Authors: J.M. Griffin
With coffee in hand, we turned toward Scituate and chocolate cake smothered in white frosting. I sipped my latte and leaned back against the seat.
“Marcus is worried about you, huh? Man, he got hot under the collar,” Lola said with a smirk.
“Yeah, he forgets that I’m inclined to action, rather than inaction. It causes him some anxiety when he can’t control me, I think.” My chuckle matched her laughter as we buzzed along the highway toward home. “I mean, did he really think I’d be able to lay around day after day with nothing to do? Get real.”
“Exactly. Men just don’t realize women are stronger than we’re given credit for.”
The car slowed and we shot across the road into the driveway. Lola pulled up beside Aaron’s SUV and cut the engine. Her eyes strayed upward toward the lights emanating from the second floor. She glanced at me and smiled.
“Why don’t you throw on a pot of coffee and I’ll invite Aaron to join us for cake?” Her eyebrows waggled up and down.
“You just want a piece of him, never mind the cake.” I laughed.
“Mm, hmm. Be right back.”
I strode into the apartment as she ran up the stairs. I heard her knock on the door and Aaron’s greeting. Two sets of feet trampled down the steps, and the couple tumbled into the kitchen. Coffee perked and I turned with a smile.
“My mother made a chocolate cake. We figured you might be in need of a snack.”
“Glad you asked. By the way, did I hear something about you getting a new car?” Aaron’s dark eyes roved my face.
“Yeah, we just went out for a test drive. Car runs nice.”
“Really? That’s not quite the story I heard, but if you insist.” Aaron’s face registered what I thought might be skepticism. I wondered what he’d heard, and from whom.
Lola reached over and uncovered the cake. She spread the plates out, along with flatware. I watched her efficiency and tried to ignore Aaron’s continued stare.
It would seem that Marcus had been on the phone to Aaron. This meant he’d question me later. There was no doubt in my mind. Another person who figured I needed to be controlled, I thought. Huh, pain in the butt men.
We munched cake while Lola explained my shopping trip for a new car. She kindly left out Marcus and the speeding incident, though her eyes sparkled with mischief when she glanced at me.
“Vinnie beat the guy down on the price. It’ll be ready tomorrow. I won’t be around since I’m meeting with an editor and that lasts most of the day. Can you give her a ride in the morning, Aaron?”
Eyebrows hiked as he glanced toward me and nodded. “Sure, I can do that. How are your muscles reacting after the accident?” A tiny curl at the corners of his lips brought a smile to my own.
“My shoulder is sore and my body protests a bit. Other than that, I’m good.”
A short while later, I found myself alone and ready to call it a day. The MINI Cooper had zipped eastward toward the Salt & Pepper Deli after Aaron returned to the upstairs unit. Quiet encompassed the apartment and I yawned. Time to hunker down for the night.
Changing into sweatpants and a t-shirt, my cool-weather sleepwear, I padded barefoot into the living room. I turned on the lamp and slid down into the sofa. The lightweight, hand-woven designer blanket slid over me as I tugged it from the sofa ridge. The only thing on television – other than commercials enticing viewers to thin down using drugs, or to enjoy their sex life more with drugs – was violence. Either way, it was all about drugs, so I flicked the tuner to the stereo and listened to music.
Chapter 11
Fists pounded on my door, and the incessant rattling of the doorknob woke me. In a sleepy state of mind I shifted beneath the blanket. Someone stood outside in the front entry and wanted in.
What time was it?
Bleary-eyed, I glanced at the clock on the end table and sighed. Midnight. I’d only been asleep for a couple hours or so.
“Who’s there?” I called. Stiff-legged, I rolled over the edge of the sofa. Were these my legs, the same ones that carried me running for miles? Muscles cramped when I tried to rise.
“It’s Marcus and Aaron. Get up Vinnie. Now!”
The pounding resumed.
“All right, all right, I’ll be right there. Geez. What’s the hurry?”
I slid the bolt back and turned the door handle. When the door started to open, it pushed inward with force. I stumbled back, caught my foot on a pair of sneakers and lost my balance. My arms flailed in the air as I went down like the Titanic. A resounding thud accompanied a loud
woof
from my lungs when I hit the floor.
The two men struggled to enter the room at the same time. Well, that didn’t work – they were just too wide-shouldered. I lay sprawled on the floor, gaping at the two hulks towering above me.
“What’s up, guys?” I asked with raised brows and raging muscles. It seemed that as my body relaxed, muscle pain set in.
Dang, that’s inconvenient.
The two men got through the door and hauled me off the floor. I moaned and groaned over the effort and tried to figure out their motive for waking me in the middle of the night.
“I asked you,
What’s up?”
My annoyed voice was a tad louder this time.
“We need to get you outside. Come on.” Marcus dragged me toward him and through the hallway with his hands under my armpits.
“Why?” I asked, as he hauled me through the outer door, with Aaron following.
The street was filled with flashing lights, fire truck tankers, and neighborhood people who milled around on the sidewalk. Smoke filled the air. I sniffed and glanced around, curious to see the origin. An eerie orange glow filled the sky above the house. With a sudden movement, I disengaged Marcus’ hold on my body.
“Marcus, what the hell happened?” Scared, I yelled at him and turned toward Aaron. My eyes popped wide open when I caught sight of the flickering light behind the house. Smoke billowed into the dark sky from my backyard.
“Damn it.” I headed toward the driveway but Aaron caught me by the waist and lifted me off my bare feet.
Together, the two men dragged me further along the post office parking lot. I struggled against their strength. Aaron held on tight and spoke some words that I didn’t comprehend until we reached the end of the parking lot.
“Stop, Vinnie. You can’t go back there. The garage is on fire and the firefighters are doing their job. There’s no place for you over there.” The Hulk-sized body barred my retreat on one side, as Marcus blocked the way on the other side.
“I didn’t hear the sirens.”
Aaron shook his head. “We told them not to use any. I was working late and went outside to get some papers from the truck. It was then that I smelled the smoke and saw flames coming from the garage. I’m sorry, Vinnie, but at least it didn’t reach the house.” His hands rubbed my arms. I glanced into the handsome face above me and nodded numbly.
In disbelief, I turned to Marcus. He stepped forward, threw an arm around my shoulders, and pulled me close. His lips pressed my temple and I leaned into his hard body while I stared across the street.
What happened? Who set fire to the garage?
A few possibilities crossed my mind while I watched firefighters move back and forth from the tanker to the back building. Maybe Tony wanted to make a statement. A reminder of what he thought I deserved. But why hadn’t he torched the house instead of the garage?
There was always the mob to consider. They might be sending me a message about Antonio? Nah, they’d just get in my face instead of burning down my building.
God’s wrath was another consideration, but I hadn’t done anything outrageous, so I dismissed that idea completely. Why was I always a target? A disaster magnet, that’s what Marcus called me. My shoulders slumped and despair hummed along my nerves. Aunt Livvy, God rest her soul, must be watching from above, shaking her head.
“Would someone explain what happened here? I’m still confused.”
Aaron’s warm brown eyes appeared black in the shadowed light as he faced me. He said, “After I saw the flames, I reported the fire and asked that no sirens be used. I didn’t want the whole town awake, but by the look of the crowd, that consideration was useless.”
Aaron’s glance traveled the groups of bystanders, gawking at the show. “I ran down the back stairs and tried to wake you, but you didn’t hear me and then I heard Marcus pull to the curb.
Marcus picked up where Aaron left off. “We stormed the front door and woke you. I figured you might be in the living room on the sofa when Aaron said he couldn’t wake you.”
“Thanks for that. I was so beat I never heard a thing. How did the fire start? Any idea?”
“No, MacNert is handling the scene and will have information for us later. The fire marshal has to look the scene over, too. Right now we should get you out of here. Why don’t you go to headquarters and wait for me?” Marcus asked.
“Good idea, Vinnie,” Aaron said. “It makes no sense to stand out here in the cold. You’re barefoot and aren’t even wearing a jacket. I’ll catch up with you in the morning. The fire chief won’t let us into the house until everything is clear.”
“I think I’d rather go to Lola’s house, if you don’t mind. She lives close to the barracks.” I’d started to shake and knew it was imperative that I get my act together. No sense in falling apart in front of these two macho men. It was bad for my independent image.
Marcus gazed at me and nodded to Aaron. “Take her, would you? I’ll stay here until things are under control.”
Several troopers and local cops stood in the street. Traffic was nil at this late hour. Anyone who tried to get through the village was redirected to an alternate route at the corner traffic light.
Trooper Jonah Franklin stood several feet away and gave me a nod. His eyes turned toward Marcus. A silent signal sent Marcus toward the man. Their conversation was so quiet I wondered if they used some type of Boy Scout code. In my mind, troopers are similar to a secret society. They have little to say about many things and ask a ton of questions all the time. A secret club, where few women were allowed. It piqued my curiosity, and we know that curiosity leads to trouble.
With a hand on my elbow, Aaron guided me toward the SUV parked at the nearby corner. He held the door as I climbed in, my muscles groaning with the effort. Before he could close the door, Marcus stepped into view.
“Headquarters has notified Lola that you’ll arrive shortly. Vinnie, try to get some rest and stay put, will you? I’ll stop by later this morning to see you.” He leaned in and kissed me.
The warmth of his lips felt good on mine, and I wanted nothing more than to fold myself into his body. Maybe the strength of Richmond’s arms would save me from this overwhelming sense of doom. My life held one calamity after another. I needed a break from it.
With a nod of agreement, I leaned back in the seat and Marcus closed the door. The motor started and purred like a giant cat as we slid the car from the curb onto the street and headed west. Aaron’s truck sported tinted windows and a black interior that matched the exterior. A stealth truck, I thought, as my eyes slid toward the broad-shouldered man.
“Thanks, Aaron. I mean that. If you hadn’t been there, who knows what would have happened?”
“My pleasure. We were lucky I was awake. With my bedroom in the front of the house, I probably wouldn’t have seen the flames or heard anything either.”
The truck slowed as we approached the road facing the state police barracks. Aaron turned left and we headed up the dark, winding lane toward Lola’s house. I indicated the driveway as we approached, and Aaron whipped into the yard. After he parked in front of the garage we hiked up the multitude of steps toward the house.
Lola’s house was a neat affair perched on a stone ledge that overlooked the road. The house, grey with white shutters, had a screened-in porch that faced two flights of stairs that were staggered from the ground to the entrance. The building appeared compact until we arrived at the front door. Appearances can be deceiving as was the case with this adorable cottage.
The front door swung open, and Lola rushed toward us wrapped in a chenille robe with bunny slippers on her small feet. She embraced us both in turn though her face was a map of concern.
“I’m so glad you’re all right,” she said ushering us inside. “Tell me what happened. The trooper who called gave me no information at all.”
With a swift explanation, Aaron summed up the latest incident in my fiasco-prone life. At least there’s never a dull moment. I needn’t ever worry about a mundane existence. It appears my life is just one huge happening – nothing more and nothing less. Ah, it’s good to be alive.
The coffee perked and we drank decaf brew while Lola insisted we both stay with her for the night. Aaron glanced around the house with interest. I stifled a chuckle. The house was just the right size for Lola, but Aaron dwarfed the place.
Towering over six feet, Aaron Grant was well muscled and toned. When he moved into the apartment above mine, it occurred to me that he’d fit better in a monstrous mansion with Italian tile, high peaked windows, and vaulted ceilings. Instead, he was at home in a Colonial registered with the historical society that featured low-ceiling rooms and uneven floors. You just never know about people.
Once we agreed where Aaron would stay, we turned in for the night. Aaron slept on the sofa, his feet dangling off the end. I bunked in with Lola. I tossed and turned for a while, but managed to drift off.
Several hours later, footsteps sounded in the living room. I yawned and stretched a body that complained. It would be safe to say I wouldn’t run my usual miles today. However, inactivity wasn’t on my agenda either. With mild muscle pain, I rose from the soft confines of Lola’s bed and headed to the bathroom.
As I passed the door to the living room, I caught the sound of voices. In an instant, I realized Marcus and Aaron were in conversation.
“House is fine. The rear of the garage isn’t. Fire Marshal Fred Kinsky was on site at first light, inspecting the scene so he could work up his report,” Marcus said.