Love Under Two Detectives

by Cara Covington

  “Old man? Like, your father?”

  “Grandpa.” He got a sour look on his face. “Miserable old coot. Nothing I did was ever good enough for him. But that Toby? Fucking bastard got right in there. The old man couldn’t stop singing his praises.”

  He already had a very low opinion of her intelligence. She thought she caught a scratching sound—and understood immediately that what she heard was the sound of the patio door in the bedroom sliding open. The good news is that if Joey hadn’t left my bedroom door open when he revealed himself, I wouldn’t have heard that.

  Mary dismissed that totally inane thought and focused on Joey. She tilted her head like she was trying so hard to figure it all out. “Conway…oh! Your grandfather is Beck Conway, Toby’s partner in Casper? Then…I don’t understand. Why the gun?”

  “Because Toby Kendall ruined everything for me! I know it was his whispering in my grandpa’s ear that made Grandpa turn away from me, treat me like a loser. Toby was jealous that Grandpa loved me and had me hang out at the department all the time. Before he came along, they called me Beck’s junior partner, and they all treated me with respect. I would have been his real partner, too! But then fucking Toby Kendall came around and ruined everything. Nothing went right for me once he showed up!”

  “So…you should have been glad when Toby left Casper. You have your grandfather to yourself, now.”

  “No, he ruined it!” Joey jumped to his feet, his arm extended, his hand shaky as he pointed his gun at her.

  Mary slowly rose to her feet because at least this way, if his eyes telegraphed that he was going to pull the trigger, she could move. In her peripheral vision, she saw Adam Kendall in the doorway between the kitchen and the living room.

  Joey didn’t notice because he’d lost himself in his rant. “He ruined everything because I told the gang all about their plans, how they were going to do a pre-dawn raid on the warehouse, and they were supposed to make me a member so I would belong. But after they got away they said I was toxic because of my grandpa! They threw money at me, but I didn’t want their fucking money!”

  “Wait!” Mary held her hand out toward Adam, who’d raised his service weapon. Joey didn’t notice. In fact, in that moment, she thought he couldn’t notice anything.

  She’d been watching him and wasn’t too surprised when his eyes rolled. Adam had just enough time holster his gun to catch the unconscious man, one arm around him and the other hand grabbing his gun.

  “Stay back, damn it!” Adam said.

  “But, Adam, I think he might have…”

  “We know.” Adam laid the man down on the floor and looked up at her. “Because you’re smart enough to keep your cool and tell us what we needed to know, Warren and Ed are on their way right now…in full protective gear.”

  Mary sank back down to the sofa again for the simple reason that her knees had finally given way. Then a sound drew her attention. She looked up and saw the most beautiful sight in all the world. The two men she loved beyond all reason were staring at her as if she were an ice cream sundae and they were just waiting on spoons.

  She jumped up again and took a step forward and then stopped. Her gaze slid to the floor, to the unconscious form of Joey Conway, who was, thank God, still breathing.

  Then she looked at her men again.

  Anthony and Toby traded a look and spoke at the same time.

  “Fuck this.”

  Mary didn’t know whether to laugh or cry when they both said that. But when they came to her and gathered her close, she knew what to do. She clung. She clung so hard she didn’t know if she would ever let go of them again.

  * * * *

  “That was not the most pleasant experience.” Anthony considered he made out better than Toby had. The cotton swab Robert Jessop needed to use for the test had triggered Toby’s gag reflex.

  “Agreed,” Adam Kendall said.

  They were in the living room of Mary’s house, where he, Toby, and Mary had decided they were going to self-quarantine for the next twenty-one days. Not fourteen, because Robert had been studying and consulting and had decided that going forward, they were going to make it three instead of two weeks.

  Adam was going to complete filling out the reports on his laptop. He’d been nearly finished taking Mary’s statement when Robert, in full protective gear, had arrived.

  When Adam was done, he would send those reports to Matt, and then he was taking himself off to one of the RVs the town had set up by the cottage—a ridiculous name for what looked more like a country lodge than a cottage—that was the property of the Town Trust.

  Adam didn’t know how right he was when he told us we were lucky. He felt bad his long-time friend and soon-to-be cousin had been exposed to the virus. But he had insisted on being the one through the door first, and Anthony and Toby were both cop enough to understand this really was his jurisdiction and not theirs, his call, and not theirs.

  Anthony would contact his captain as soon as the three of them were alone. The results of the test administered by Warren and Ed Jessop to Joey Conway and processed immediately by their cousin Marc Jessop, who used to work for the CDC, had come back positive. They’d transported him to a hospital in Waco.

  “We’ll have the results soon, and I’ll let you know,” Robert said.

  “Thank you, Robert. I’d give you a hug, but….” Mary’s voice trailed off.

  Robert chuckled. “I’ll consider myself hugged,” he said. “And I’ll be back in two days for your next tests. In the meantime, if any of you begin to experience any symptoms, call.”

  “We will,” Anthony said. “Thanks.”

  Robert opened the door then turned back. “Our team works fast. There’s a bin with fresh PPE on the right and another bin—a red one—on the left for the used gear. And Adam? Your cruiser’s been replaced by one of the family cars.”

  He shut the door, and Anthony turned because he sensed Mary’s gaze on him.

  “Wow, you guys really did organize procedures, didn’t you?”

  “And we have a backup medical team in the wings, just in case,” Adam said. Adam looked at Mary. “I think I’ve got enough notes here, and of course, we have the recording made by the surveillance equipment. I also have said equipment, all of it.” He held up the plastic bag that held all the devices that he and Toby had planted earlier. He nodded his thanks to Adam for showing her those little bugs.

  “Toby, I think we’ll hold off on having Joey Conway charged right away. Do you want Matt to call Beck, or will you?”

  “Let me take care of that, please.” Toby’s expression said it all. He wasn’t looking forward to disappointing his former partner with the news that Joey had indeed been their stalker—or that he’d contracted the virus. On the other hand, Joey was alive. Whether or not he survived the virus, well, only time would answer that question.

  “All right. We’ll discuss possible charges here, after you’ve had a conversation with the department in Casper.”

  Anthony understood Adam’s reasoning. “Joey did admit to having sold information to the gang. But listening to the way he went on, just before he collapsed? Dude’s been suffering for a long time. I know it’s not an excuse.” Anthony did know that. Aside from being a cop, he was a Texan. Texans believed in being responsible for their own actions.

  “It’s not an excuse,” Adam agreed. “But it is an explanation. And, too, what happened here? A good defense attorney could get him off based on diminished capacity.”

  “I was thinking that,” Toby said. “I know he hates me, but now that I understand why…he was only eleven when I became his grandfather’s partner. In all the ways that count for the measure of a man, he really hasn’t matured much beyond adolescence.” Then he met Adam’s gaze. “Thanks, cousin. I mean that.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  Adam made ready to leave.

  “I have one more question,” Mary asked. “How did Joey get the virus? Is it because he went camping out in the woods by th
e stream?”

  “I spoke to Mel and Connor, who’ve been tracking his movements,” Adam said. “Apparently, he was frequenting some bars in town, hanging out with all sorts of people. One of them, a man who took Joey out to a farm outside of Waco, to buy that car we found at the motel? Well, that guy is hospitalized with the virus. Calculating it out, Joey spent a good two hours with the man, some of that time in a vehicle.”

  “Wow, it really is contagious, then.”

  “It is. And the trickiest part? A lot of people who are testing positive don’t seem to have any symptoms. The experts are saying that not having any symptoms does not mean a person can’t spread it.”

  Mary’s eyes widened. “Oh, God, a whole slew of Typhoid Marys.” Then she cringed—likely never having cared for the fact that her name had been desecrated before she’d even been born.

  “Well, that’s really bad.” Anthony’s mind began to think of all the ways that would be bad. Yes, wonderful for the person who contracts Covid and doesn’t suffer, doesn’t die. But that man or woman could unknowingly pass the disease on to a cherished loved one, who does get very sick and possibly does die.

  “It is. In more ways than I want to think about right now.” Adam got to his feet and nodded to them. “Matt will send your statements via email for you to sign. Stay safe. I’m off to my lonely quarantine.”

  “We’ll see you on the other side,” Anthony said.

  Adam gave them a two-finger salute then left them on their own.

  “I love you both, but right now, I could bean you for making the decision you did to possibly expose yourselves and get this thing. You didn’t have to do that.”

  “We absolutely did,” Toby said. He met Anthony’s gaze and raised one eyebrow.

  They’d discussed when and where they were going to propose, and whether or not to get a ring first, and if there should be wine and music. But really, they didn’t need any of that.

  Anthony guessed, when all was said and done, there was no better place and time than here and now.

  “I love you. Where else would I be but right here by your side? And hopefully for the next sixty or seventy years.” He brought her hand up to his lips. “Will you marry me?”

  “There would be no life for me worth living without you, New York.” Toby grinned and picked up her other hand and kissed it. “Marry me, please.”

  Anthony saw her tears, as he knew Toby did. But neither of them counted those tears as a bad thing.

  “Yes. Yes, I want to marry you both. The sooner, the better.”

  “You’re already our wife, in our hearts,” Toby said.

  “You have been, I think, since I first set eyes on you.” Anthony understood now all the times his mother’s eyes had gone soft whenever she’d spoken about his father. That kind of love was the kind he’d always wanted for himself.

  He’d give an extra big thank-you in his prayers that night. He was standing on the edge of his own best destiny. His own happy-ever-after. There would be hard times in the years to come, but sharing them with people you loved would make them bearable and would make the good times just that much sweeter. So yeah.

  “Make the calls you need to make, darlings. I want to get naked with you both.”

  “Best idea I’ve heard all day,” Toby said.

  “The very best,” Anthony agreed.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Late afternoon had slid into early evening. After the calls had been made, they silently put together some sandwiches, because stopping for food later likely wasn’t going to be an option.

  Or so Mary had hoped. Toby and Anthony had been exchanging silent messages for the last hour or so. But she didn’t worry about that. Right now, she wasn’t going to worry about anything because here she was in the one place in all the world she loved best. With her men.

  “Better, sweetheart?”

  The steam from the hot tub filled the room, and the sound of the bubbles, a soothing, calming sound, filled her soul

  Mary sighed and leaned her head on Toby’s shoulder. She’d met Anthony’s gaze just before she did that, so he knew her intentions and her heart. Mary understood that Anthony knew, as she knew, that Toby was hurting. She was determined to do all she could to soothe his wounded soul.

  “I’m okay. What about you, Toby? How are you doing? Was it a rough conversation?”

  “Talking to Beck? A little.” He sighed. “He knows about the virus, of course. He’s heartsick that no one can visit Joey at the moment. I promised to keep him updated. The family is sending a letter to the administration of the hospital appointing me as their agent for his care. And in the meantime, the doctors will call if there’s a problem. I got that assurance based solely on my badge.”

  “The hospital has your cell number as well as your official one?”

  “Yeah. I’m going to contact them later and get an update. And I think I’ll give them Jason’s number, too—since I’m really not family. Until they receive that letter from Wyoming, they will be unwilling to stick their necks out too far to tell me too much.” Then he gave her a quick grin. “And when Joey wakes up, he’ll likely scream bloody murder that they’re telling me anything at all.”

  “You know it’s not your fault that Joey feels the way he does about you, right? I mean, he was only a kid when you joined the force.” She sighed, looking for the right words. “Sometimes children are needy in a way the adults around them don’t realize.”

  “My head knows that. The problem is, for a time—near the beginning, especially—I just felt that Beck was like a second dad to me.”

  “But you didn’t take up his personal time, did you? You were invited to the occasional Sunday supper or holiday meal, but you didn’t take up his off-duty time.”

  “No. We didn’t have an overly familiar relationship. That emotion, that was all on my part. And as Joey got older, it was his hostility and his mean streak that I didn’t like—two traits I don’t think his family ever truly saw.”

  “Then rest easy. And if it isn’t suggested by anyone else, when he’s out of the hospital, you might suggest to them that he get psychological help.”

  “That’s a good idea,” Toby said.

  They sat quietly, and Mary closed her eyes for a bit, letting the heat and the jets work their magic.

  “You know what? I think I’ve finally figured something out,” Mary said quietly. She ran her hand down Toby’s thigh, and then she reached for Anthony’s hand.

  “What have you figured out, sweetheart?” Anthony asked.

  “A couple of things, actually. One about me….and one about you.”

  “Me?” Anthony tilted his head to the side, but his grin told her he wasn’t worried.

  Mary nodded. “Mmhmm. First, about me. Or people, generally, I guess. We can only do what we can do. But if we don’t take time to take care of ourselves first? We won’t even be able to do that much. It’s like when they’re going through the emergency instructions on an airplane before takeoff. They always tell you to put your own mask on first and then help someone else with theirs.”

  Toby sighed. “You’re a very wise woman, love. And you’re right.” He sat straighter in the tub then bent over and kissed her—a sweet, light down payment for later. “I’m going to work on not beating myself up over Joey. He made his own choices. As an adult, he made his choices, and he has to be responsible for them.” Then Toby looked over at Anthony. “So, you figured out what he was hiding, did you? Spill it, please.”

  She recalled Anthony’s admonition that she’d better figure it out. “Anthony Corbett, tough cop, a man few others would dare cross, has had a secret dream all his life. One that other boys and then men might have scorned.”

  Anthony’s smile widened. “Go on.”

  “His dream was for something that would hopefully form the foundation of his life. He wanted to meet a woman who would be his soul mate, marry her, and claim for himself the kind of loving give and take he saw between his own parents.” She reached
up and caressed his face with her hand. “How old were you when you began to dream that dream?”

  “Ten. And the only one I ever told was my mother. She promised me I’d find you.” Then he looked over at Toby. “And I figured out, oh, I think not long after I became friends with Jake and Adam Kendall—before they found their Ginny—that the reason I hadn’t met my soul mate yet was because I was destined to meet you first, a brother with whom I could share a wife.”

  Then he looked at Mary. “I had faith you’d figure that out.”

  Mary liked very much that he was pleased she had. She snuggled close between her two men, and it was most definitely her favorite place to be. “How did your call to your captain go?” She knew that both Anthony and Toby had been worrying about their jobs over the last couple of weeks. They wanted to be where they could do the most good. If that turned out to be on the job in Waco, they would likely insist that she stay in Lusty. She didn’t look forward to being separated from them, but in this case, she would follow their wishes.

  Her men were cops, men who believed that the words “to serve and protect” meant more than a catchy tagline.

  Mary didn’t know what the immediate future held for any of them. But she wouldn’t worry about it now. Grandma Kate had it exactly right. Be aware and informed. Be as proactive as you could be. And then understand that sometimes, in life, people weren’t necessarily in charge of their own fates. She paraphrased Grandma Kate’s words and held them for her own. What seems so hellishly long to get through now will one day seem as if it wasn’t all that bad, after all.

  Maybe she would write those particular words down so she could read them to herself when she needed them. Knowing myself as I do, I will need them often.

  “Toby and I made the call together, just after he finished speaking to Beck. We only have one ongoing case at the moment, and the captain is passing that over to a couple of the other detectives in the squad. He’s happy to let us stay here until we find out the results of the test we just took. Of course, then I had to explain to him about the quarantine period, and being retested a few times even in light of the negative results we got earlier. Since we’re under medical supervision, it’s all good.”