Kade sighed heavily and finished off his beer, signaling for another. “We've only been officially dating for a few weeks. She'll think it’s crazy.”
Gage gulped down some water, and chewed on a piece of ice. “So, you hold off a bit. Or maybe you get engaged to be engaged. People do that, right?”
“Right.” Braden pointed at him. “That's a great idea. That way you get the ring on her finger, but she doesn't freak out because you're moving too fast.”
“Okay.” Kade nodded slowly. “That makes some sense. But when? Is it too soon, even for that?”
Gage propped his elbow on the bar, tapping a finger idly on its surface. “Why don’t you carry the ring with you? That way, when the time's right, you'll be ready.”
“But how will I know the time's right?”
“You know what they say,” Gage said, holding up his glass of water. “When you know, you know.”
“Do they say that?” Braden asked.
“I think so.”
“What am I doing asking you two for advice?” Kade said, shaking his head with a laugh. “You're both single.”
“Yeah, we are,” Braden said with a grin, holding his fist out for Gage to pound. He knocked Braden's knuckles with his own.
“Women,” Gage said. “Who needs 'em?”
“I do,” Kade replied, holding up a finger.
“Well, no offense, but you're a lost cause,” Gage said. “Don't get me wrong. Vi's a very nice person.”
“She is.” Braden pulled another beer for Kade. “But most women are crazy.”
“Amen to that.”
“Wow,” Kade said, taking the beer with a smile. “You guys are seriously cynical.”
“Yeah, well,” Braden replied. “Talk to me when your ex-girlfriend hacks your Instagram and fills it with emo lyrics and pictures of sad puppies.”
Gage winced. “Ouch.”
“How about you, Gage?” Kade asked. “What's led to your rather pessimistic outlook when it comes to the fairer sex?”
He studied the glass before him, condensation running down and pooling on the bar. “Years of experience,” he said finally.
“Oh?” Kade turned on his stool, facing him. Gage could feel Braden's gaze on him, as well.
And the last thing he wanted to do was talk about Tia. About the times she'd disappear for days at a time, only to reappear, acting like nothing out of the ordinary had happened. About the way the littlest thing would set her off, screaming and throwing things. About how she'd finally left, saying he was cold, unfeeling . . . pathetic.
So instead, he shrugged. “I don't need much. I want to eat what I want. Do what I want. And watch what I want on TV. I've found that women generally have an issue with at least one of those things, so . . .” He lifted his glass. “All the best to you and Vi. But it's not for me.”
“Huh,” Kade said thoughtfully.
“What?” Gage asked.
He took a gulp of his beer and wiped the back of his hand across his mouth. “I'd heard that maybe—” He glanced at Braden. “You and Lena . . .”
Gage's eyes widened, and he burst out laughing. “Really? Uh, no. First of all, Lena can't stand me.”
“I don't know if that's true,” Braden said, leaning on the bar again.
“Oh, believe me, it's true,” Gage said. “I told her she had to cut down her ice cream cone.”
Kade looked at him blankly. “Huh?”
“She has this big green ice cream cone—” He held his hands up in an effort to describe it. “But I told her it blocks the street lamp, so she'll have to make it shorter.”
“The Blarney Cone?” Braden said, standing back up. “She puts that out every year.”
Gage sighed heavily. “Yeah, she made that clear.”
Kade blinked at him. “Let me get this straight. You told her she has to cut down her giant, green ice cream cone.”
“Yep.”
After a brief beat, both Kade and Braden burst out laughing.
“No offense,” Kade said. “But if that's what you do to women who like you, you'll die alone, dude.”
Gage chuckled along, but those words echoed in his brain.
Women who like you.
Women who like you.
Did Lena? Could she? Gage shook his head and took another sip of his water. What was he even thinking about? Lena McKenna was the last thing he needed . . . and whether or not she liked him was pretty much irrelevant.
After another hour or so—blessedly devoid of any more talk of Gage's romantic history or Lena McKenna—he and Kade left Braden at the bar and headed to the parking lot so Gage could give Kade a ride home. The night was crisp and cool, a sliver of a new moon glowing brightly in the clear sky.
They wound their way to Gage's car, laughing about a story Braden had told. The guy ran a bar, and had a lot of funny stories. When they got to the Chevelle, Gage pulled the keys from his pocket as Kade talked to him over the roof.
“Man, this car is sweet,” he said. “But . . . what's that?”
“What's what?”
“It looks like there's something in your car,” Kade said.
And for the first time, Gage looked through the driver's side window. “What in the world?” he murmured, unlocking the door.
He yanked it open and a shower of white burst forth, covering his feet.
“What is it?” Kade asked.
Gage picked up one of the pieces. “Packing peanuts,” he said, stunned. “Someone filled my car with packing peanuts.”
“Who would do that? You're the Chief of Police!”
Gage could only think of one person. One person who was pretty ticked off about a giant, green, wooden ice cream cone.
He was mad for about thirty seconds, then he started to laugh. If Lena wanted a war, she would get one.
It's on, Ms. McKenna, he thought. It's so on.
“I can't believe you did that!” Vi laughed as she got drinks from the fridge Sunday night. Lena sat next to Kade at the breakfast bar, watching as Vi and her mom prepared dinner. Lena had offered to help, but Lou waved her off, saying she had it under control. It smelled delicious, the aroma of Lou's pork chops and homemade applesauce filling the kitchen.
Lena smiled wickedly. “It was pretty ingenious, if I do say so myself. I only wish I could have seen his reaction.”
“No, you don't,” Kade said, picking up a cracker from the plate between them and popping it into his mouth. “It took over an hour to bag it all up. And believe me, he's going to retaliate.”
“He doesn't know who did it,” Lena said quickly. “And you better not tell him.”
Kade held up his hands. “Innocent bystander here, and I'm not getting involved. But come on, you don't think he's figured it out?”
“Figuring it out and having proof are two different things,” Lena pointed out.
“Yeah, but he's not looking to make a legal case,” Vi said. “He doesn't have to prove anything.”
Lena's stomach flipped. “You don't think—”
The doorbell interrupted her and Lou smiled brightly. “I'll get it,” she said before hurrying out of the kitchen.
“Are you expecting someone else?” she asked Vi.
Her friend looked decidedly uncomfortable. “It wasn't my idea.”
“What wasn't your idea,” Lena asked slowly, eyes narrowing in suspicion. Then she heard a familiar voice in the living room and she hissed, “Vi, how could you?”
“Don't blame me,” she hissed back. “My mom is relentless. You know that. She got it in her head to be a peacemaker between you two.”
Lena glared at Kade. “You knew about this?”
Kade ate another cracker. “I know nothing. About anything. Ever.”
At that, Lou came bustling back into the kitchen, with Gage trailing after her. His steps faltered when he spotted Lena, then he took the seat next to her at the breakfast bar.
“Hello, Lena. Fancy meeting you here.” He shot a glare at Kade, who shrugged innocen
tly.
“Sheriff.” She swallowed, suddenly nervous. “How are you?”
“Fine,” he said curtly. “Commit any wanton destruction lately?”
Vi snorted, then covered it with a cough.
Lena gave him an innocent look. “I have no idea what you're talking about.”
“Right,” he said slowly.
“Who's ready for dinner?” Lou asked cheerfully.
“Besides,” Lena said, unable to let it go for some unimaginable reason. “Destruction implies something ruined beyond repair. From what I hear, not that I had anything to do with it, nothing was ruined.”
“Oh, you heard,” Gage said with a mocking tone. “So you're saying you had nothing to do with the five tons of packing peanuts in my car?”
Lena tried not to laugh, fighting to maintain a confused expression. “Five tons? That's a lot of peanuts. I don't think that many packing peanuts would fit in your car.” She glanced at Vi who had turned her back, pretending to look out the window. Her shaking shoulders gave her away, however. “I mean, that's ten-thousand pounds of packing peanuts. I could never hope to lift ten-thousand pounds.”
His eyes narrowed. “I know you did it.”
“Anyone want honey for their rolls?” Lou asked. “Anyone?”
“You don't know anything,” Lena replied smugly.
“Oh?” Gage swiveled his stool to face her. “So, you don't think that I, an experienced police officer, would be able to track down the one place in town that actually sells and recycles packing peanuts? And you don't think that I, an experienced police officer, would be able to speak to the owner of that place of business—a mailing center, let's say for argument's sake—and determine who might have contacted said owner in order to obtain approximately a hundred cubic feet of Styrofoam packing peanuts. Which happens to be, by the way, the interior volume of a 1970 Chevy Chevelle.” He leaned toward her. “That's my car, by the way.”
Lena swallowed. “Oh.”
Gage smirked. “Oh.”
“Okay, dinner's on the table,” Lou said, grabbing Gage's arm and dragging him to the dining room table. “Come on, everyone. Let's eat while it's hot!”
Lena trailed after them, a sick feeling in her stomach. Why hadn't she even considered that he'd figure it out? I mean, really, who else would fill his car with packing peanuts? Nobody, that's who. Only Lena.
Stupid, stupid Lena.
But she couldn't cave. She couldn't let him think he'd won.
“Even if that was true,” she said with a confidence she didn't really feel. “It's all circumstantial evidence.”
“Really.” Gage sat down and laid his napkin across his lap. “So what else would you need all those peanuts for, pray tell?”
“Pray tell? Who says that?”
“Nice diversionary tactic.”
“I don't have to divert anything,” Lena said. “I have nothing to hide.” She forked up a pork chop and laid it on her plate. “This smells delicious, Lou.”
“Thank you. It's the nutmeg,” she replied.
“Huh, I never would have thought of nutmeg.”
Kade and Vi exchanged a look, chewing quietly.
“You didn't answer my question,” Gage said, scooping up some applesauce.
“Your question?” That's it, Lena. Stall.
Gage pointed his fork at her. “About what you'd use packing peanuts for.”
“Ohhh,” Lena said, slicing off a piece of meat and popping it into her mouth, chewing slowly to give herself a little more time. She swallowed, took a sip of water. “Well, to pack things, of course.”
Gage gave her a flat look. “To pack things.”
“Right.”
“That's what you're going with. You need to pack things.”
“Naturally.”
“Pass the rolls, please?” Kade said, grinning.
Gage handed him the bowl without looking at him. Instead, he leaned toward Lena with a determined look in his eye. “You should watch your back.”
Lena's brows shot up. “Is that a threat, Sheriff?”
He grinned. “Take it however you want.” He winked at her, and Lena's stomach flipped. She turned away, her cheeks flaming, and took a deep drink of her water.
“Anyway,” Vi said with a weighted look at her friend. “Can we talk about something else, now?”
“Good idea,” Lou said, wiping her mouth. “Lena, how are the St. Patrick's Day preparations coming? Did you get the Blarney Cone up all right?”
Everyone groaned, and Lou looked around the table in confusion. “What? What did I say?”
* * *
Gage wasn’t sure if he should have been annoyed or amused when he walked into Lou Chalmers' kitchen and saw Lena sitting at the breakfast bar. He would have been shocked if he hadn’t seen her car out front when he’d arrived. Lou hadn’t mentioned Lena, of course. She’d simply invited him to dinner, saying she wanted to welcome him to town and pick his brain about security for the bookstore.
Looking back, he should have been more suspicious. He halfway feared that Holiday Junction was already picking away at his cop instincts, making him soft.
“Vi, you want to help me with dessert?” Lou asked, getting up and gathering the dishes.
“Oh, yeah,” she replied, standing and piling silverware on her own plate.
“Can I help? Lena asked.
“No,” Lou replied firmly. “You are our guests. Just relax.”
When Kade sat back, rubbing his belly, Lou said, “Kade, you're family. Grab the glasses.”
He jumped to his feet and the three of them cleared the table and went into the kitchen, their whispers hissing back through the doorway, but not loud enough for Gage to make out what was being said.
“You know what they're doing, right?” Lena asked, elbows on the table and her chin perched on her hands.
“Bringing dessert?”
She snorted. “They want us to work things out. It's Lou's grand plan, I think.”
He crossed his arms, and leaned them on the table. “She's kind of a force of nature.”
“She’s something, all right,” Lena said, laughing. “If they want to achieve world peace, they should put Lou in charge of it. She'd fix things up within a month.”
There was a clatter of dishes in the kitchen, another hiss of voices, and then silence.
Lena chewed on her lip, eyeing him. “You don't know about her, do you?”
“What about her?”
Lena seemed to think about saying whatever she was going to say, then straightened, decision made. “She's a matchmaker.”
And that wasn't what he expected, at all. “A what?”
“A matchmaker. As in, she makes matches. Between people,” Lena clarified. “Well, Lou and her friends—Anne Patterson at the bakery . . . and Mandy Klein at the Daily Grind.”
Gage sat back and rubbed his chin. “You're telling me they do this for a living?”
“Oh, they don't take money,” Lena said, flipping her hair over her shoulder. “They do it for fun.”
“For fun.”
“Right.”
“They match make. For fun.”
“That's what I'm saying,” Lena said, a hint of annoyance in her voice. “People call them the Matchmaking Mamas.”
Gage absorbed that for a moment and reached for his glass of water. He froze with it halfway to his lips, a horrifying thought slamming into his mind.
“There you go,” Lena said with a wry smile. “It took you a while, but those investigative skills finally kicked in, didn't they?”
“Is she—are we—” Gage tried to form the words, but he was having some difficulty. “Are you saying she thinks . . . you . . . and me . . .”
Lena shot him a look. “That's exactly what I'm saying. She's trying to set us up.”
He rubbed a hand over his face. “Well, if that's not the most humiliating thing—”
“Hey!”
“No, I didn't mean it that way.”
“
I'll have you know, I'm a catch,” Lena said, obviously insulted.
The kitchen was suspiciously silent, and Gage wondered if the others were listening in. He leaned in, lowering his voice. “I'm sure you are,” he said. “But I think you'd agree that . . . you and me? It's not—”
“—a match made in heaven?” she offered.
“Right,” he said. “I mean, no offense, but I'm not interested—”
“Oh no, me either,” she said quickly, her cheeks pink. “I don't know what they're thinking. It's ridiculous.”
And did she have to say that quite so vehemently? Gage felt his own face heat.
“So, should we say something?” Gage asked.
Lena pressed her lips together. “It wouldn't make a difference,” she replied quietly, eyes darting to the kitchen door. “I think the only way to get her to back off would be to let her think it's working.”
Gage had been taking a drink of water, and at that, he choked a little bit. “What? How?”
Voices raised in the kitchen, and Lena whispered. “Just follow my lead, okay?”
Gage wasn't sure what to say to that, so he simply nodded.
The others came in to the dining room, bearing dessert plates, coffee, and a bowl of something chocolatey, topped with a mound of whipped cream.
“Hope you like brownie trifle,” Lou said as she sat the bowl in the middle of the table. She dished up spoonfuls of the dessert, and passed them out.
“Thanks. Looks delicious,” Kade said, taking his own plate.
“It's Mom's specialty,” Vi said. “Brownies, ice cream, nuts, and whipped cream.”
Lou sat back down, scooping up a bite of the trifle. “It's Lena's ice cream,” she said. “Caramel Almond Crunch.”
Lena kicked him under the table, and Gage jumped. She gave him a significant look, and what in the world did that mean?
“It's . . . really good,” he said through a mouthful of trifle.
Lena beamed, dimples on full display, and his breath caught.
“Thanks,” she said, all but batting her eyes at him.
Oh. So that's what they were doing.
Gage swallowed. “The ice cream is amazing. I didn't think I'd ever be allowed to taste any of it.”
Lena’s Lucky Charm: Love in Holiday Junction, Book 2 Page 10