waist and placed her hand on Kevin’s arm, still resting on the window, for balance. “Bye, Tim.”

  He winked and she stood, waving as they drove off.

  Giddy.

  She’d never understood what people meant when they said something made them “giddy,” but that was the only word she could think of that described how Tim made her feel. Other than sexy and horny. She was excited to see him, to see his name on her phone when he called or texted. Even something as simple as his teasing smile when he said goodbye.

  The alarm went off on her phone, reminding her she had an appointment. Shimmying back between the cars, she unlocked the front door of the bookstore. She set her coffee on the checkout counter, then pulled out the placards she’d commissioned for the different book genres, sorting them by where they would be in the store. Fiction—front and center. Non-fiction—stuck in the back along the wall.

  She’d special order books if someone was looking for something particular, but she wasn’t going to pretend her store was anything other than what it was—a place to escape into a story.

  “Excuse me.”

  She looked up at the woman standing in the door. “Hi. Are you here to install the point of sale system?” She didn’t look like an IT person, but who was Zoe to judge.

  “Uh, no.” She stepped farther into the store. Now that the sunlight wasn’t shining behind her like a halo, Zoe knew her initial judgment was correct. This was not a girl who crawled around on the floor running computer cable.

  “Do you work here?” she asked.

  “I’m the owner. Would you like to submit an application?”

  The girl scoffed. “Hardly. I’m here to tell you to stay away from my man.” Her tone turned hard and nasty.

  “Excuse me?” Who was she talking about?

  “I saw you together and I’m here to tell you to back off.”

  “I think you should leave,” Zoe said.

  The girl stared Zoe up and down with a derisive glare, crossed her arms, and cocked a hip. “You really think he’s going to want you for very long when he can have me? Seriously? You’re ten pounds away from being fat. And it doesn’t matter if older women are supposed to be more sexually mature, I can rock his world in ways you can’t even imagine. And let me tell you, I know just how to put those handcuffs to good use.”

  “Leave. Now.”

  She scoffed again and flipped her long, straight hair over her shoulder. “Just remember I tried to warn you when he kicks you to the curb.” She sauntered out of the store, slipping on a pair of big sunglasses as she left.

  Zoe was going to be sick. She turned away from the door, the latte she’d enjoyed only ten minutes before swirling in a bitter mass in her stomach.

  “Don’t assume the worst,” she whispered.

  What else could she assume? Really, she should be thankful. Better to find out now that Tim was cheating on her than later when she was so much more involved. Or was she the other woman this time? Was Tim cheating on the young, blond glamazon with her?

  She couldn’t do this again. She couldn’t go through the pain and the hurt because some jerk couldn’t keep it in his pants. And he’d stood there and comforted her while she unloaded about what an asshole Mark had been. He’d even agreed with her.

  Believing he was the kind of guy who’d lie to her stung. It hurt in a way finding out about Mark hadn’t. Her chin quivered and she sucked in a deep breath. She refused to cry over another guy.

  “Zoe Acevedo?”

  Swiping a finger across her cheek, she plastered on a smile and turned. “Yes.”

  A tall man stepped through the door, followed by a shorter, younger man. “We’re here to set up the point of sale system.”

  “Great! Where would you like to start?” She had a business to get running. There was no room for mistakes or distractions and she needed to remember that.

  “Knock, knock.” Tim rapped on the screen door leading into Jase and Bree’s kitchen.

  “We’re in the living room,” Bree called out.

  He pulled open the door and wound his way through the kitchen. The changes in the house were exponential. Before Bree moved in, it had been the definition of a bachelor’s place. Now the small touches Bree had added, as well as the newer furniture, made it feel like a home and not someplace he’d always worried he’d find his brother’s body.

  Both Bree and Jase stared at him over the back of the large sectional. Charlie, one of Bree’s rescue dogs, hopped over to him on his three legs.

  Tim reached down to scratch him behind the ears. “Hey, tripod.”

  “What’s up, man?” Jase asked.

  “Do you have a few minutes?” Tim asked.

  He caught Bree’s glance between the two of them. “I’m going to run to the store. You need anything?”

  He shoved his hands in his pockets, grateful she was giving him some time to talk alone with Jase. “I’m good, thanks.”

  Bree patted him on the arm as she walked passed. Jase pushed up from the couch to walk her out and returned with two longnecks, holding one out to Tim.

  “Thanks.”

  Jase pointed his bottle at the back door and led the way out onto the deck. “What’s up? You look like someone kicked your dog.”

  “How did you know Bree was it for you?”

  “Huh.” He took a drink of his beer and leaned against the railing.

  Tim sprawled onto one of the chairs. “Huh what?”

  He shook his head. “Later. How did I know Bree was the one?” His gaze became unfocused and he grinned. “When she punched me in the junk.”

  “Huh.” Well, wasn’t that some shit. He was pretty sure that was the exact moment he fell for Zoe.

  “Huh what?” Jase’s eyebrows rose. “Oh shit, did some chick punch you in the junk?”

  “Kneed me—on accident. And not some chick—Zoe, my neighbor.”

  “The one from lunch?”

  “Yeah.”

  “So what’s the deal? Is she dating someone? Married? Lesbian? What’s holding you back?”

  “No. No. No. I don’t know. Everything was fine up until last night. I spent the night before at her house, saw her in the morning, then nothing. She was supposed to come over after I got home from work, but she didn’t answer her phone or her door when I went over. If I hadn’t seen her moving around in her bedroom, I would have been worried that something had happened, but she was fine. She was ignoring me.”

  “How did you see her in her bedroom?”

  “Our rooms face each other. She doesn’t always close her curtains.”

  Jase cocked an eyebrow at him.

  “I don’t peep. Freak.” He didn’t share about the first night he’d realized Zoe didn’t always close her curtains.

  “What did you do wrong?”

  “Nothing.”

  “We always do something. Even when we don’t know we did something, we did something.”

  “Fuck if I know then. When I left her at her store, we were fine.”

  “Then you need to find out what you did and fix it.”

  “How do you propose I do that when she won’t answer my calls or her door?”

  “Figure out a way to see her when she can’t escape.” Jase pointed his beer at him. “I’m not advocating kidnapping or anything else nefarious, by the way.”

  “Well, shit. Guess I’ll cross that off my list. Thanks for letting me know kidnapping was a bad idea.”

  “Smart ass. Why’re you asking me anyway?”

  Tim crossed one of his legs over the other. “Because you seem to have gotten your shit together with Bree and are doing a pretty good job of not fucking it up. Figured you’d have some sage advice to give me.”

  Jase smirked. “Bree’s the first one to tell me when I’m about to fuck up. Why’re you really asking me?”

  “You never liked Monica.”

  “Jesus. That bitch.”

  “That right there.�
�� Tim pointed his beer at his brother. “I figured you’d tell me if I should cut my losses if you didn’t like Zoe.”

  “I liked her. A little too shy for my tastes, but I can see the two of you together. The question is, how do you feel about her?”

  “I like her. I like her a lot. It’s only been a couple of weeks, but last night I felt like a part of me was missing without her there.”

  Who was he kidding? It was more than like. Not as much as love, but he could see it getting there. Something about Zoe called to him—demanding he keep the worst of the world away from her. She wasn’t the kind of woman that needed him to fight her battles for her, but he was more than willing to stand by her while she did.

  Jase leaned forward and clinked his bottle against Tim’s. “Then figure out how to get your girl to tell you what you did wrong.”

  Chapter 22

  Tim parked in the alley behind the bookstore and paused at the service entrance for a moment, wondering if this was the way to handle this. Maybe he should go in the front and give her a chance to tell him to leave. Except that wasn’t what he wanted. He had no doubt she’d tell him to leave, but hopefully if he caught her by surprise, with her defenses down, she’d give him an honest answer instead of the bullshit text she’d finally sent him.

  The doorknob turned easily in his hand. He was going to have to talk to her about safety—after he got her to talk to him about what was wrong.

  He entered the stockroom, crowded with stacks of boxes. Was she planning on shelving all these books herself or had she already hired someone to help her? It had only been two days since they’d really talked and he already felt like he was completely out of the loop of what was happening in her life.

  He pushed through the swinging door into the main floor of the bookstore. Wow. His parents had taken them to England one summer and they’d toured a few castles. Zoe’s bookstore reminded him of the library they’d seen in one. Instead of harsh fluorescent overhead lighting, she’d installed rustic-looking chandeliers throughout the space. Matching lights on the walls kept the space from being gloomy while still making the space feel like he had walked into someone’s house instead of a bookstore. The high backed, overstuffed chair in a side alcove made him want to sit down and pick up a book…and he wasn’t much of a reader.