Red Red Rose (3 page)

I
cleared my throat and made my best attempt at an easy smile that hopefully
didn’t project my thoughts. “Hi. What can I get for you?”

“Large
black coffee. The–”

“Dark
roast?” I finished for him. Like I said; same thing every day.

“Ah,
too predictable am I?”

“Nothing
wrong with a man who knows what he likes and wants,” I replied, shocking myself
with how flirtatious it came out.

I
swear his eyes darkened for just a second before his expression relaxed and he
leaned his elbows on the counter. “Well, just to keep it interesting, let’s
change things up. What would you recommend?”

I
bit my lip and tried to think of a drink that would appeal to him, but really
he did seem like a black coffee kind of guy. Still, I tried. “How about a
peppermint mocha?” They were popular this time of year.

His
brow wrinkled. “Too sweet.”

“Umm,
how about a white coffee latte?”

“I
prefer my coffee darker.”

I
knew this already. “A regular latte?”

“Too
much cream.”

I
sighed, “An americano?”

He
grinned and pushed up. “Sounds good. I’ll take a large americano.”

I
frowned, “You know that’s basically the same drink you always order, but
espresso instead of drip coffee.”

“What
can I say? I’m a man who knows what he likes and wants.”

I
chuckled and turned to make his americano. “You know, I think I read somewhere
that people who drink their coffee black, with no cream or sugar, are more
likely to be psychopaths.”

He
laughed, “Now that’s funny. I think it’d be the other way around. All that
sugar and syrupy crap can’t be good for a person on top of the caffeine.”

“Ah,
but the sugar sweetens people up.”

He
gave his head an amused shake. “Why don’t you throw in one of those cranberry
orange scones you have in the case.”

“Good
choice, a little bit of sugar to sweeten you up, but not too much,” I said,
tamping the ground espresso beans in the filter.

“So
you think I need sweetening up?”

I
glanced at him as I made quick work of filling his cup with water from the
machine. I couldn’t help but run my gaze over him once more. “I think you’re
good just the way you are,” I swallowed and forced my attention to the shots
that needed brewing. Out of the corner of my eye I watched his lips twitch. I
tossed the perfectly timed shots in the cup and then put a lid and a coffee
hugger on it. I set the hot cup on the counter and retrieved a scone from the
case, sliding it into a small pastry sleeve. I rang in his coffee and scone,
but when I looked up to give him the total, I found his gaze fixed on the news
story that was still running. Not many local outlets were talking about
anything besides the recent disappearances and homicides.

When
his eyes returned to mine, they were dark, but not in a sexy, bedroom way. In a
scary, broody and possibly dangerous way. “I hope you’re being careful when
you’re out alone at night.”

I
swallowed, nodded and gave him his total. He paid cash as usual and gave me a goodbye
nod before making his way back out my door.

“Hate
to see him go, love to watch him leave,” Cassie came to stand beside me with a wistful
sigh.

“Tell
me about it.”

“You
get his name yet?”

“Nope,”
I sighed.

“Don’t
worry; I have every confidence in you. You’re due for sexy, fun, good times
after Dickface.”

I
let out a brief snort. Nathan was the complete contrast to my current walking,
talking fantasy come to life. Nathan was buttoned up and polished
sophistication. He was a three-hundred dollar bottle of wine and a four course
meal at a five star joint. All class. At least on the outside. Thor with the
chocolate and caramel eyes was a bottle of Jack, or maybe Johnnie Walker,
followed by a long night of rolling in the sheets. Just thinking about it
caused a slight shudder to course through me like someone tracing a finger
softly down my spine. With a deep exhale, I tried to clear my mind of any such
thoughts, and get back to work.

The
rest of the day maintained a steady stream of customers in the shop and we did
our part to keep them caffeinated. Supply and demand, the key to any successful
business like mine, and in Bellingham there was no shortage of demand. Our
doors had only been open six months and already we were seeing the kind of
profits that would have us in the black much sooner than I anticipated. It
helped that my financial backers went by Mom and Dad and had a zero percent
interest rate on the small business loan I’d taken out to get up and running.
As long as business kept up, I’d have that paid off in no time and really be
able to start turning a profit.

The
pride in my success was only dampened by Emily’s absence. More than my business
partner, she was my marketing and advertising expert and a big part of the
reason the doors here were ever swinging. She’d been in from the moment I
pitched her my idea when it was nothing more than scribbles and doodles on the
back of a takeout menu. For a business major and a marketing major who’d been
wasting their degrees after graduation waiting tables at Nicki’s on the
waterfront, it was our chance to strike out, to take a risk and do something
that could be great, and it was. A year of planning went into our business designs
before we ever signed the lease on this building, and it was months more of
planning and preparing before our grand opening. It was all paying off, but
without my partner and friend here, the success tasted more bitter than sweet.

At
closing time, I had Nina, another of my girls, who’d come on shift to replace
Cassie at three, hit the open light and we started collecting the trash bags.

“Hey
Danny, we’re closing up shop for the night,” I called to our last customer. His
eyes lifted from his laptop screen and he pushed his glasses up his nose,
scanning the now empty shop.

“That
time already?”

I
let out a soft chuckle, “Yep, you’ve only been here for eight hours today. I
swear you’re here more than most of my employees.”

He
brushed his brown, shaggy curls out of his face and started packing up his
laptop and the paperwork spread out around him. “Sorry, I hope I’m not in the
way. I just like coming here. The atmosphere is good for my creativity.”

“You
know we don’t mind having you here. You’re keeping me in business.” I smiled.
He’d started coming in not long after we opened and never left. He had to be in
his late twenties, and worked for one of the big tech companies in Seattle.
Whatever he did for them, he could work remotely. Most days he did that from
the shop. This wasn’t the first time I’d had to give him a shove out the door
at closing time. He could lose himself in his work for hours, only coming up
for refills on his quad shot, white chocolate, caramel mocha– extra caramel. I
didn’t know what would kill him first, the caffeine or the sugar.

“Thanks,
Nora.” He swept the last of his stuff into a messenger bag. “See you ladies
tomorrow.”

I
followed him to the door. “Have a good night, Danny.” I locked it behind him
and helped Nina finish up closing tasks.

“Where
are you parked?” I asked her, grabbing the large, combined trash bag.

“I’m
out front, but I’ll walk with you out back to take the trash out.”

We
gathered our coats and purses and I set the alarm before we left through the
back door. I dumped the bag in the dumpster, and Nina and I walked to my car so
that I could drive her around front to hers. With a couple bars and taverns
around, and with everything going on, I didn’t like the idea of her cutting
through the alley alone. Once I’d dropped her safely at her chariot, home was
calling my name.

It
was only a ten minute drive from the shop to the house Emily and I rented on
Fairhaven, just off the water. It was a cute blue house, set back from the road
in the privacy of trees. At night, it almost gave it an eerie feel, made all
the more so knowing I would be walking into an empty house, no roommate waiting
for me. It didn’t help that I realized as I pulled down the drive to the detached
garage, I’d forgotten to leave the porch light on when I left this morning.

The
outer door of the enclosed porch was left unlocked and as I stepped through,
fumbling with my house key, I almost tripped over something on the floor. I
didn’t need the light to know what it was, considering it wasn’t the first time
I’d come home to a bouquet of roses on the porch. I let out a frustrated breath
and got the front door open, before grabbing them up and carrying them inside
with me. I locked the door behind me and went through the house to the kitchen,
flipping on lights along the way. I tossed my stuff down on the counter and
eyed the red flowers with disdain. My eye caught on the note that was attached.
Well that was new. He’d never left a card before. I snatched it up, reading the
simple words printed.

I’m
sorry.

With
an annoyed snort I tossed it in the trash and then swept the flowers in after.
As if flowers and
“I’m sorry,”
made up for being a liar and a cheater.

Right
on cue, my phone started ringing and I wasn’t the least bit surprised to see
Nathan’s smug face looking up at me from the screen. With an angry swipe of my
finger I brought the phone to my face.

“What
do you want, Nathan?”

“Just
to talk to you. You’ve been ignoring my calls.”

“Then
maybe you should take a hint and stop calling. I don’t have anything to say to
you, and I don’t want to hear anymore of your excuses or apologies.”

“You’re
making more out of this one mistake than you should.”

I
laughed dryly. “First of all, you don’t get to tell me how I should feel about
your
mistake,
and secondly, we both know you didn’t fuck her just the one
time, so save it. I told you I’m done listening to your bullshit.”

“Nora,
is that language really necessary?” His annoyed tone grated on me and I had the
urge to reach through the phone and slap him.

“Yes.
It
fucking
is. You can’t talk your way out of this one, Nathan. I’m not
a jury member you can convince to believe the lies you spew.” As a rising star
defense attorney in the Seattle area, he was making a name for himself as a
smooth talker, but I was done falling for it; done being blinded by his charm.

I
heard the frustrated sigh on his end. “I’m not lying to you, and we can talk
about it more when I come up there this weekend. I’ll be in town on Saturday. I
know you usually take the day off, so I’ll pick you up at six-thirty. I’ve made
a seven o’clock reservation at Giuseppes. We’ll discuss your concerns about our
relationship then.” His arrogance and condescending attitude were enough to
send steam shooting out my ears. I had to draw in a deep breath before I spoke
again, through a clenched jaw.

“Don’t
bother coming. We no longer have a relationship to discuss, so it would be a
waste of your precious time to drive all the way up here just to have me slam
the door in your face. And while you’re at it, quit sending flowers.” With that,
I ended the call and set my phone on the counter.

“Entitled
prick,” I muttered under my breath, going to my fridge and popping the top off
a Corona before taking a long pull. Rather than waste my night asking myself
what I’d ever seen in him, I took my beer out to the living room and settled in
on the large sectional, scrolling through the cable guide on the TV. Finding a
late night marathon of Castle, I kicked off my hot pink Chucks, and put my feet
up on the coffee table. I took another pull from my bottle and tipped my head
back. It wasn’t long after I finished my beer that I dozed off.

I
woke long enough to shoot a text off to Reggie reminding him to pick up the
bakery order in the morning on his way in to open the shop, before stripping
down and climbing into bed. It would save me the delivery fee since he lived
just down the street from the small bakery that supplied all our baked goods.

Like
every night over the past couple weeks, my last thoughts before I fell asleep
were of Emily, and hoping that wherever she was, she was okay. I just wanted
her to come home.

Adele
was rocking out the shop, accompanied by Reggie and Cassie, when I walked in
the next afternoon. I took a cursory glance around the place before heading
back to the small office/break-room off the kitchen. We had a couple students
from Western with their faces buried in text books and computer screens, and a
group of local retired firefighters that met for coffee every Thursday at
eleven. A few other customers occupied tables and cozy chairs around the shop,
and one customer was at the counter waiting for Reggie to make his drink and
enjoying the lip sync show he was getting in the meantime.

“Reggie,
less ass shaking, more coffee making,” I called on my way to the back.

“Aye,
aye el capitán.”

I
dumped my purse on the small desk and draped my jacket over the back of the
chair. I spent the next twenty minutes working up the newest schedule,
inputting hours into my payroll program and writing out checks for bills. They
were usually tasks Em handled, but with her gone . . .

I
sighed and grabbed a clean apron from the drawer. Today’s featured a Batman
bod, complete with six-pack abs. It was one of my favorites. There were no
uniforms at Urban Grind, but we had a selection of random aprons from neon to
novelty to funny to borderline inappropriate, like the bikini body one Reggie
was currently rocking.

Adele
had switched over to Ashes and Embers by the time I stepped back out into the
front of the shop, and when I heard my favorite song playing,
A Little More Time,
I turned the volume up on the sound system and then jumped behind the counter to
join Cass and Reggie. A short line of customers had formed while I was in the
back and the three of us worked in tandem to get them all through the line as
quickly and efficiently as possible.

When
I handed off the last salted caramel mocha, the tip jar was already looking
healthy and I gave a nod to my team. “Good work guys. Reggie, why don’t you
take your fifteen before we get the lunch break rush.” Being at the center of
several local businesses, we had a lot of professionals that would stop in on
their lunches for that midday kickstart.

He
tugged his apron off and slung it over a hook by the sink and rounded the
counter to pull up a seat with our retirees. It wasn’t two seconds after he sat
down that that whole group busted up with laughter. That was Reggie. A total
goof and beloved by everyone. He was black, gay and fabulous. The chocolate
color of his skin– a few shades darker than Cassie’s Asian and African-American
blended complexion– was obvious, but your gaydar had to be finely tuned to peg
him, as he didn’t fit the flamboyant stereotype. As for the fabulous part, that
was his personal opinion, but most tended to agree with him. He and Cassie had
both been with me from the start and I wasn’t sure what I would do if and when
they moved on.

I
took the slow moment to cart stuff back to the kitchen and run it through the
dishwasher while I left Cassie in charge at the counter. I had just slammed the
top down on the commercial washer and listened to it kick on when I heard
Cassie shout, “Nora, you might want to get out here.”

I
hurried to the front and saw Cassie with the TV remote in hand, turning up the
volume on what appeared to be a press conference where the mayor and police
chief were making a statement. I hurriedly snatched up the sound system remote
and powered it off so I could hear what was being said on the TV.

“As
we’ve stated, we can not release the name of the victim until the family has
been notified, but at this time we do not believe that the body found near
Whatcom Lake this morning belongs to Emily Raynes. The physical description is
not a match.”

Another
body had been found. Whatcom Lake, that wasn’t far from Bellingham. Much
further from Seattle than the others had been dumped. All of them had been
found near a body of water, though. That they didn’t think it was Emily was a
relief, but my heart broke for the family of Laney Benson, the most recent girl
to go missing, because the body they found more than likely belonged to her.

“Change
it,” I said softly and she did. She switched it over to some talk show and I
hit the music before returning to the kitchen. “Dammit, where are you Em?” I
muttered softly to no one and busied myself with the next load of dishes until
Cassie poked her head back into the kitchen to let me know we were low on fat
free milk. I had a delivery scheduled for the next morning, but it wouldn’t be
good to run out before then.

“I’ll
run to the store as soon as Reggie’s back on.”

I
did a quick check of the fridge back here where we keep the extra milks, creams
and perishables that wouldn’t fit in the under-counter fridge up front, to see
if there was anything else we were low on, but didn’t note anything.

I
waited for Reggie before cashing a ten out of the register and heading for the
little corner market down the street. The sun was shining outside, but I should
have known better, because in January, the sun is deceiving. As soon as I
stepped outside, I was wishing I had grabbed my coat. I hurried toward the end
of the block.

“Nora!”
someone shouted and I turned my head to see Will crossing the street toward me.
I stopped and waited for him. “Where you headed?”

“To
the corner store for milk.” He fell in step beside me and we crossed the street
when traffic cleared. “Working hard today?” He was in his usual shorts, cutoff
shirt, and Nikes, the unofficial uniform of a personal trainer. He also had a
stocking cap pulled low, hiding his close-cut blonde locks.

“Yeah,
business is always booming after the New Year.” He worked at the gym two blocks
down and had the physique to prove it. Almost six-foot, he was fit and strong
and I had no doubt that using him as a poster child would be good for drawing
in clientele, especially of the female variety.

He
followed me into the little corner grocery and carried the milk for me. On
impulse, as we walked past the candy aisle, I reached for a Snickers. He shook
his head. “When are you going to get a membership to counteract the garbage you
put in your body?”

I
smiled as I set the candy bar on the counter and he did the same with the milk
so the checker could ring us up. “I’m always working, when do you think I have
time to work out?”

“I’ll
give you that. You are in serious need of a day off.”

“Preach
it.” I slapped the ten on the counter to pay and turned to Will. “I actually
have Saturday off. It will be my first full day off in a month, but I want to
go back to your comment about what I eat; are you trying to tell me my ass is
getting fat?”

He
chuckled and reached for the milk again as I was handed the receipt. I slipped
it in my pocket and immediately tore open the candy bar. His eyes took in my
backside.

“Trust
me; your ass is just fine. It’s the inside of your body I worry about. Do you
feed it anything besides chocolate and coffee?”

We
made our way back outside. “Occasionally beer and pizza.” I took a big bite of
the candy bar and then gasped. “Look at that.” I held it up. “Are those peanuts
in there? Peanuts are nutritious are they not?”

Another
chuckle. “I don’t know how you look like you do, but please don’t tell my clients
you get that body from junk food and caffeine.”

“Deal,
as long as you don’t try to steal anymore of my customers.” He’d managed to
reel in two of my most loyal mocha consumers and put them on strict diets while
he trained them. “Besides, mister hypocrite, you’re in my shop almost every
day.”

“I
come for the smoothies and those bran muffins, not the cookies and frou-frou
extra-shot, triple chocolate, death by sugar, frappuccino lattes you consume.”

“That’s
not even a real drink.” I pushed my way inside the shop only to come up short
when I realized who was at the counter. Will almost ran into my back and then
leaned over my shoulder to mutter in my ear when he saw who I was staring at.

“Seriously?
I would have thought you learned from the last one how to spot trouble.”

I
jabbed him with my elbow and then took the milk from him and, cool as a
cucumber, made my way behind the counter.

“Can
I have him?” Reggie whispered in my ear, looking longingly at my tall, dark
Thor, who was being helped by Cassie.

“Down
boy.” I put the gallon of milk in the fridge under the counter and then couldn’t
help but let my gaze drift back to the prime male specimen who probably caused
every woman and gay man within a half mile radius to go into heat just with his
presence. Will may have been right; he definitely looked like trouble, but that
wasn’t going to stop me from letting my eyes drink it up.

“Fine,
you can have the mysterious stranger and I’ll take Mr. Blue-eyed, buns-of-steel
over there.”

I
couldn’t hold back my laugh. “Sorry, I don’t think Will rolls that way.
Besides, don’t you have a boyfriend?”

“Why
do you have to spoil my fun?” he pouted.

I
grinned, knowing that despite his eyes that liked to wander, Reggie’s heart was
true and loyal. “I’m sure there are dishes that need to be done before you take
off for the day.” I gave him a shove in the direction of the kitchen.

“Killjoy,”
he pouted some more, but ducked inside the kitchen.

I
slipped past Cassie filling a cup from the pot, and then looked up to see dark
eyes on me. I managed a hint of a smile while my insides heated about ten
degrees.

“I
see you’ve gone back to your boring cup of coffee,” I pulled off the teasing
remark rather smoothly I thought, and then I veered right past teasing and kept
on going. “Are you sure I can’t tempt you with something else off our menu? You
might be surprised by how good I can make a cup of coffee taste.”

Cassie
coughed beside me and I felt the flush crawl up my neck to my cheeks, but my
friend with the unrefined coffee palette simply leaned closer over the counter.
The corners of his mouth curled upward in a grin that made his eyes twinkle as
well. “Sweetheart, you could tempt me with a lot of things, none of them on
that menu you have up there on the wall.”

Oh
damn.

“Here’s
your coffee.” Cassie’s hand shoved between us. “Can we get you anything else?
Like Nora’s number? She’s single.”

My
eyes bugged out and shot to her. “Cassie!” I hissed, and elbowed her not so
discreetly, then looked back to see
he-who-shall-not-be-named-simply-because-I-still-didn’t-know-his-name chuckling
under his breath.

“The
coffee will do. For now. Thank you, ladies.” He shot me a wink before
retreating with his coffee. When he made it to the door he turned, “By the way,
nice bod.” His eyes flitted briefly to my apron. He smirked and then pushed the
door open.

“Hey,”
Cassie called after him, and I worried I was going to have to fire her for
whatever came out of her mouth next. “You got a name?” she asked when he looked
back over his shoulder.

“Shaw.”

“That
a first name or a last name?” I asked.

Another
smirk and then he was out the door.

Damn.
Damn. Damn.

“You
two will make beautiful, beautiful babies,” Cassie rested her chin in her hand
and stared after him until he was out of sight of our large windows.

“We
would, wouldn’t we?” I leaned my own head on my hand, indulging her fantasy.
Okay, maybe it wasn’t entirely hers.

“I
can’t believe you two,” Will cut into the moment. “For all you know, he could
be the Northwest Strangler.”

I
let out a little huff and straightened. “Way to kill my moment.”

“I
just don’t see it.” Cassie frowned. “I mean, evil like that; you’d think it
would be in the eyes.”

“Tell
that to the girls he killed,” Will arched one brow at her pointedly.

“You
know what, I don’t even think I’d care if his face was the last thing I saw
before I went,” Cassie threw out there, earning another displeased scowl from
Will.

“You’re
hopelessly pathetic.”

She
drew open the sliding door on the back of the baked goods display and pulled
out one of the awful bran muffins, shoving it toward Will. “Here, just take
your muffin and quit trying to bring me down.”

He
took the muffin with a roll of his eyes. “Don’t forget my smoothie.”

“Extra
kale?” Cassie wrinkled her nose and he nodded.

While
she was blending his smoothie, Will leaned closer over the counter. “You two
are like a bad episode of Gossip Girl.”

“Hey,
don’t worry, I just got out of one disastrous relationship; I’m not looking to
jump into another. It’s just fun to imagine the possibilities.”

This
time I got the scowl. “You’re as bad as she is; letting a pretty face distract
you.”

I
snorted, “You’re one to talk. How many times have you taken advantage of your
pretty face and smile to charm an unsuspecting female?”

His
mouth curled up at the corners in a sly grin he tried to hide by shoving a bit
of muffin in his mouth.