Awakened (Intimate Relations) (27 page)

People who stood by you, no matter what. Mandy wrapped her arms around his neck, pulled herself up on her toes, and kissed him. “I’m going to get dinner together. It’s all ready to go.”

“I’ll help,” he said, though he hated to turn away from the silly quips and jokes flying among the group. But the moment he turned to follow Mandy into the kitchen, everyone else went as well, where an entirely new discussion ensued over the much larger table with eight matching chairs now taking center stage in the kitchen.

Lola cupped her hands around her mouth and called out over the din. “Mr. Reed? Do you want an executive assistant or a full-time chef? This table appears to point toward the chef’s position.”

Marc never broke stride, slicing the roast. “It adjusts easily to seat four or six. You’re safe.”

“Good to know.”

“But it can be stretched out to feed twelve.” Mandy’s smirk earned her a swat on the butt from Lola. Then she helped Mandy finish setting the table while Kaz arranged the bowls along the counter—mashed potatoes and gravy, rib roast, green beans, and a big bowl of green salad Mandy had thrown together—and they all lined up to serve themselves. Mandy filled a plate for Marc, who was busy pulling out a couple of bottles of Intimate wine, and it didn’t take long before they were all at the table.

Marc raised his glass. “A toast to everyone who’s been traveling and made it home safely. I understand many miles were covered and no luggage lost. Congratulations. And to my newest employee, Ted Robinson, who brings his FBI skills on board, and to Theo Hadley, who’s always been a member of this family but hadn’t been properly inducted before. Welcome Ted and Theo.”

He tapped his glass against Mandy’s on his right and Jake’s on his left, and then turned and gave Mandy a quick kiss, mainly because he couldn’t not do it. Which, of course, brought on a round of questions.

Mandy was the one who held up her hand. “Well, for what it’s worth, Marc did ask me to marry him.” Then she shot a cocky grin his way. “Your turn.”

He sort of stared across the room at the wall. “Before she had a chance to answer me, I asked for a ‘do over.’”

“What?” Kaz glared at Marc like she wanted to throttle him. Mandy started laughing.

“Tell him where we were and what we were talking about when you proposed.”

Marc felt his face flush, covered his eyes with his hands and stared at his plate. He’d sort of been hoping she wouldn’t want the details made public. “Well, it all started with a broken condom…”

“Which makes it all Ben’s fault.” Mandy pointed at him.

“What? Me? What’d I do?” Laughing, Ben directed a wide-eyed innocent look to Lola, who merely shrugged.

“You bought cheap condoms.” Marc shook his head. “You should know better than to purchase an off brand.”

“You were with me when I bought those condoms, big guy. And what does my choice of condoms have to do with your broken condom?”

“We didn’t have any,” Mandy said, again with the innocent look. “So we borrowed a few of yours.”

When Ben opened his mouth to respond, Lola covered it with her hand. “One does not ‘borrow’ a condom. One may be given a condom, or one may steal a condom, but one does not borrow that which cannot be reused. And there is no way on God’s green Earth I’m ever allowing Ben to occupy a previously occupied condom. No matter how good a buddy you are, Marc.”

As the dinner conversation deteriorated even further, the food disappeared and the jokes grew rowdier until it was clear the travelers had all hit the wall, but at least the conversation never got back to his horribly inept proposal.

Kaz and Jake were the first to leave, with a promise to be back on Wednesday to see the apartment next door. Escrow was due to close Tuesday, but their three hours of sleep during the day hadn’t made up for the twenty-four hour redeye flight from Italy via Germany—with a long layover in New York. Ben and Lola disappeared once the dishes were done, and headed for their room.

Marc and Mandy stayed in the kitchen, talking quietly with Ted and Theo, until Theo glanced at Ted and both men stood.

Ted shook hands with Marc. Theo asked, “Mandy, will you be working on Monday, or is Lola coming in?”

Mandy glanced at Marc. “I hope you don’t mind, but I told Lola I had it covered. She’s got to be exhausted, and I know she’s got laundry to do and unpacking to deal with. She’ll need the extra day. Is that okay?”

“Of course it is.” Marc shook hands with Theo, but then turned to Ted. “I forgot to ask if you were at all interested in Jake’s apartment, since I’m assuming he’ll be taking the unit next door once it’s refurbished.”

Ted’s glance at Theo confirmed what Marc had almost thought he’d imagined, and when Theo wrapped his arm around Ted’s waist, there wasn’t any doubt. Marc slipped his arm around Mandy. “I’d kind of hoped that’s how things were going to play out.”

Ted frowned. “How could you guess? I didn’t even know.” He shot a quick, questioning glance at Theo, who grinned right back at him. Ted snorted, then shook his head. “Well, I didn’t know for sure. I’ve been so deep in the closet for so many years, I’d never realized that was the reason for my lack of interest in finding a wife.”

“He’s a little thick sometimes, but he’s cute.” Theo laughed, but Ted merely shook his head with a big smile on his face. “We’re still new,” Theo said. “No pressure, merely a slow and very cautious chance to get to know each other, to find out just how well we do as a couple.” He smiled at Ted this time, a warm, affectionate look that spoke volumes. “We definitely work well together. It’s almost spooky, how well we can read one another’s thoughts, and…”

“Finish each other’s sentences,” Ted added. “Which reminds me. I’ve heard back from the gentleman who has the cadaver dog, which I learned we need to start referring to as a ‘human remains detection dog,’ or HRD. They’re particular about the appropriate acronym. Anyway, the handler’s name is Jenner Don Stirling, a.k.a. JD, and he’s from Butte, Montana. The dog, a McNab/border collie cross, is appropriately named Bones. JD can’t get here until August 8, but he’s flying directly into Santa Rosa. Then he’s free for the next couple of weeks after that point. I can’t find anyone else who comes as highly recommended for remains this old, but if…”

“No. The eighth works.” Marc turned to Mandy and kissed her gently. “I think we need a break from all the drama. My father’s locked up, we’ve got a lead on where my mother might have been buried, and we’ve got a wedding to finish planning. It’s been over thirty years. A few more days can’t matter in the scheme of things.”

“If you’re okay with the wait, I’ll tell him it’s a go.”

Marc stood there a moment, so aware of Mandy beside him, of Ted and Theo together. It all felt right, as if everything were coming together the way things were meant to. He had no doubt they’d find his mother. Everything seemed to be leading toward success. “Thanks, Ted, for finding this guy and researching it. You definitely had to hit the ground running. Again, I’m really glad you’re here.”

“Marc, you have no idea how much this move means to me.” Ted glanced at Theo and then returned his attention to Marc. “Which reminds me. The guy whose prints we pulled here at the house? He was a transient. His body turned up last night in Golden Gate Park. Looked like he’d been dead about a week. Apparent drug overdose, but I doubt we’ll be able to link him to your father.”

Theo just shook his head. “There’s no doubt in my mind that there’s a connection. From what Ted has uncovered about Steven Reed, bugging your house six ways from Sunday is something Reed’s been accused of before. Never convicted, but it sounds as if it’s something he likes to do.”

Ted nodded toward the front door. “You ready?”

“Just waiting on you. Thank you, Mandy and Marc, for a terrific dinner. I know Marc must have slaved over a hot stove…” He glanced at Ted.

“Or a hot mobile phone…”

“For at least, oh, five minutes?” Theo said. “Or less?”

“Less.” Marc planted his hands on his hips, but it was hard to keep his lips from twitching. “What is this, the Ted and Theo show?”

“Very well could be.” Theo grabbed Ted’s arm, and with a jaunty wave, the two of them left.

Mandy stood beside Marc on the top step as the men waved once again before getting into Theo’s car and driving away. “This was so much fun. I’ve missed everyone. I think Ted laughed more tonight than I heard from him the whole time he was out here on Ben’s case. Theo must be good for him.”

“Ted’s good for Theo. He’s been really down since his partner cheated on him and Theo booted him out. They’d been together something like twelve years. It hit him hard.”

“I can’t imagine cheating on someone you love. Good for Theo for respecting himself enough to get rid of the guy.”

“I will never cheat on you, Mandy. You have my promise.” He turned to her and rested his hands on her hips. Leaned close and kissed her. He felt the smile on her mouth as he pulled away.

“Me, you. Not ever.” She looped her arms around his neck, her smile wide and free, and her eyes really did sparkle. “Before I even knew you, I had most of my adult life invested in fantasizing over you, that elusive hunk on the old beater bike. Then, when I finally met the man behind all those hot fantasies and the female version of wet dreams, I found out the real Marcus Reed was even hotter and better than the one I’d created. Trust me, big guy. I’m not about to blow a really good thing.”

“I like that.” He pushed the door open and followed her inside. “But I really want to discuss a couple of points.”

“Oh?”

“Can you please describe, in detail, exactly what a female wet dream entails? Inquiring minds want to know.”

She glanced over her shoulder. “Absolutely not. Any more questions?”

“Uh, no. I guess not.”

“Good. Let’s get to bed. I just realized I have a ton of laundry that hasn’t gotten done. I know what I’m doing tomorrow.”

*   *   *

Mandy lay there blinking in the soft gray of early dawn. Marc slept soundly beside her, on his right side as the left was still tender. The healing wound had left a raw, angry looking scar across his shoulder blade at least six inches long and half an inch wide. The red dots from the staples emphasized the width and length of his injury—the fact it had nicked the bone meant it had plowed pretty deep. No wonder he’d had so much pain.

He still had an absolutely gorgeous back, and the fact that he’d gotten that ugly wound because he’d been protecting her made him even more beautiful in her eyes. She thought seriously about rolling over and snuggling against that long, muscular, naked back.

Except she was already wide awake, and Marc had been exhausted last night. He was still healing and needed his sleep, which was a perfect excuse to take time to catch up with Lola. With any luck, her sister would be up. Mandy crawled out of bed quietly, threw on her old robe, and headed to the bathroom. It didn’t take long at all to wash her face, comb the tangles out of her hair, and brush her teeth.

Coffee. She really needed caffeine. Now. She was usually a couple of cups ahead before Marc crawled out of bed. She’d really missed her morning coffee with Lola, though the two weeks her sister and Ben had been in DC had gone by faster than she’d expected.

She got the beans ground and the coffee going, and had just poured her first cup when Lola wandered into the kitchen.

“I thought for sure I’d sleep later, but guess I’m still on DC time. My brain knows it’s only five, but my body is screaming eight.”

Mandy poured a cup and handed it to Lola. “Maybe this will help. I’ve missed you. Was the trip okay?”

“Thanks.” Lola held the mug to her nose and sniffed. “Yum. I’ve missed your coffee.” She sat on one of the stools at the counter. “It seemed long. I missed you, too, but I had Ben to myself a lot of the time when he wasn’t testifying or explaining his notes to the prosecution team, and it was really special. We’d never had much time without others around who know us. Back there we were able to explore our relationship in a totally unique setting. I loved it.”

She glanced away and then focused on Mandy again. “I never imagined I would find a man so perfect for me. It’s almost scary how well we click.”

“Scary in a good way, I hope. Because that’s how I feel with Marc. We had sort of the same thing here. There’ve been some big changes in my life. I haven’t told you that the reason I’ve been working for Marc is that I got fired at the coffee shop. He hadn’t hired anyone to do your job while you were gone, so I volunteered. It’s worked out really well.”

“You what? You got fired? I mean, I’m glad you were available to help Marc out, and me too, since I know now I’m not going back to a mess, and I really appreciate you’re covering for me tomorrow, but what the hell happened at the shop?”

“The day you left, my boss came in and handed me my final paycheck, said that was the end of it. No notice, no severance, nothing. I wasn’t expecting it at all, had actually thought she’d make me the manager and ask me to run this one while she ran the new one in Union Square. Clearly, that didn’t happen.”

“That sucks.” Lola looked like she was ready to chase the woman down and have a few words with her. And knowing Lola, she’d do it if Mandy asked.

“Well,” she said, “yes and no. As it turned out, Marc needed me for more than my bookkeeping abilities. We didn’t go into all the details at dinner because we wanted to hear what you guys have been doing…”

“And if it’s a contest, Kaz and Jake win that one hands down. Modeling and photographing said model in the Coliseum in Rome has to beat giving a deposition in a courtroom in Washington, DC, any day.”

“No argument from me.” Mandy ran her fingertip through a drop of coffee on the table. Their brand new, sturdy, water- and other liquid-proof table. “The trouble with Marc’s dad is serious. We really didn’t want to ruin anyone’s homecoming—figure we’ve got plenty of time to do that—but like Marc said, his dad’s the one who shot him, though he was probably aiming at me. The prints came back a couple of days ago, and there was a good clear one that belonged to his father on the side of the stolen car that the shooter was driving. As long as he’s in jail, he’s not a threat, but Ted and the deputy in Dry Creek Valley think that all of us are at risk if he gets out.”