Part 6 (1/2)

”You've got the same spirit. You're a strong woman, Theresa. I think that's what Nathaniel sees in you.”

”Sees in me?” I asked, and I felt like a teenager gossiping with a girlfriend. You mean, he like, totally likes me? I sat up straighter and wished I had a gla.s.s of wine in my hand, just so I could look more grown-up. Cedric smiled and pointed at my laptop, sitting forlornly on the edge of the tabletop.

”E-mails?” he asked, and I could tell by the set of his s.h.a.ggy red brows that we were done with this conversation. For now.

I had a horrible night's sleep.

First off, I had a s.e.x dream featuring the one and only, Nathaniel Sutherland. In it, he gave me the most fabulous oral s.e.x and then while I returned the favor, he whispered sweet nothings in the moonlit air. When I'd awoken from that dream, I'd had to deal with the fact that Cedric was standing in my doorway and that he almost certainly had heard noises. I talked in my sleep, a lot. It was something that Glen had hated about me. The jerk. So I'd gotten up, stolen a quick sip of Jager (I do not have a problem) and stolen back to bed.

My next dream nightmare actually had been about Gary, standing over my bed in the dark with a knife in one hand. His eyes had been gla.s.sy and blank, like they'd been at the house yesterday. He'd then proceeded to stab me, over and over and over again until I was lying on my back in a pool of black blood, screaming and calling out a single name. Nathaniel. Now what the f.u.c.k does that mean?

When I told Jamie, she was as unhelpful as always.

”Theresa, don't be dense. You like the guy. Is it that hard to understand?”

”I'm in a transitional period in my life, Jamie. I don't need a man right now.”

”Don't need, want. There's a difference. Everybody dreams of having someone to love, Theresa. It doesn't make you any less of a woman. Women can love men. It's okay to want and still be a headstrong, self-a.s.sertive, independent go-getter, which you are.”

”Are you eating during my pep talk?” I asked her as she chewed and snapped and ground something in my ear.

”Listen, if you want to chill out and relax, come out with me tonight. I'm going to dinner with a bunch of power hungry demons from work. It's a girls only night, should be fun.”

”I don't know ... Nathaniel said he might be able to take me shooting.”

”I'll pick you up at eight, 'kay?”

”Jamie ... ”

”And bring your s.e.xy hunk for security. Just in case.”

”But ”

She hung up on me.

I sighed and exited the bathroom as Cedric moved seamlessly out of my way and did his best to blend in with the wall behind him. It wasn't working. He was just too d.a.m.n big.

”Want some pancakes?” I asked as I opened the fridge and searched for bacon.

”I hate pancakes,” Rhea said as she came out of her room in a pair of h.e.l.lo Kitty pajamas and glared at Cedric like he was the enemy, as if somehow, it was his fault that Nathaniel wasn't here.

”You love pancakes,” I said as I grabbed the eggs and put them on the counter. ”I always make you pancakes on Sundays.”

”I want an omelet,” Rhea said as she eyed the growing file on the corner of the table. It was as thick as War and Peace and about as pleasant a read. ”With chives.”

”What?” I asked as my daughter rolled her eyes and gave me a look.

”A chive is a perennial plant related to the onion,” she told me, as if I'd never heard of it. ”Often used to season food.”

”You're nine,” I said and started on the pancakes anyway. Rhea sighed and stomped off to watch cartoons, turning the volume up to a level she knew I didn't approve of. I left her to it and tried to focus on my cooking as I thought about Gillian Sutherland and her apple pies. ”Hey Cedric,” I said, glancing at him around the fridge. ”The man that killed Gillian, her stalker, did he kill himself?” Nathaniel had said that he'd come home and found them both dead, so I had just a.s.sumed, but maybe that wasn't it at all. Maybe Gillian had wounded him critically in her fight to save her own life. She sounded like a woman who could take care of herself.

Cedric didn't respond, not for a long time. I even had to peek at him to make sure he was still there. Just as I was about to repeat my question, he answered me.

”Yes.” And that was it, no elaboration, nothing. His face was cold and blank, not just a professional facade, but something else. Cedric was hiding something from me. I knew that just as surely as I knew that Nathaniel had other secrets, things he hadn't told me. It was instinctive. I cracked an egg into the pan and let it go, for the moment. Of course, my mind supplied all sorts of other answers. Is the killer still alive? Did he escape? Is he out there now? I hoped not. I hoped Cedric was just being strange because it was a such a difficult subject for him, but I doubted it. Something was up with these two, and I was always game for a good mystery.

CHAPTER 13.

The day came and went as it's wont to do, and soon I found myself peeping out the blinds in my bedroom, just to see if I could grab a sneak peek of Nathaniel pulling into the driveway. I was already dressed in my best ”girls' night out” look which consisted of the very cla.s.sic little black dress with a scooped neckline, a pair of emerald pumps, and Rhea's Kukui nut necklace. My eyes were smoky and mysterious (at least when I squinted), and I had a slash of ”s.l.u.t Red” lipstick on my mouth (courtesy of Jamie), so I was feeling pretty good.

Until Nathaniel called and said he couldn't make it.

”What?” I asked, feeling sorely disappointed. ”Why?”

”Well,” Cedric began as his brow crinkled and he lifted the phone away from his ear. ”Something came up at the office. One of our employees killed a man during a job.” I clamped a hand over my mouth and didn't know what to say. Cedric smiled weakly. ”It happens more often than you'd think. Still, Nathaniel needs to be there to make sure that justice is served so to speak. Self-defense is a hard one to prove in court.”

”I ... ” I had no idea how to respond to that.

”Do you mind if I make a personal call? I need to call my date and cancel.”

”Your date?” I said. It had never occurred to me that Cedric might have a special someone. Why, I don't know, but I blinked at him in surprise. ”Oh, you can't cancel your date,” I said as a minivan pulled into the driveway. Joel was here to pick up Rhea. I started down the hallway with Cedric at my heels and tried to figure out a way to help the poor guy. He was obviously disappointed, whether he was showing it or not. ”I refuse to let you tag along with me when you've got a lady friend waiting,” I said as I peeped my head into Rhea's bedroom and found her engulfed in a Pokemon game of some sort. ”Grab your things. Joel's here.”

”Are you going to have s.e.x on a beach?” Rhea asked me, and I had to pause and stare at her for a moment before it sunk in.

”You mean the drink?” I said, tugging at my emerald earrings and wondering if they clashed too much with the necklace. ”You mean, am I going to drink a s.e.x on the Beach?” Rhea nodded emphatically as she stuffed some books into her backpack and hopped off the bed. ”Maybe. Why? Where did you hear that from?” She shrugged and moved past me, grabbing a notepad filled with p.e.n.i.s drawings on her way past. Am I a terrible mother?

”Perhaps,” Cedric said, trying desperately to grab my attention as I moved back down the hall and followed Rhea into the kitchen. His face was red and he was actually sputtering. ”Perhaps I could call someone else in. Normally, I wouldn't do this, but I ... ”

”Have a super hot date?” I joked as I reached for the door and paused when Cedric put out a big meaty hand and stopped me in the nick of time.

”Am going to propose,” he blurted, and I had to pause and stare at him with my mouth agape.

”Mom,” Rhea said as she elbowed me in the side. ”Say, Congrats. That's polite.”

”Congratulations,” I blurted as Cedric checked the peephole, swept Rhea and I to the side with a gentle sweep of his arm and opened the door to Joel. He stared at the Viking-like man with wide eyes, and I leapt in to explain.

”This is Nathaniel's ... brother, Cedric.” The big man boomed with laughter as he reached out and grabbed Joel's hand for a shake.

”What she means is, I'm his business partner. Not a lick of shared blood between us!”

”Cedric's getting married,” Rhea said proudly, as if she'd known all along. Joel blinked and tried to smile. Apparently Jamie hadn't briefed him on the situation. I slid between them and grabbed Rhea's bag from her hands, transferring it to Joel's.

”I'll pick you up in the morning, okay?” I said, pressing a kiss to her cheek. Rhea stuck out her tongue.

”Because you'll be drunk?” she asked, and I had to ignore her. What the h.e.l.l was I supposed to say to that? Yes. Mommy is going to get plastered with some women she doesn't know and get her mind off all of the s.h.i.+t that's going on in her life. It's a grown-up thing.