Lucky Baby by Taryn Quinn

Thirteen

The ride homewasn’t exactly what I expected. After the previous night, I’d thought we were past one of the blocks between us.

I was very wrong.

She didn’t say much more than five words to me. Three of them declaring her need for coffee. McDonald’s saved the day again. After a belly full of coffee and tasty McMuffin sandwiches, we spent two and half hours listening to Asher Wainwright scare the crap out of us with his podcast.

I turned onto her road. We’d been halfway home to start, and she’d nudged me to leave barely past dawn. It was early enough that mist was still clinging to the lake. My eyes were gritty from lack of sleep, but my body was charged on truly excellent sex and Mickey D’s.

I drove around to the barn. Before I even came to a stop, she was unclipping her belt and grabbing her bag.

“Gonna jump out before I put her in park?”

She shot me a guilt-filled look over her shoulder. “I’m tired and need a shower and a real bathroom.”

I turned toward her. “I’m ready to find a shower too, but you don’t think we should talk about last night?”

This wasn’t my usual role. Typically, I was the one strolling away before a woman could ask if I wanted to talk about “where we are.” I never did.

Overnight, I’d become a man eager to discuss feelings and crochet tea cozies.

Or beer cozies. Was that a thing? I could start the trend, assuming I could figure out how to crochet. There was always YouTube.

“It was what it was.”

I knew she was still embarrassed about crying. Didn’t make her words any less of a direct hit. “It was more than just a tumble and you know it.”

Her shoulders hunched.

“Didn’t take you for a coward, Tish.”

She swung open the door and slid out. “You don’t know me.” She shook back all that viking red hair. “Let’s just keep it business.”

The jab cut deep. “You got it.”

She’d barely closed the door before I was reversing and kicking up gravel in my haste. My fingers throbbed with my grip on the steering wheel, and my tires chirped as I turned onto Lake Street. I fishtailed, gunning my engine to get away from her place.

If I’d been paying fucking attention, I would have caught Crescent Cove’s finest before blasting by. The whoop-whoop of a siren was followed by red and blue lights flashing in my rearview. “Goddammit. Just what I need.”

Throwing on my blinker, I pulled over to the curb. I slapped open my glove box and Ruby’s trail mix tumbled out. I tossed it in my backseat with a growl and dug out my registration and insurance.

When I straightened, the newest addition to Crescent Cove’s police department was standing by my window.

Deputy Brady McNeill’s usually affable expression had been replaced with stern lines. We’d hung out a few times on the rooftop of Caleb’s place, but a job was a job. I was driving like an asshole, and that was on me.

“Any idea how fast you were going, Lucky?”

“Nope.” I stared straight ahead, my paperwork crushed in one hand.

“Hmm.” He tapped his hand on his gun, then relaxed. “Girl trouble.”

My hand tightened on the wheel again.

“Definitely girl trouble.” He glanced at his watch. “Wanna grab a beer?”

I frowned. “What? It’s not even ten.”

He shrugged. “It’s a little after nine. Means I’m off shift. I pulled the overnight.”

“There’s an overnight shift in Crescent Cove?” Shock had me sitting back in my seat.

“There is when the hayrides have started. Not much to do in a small town but get drunk. I confiscated a twelve pack of microbrew.”

My eyebrow shot up. “In my day we bought Budweiser or worse—”

“The Beast,” Brady finished for me. “Come on. The rooftop is pretty toasty this time of day. Good time to get drunk.”

“You’re not going to give me a ticket?”

“Nah. Been there with a persnickety woman.”

“How do you know my woman is persnickety?”

“Luc, the whole town knows you’re gone for Tish.”

I bounced my head off the headrest. “The whole town?”

If Tish figured that out, she’d probably fire me from the remodel too. But she wasn’t paying me, so could she fire me?

I’d ponder it over beer with Officer Friendly.

“Luna’s pretty chatty over there at Kin’s shop. Talked about the bonfire. Where was my invite by the way?”

I laughed. “Was hard enough to get Ruby to deal with having two couples over.”

“Ruby, huh?”

My answer was silence.

Brady grunted. “I had to work anyway. Come on, you can tell me your tales of woe.”

“Am I being punked?”

Tipping his head back, he laughed good-naturedly. “So suspicious.”

Cops had never exactly been my favorite people. A big kid on the street always served as prime pickings for shithead cops who just wanted a collar. Especially since I’d looked over eighteen since my early teen years. I’d never been charged, but I’d had my fair share of arrests.

“I threw the beers in my cooler. Follow me if you want some,” he said over his shoulder as he walked back to his cruiser. He pulled out and passed me with a wave.

I looked down at my rumpled clothes. I hadn’t been kidding when I’d said I needed a shower. Three bouts of sex and sleeping under the stars had left me pretty ripe. All the good parts smelled like Ruby.

And the thought of her had me putting my truck in drive. “Fuck it.”

Day drinking sounded like a damn good plan.

I pulled out at a much more sedate pace. Main Street was alive with daytime traffic. It was a Saturday, which meant shopping in the Cove.

I found a spot a half block down from Brewed Awakening. Apartments filled the building’s other floors. I’d considered moving in there at the same time as Caleb, but I was glad I hadn’t. He would be finding a house with Blondie soon, and I liked my little two-family house apartment deal. Even if it was close to chaos right now with half-finished projects.

At some point, I also needed to stop by Caleb’s to pick up Butch. I’d hoped to get a few hours of sleep first, but why shouldn’t today be just as fucked as all the other days lately?

Might as well get my girl first. A few doggie kisses would set me back to rights.

I went around to the side entrance and buzzed Caleb’s place. They’d made some upgrades to the apartments in the last few months, probably due to some teens breaking in during the remodel.

“Hello?” Luna’s sweet voice came out of the speaker.

“It’s Lucky.”

“Oh. I thought you’d be later. Butch and I are having fun. Well, poop. Come on up.”

I shook my head and opened the door when I heard the locks release. There was an elevator at the other entrance, so I had to do the stairs. I was slightly winded and damn ready for that beer by the time I got to their floor.

Luna opened the door and peeked out with my dog in her arms. A tiny pink bow fluttered between her ears.

Butch’s not Luna’s, but you could never be certain.

“What did you do to my dog?”

“Just because you named her Butch doesn’t mean she can’t be pretty.” She nuzzled the dog, and the dog gave her a look of adoration in return.

But as soon as B saw me, she leaped out of Luna’s arms and came running down the hall. My heart flipped as I crouched to scoop up my girl. “Did you miss Daddy?”

Luna leaned on the doorjamb. “Aww, you guys are so sweet.”

“Thanks for watching her.” I tucked Butch up on my shoulder, her favorite perch.

“She was a darling. I don’t mind babysitting anytime.”

“Good to know.” I patted B’s little head as she licked my cheek. “Not sure what I’m going to do with her for your wedding though.”

“Oh, you should check with Bess. We had lunch yesterday, and she just loves Butch.”

“Yeah? That would be great. I’ll give her a ring.”

“I’ll just get her stuff.”

“Actually. I’ll stop back and get her stuff.”

“Oh?” Luna cocked her head. “Got a hot date in the building?”

“More like lukewarm. I’d ask if you wanted a drink too, Lu, but I think that’s off your particular menu.” Brady came up behind me with an old red and white cooler.

“Well, hello there, Officer Brady.”

“Deputy,” Brady said with a wink.

Butch gave a happy bark, and her tail swished under my hair.

“Well, hey there, little one.” Brady grinned at the dog. “Does she drink beer too?”

“She probably would.” When Butch’s rump wiggled at Brady’s voice, I shook my head at her wanton behavior. “The cop too, Butch? Really?”

Brady laughed. “I love a woman with superior taste.”

“I just bet you do.” I turned back to Luna. “Is the old man around?”

“He’s grocery shopping. I’ll send him up to the roof when he gets back.”

I arched a brow. “No problem with the day drinking?”

She shrugged. “You guys obviously need time to talk.”

I didn’t say a damn thing, but I was getting used to Luna knowing things even when they were left unsaid. “Do I look that bad?”

“Your aura is blasting blue.” She reached up and patted my cheek before giving Butch a chin scratch. “I have clients all day today anyway. Will keep Goldilocks out of my hair.”

“Thanks, Lu.”

Brady nodded at Lu. “Always a pleasure, Luna.”

“Likewise, Deputy.”

We took the stairs up to the rooftop. The lush summer plants had been replaced with frothy buckets of mums in fall colors. A few pumpkins were stashed in corners next to happy scarecrows perched on hay bales.

Probably Luna’s doing. I was pretty sure the suit who owned this place had stopped at flowers.

I followed Brady over to the table. Thankfully, he chose the one with chairs that actually fit me.

After setting the cooler down, he slid it open and popped the top on a beer with his ring. He handed one to me and took one for himself.

Silence stretched companionably between us as Butch settled in my lap and Brady sat down and stretched out his legs. He’d swapped his uniform for a worn pair of jeans and a NYU sweatshirt.

I took a long sip then pointed at him with the bottle. “NYU? Did you go?”

“Yeah, I went the criminal justice route for awhile. Being a lawyer didn’t take though.” He laced his fingers around his beer and set it against his stomach as he lifted his face to the sun.

“Lawyer? Huh. Well, that’s way different than a cop.”

“Way more different than FBI too.”

I took a longer pull. The dark beer had been on the way to relaxing me until that bombshell. “What?”

Brady opened one eye. “Don’t get all excited. Working for the FBI is just paperwork wrapped in bureaucracy.” He took a long draw from his bottle too. “I like the Cove. Nice and quiet.”

I had a feeling there was more there, but I probably wouldn’t get it out of him today.

“Tell me a story, Lucky. I bet you’ve got a good one.”

I finished my beer and jockeyed Butch as I reached for another. As soon as I sat again, Butch went back to sleep.

She had the right idea.

The sun felt good on my skin, and the warmth helped to unkink the Ruby-sized knots in my shoulders. “No story. Just a woman trying to drive a good man crazy.”

“Who told you that?”

“What?”

“That you’re a good man.”

I laughed and clinked my bottle with his. “True that.” Careful not to rouse Butch, I kicked out my legs as Brady had and crossed them at the ankle. “On a sunny September day, I met a Valkyrie.”

“This is gonna be good.”

“You have no idea.” I drank deeply.

The beer was higher octane than I was used to, and I was already feeling loose. He wanted a story, so he was going to get one. The best one of my life—so far.

Regardless, I was on this ride until the end. Win, lose or Ruby.