Coffee & Crime

by Anita Rodgers

  I gaped at him. "Are you nuts, we need to break into Lily's place before she gets back."

  "Like I said, no hurry," and his eyes actually twinkled.

  The more his eyes twinkled the more irritated I became. I gave him the hairy eyeball. "What makes you so sure of that?" I looked around the car. "And where is Boomer?"

  Ted laughed. "Open your door."

  "What?"

  "Just open your door."

  I opened my door and Boomer leapt into my lap, trembling like a sapling in a wind storm. "Oh poor Booms." I held him to my chest. "Mommy left you outside all alone? I'm sorry, baby." Boomer yapped, then leapt into Ted's lap and licked his face like it was a sirloin steak. Ted let Boomer have his way with him until he settled down on the console between us. "You didn't answer my question," I said. "And you've been doing a lot of that lately. Aren't you the one big on trust?"

  Ted nodded at the open door. "All answers will be forthcoming, at the motel. See you there."

  He started the engine and waited. When I closed the door, Ted pulled away from the curb, tapped his brakes at the stop sign, then drove off.

  Fancy that — I was out of the loop in my own caper.

  <<>>

  Since Ted insisted that there was no hurry, on the way back to the motel, I stopped at a grocery store. Dog food and bowls for Boomer; a package of fried chicken and a bottle of soda for me. I wished the room had a kitchen so I could make a decent meal, but getting Lily was more important than good nutrition.

  When I got back to the room, Ted was sprawled on his bed watching the mid-day news. He switched off the TV and swung his legs to the floor. "Oh good, you brought food." He snatched the chicken and soda out of my hands and took it to the table. "You read my mind."

  I set out kibble and water for Boomer. He sniffed the air and looked at the table where the bag of chicken sat. Staring him down I said, "You're off people food — live with it." He turned up his nose, jumped on my bed and curled up for a snooze. When I pulled up a chair to the table, Ted had already set up lunch. "Sure, help yourself."

  He snagged a drumstick and thigh and tore into the chicken. "Thanks!" I leaned back and watched Ted eat. He was unfazed by my scrutiny and cracked the lid on the soda bottle. He poised the bottle for pouring. "Want some?" I nodded. Ted poured each of us a glass of soda and went back to his chicken. "Aren't you going to have any? It's not bad for store bought."

  I took a chicken wing and placed it on a napkin in front of me. "I'm still waiting for the forthcoming answers."

  Ted snagged another piece of chicken and polished it off in a couple of minutes. Then he wrapped the bones in a napkin and put them in the empty bag. He washed it down with two more glasses of soda and grinned at me. "Ah, that hit the spot!" I raised an eyebrow. "What was the question?"

  "Why are we wasting time eating chicken when we should be at Lily's? Or rather I should be at Lily's?" I rolled my eyes. "I still don't know what you're doing here."

  Ted leaned forward and patted my hand. "Let's just say we're not the only ones on the team."

  I frowned. "Let's just say you're going to tell me what the hell you're talking about."

  Ted pointed at the chicken wing. "You going to eat that?" I pushed the chicken toward him, and he devoured it in three bites. He enjoyed making me wait and fume. He wiped his hands with a napkin, balled it up and tossed it into the bag. He stretched his long legs and leaned back in his chair, grinning. "What I mean is that we have help."

  I threw up my arms and pushed away from the table. "Great." Now my mission was a group activity. It was my score to settle with Lily, not theirs. I eyed the door, expecting Joe and Zelda to burst through any second. I paced the floor, muttering. "Damn it."

  "What's the matter?"

  So annoyed that my face itched, I pointed at him. "Why aren't you at work? Don't you have a business to run?"

  Ted laced his hands behind his head. "When you're the boss, you can take time off whenever you want. Gotta love capitalism, huh?"

  I scoffed. "What team? What do you mean?"

  Ted explained that after Zelda called, he'd volunteered to follow me to ensure my safety. He texted regular updates to Zelda and Joe. That morning, while I was spying on Lily, they'd decided to set up 24/7 surveillance. In addition Joe, Zelda, and us, three of Ted's drivers were brought in so we'd have adequate coverage. "So see, Lily can't make a move without being tracked. We keep in touch via by and everyone in the network knows her location at all times. We've got your back."

  I stared at him in partial awe and partial pissed-offednes. "And this was your idea?"

  Ted shrugged. "It sort of evolved naturally. Zelda and Joe tossed out the idea and I know tactical from my army days." His eyes twinkled. "But that's a story for another day." He shrugged. "Things just came together."

  I frowned at him. "Who are you? I mean, really, who are you?"

  "That's what we're working on, isn't it? Getting to know each other?" He pulled me into his lap. "Hi, I'm Ted Jordan. I'm thirty-three, a Scorpio —and I have a personal transportation company called Eagle One Transportation Services."

  I struggled to get out of his lap but he held onto me. "Now you're mocking me."

  "Never." His green eyes were like lasers into my soul. "Now, it's your turn." Blank stare.

  "Tell me about yourself."

  I flushed and my cheeks burned, but Ted waited patiently. I sighed and looked away. "My name is Prescott Fitzgerald. Twenty-eight years ago, I was left at a church on the corner of Prescott Street and Fitzgerald Ave — hence the name. I grew up in shitty foster homes where I met my friend Zelda. Because I was little I got bullied a lot. I learned to cook to deflect attacks and make people like me. Since I was abandoned, I assume that any family I might have isn't interested in knowing me. I came very close to owning a restaurant but got screwed over instead. Now I'm an out of work waitress looking for revenge." I tossed back my hair. "Oh and I'm a Scorpio too." I dead-panned him. "Satisfied?"

  He pulled me close and murmured into my hair, "Nice to meet you." He kissed my neck softly and worked his way up my chin, my cheeks and then to my lips. I pushed out of his lap before I fell under his spell. He looked disappointed. "What's the matter."

  Adrenaline pumped and roared in my ears. "Are you going to help me break into Lily's apartment?" I put my hands on my hips to make sure he knew I meant business. "Because I'm going to do it with or without you."

  Now that there was a team, whatever control I'd had of the situation was in question. But I'd be damned if I was going to sit around and take orders.

  Ted nodded. "Yup."

  I crossed my arms over my chest and sighed. His unflagging amusement grated on my nerves. "I guess you’re up to speed on the latest breaking and entering techniques then?"

  He got out of his chair and walked toward me. "I'm familiar with the concept."

  I backed up a step and bumped into the dresser. "Because of all your super secret army shenanigans?"

  He took a step closer. "That and my company offers certain security services too." He smiled like the Cheshire Cat. "We're very versatile."

  I flailed my arms. "It's a personal transportation company, it's a security firm — what the hell is this business of yours?"

  He shrugged. "Security actually dovetails nicely with transportation services."

  He stepped closer, put his hands on the dresser on either side of me, and moved in for a kiss. I ducked under his arms and scooted over to my bed. "So, you’re well-versed in picking locks and such?”

  He turned and smiled mysteriously. "Among other things."

  I plopped on the bed and lay on my back. The ceiling was brown and yellow in places and I tried not to ponder that too much. "I hope so, because Lily's nobody's fool."

  Ted stepped to the edge of the bed. "True. But she's also arrogant and assumes nobody's on to her."

  I raised my head. "I'm on to her."

  Ted crawled into the bed and lay down next to me. "Which explains why
she blindsided you."

  I rolled over on my side and faced him. "How does that bitch stealing my diner explain anything?"

  He turned and faced me. "Is there a better way she could have stopped you from investigating her father's suspicious death? She learned what you loved most in the world and took it away from you." He pushed my hair back and ran his finger along my collarbone. "That kind of shit knocks anybody on their ass."

  He was like a magnet baited with pheromones, and I hooked my leg over his. "It did knock me on my ass. But not Zelda or Joe. I'm such a wimp."

  His hand moved slowly down my back to my waist and he pulled me against him. "Joe has eight stitches in his head."

  "That didn't stop him."

  "Zelda lost her job and her best friend."

  "And yet she didn't run away and hide."

  His lips brushed mine. "But it slowed them down. Quite a bit.” He kissed me. "I don’t like it when you put yourself down."

  I stroked his face. "You think Lily killed George?"

  He kissed my neck and his lips were soft and warm. "Definitely possible. But we need more intel."

  I rolled over on top of him and sat back on my haunches. "And that's why we have to get into that damn apartment. I want to know what she's hiding." Then I rolled away from him and off the bed. "Now."

  Ted groaned and lost the dreamy, sexed-up look. "Now?"

  I searched the room for my shoes. "You bet your cute little ass, now!"

  He sat up and puffed up his chest. "You think my ass is cute?" I rolled my eyes and kept looking for my shoes. He lay down again and propped up on his elbow. "Not yet, baby."

  I stopped and frowned. "When?"

  "When we know she's buttoned up for the night, and on the other side of town."

  I looked around the dismal room and groaned. "What do we do until then?"

  Ted wiggled his eyebrows and said, "I have a few ideas."

  Chapter Fifty

  We spent the afternoon in Venice Beach raiding used book stores, lingering over lattes in little cafes and window shopping the indie galleries. Ted even tolerated a stop at a vintage dress shop and waited as I tried on dresses, boots and floppy hats. I settled on a navy cashmere sweater, grey Capri's and a pair of chunky black ankle boots.

  Later on, we walked along the beach and held hands. We sat in the sand, with the wind whipping our hair and talked. We laughed as we failed miserably at building a sandcastle. Silly stuff. Like teenagers with mad crushes.

  At sunset, we went back to the motel to check on Boomer and to change. Then we drove out to a seaside restaurant for dinner. We ate lobster and filet mignon at a table that looked out on the eerily beautiful ocean.

  Ted's eyes were full of appreciation for the sweater that hugged my curves and left little to the imagination. "Are you sure we can't stay in for the night?"

  He wiggled his eyebrows at me and I shook my head. "Does that eyebrow thing help you score a lot?"

  He chuckled. "More than you'd think."

  I smirked and buttered my roll. "Women have no standards anymore."

  He reached across the table and took my hand. "But I only have eyes for you."

  I laced my fingers through his. "Me too." His eyes asked me what the problem was then.

  "Do you really want our first time to be in a tacky motel room, in middle of all this crap? Because I don't." I lowered my voice. "If we make love..."

  "You mean when we make love."

  I bowed my head. "When we make love, I want it to be special. When the only thing on our minds is each other. Not because we’re hopped up on adrenaline and need to do something with the nervous energy. Is that so wrong?" I pulled my hand away and buttered the other half of my roll. "In case you haven't noticed, there's a lot happening in my life right now."

  He sat back, ego a little bruised. "I know that. Of course I know that."

  I rolled my eyes. "Don't get all puppy dog hurt on me. I'm not rejecting you." I put down my roll and smiled at him. "I think we could really have something. But I'm not going to let my hormones decide this, only to regret it five minutes later. You deserve more than that and so do I."

  Ted chuckled softly and took my hand again. "Okay."

  "Okay?"

  "We'll wait until it's just about us. We'll have moonlight, roses and champagne — I've got a limo but I'll find a horse-drawn carriage if you want." He bent his head and kissed my hand. "I’ll be patient. You're worth the wait."

  I felt like blowing my brains out because that little speech only made me want to leap across the table and rip his clothes off on the spot. Down girl. The blood rose in my cheeks and I had to change the subject. "Is it crazy that I don't want them to know what we're doing?"

  Ted twisted his lips. "And them would be?"

  I stared into my empty coffee cup. "Joe, Zelda, Eric...whoever."

  "I thought you guys were a team. That we were a team."

  I looked up at him. "We are. But can't I keep a few things to myself?"

  He wiggled his eyebrows. "I guess that depends on what those things are."

  I swatted at him playfully. "I'm not joking. Things have changed — at least for me. It's not about the diner anymore. It's about getting to the truth. The money, the Manstons, I'm done with all that."

  Ted furrowed his brow. "You don't care who killed George?"

  "Yes I care who killed George," I blurted out. Nearby diners looked up from their plates. I lowered my voice. "But let's be realistic. How are we going to pull that off? If we

  did, then what?"

  Ted shrugged. "Then we tell the police, turn over the evidence and, collect the reward." He leaned across the table and whispered, "And make love to celebrate."

  I jerked my head back. "The police? Are you serious? If I delivered a video of the crime and the killer with a list of instructions, they'd still lock me up for interfering with their

  investigation."

  Ted swept out his arms and shrugged. "Then what's the point of breaking into Lily's apartment? You’re done?" That idea seemed to make him happy. "Great, then let's hop a plane to Cabo and plan a future. Screw everybody else."

  I ignored his proposition and said, "The point is, that Lily stole my future. She thinks she can waltz into my life and shatter my dream without any consequences? Hell, no! She and I have a score to settle. I can't let her get away with it, can I? Would you?"

  Ted pushed a lock of hair out of my eyes. "Nope."

  I stabbed the air with my butter knife. "That's right! So why should I? I'm tired of being everybody's doormat. My whole life has been about pleasing people and staying safe —

  but what kind of life is that?"

  Ted reached across the table and lowered my arm. "Okay. I get it. If settling the score with Lily is what you want, then I’ll help you."

  I squinted at him not quite believing he meant. "You won't tell them anything I don't want you to tell them? You swear?"

  He made the scout hand sign then crossed his heart. "Scout's honor."

  I narrowed my eyes at him. "I thought you weren't a Boy Scout."

  Ted's phone buzzed. He read the text, answered it and put the phone away. He pushed back his chair and stood. Reaching out his hand he said, "Show time."

  Chapter Fifty-One

  My heart raced as Ted pulled to the curb. Ready for my sweet revenge, I yanked on the door handle. "Okay, let's do it."

  Ted held me back with his arm. "Negative."

  He looked through the windshield and scanned the quiet street. He dashed off a text then put the phone down on the console. I sighed and drummed my fingers against the armrest. Ted buzzed down his window and stuck his head out to get a better look around. "This isn't black ops, for cripes sake," I whispered.

  Ted buzzed up his window and pulled his keys from the ignition. "Okay, but go slowly. If we see anybody, then we're a couple in love taking a midnight stroll. Got it?"

  I nodded eagerly. "Yeah, I mean affirmative Captain America."

  I op
ened the door, grabbed my bag from the foot well and slung it over my shoulder. He put his big hand on my shoulder and held me back. "What are you doing?"

  "I'm getting out of the car."

  "Leave the bag. Travel light, remember?"

  I clutched my bag. "If I go the bag goes. I don't go anywhere without the bag. My entire life is in the bag."

  He shook his head. "Negative. The bag is a hindrance. Too risky. What if we have to climb out a window? Or shimmy down a tree?"

  I put one foot on the pavement. "Then I'll sling it around my neck." Ted's jaw worked while he determined whether he could win the argument. "Cite me for insubordination if you want to Captain but the bag is coming." He frowned and I frowned back. "So are we going to sit here and argue all night or get to it?"