The Way of the Guilty: A Hope Street Church Mystery - By Jennifer Stanley Page 0,2
out for big slabs of steak and cold beers. And when we wanna get our groove on, we go clubbin’.”
“You could make her a mixed CD of her favorite dance songs,” Cooper suggested.
He frowned and handed Cooper twice the number of paper towels she needed to dry off her hands. “No dice. Did that for our two-month anniversary.”
Two months? This is so junior high school, Cooper thought.
“What about your man? Your church boy?” Emilio prodded. “What’s he given you that made you go weak in the knees?”
Turning away from Emilio, she said, “Nathan bought me a bicycle for Christmas. It’s the old-fashioned kind, with lots of chrome, a straw basket, and a big rubber horn. I love it.” She smiled, remembering how Nathan had covered her eyes while he led her into his garage where he had hidden her shiny blue bike beneath a bedsheet. He had whipped off the sheet in a dramatic flourish, revealing the bicycle and the curled red ribbons hanging from the handlebars. She had thrown her arms around him in delight, kissing him fervently.
“Now for your gift,” she’d whispered a few minutes later.
He’d pulled her close once again and stared at her intently. “I don’t need anything else but you.”
Eventually, Cooper had managed to disentangle herself from Nathan’s embrace. She’d led him through his kitchen and out the back door. Standing in the small garden area behind Nathan’s row house, she’d waited for his reaction upon seeing his gift. For the past month, she’d been busy in her father’s garage making a birdhouse in the shape of a TIE fighter, the spaceship Darth Vader piloted in Star Wars, Nathan’s favorite movie.
“Did you make this?” Nathan had been utterly delighted by the workmanship. When Cooper nodded, he told her that it was the best gift he’d ever received and then led her inside.
“I can thank you more properly in here,” he whispered, kissing her lightly just below her earlobe. “No prying eyes.”
But just when Cooper was wondering if this was the moment to indicate her readiness to make her way upstairs to Nathan’s bedroom, the doorbell rang. Nathan’s sister had stopped by with her boyfriend, and what was supposed to be a romantic evening for Nathan and Cooper quickly became an intense Monopoly competition between the two couples.
“Carla isn’t gonna be bowled over by a bike,” Emilio grumbled, bringing Cooper back to the present.
“Why are you freaking out about this gift, Emilio?” Cooper inquired as they headed for the employee break room. “Are you worried she’s not, ah, as keen on your relationship as she was in the beginning?”
Emilio’s thick brows creased in worry. “She’s been hanging out a lot with the other mailmen. What if she’s thinking about ditching me for one of them? I don’t see why she would, seeing as they wear those dorky uniforms, but women don’t make sense, most of the time.”
Cooper decided not point out that Emilio was currently dressed in a rather lackluster uniform comprised of black pants and a gray shirt embroidered with the company logo in charcoal-gray script. “Buying Carla something for your anniversary isn’t going to make everything better. You need to talk to her—find out how she’s feeling about your relationship.”
“Who do I look like?” Emilio spluttered indignantly. “That Dr. Phil clown? Ever since I told her how crazy I was about her she’s been less into me. I sure as hell am not gonna do that again. Maybe I’ll make her jealous—make her realize how good she’s got it. Tons of chicks would thank their lucky stars to be able to get with me.” He squared his shoulders and touched a lock of gelled hair.
Cooper pushed open the kitchen door. “That’s not a good plan, Emilio.”
“Pfahh! What do you know, anyhow? I can tell you and your man haven’t even brought your relationship to the final level yet. You still get all embarrassed to even think about doing the nasty, don’t you? What are you scared of, anyhow? It’s not like you haven’t done it before.” He sat down in front of a foot-long sandwich and slung his arm around Angela, Make It Work!’s office manager. “Tell her what she’s missing, gorgeous. I’m sure you know how nice it is to have someone keeping you warm in the winter.”
“I like it downright toasty.” Angela handed Cooper an Italian hero from Subway and winked. “That’s right, darlin’. I’ve got the fire department on standby, just in case things get too hot.”