Coffee & Crime (39 page)

Ted jumped off the dumpster like a trained acrobat and I stood staring. He held out his arms. "Come on. I'll catch you."

"Catch me?" I whispered. "Are you nuts?"

And then I walked right off the edge of the dumpster. Ted caught me all right and got a sneaker up the nose for his trouble. Stifling our laughter, we leaned against the dumpster. Ted tweaked my nose. "Good job, recruit."

The slider rolled back from above. "Who's there?" Lily called out nervously. Ted pulled me into a crouch and started with the hand signals again. I didn't need them
—
I went still and held my breath. The balcony vibrated as Lily walked to the railing and looked out. I hoped to God that we blended into the shadows and that she couldn't see us.

A few yards away a cat yowled like it was spawned in Hell and I gnawed on my fist to stifle a shriek. "God damn cats!" Lily screamed from above. A shoe flew past me and thumped onto the pavement. A few vibrato steps and the slider rolled shut.

We stayed crouched next to the dumpster for a few seconds until sure Lily wasn't coming back to the balcony. Then Ted duck-walked us around the side of the building and out of view. He pulled me to my feet. "You okay?"

My thighs felt like jelly and my heart pounded, but I nodded. "Yeah, you?"

Ted put his finger to his lips, stepped back from the building and looked up. "Lights out upstairs." He winked and gave me a thumbs up. He took my hand and led me along the side of the building. As we stepped around to the front, VW guy pulled up and parked. Ted pushed me back into the shadows.

"Good God, this place is cursed," I whispered.

The rain picked up and we hugged the side of Lily's building getting soaked. Ted stuck his head around the corner for a peek. "You ready?" I nodded and took his hand. "Go!" We rounded the building and scurried for the street. Just before we hit the sidewalk, the door banged open again. Without a backward glance, Ted swept me onto the sidewalk and up the street. "Don't look back. Just keep moving."

"Who the hell is going to look back?" I kept pace with him but had to jog to do so. When we reached the corner and stopped, I bent over to catch my breath. I panted and shivered as rain ran down the back of my neck. Ted glanced back to the building. Still bent over I asked, "Is he still there?"

"Negative."

I straightened and glanced behind me. "What was he doing?"

Ted led me across the street. "He had a duffel and I saw boxes in the car. Moving in?"

I stopped and laughed. "You are a spy. I didn't even see the car."

"Keep laughing, honey. We're taking the long way back to the truck."

I whined and jammed my hands into my pockets. "But it's raining and I'm cold. And my hood is full of water, so I can’t put it up."

"Can't chance passing her building again." He hugged me and kissed the top of my wet head. "We don't want to use all nine of our lives tonight, do we?"

When we were safely inside the SUV Ted switched on the ignition but idled for a few minutes. He didn't speak, just watched in his mirrors for a while. I blasted the heater and held my hands in front of the vent. I peeled off my wet jacket and sneakers, then squinted through the back windshield. "Why aren't we moving?"

Ted kept his eyes on the mirrors. "Making sure he's tucked in for the night."

"It's raining and foggy
—
he's not going to see us."

"Not if we stay still, he won't," Ted murmured.

Huddled in front of the heater vent I noticed Ted's phone on the console. I picked up the phone and waved it at him. "Aha!"

Ted snagged the phone and put it in his breast pocket so fast I wondered if I'd actually held it in my hand. Finally, he eased out of the parking slot with his headlights off. And he didn't turn his lights on until we reached the stop light at Venice Boulevard.

<<>>

Nothing works up an appetite like breaking and entering. On the way back, we stopped at a taco truck and loaded up on chips, salsa, tacos and burritos. Boomer watched with lolling tongue as Ted and I wolfed down delicious, greasy Mexican food in silence.

Without looking at him I said, "You keep dreaming, Booms."

Ted glanced over at Boomer. "Can't he have a little?"

I doused my steak burrito with two packets of hot sauce. "Sure, if you want to drive him to the doggie emergency room for an enema in a couple hours
—
knock yourself out." It was a moot point because when we finished, there wasn't a morsel left. Even the wrappers were licked clean. I sat back and belched. "Excuse me."

Ted put all the trash into the paper bag then got up and tossed the bag in the trash can. "I like a girl with a healthy appetite."

I belched again and laughed. "You say that now, but how charming will it be in ten years? And how do you feel about flatulence?"

Ted grinned like big kid. "Ten years, eh? Sounds like you plan on keeping me around."

I pointed to the trash can. "The trash goes in the outside dumpster because Boomer is not beneath eating paper either."

Ted retrieved the bag from the trash and said, "Yes, dear." Then left the room to find the dumpster.

Boomer crawled under the covers in a huff, and I went into the bathroom to wash my hands. The crazy-haired, red-eyed chick staring back at me from the mirror scared me. Playing spy was exciting but it did nothing for my looks. I washed my face and patted down my tangled wet curls. "Oh no!"

Ted stuck his head in the door. "What happened?"

I pulled at my hair, checked my pockets, looked down the front of my tee shirt but couldn't find it. "Where is it?" Ted quizzed me with a look. I pushed past him into the bedroom. "I'm missing an earring!"

He followed me. "What does it look like?"

I pulled back my hair and showed him the earring dangling from my right ear. "Exactly like this one."

We searched the room from top to bottom. Then the SUV. Then our bags. Then the parking lot. The earring was gone. Feeling a little less proud of his recruit Ted said, "It's done. We move on."

Exhausted, I sunk onto the bed. "Maybe it fell off in the street, or behind the apartment building?"

Ted sat next to me and put his arm around my shoulders. "Maybe." He blew out a sigh. "But…"

I put my head on his chest. "But probably it's in Lily's apartment, right?" I fisted my forehead like that would pound some sense into me. "Rookie mistake."

"Yup." Ted gave me a sympathy hug. "Everybody screws up."

I looked up at him. "So you forgive me?"

He looped a hank of damp hair behind my ear. "You were a real trooper tonight. You done good."

I sprung from the bed. "I'm glad you feel that way." I grabbed my bag and pulled out the stack of Lily's letters and waved them at him. "Because I'm hoping that means you won't be mad I took these."

I opened my eyes and squinted in the gloom. The heater hissed warm air into the room and I was tempted to go right back to sleep. Between the break-in and the argument over the letters, it was late when we finally went to bed. Sighing, I forced myself up and

threw back the covers. Boomer lunged and covered me with doggie kisses.

Fighting off Boomer I said, "Rise and shine, big guy." I squinted at the other bed. "Come on, we've had our four hours sleep, no more gold bricking." Boomer jumped off the bed, ran to the door and barked. I swung my feet to the floor and looked more closely at the bed — just a pile of rumpled blankets. "Ted?" I went into the bathroom, but it was empty too. "What the hell?"

Boomer barked and clawed at the door. "Where's Ted?" Boomer barked again, stood on his hind legs and did a twirly dance. "Yes, I know you like Ted. But where did he go?" Boomer dropped to all fours and wagged his stub. I went to the window and looked out to the lot. The Escalade was gone. Doing a scan of the room, I saw that Ted's bag was gone too. My stomach did a nosedive and I was nauseous. "He ditched me?"

As if to confirm, Boomer barked and did his dance again.

I crawled back into bed and pulled the covers over my head. Fighting the urge to surrender to my abandonment issues, I reasoned with myself. Ted wouldn't ditch me because he wasn’t an asshole like every other guy I dated. He told me so himself. Resolved to find a logical reason for his absence, I got out of bed and searched the room for a note. Nothing. I checked my phone for a text. Nothing. I went out to the lot and checked my windshield for a note. Nothing. Then I cried because he had ditched me just like the rest of them.

When I came back to the room, Boomer barked and wagged his stub. "He's gone." Boomer raised an ear. "Yeah, I thought he was a keeper too." I swiped angrily at my tears. "Big army warrior, huh?" I pulled clean clothes out of my duffel and tossed them on the bed. "Men!" Then I stomped into the bathroom and turned on the shower. "They're all cowards!"

As the hot water pounded my aching muscles, I tried to force Ted out of my mind by focusing on Lily. The letters, the apartment, and what she was doing with Jake? Somehow they connected and it was up to me to figure it out. I was on my own again. So what? I could handle it. The fun was over, and it was time to pack, pay the motel tab and make a new plan. "I was just fine before you came along Ted Jordan. I don't need you."

I savaged my hair with shampoo. "Okay Scotti, get a grip. You had a little fun with a cute guy. That's all it was. A diversion. Right? Right." I rinsed out the shampoo and took the tiny hotel soap to my skin. "So he dumped you. They all do. Who cares, right?"

I rubbed the washcloth so hard against my skin that it burned. Then I threw my head back and screamed. I pounded the tile wall with my fists. "Fuck you Ted! I don't need you!" I blasted my body with more hot water. And I kept cursing him, because I knew as long as I stayed mad, I wouldn’t fall apart. When the hot water ran out, I turned off the shower and tore back the shower curtain. My skin was so flushed that it looked sunburned. I dried off with two tiny motel towels and blotted my hair with the soppy mess. "Damn it, damn it, damn it!" I brushed my teeth so hard my gums bled. Staring at myself in the mirror I said, "I'm done with this shit. If anybody gets in my way again, they'll be sorry!"

I spun on my heel and stomped out to the bedroom, naked. Ted sat at the table, with breakfast and cups of hot coffee laid out before him. "Good morning, gorgeous."

I screamed then scrambled to cover myself with my arms. "How many times do I have to tell you to stop sneaking up on me?" Ted smiled as he took in every naked inch of me. "Stop staring at me. Turn around." Ted shrugged then faced the window. Trying not to wonder what Ted thought of me naked, I hopped into my socks and underwear. Fighting the urge to pull my hair out and dive under the bed, I wriggled into my bra. "Breakfast, huh?"

Ted kept his eyes on the ugly curtains. "Just curious but who were you arguing with in there?"

I pulled on the tee over damp skin and tugged it down. "I wasn't arguing with anybody. Must've have been the people in the next room."

"Ah."

I ran my hands through my wet hair and shook off the water. Then I yanked on my jeans and zipped them up. "Okay, I'm decent now."

Ted turned back to me. "I've got no complaints, either way." He curled a finger in his direction. "Come eat."

Staring at the carpet, I shuffled to the table and took a seat. "You got breakfast?"

"Yep."

I emptied a couple of cream containers into my coffee. "I woke up and didn't know where you were."

Quietly he said, "I didn't want to wake you."

I covered my face with my hand. "That was considerate."

He reached across the table and pulled my hand away from my face. "Look at me." I looked up without raising my head
—
eyes brimming with tears. Gently, he tipped up my chin and looked into my eyes. "I'm not all the other guys who've let you down. I never say things I don't mean. I don't bail when things get tough. I won't disappear." He stroked my cheek softly. "I'm not going anywhere, baby. You can count on me."

I whimpered. "Okay."

"Do you believe me?" I nodded. Then he grinned. "Good. Blow your nose and quit being such a whiney baby." He bit into his breakfast sandwich and chewed happily. "Good grub."

I wiped face and blew my nose with a napkin. "Where's your bag?"

He finished the sandwich and unwrapped a bear claw. "In the car."

I unwrapped my breakfast sandwich and nibbled. "Why?"

He polished off his pastry and tore off half my sandwich, then popped it into his mouth. "Because it's time to go home."

I surrendered the rest of my sandwich to him and grabbed a bear claw. "Since Lily is probably on to us, I think you're right. No point in sticking around now." I gobbled the bear claw and pawed through the wrappers for another but there wasn't anything left. "Did you read the letters?"

He stopped chewing and sighed. "Negative."

I looked up from my coffee. "Still pissed at me, huh?"

He gathered the wrappers and tossed them in the bag. "It was stupid move, recruit." He leaned back and sipped his coffee. "Damn stupid."

I waved my arms. "But we didn't have time to read them while we were there. Besides, if we told the cops the about the letters, we'd have to explain how we knew. And then they couldn't use them as evidence. And we'd probably get arrested for the breaking and