Little Miss Lovesick (30 page)

“Only around you!” I sputtered, embarrassed.

Who cares
?
exclaimed Lovesick
.
You’re in his arms again!

She was right. I smiled. With one eye open. The other one still refused to return to duty.

Matt smiled back. A big dimple-causing, heart-stopping smile. My favorite smile in the whole world.

Without thinking, I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him with all of my heart. Matt pulled me closer, kissing me back with gusto. Joy must be like helium, because I couldn’t feel the deck under my feet.

When we came up for air, we laughed and grimaced and wiped our mouths. “You taste like gasoline,” I told him.

“You smell like dead fish,” he said with a grin. “But I don’t mind,” he added.

“Sorry about that.” The reason why I fell into the marina resurfaced. “I just wanted to tell you to read the note later and then call me.”

Matt’s smiled faded a little. “Too late.” He pulled me close again and rested his cheek on my hair. “I didn’t see you fall because I was busy reading the nicest letter anyone’s ever written me.”

I held my breath. Really? Oh, please, please, please!

“And?” I prompted when he didn’t say anything more.

He chuckled and pulled back to meet my hopeful gaze. He wiped water from my face with one hand. He kissed my forehead, then gazed down at me. The softest, sweetest gaze ever. His lips came down on mine. The softest, sweetest kiss ever. Even if it did taste a little like gasoline.

I felt life flowing back into my veins. My heart began to beat again. I felt like the sun was shining on me from the inside out.

“I love you.” I hadn’t meant to say it out loud. The poetry of the moment got to me. The New Plan was to give Matt time to see if…well, if loving me was a possibility. I opened my eyes to gauge the damage.

“I’m sorry that I’ve been — It’s just GT and Patty kept pushing me and—” Matt sighed against my hair. “Anyway, I give up. I don’t want you to walk away.”

I sucked in my breath and felt my face turn into one big happy grin. I must’ve looked like one of those big yellow smiley faces. Celebratory fireworks exploded in my eyes, in my chest—

“But I have some conditions.”

Everything stopped. Conditions? He looked kind of serious.

“First.” He pushed me away enough to look down at my feet. I realized part of the reason my world was tilted was that I had only one sandal. “I’m buying you new shoes. And I reserve the right to tell you when to wear them.”

The Ferris wheels and firecrackers and cotton candy started spinning again. I felt my face heat up as I smiled at his shoulder. “I think I can buy my own—”

“These points are non-negotiable.” Matt lifted my chin up and winked at me.

I rolled my eyes. “Fine.” I tried not to laugh.

“Second—”

“There’s more?” I pretended to be annoyed. “For heaven’s sake, Matt—”

“
Secon
d
, I’m not giving up my home. If we decide to-to go all the way,” his voice broke and he cleared his throat.

Oh my gosh
,
he loves me! Little Miss Lovesick whispered.

“It’s a good house. It’s solid, doesn’t need any repairs. And I think maybe you like it, so…if you really need something changed, I’ll do that, but I really think…”

I put him out of his misery. “I love your home, Matt.” I saw the relief in his eyes.

“Third.” He broke eye contact.

My stomach tightened with nerves. Even more serious than keeping the house. I hoped it was something I was willing to agree to.

“If we were to…If I ever get married, it’s going to be permanent. End of story. So whatever woman…” He cleared his throat again. “If you wanted to…be with me, it’d have to be forever. No cop-outs or lame excuses or even good excuses. We work through things, whatever it takes.”

He paused, but he still didn’t look me in the eye. If he had, he would’ve realized there was nothing to worry about in this department. But he didn’t, so he finished his demand. “I know not everyone feels that way nowadays, so take time to think about it before we get to that point.”

“Fourth—”

“Matt—” I moved one hand from behind his neck and ran it over his cheek. I tried to get him to look at me again.

“Just let me finish.” He met my gaze. His eyes had a mischievous gleam. “Fourth, you’re going to have to spend a lot more time with Rover.”

I burst out laughing.

“She needs a woman’s touch. You wouldn’t believe what a tomboy she’s become. She—”

I pulled his head back down and kissed him hard. Aside from the fact that I’d really like for us both to take showers and try this again, I didn’t think life could get any better. From the way he got into that next kiss, I think Matt just might’ve felt the same way.

“I can’t live without you any longer,” he whispered, his mouth near my ear.

My heart blasted out of my chest like a rocket headed straight for the moon! Thank you, God! Thank you, thank you, thank you! I squeezed Matt tight.

“I guess we should go clean up — and get you on dry land.” Matt shook his head. “I don’t know what I’m going to do with my boat. Maybe I’ll buy you some of those inflatable arm bands for kids.”

“Yeah, I don’t care right now. Kiss me again, please.” I stood on tiptoe. My single-sandal state left me off balance and I compensated, causing the boat to rock a little.

“See what I mean? Am I going to spend the rest of my life—”

“I want t
o
star
t
the rest of my lif
e
no
w
.”

“—rescuing you from various bodies of water?”

“Then kiss me and I’ll stop jumping around!”

“What have I gotten myself into, huh?”

I sighed very loudly and pulled his head down. How was I going to make him fall in love with me if I couldn’t kiss him?

Little Miss Lovesick giggled and sighed
.
Looks like I caught what I was fishing for.

A Sneak Peek
at

UNEXPECTED SUPERHERO

Available now at major online retailers

CHAPTER 1

TORI Lewis was out of M&M’S. None in her purse, none in the glove box. Even the emergency packet in her briefcase had been consumed during her pre-wedding jitters. After the job interview she’d just endured for Half TV, a local cable TV station, she needed a chocolate fix. Now.

“I know I’m supposed to go to you for comfort,” she muttered to God as she pulled into a parking spot, “but if you wouldn’t mind, a package of M&M’S would jumpstart the process.”

The bell tinkled over her head as the door of Ed & Eddie’s Corner Market closed behind her. Tori stamped the snow off her boots as her eyes adjusted from the deepening twilight outside to the bright fluorescent lights of the store. It took her a moment to notice everyone in the store staring at her. Including the guy with the gun.

Tori froze. She always assumed her love of the colorful chocolate candy might one day destroy her figure, but she never expected her addiction to end in gunfire.

The gunman swung toward her. His bulky open coat couldn’t hide the fact that the skinny boy was no man. A Detroit Tigers baseball cap covered most of his brown hair, but not his panicky eyes. “What do you want?” His voice came out higher at the end and he cleared his throat. “Well?” he asked, forcing the word out at a lower pitch.

“Uhh…M&M’S,” Tori said. It sounded like a question. Her brain was having a hard time getting up to speed in this unexpected situation
.
God, help me.

Her eyes darted around the small store. An older woman cried and held a nearly hysterical younger woman, shushing her to no avail. One of the men held a baby ensconced in a little pink snowsuit. Another nodded quietly at her as if to convey caution.

Situation confirmed. She was hip-deep in doo-doo. Where was her big, strong new husband when she needed him?

The armed boy-man cocked his head toward the candy aisle. Tori didn’t know if he meant for her to move out of the way or if he was just being unusually helpful by pointing her in the right direction. Erring on the side of caution, she forced a fleeting smile and mumbled “thanks” as she walked past him and down the middle aisle to stand in front of the M&M’S. Now what?

The gunman turned back to Eddie, the cashier and half-owner of Ed & Eddie’s. “Hurry up before someone else comes in!”

“Easy, dude, easy,” Eddie said, moving his hands slowly toward the cash register. Eddie wasn’t very old either, early 20s or so, but he was sadly experienced in the holdup category. Tori couldn’t remember the details, but she’d heard bits and pieces of stories. Come to think of it, why did she shop at a store with a record anyway? She remembered Eddie had played sports in high school. Something like baseball or wrestling or karate could come in handy right now. Hopefully his sport hadn’t been cross-country running.

Tori glanced at the M&M’S next to her. More than ever she needed to stress eat. Could she open a package now and pay Eddie later? Maybe two packages. Her hands started to shake. She shoved them in her pockets.

Today was only day ten of her new and fabulous married life. She hadn’t wanted to go out today anyway and now this. Only two days ago she and Joe had checked out of their Disney World hotel, blue skies and temperatures in the 70s, nothing on their minds but a long and blissful life together. Tori prayed now that she’d make it to day eleven of that life. They hadn’t been married long enough to do anything except have sex — which wa
s
awesom
e
— but she’d hoped for more. After all, they figured they’d have the rest of their lives together. Neither of them thought the “death” part of “till death do us part” would happen until there was a lot more gray hair involved.

The sound of a crying baby registered. Tori glanced over at the well-dressed man in the expensive trench coat. He kept his back between the gunman and his child. A gesture Tori would normally find heartwarming. But today it was the action of a man who wasn’t going to get involved. Great. He wouldn’t be of any use. So this is where equal opportunity gets us. Tori considered offering to hold the baby so he could help the other men save the day. Her self-esteem would be fine with that. Maybe if she were comforting someone, she wouldn’t feel like crying herself.

Enough! Tori wiped at her eyes. She was not letting some stupid, scared boy dictate her life and death. She’d spent too much energy changing her life into just what she wanted to lose it now. She chewed on her lip. What could she do?

A movement from the corner of her eye. She saw one of the men — the one who’d nodded calmly at her — edging closer to the gunman. Yikes. Should she duck or help?

A POLICE car raced past the entrance to Harborview Mall. Lights and sirens cleared a path among the post-Christmas shoppers. But mostly people moved to avoid the speeding white Toyota hurtling through the night like a rusty snowball.

The cars sped through two more lights. Divine intervention surely prevented a crash as the Toyota skidded on a patch of ice, nearly sideswiping another car. The police cruiser missed that particular bit of ice, but a close call at the next light had the cop in the passenger seat crossing himself with one hand while hanging on with the other.

Another police car parked in the next intersection forced the chase to take a hard right and brought them into a quieter industrial area. Quieter except for the jarring sirens. Large warehouse-style office buildings magnified the piercing sound and reflected the red and blue lights onto the snow. The Toyota picked up speed, blowing through three stop signs amidst honking horns and flying middle fingers.

The police cars slowed down enough to ensure that the chase continued to be accident-free. The Toyota made a left down an alley to avoid yet another police car, and raced out of sight.

SUPERHERO X looked up at the roof of the nearby three-story office building and spoke into a microphone concealed in his mask. “What do you see, Tick Tock?”

Team leader Tick Tock, Mickey Valient to the rest of the world, coordinated the car chase with the police. “It’s our lucky day, boys. They’re herding him right toward us.”

In the growing winter darkness, the men stood nearly invisible in their midnight blue outfits, masks covering the upper half of their faces. When they spoke, their voices came out with a metallic distortion courtesy of Tick Tock’s voice-disguising device.

Adrenaline rushed through his system as X waited on the ground. He missed being out with the guys. Had it only been two weeks? The rushed wedding and honeymoon had been exhilarating, but he was glad to be home and back at the work he loved.

Standing half-hidden in the alley, X grinned at his other friend and partner in crime-fighting. “Ready to play, big guy?”

Powerhouse, otherwise known as Bull Kincaid, smiled back, his pale skin and white teeth a sharp contrast against the dark mask. At least six and a half feet tall and built like a linebacker, Powerhouse usually played the “immovable object” against the unstoppable forces they came up against. He cracked his knuckles, then his neck. “Bring it,” he said.

Police sirens wailed in the night, getting louder.

“How close?” X asked Tick Tock.

“Just turned down the alley,” Tick Tock replied. “Get ready.”

Powerhouse peeked around the fence that separated the alley from the parking lot where they waited. Gauging the distance to the approaching Toyota, he stepped back and moved behind an overflowing metal garbage bin. He placed his hands and one shoulder against it, waiting, shifting his weight from one foot to the other in anticipation.

X waited behind him, anxious for the fracas to begin. Sometimes he got to be the front man, but tonight they needed Powerhouse’s muscle to end the chase. X tossed a short steel pipe from one hand to the other, feeling the rush of energy flow through his body. The gloves he wore were palm-less rather than fingerless. They protected him from leaving fingerprints, but allowed his skin to absorb the strength of the metal. He had been working on plans for flexible titanium-lined gloves before he met Tori, but the craziness of falling in love and getting married over the last two months had disrupted a lot of things. The gloves fell to the bottom of his to do list. Tonight he’d have to make do with the pipe.

X squeezed his right palm around the steel. Hot energy tightened his skin all over his body. The rush felt good. He put his new bride out of his mind and focused on the job at hand.

“Ready, set…” Tick Tock’s voice came through their earpieces.

X shifted onto the balls of his feet in anticipation.

“Now!”

Powerhouse shoved the garbage bin into the alley. The squeal of brakes, the crash of metal on metal as the car hit the heavy steel container full-on. Powerhouse jumped behind the garbage bin and locked his elbows. He kept the car from skidding toward the surrounding buildings by digging his heels into the snow-covered asphalt. X watched the pavement buckle behind his friend’s feet.

The car stopped with a final screech of damaged metal. X watched the doors for exiting passengers. His turn at bat.

The garbage bin began to roll toward the opposite building. Powerhouse pushed it to a flatter area. Less paperwork if there wasn’t any damage to surrounding private property. X didn’t like to waste time with paper when there were always more people to protect, more criminals to catch.

“Driver side,” came Tick Tock’s voice in their ears.

The driver side door flew open and X took his position. A young man stumbled out — maybe old enough to vote, not old enough to drink, but dumb enough to run. He looked over his shoulder toward the approaching police car, his feet already double-timing in the opposite direction.

Right into the path of Superhero X.

Wham!

The young man slammed into him and fell.

X grinned down, tapping the pipe against his thigh. He had only an inkling of what it felt like for someone to run into him. His brothers said it was like running into a steel wall. X put his palm out and raised his fingers twice. The universal sign for “come and get it.”

The driver gaped up at him from the pavement. One hand held his head. Must’ve cracked it on X’s chest.

“He’s not a mouse, X. Hold him for the officers.” Tick Tock sounded either exasperated or amused. X couldn’t tell through the voice-disguiser. “Powerhouse, another one on the passenger side.”

X shook his head slightly. There was no challenge in it when things went according to plan. He reached down to grab the driver. Not quick enough.

The man rolled away. Standing, he now held a 9mm pistol. Jogging backwards with the gun aimed at X, he ducked between two buildings.

X muttered under his breath. Careful what you wish for. More squealing brakes signaled the arrival of the police. X gave chase. A cop pounded a few yards behind him.

“He’s got a gun,” X yelled over his shoulder.

More sirens sounded from the front of the building. Police shouted to each other. X struggled to hear Tick Tock in his earpiece.

“Say again?” he shouted as he ran.

“Turn right. Bushes in front.”

The buildings gave way to the parking lot and X turned right. Three more police officers came running from their cars at the front of the building. X paused, searching the snow for footprints. He saw movement, halogen security lights reflected a flash of red fabric. He bounded into the bushes just as the driver jumped up with his gun.