Making Peace

by Sasha Goldie

  This guy had to die.

  The world slowed its spin as I looked wildly around without moving my head. One millimeter of movement could cause this psycho to pull the trigger, and that was not an option.

  "My tip money is in my pocket," I said slowly, evenly. "Do you want me to get it out?"

  I really wanted the fucker to point the gun toward me and away from Carson. My words were an effort to get him closer to me.

  "No, just put your hands up," he growled. I still hadn't seen him, just the end of his revolver.

  My plan worked. "You," he said, shoving Carson toward the truck, the gun fully in my sights now, as well as his arms. Still no face. I wasn't willing to move yet. "Put your hands on the truck. I'll find that fucking money or we'll go back inside and get it."

  Him getting us inside was not a good option. I had to deal with this before it came to that. He came into view finally, swinging the gun to face me. "If either one of you moves, I pull this trigger." He had his finger already on the trigger. A hair's jerk and it could go off.

  "Don't move," he warned. "Hands up."

  He wore a mask over his face, but I quickly looked his body over. He didn't look particularly fit, wearing a long-sleeved black shirt. But the parking lot was pretty dim, illuminated by the bright moonlight and a bit of light that reached the lot from the building.

  As soon as I killed this guy, we would arrange to install lights in the damn employee area of the parking lot.

  He stepped forward, bringing his gun and arm into my reach. His mistake. My heart thundering in my ears, I moved quickly, absolutely as fast as I could. I didn't try to take the gun away from him, not yet. First, I grabbed his wrist and pushed it upward and to the left, away from Carson. As I'd expected, the gun went off, exploding loudly in my ear.

  I'd been trained for this, and it didn't stun me as it once would have. My anxiety didn't even kick in, which surprised me in the back of my mind.

  As I pushed his arm up, I pulled his body toward me, bringing my knee up into his groin.

  I made a successful connection, square onto his junk. He gasped and doubled over immediately. I'd been expecting him to, of course, so as he reacted to the pain, I grabbed the gun, opened the cylinder, and let the bullets fall out, clattering to the ground. Carson turned at the sound, watching me with his mouth open in awe. Suddenly, I felt like the biggest badass in town.

  As soon as the gun was empty, I threw it as far away as I could, which was decent considering I kept the other hand on the guy, making sure he didn't lunge or anything.

  I turned back toward him, deciding what to do next to disable him when he decided to be brave and lurch toward me.

  Packing as much power as I could, I punched him in the jaw, just to the side of his chin. His head jerked back, and I knew from my training that his brain was sloshing around roughly inside his skull.

  Pain shot through my hand, my knuckles probably bruised, but the job was done. The robber fell backward to the ground, his head bouncing once off the pavement for good measure.

  Carson rushed at me, wrapping his arms around me and gasping, not even able to form words yet. I disentangled myself from his grasp. "I'm sorry, but he'll wake up fast. They don't stay down like they do in the movies. Run inside and call 911. There's no cell service out here."

  He nodded and lurched toward the brewery, almost stumbling at first. He regained his footing and went fast around the building, leaving me alone with an unconscious idiot.

  Looking down at him, I seriously considered killing him. It would be easy to make it look like he'd woken up and attacked me again. It really wouldn't take much.

  My anxiety set in once Carson was out of sight, and my vision narrowed, black pressing in the sides as I looked down at the person that had threatened to hurt Carson.

  One more punch. One more, strategically placed, and he'd be dead and gone. Out of our lives.

  Stepping back, I sucked in a deep breath and started counting. As I counted, slowly and steadily, my anxiety receded enough for me to start thinking clearly again. I wouldn't hurt or kill the man. The police would be here soon.

  Carson came running around the building again, rope in his hands. "The police are on their way," he said, panting. "Should we use this?"

  He held it out, and I grabbed it and knelt beside the man as he began to stir. Quickly, I wrapped the rope around his hands, then his feet, essentially hog-tying him.

  I still hadn't taken off his ski mask. Carson reached over and ripped it off as the man struggled with the ropes. "You won't get them off," I said in my lowest, most severe voice. "I know what the fuck I'm doing."

  As the night deputy pulled in the parking lot, lights flashing and siren wailing, we tried to look at the robber's face, but the dim night light didn't help. He wasn't recognizable to me.

  "Nick," Carson breathed. "You little shit."

  His scared demeanor and panicked expression on his face changed in an instant. He stiffened and grew angry. "What the hell?"

  "Fuck you, Carson."

  It snapped in my mind who the kid was. It was the server that had quit, opening up the position at the brewery for me. Chuckling, I put my hand on Carson's arm. "It's okay. He's going to jail for a good, long time."

  "Good. I hope they throw you under the jail. Your mama's heart is going to break, you know that?" Carson spat venom at the kid.

  When Carson mentioned his mom, Nick's face blanched.

  "Oh, so there is something that gets through to you. Your mother will be embarrassed, and so disappointed in you."

  The deputy arrived and carted Nick off, bagging the gun for evidence, taking our statement and asking for camera footage.

  I drove Carson home, leaving my car in the lot. He was too shaken up to drive himself.

  "As soon as I get up tomorrow, I'm ordering cameras for that side of the building, and you're calling that contractor you used to install floodlights in the employee lot. It should be as well-lit as the customer lot."

  He nodded, sitting in the middle seat, pressed against me. Having Carson to take care of helped curb the lingering anxiety that the incident had caused in me. I was focused on calming him instead of calming myself, and it had the desired effect anyway.

  I'd be planning a date for him as well. He snuggled close to me, as close as he could while still leaving my arms free to drive.

  Seeing him in imminent danger had shifted my perspective a little. There was no reason in the world we couldn't go on a date. Unfortunately, the only options in Three Lakes were the diner or to come to the place we both worked. Both options weren't appealing. As much as we both loved Daisy, the diner wasn't really a romantic spot.

  A picnic. We could have a picnic in the mountains, maybe go volunteer at the shelter again. It was an unconventional date, volunteering, but the point was for us to have fun together. Then afterward, I'd have a picnic ready and we could even take Droo, maybe take him for a walk down Main Street. Something public to show Carson how serious I was about him.

  25

  Carson

  It took us a few days to move past the robbery. True to my prediction, Nick's mama nearly had a damn breakdown. She showed up the next morning at the brewery, sobbing in my office and apologizing over and over. I'd just gotten there to open up for lunch. She explained Nick had battled with depression since he was a teenager. I told her the best thing she could do was push him to get help and get therapy.

  But she said their insurance didn't cover it. I gave her a hug and told her maybe something would come through.

  As soon as she left, I called Brady. "Hey, I need a favor."

  "What's up?"

  "Is Nick going to jail?"

  "The judge denied his bond since his crime was violent and the gun was stolen. He'll be in until his trial."

  "Can you arrange for a therapist to visit him?" I asked. "Would that be paid for by the state?"

  "It would and I can. Why are you bothering yourself with this, though? He tried to hurt a
nd rob you."

  "Because his mom is torn up. She said he's suffered from depression for a long time. But they don't have insurance that covers mental health."

  "Carson, you're a good man." Brady sighed. "I'll see it done."

  After I thanked him, I set the phone down and sighed, a bit of a weight off my shoulders. At least he could get as much help as possible. Nick was still very young. There was a chance he could bounce back from this.

  The day was just getting rolling when Max walked in. "Hey, boss man," he said, a shit-eating grin on his face.

  "What?" I asked suspiciously.

  "What what?" He sat in the chair across from my desk. "What are you doing?"

  "Starting next week's schedule." I still didn't know why he was there or what he had up his sleeve.

  Corey walked in behind Max. "I'm here!" he exclaimed. "Get lost."

  Raising my eyebrows, I looked between the two of them suspiciously. "Spill."

  "You, sir, are off today," Corey said, reaching behind the door for the apron he liked to wear when he was on duty. "I'm here. I repeat, get lost."

  "Come on," Max said. "Let’s go."

  Throwing responsibility to the wind, I jumped up and walked around the desk. Grabbing Max's face, I gave him a firm kiss. "This is great. Do I need to bring anything with me?"

  "Nope."

  Corey waved at us as we walked out of the office.

  "Thank you, Corey," I called over my shoulder as Max pulled me out the front door.

  "Where to?" I asked as we walked to the parking lot.

  "Your truck, but I'm driving. That okay?" He raised his eyebrows, obviously apprehensive about commandeering my vehicle.

  "Yep. I've got insurance that covers any licensed driver."

  "Excellent. Unless you want to drive the beater?"

  As much as I liked Max, I wasn't a fan of his car. "Maybe not today," I said with a wink.

  He opened my door for me like a proper gentleman. "Wow, chivalry's not dead after all," I said with a big mock smile.

  "Absolutely not." He affected a thick southern accent and slammed the door with a small bow and cheeky grin.

  My heart fluttered. He was taking me on a date. It would be difficult to get more excited than I was. He walked around the front of the truck as I fought the urge to bounce in my seat.

  "Now," he said as he climbed in. "Don't expect anything fancy. We don't have time for fancy."

  "I don't," I said happily. "Three Lakes doesn't really do fancy."

  "Unfortunately not."

  "I've thought about expanding one day, and opening a luxury restaurant and maybe a spa in the area. I think with the ski tourists we could support it."

  "When I was modeling, we stayed at this ultra-exclusive hotel in Tennessee," Max said as he pulled onto the road. "It was at the base of the mountains, near Knoxville. And celebrities stay there all the time, but nobody nearby knows. Or if they know, they don't care."

  "I've never heard of it."

  "It's just like a little getaway, and insanely expensive. We did a shoot there." He shrugged. "I couldn't even kinda afford to stay there otherwise."

  Laughing, I reached over and patted his hand. "Don't feel bad. Me neither."

  "At least we have something in common," he said, winking at me as he turned down the road toward the animal shelter.

  "Are we going to the shelter?" I asked in surprise.

  "Yep. We had so much fun together last time, I thought it would be a good way to start this date."

  He was sweet. It was a perfect way for us to spend time together.

  As soon as we checked in at the shelter, Max went straight for the big dog kennels. Sure enough, Hugo was still in there.

  "Hey, Pam?" Max called. "Still no family for Hugo?"

  "Not yet." She walked in and looked at the dog sadly. "He's such a sweet boy. I can't believe nobody has adopted him."

  "Me either," Max said sadly, opening the door and clipping on his leash. I watched them together, an idea brewing.

  We played with all the dogs, cleaned out their cages, and fed and watered them. The whole time, conversation flowed between us.

  "What do you want in life?" I asked him. "Long-term?"

  "That's a lot of question," he said with a laugh.

  "It is. I want stability. I want a family."

  He watched the dogs play with each other for a moment, then bent over and threw one of the tennis balls across the yard. Three different dogs ran for it. "That sums it up nicely. I want stability and family, but I also want adventure. I don't want to feel stuck."

  "I can understand that. Would living in one place make you feel that way?"

  "No, not necessarily."

  One of the collies brought me the ball. I threw it hard. "If we make something long-term last, I can't leave Three Lakes."

  "Well, I'm committed to being here at least for the rest of my parents' lives, which I hope is a very long time."

  "That doesn't mean life has to be boring, or that adventure is off the table," I said carefully. I wasn't sure if by adventure, he meant weekend trips and fun vacations.

  "There are weekends and vacations. And it's less about where I am and more about what I do. I don't want to spend every waking moment watching TV or going to work. I want to be active and involved."

  "That sounds...perfect," I said, encouraged by his definition of adventure.

  "What about kids?" he asked.

  "I'm on the fence, really. If the time was right, the situation was right, the partner was right, well sure. Why not? Why not give a child a loving and stable home?" I shrugged and threw the ball again.

  "You'd make a great dad."

  I shrugged and threw the ball again.

  I didn't have a burning need to have children or anything, but I was definitely not opposed to them. "So would you. So, we're agreed we're neither one against the idea?"

  He nodded, smiling. "It's nice to see we agree in some areas. The biggest ones I've seen in the past are religion and politics."

  We continued our work with the dogs, discussing where we stood on important issues like hot political topics and beliefs.

  As we spoke, we found ourselves more and more compatible.

  "Finally," I said seriously, affecting my most severe facial expression. We'd finished with the last dog and were about to wash our hands and leave. "Probably the most important life decision. Something we have to agree on. If we don't..." Sighing dramatically, I hung my head.

  "What?" Max's voice sounded alarmed.

  I looked up at him with big eyes. "Do you like pineapple on pizza?"

  He burst out laughing. "Of course!"

  Clutching my heart, I gasped. "It's over. I knew it was too good to be true." Turning away from him, I faked a big sob.

  "You're ridiculous," he said, laughing from deep in his belly. "How can you not like pineapple on pizza?"

  I turned on the water and gave him an outraged stare. "How can you?"

  We continued teasing each other all the way back to town.

  "Next on our agenda," he said. "Is a pineapple pizza picnic."

  Snorting, I pretended to jump from the moving truck.

  "Okay, okay. It's just a regular picnic." He parked in the diner lot. "Wait here."

  Within minutes he was back, holding a large picnic basket, straight out of a black-and-white TV show. "Wow," I said, impressed. "That thing is legit."

  "It's all Daisy."

  He moved the truck to just down the street. "Now, I know it's not super creative, but the only park we really have here around town is the one that is sure to be packed with kids. So, we're having our picnic out there." Pointing to the big field behind Ian's shop, he indicated a large tree. "Under the tree."

  "I think that sounds perfect." The weather was still pretty warm, but the shade of the tree would keep us cool enough. He took my hand and led the way to the tree, first pulling a red-and-white checked tablecloth out of the basket.

  "Does it have a Norman R
ockwell painting inside as well?"

  "Maybe I can arrange it for the next picnic," he said as he spread the blanket. I grabbed one side and helped him smooth it out.

  "Max," I said seriously. I loved that we were able to tease and laugh together, but he didn't have to force it. "I'm having a great time." He sat down on the blanket, so I followed. "But this is pretty exposed. Anyone driving down Main can see us."

  He was uncomfortable with the world knowing his love life. I knew that. Being gay had a stigma. Granted, it was better than it had been in previous years, but there were still a lot of prejudiced people in the world.

  "I'm perfectly content for the world to know I'm with you," he said. "My anxiety makes me private, but my caring for you overrides it."

  I smiled and leaned forward, pressing a soft kiss to his lips. "Nice." He knew how to make a man feel good.

  After we ate, I helped him pack everything up and we set the basket in the back of the truck. "Want to go for a walk?" I asked. "The gas station just put in a soft-serve ice cream machine."

  "Sounds good." He took my hand firmly and started toward the sidewalk.

  We walked toward the busier part of town. Max's apartment and Ian's shop were at the end. The late afternoon traffic was picking up, which meant four or five cars drove past instead of one or two. "This is nice," I murmured.

  As we passed the diner, the door opened, and Daisy flew out. Max jerked his hand from mine, and my heart sank.

  We might have wanted a lot of the same things out of life, and he might really have feelings for me, but he just wasn't in the same place I was.

  Daisy started talking, but I really didn't process much of it. Max became really animated as he spoke to her. Mainly, I tried to keep from crying.

  He said the right things. When we were alone, he was great. He'd even planned the date. Surely Daisy knew what he'd wanted the picnic for. If she already knew we were dating, then him yanking his hand away was a knee-jerk reaction.

  It said something about where he truly was. He wasn't ready. Not quite. Maybe he was right when he'd said he needed time to figure himself out before he could focus on us. My attention jerked back to the conversation when Max said my name.