Chapter 8

Blake had walked halfway down the street before the pain on her hand alerted her to the fact that she was gripping her cup so hard, coffee was splashing out the top and onto her wrist. Stopping in the middle of the sidewalk, she took a few deep breaths and counted to ten. Hopefully, that would calm the twitching that had begun in her left eye, a symptom that only seemed to occur when Sabrina was nearby.

Why she still let the woman affect her, she didn’t know. What business was it of Blake’s if Sabrina and Sean were friends—which they obviously were—or went out on a date, for that matter? As soon as the blonde’s divorce from Todd was final, Blake gave it about thirty seconds before Sabrina ran into Sean’s arms.

Maybe instead of Batman, Blake should be like Jessica Fletcher—very amiable. Everyone liked Jessica; she could bend with the breeze and go with the flow. One thing was for certain—Blake needed to stop letting Sabrina bother her so much.

She came to a stop in front of Mystery Cup and looked through the window. Everything appeared just as she had left it. Chairs were turned upside down, resting on the tables; everything was in its place. Her fingers itched to reach for the handle, but the crime scene tape was still stretched across it. Two more days.

She was about to toss her cup of coffee from Café Muerte in the metal trash can on the sidewalk, but then she decided to take a sip. Her taste buds lit up at the unmistakable flavor of Death Wish Mountain coffee. “You have got to be kidding me,” she mumbled. Sabrina had stolen her coffee.

Okay, fine, so technically, the woman was free to order whatever brand of coffee she wanted, but the fact that she’d chosen the exact same brand that Mystery Cup served really ticked Blake off. It was different when Molly had started ordering it for Sliced. Coffee sales weren’t the main source of income for the restaurant, and Molly genuinely enjoyed the flavor of Death Wish. But Blake had a feeling that Sabrina had intended solely to copy Mystery Cup.

Calm down, Blake. You’re Batman. No, you’re Jessica. Whatever.

Her unmistakable ringtone of “You’re So Vain” drew her attention. The war inside her was way too serious because, dang it, she loved Death Wish Mountain coffee, but she also didn’t think she could bring herself to drink anything that came from Café Muerte. With a sigh, she tossed her cup in the trash, unzipped her purse, and pulled out her phone, which was adorned with a cream-colored cover and the phrase “My birth stone is a coffee bean.”

She sang along to her new Carly Simon ringtone for a moment. “Clouds in my coffee, clouds in my coffee, and you’re so vain.” Way more appropriate than the Beastie Boys ringtone she’d had before.

Finally, she hit Answer. “Hello.”

“I’m watching you,” said a breathy voice.

Blake immediately stiffened but didn’t get a chance to respond before the voice on the other end started giggling. “It’s me, Blake. Look to your left.”

She turned her head and saw Molly in the window of Sliced, waving at her. “Come on over. I have a slice of quiche with your name on it.”

Once her heart started beating again, Blake said, “I’ll be right there.” She clutched a hand to her chest as she disconnected and briefly wondered if Molly wasn’t trying to kill her.

When she walked into Sliced, she gave her friend a playful swat on the arm. “You scared me to death.”

Molly’s grin brightened up her whole face. “I’m so sorry. I couldn’t resist. You just looked so lost in thought.” She gestured to an empty booth. “Have a seat. I’ll get you some quiche.”

“Hey, wait a second.” Blake motioned Molly back over as she slid into the booth. “Did you know that Sabrina switched to Death Wish Mountain?”

Molly’s eyebrows shot up in surprise as Micah appeared next to her with two plates of quiche. “Sit down, Molls. Take a break. You’ve been on your feet all morning.” He set the quiche on the table, and Blake noticed just how muscular his arms were. She looked up into his sparkling hazel eyes and realized that somewhere along the way, Micah had grown into a handsome man.

“That doesn’t surprise me,” Molly said, jerking Blake from her thoughts.

“What doesn’t?” Micah asked.

“Blake said that apparently, Sabrina switched to Death Wish Mountain. She must have realized that crap she was serving was driving customers away.”

Micah stilled for a minute, his smile fading. “Seriously?”

Blake could relate to his annoyance. “I know. I felt the same way. I’m not sure if she’s trying to steal business or what her goal is exactly, but I think we should just not pay her any attention.”

Her mother’s words rang in her head. “Sometimes you have to stand up to bullies. But sometimes, you can ignore them, and they’ll just go away. Not often—but sometimes.”

She really hoped this was one of those times.

“Well, well, well,” Molly murmured as the bell above the front door jingled.

Micah and Blake followed her gaze to the door. Sean Larson’s hair brushed the top of the doorframe as he walked in. Tall people needed to be careful about the cranium clearance in these old buildings, or anyone over six feet tall was likely to get a concussion.

“Crap. Just what I need. Mr. Tall, Dark, and Brooding.” Blake folded her arms on the table and rested her head on them.

“Well, you might have to suck it up, Blake.” Molly nudged her arm. “He’s coming this way.”

She lifted her head just as Sean reached their table.

He scanned their faces, then his eyes landed on her. “Can I talk to you, Blake?”

Molly had already picked up her plate and was sliding out of the booth. Some friend she was.

“Thanks.” Sean gave her one of his heart-stopping smiles and slid into the spot she’d just vacated. Micah gave him a stern glower, making no move to step away from the table. Sean returned his glare. “Can I get a slice of that quiche, please?”

Clenching his jaw, Micah looked at Blake, as if searching for confirmation that it was okay to serve the man. The corners of her mouth tipped up, and just the fact that Micah was watching out for her put her in a better mood. She gave him a slight nod, and he shuffled off.

“I’ll grab you guys a pot of coffee,” Molly said before stepping away. When she was behind Sean, out of his view, she mouthed to Blake, “He is so hot!”

Blake widened her eyes and tried to keep the blush from rising to her cheeks. She turned her attention back to Sean. “So, what did you need to talk about? And how did you even know I was here?”

“I was a couple of blocks behind you, walking back, and I saw you cross the street.” He laced his fingers together and leaned forward. “Blake, I just wanted you to…” His lips mashed together for a moment. “I don’t know what I wanted. It’s just the way you looked at me back there, like I’d just sided with the enemy or something.” His eyes held hers, his gaze pinning her to the seat. “I didn’t like you looking at me like that. I’m not the bad guy, you know?”

Surprised, she blinked up at him. “Uh… okay, but it’s none of my business. Whatever’s going on with you and Sabrina. And why exactly would you feel the need to clarify anything with me?”

His dark brows knitted together as he leaned back in the booth. “I honestly don’t know. I just do. And there’s nothing going on with Sabrina. She’s my friend’s wife.”

Confusion rippled in her brain as he held her gaze. Blake didn’t know how she was supposed to feel or how he wanted her to feel about him. They both said nothing as Molly came over to set a slice of quiche in front of Sean and a pot of coffee in the center of the table.

He murmured his thanks and stabbed up a forkful of quiche.

Well, if he was in the mood to be honest, Blake decided to take advantage of the situation and ask some questions. “So, there’s nothing going on between you two, but you saw her Tuesday night?”

He shook his head and swallowed. “I saw them Tuesday night. As in her and Todd. It’s not like I had a date with her or anything.”

“That was Sabrina’s insinuation.”

He shook out the cloth napkin next to his plate and wiped his mouth before placing the napkin in his lap. “The wheel broke off my dolly that I’ve been using to cart in books. I’d seen Todd earlier in the day, and he told me I could swing by and borrow his. So I did. He wasn’t there, so Sabrina let me into the garage. What’s the big deal about this anyway? Todd’s an old friend.”

Red flags shot up in her head as if someone had blasted them out of a cannon. Todd hadn’t been there? That was not what he’d told her… or the police. Play it cool, Blake. “Was he supposed to be there? I thought they were separated.”

Sean bobbled his head. “Yeah, they are, but they’re trying to work things out. When I went over, I think he’d gone out for a pizza or something.”

The thought bounced around in her head, and her brain started working the math, attempting to figure out how long it would have taken Todd to go get a pizza. The Langs lived across the street from Ryan and Rachel on the edge of town. If he’d driven into town to Killer Tomatoes for pizza, it was hard to say how long he would have been gone. Round-trip to the Langs’ house was only about twenty minutes, but Killer Tomatoes was known for their long waits. Would he have had time to go to Mystery Cup, kill Nikki, then grab pizza and go home as if nothing had happened? “What time did you say you went by?”

Sean narrowed his eyes at her. “I didn’t. Why are you so interested in Todd and Sabrina, anyway?”

Blake bit her lip, regarding him for a moment. The last thing she wanted was to make him suspicious of her. She took a bite of quiche, and when the flaky crust and buttery texture hit her tongue, she closed her eyes and moaned without thinking. When she opened them again, Sean was staring directly at her mouth, and his eyelids had taken on a bit of a hooded quality.

The flutter in Blake’s stomach blossomed into a full-fledged flapping. “Uh, I just, uh, was wondering how you knew Sabrina’s husband. That’s all.”

Sean swallowed and blinked a few times, his eyes clearing before he answered. “Todd guest-lectured at a few of my classes when I was teaching.”

Her eyebrows shot up. “You were a teacher?”

He nodded, reaching for the pot of coffee. He flipped over the two cups on the table and poured her a cup of coffee then one for himself. “I taught journalism. Todd’s a photojournalist, so he would come in a couple times a year and speak.”

Blake sat back in her booth. A journalism teacher. None of her teachers had ever looked like Sean. Probably a good thing, or she would have been way too distracted in class.

Sean pushed away his empty plate, ripped open three sugar packets, and dumped them in his coffee. “Anyway, I hadn’t talked to Todd in a few months, but we reconnected when I found out I was coming back to town.”

If Sean knew Todd so well, then he certainly had to know Todd had been dating Nikki. Maybe that was how he’d met Nikki in the first place. But if Todd was involved in Nikki’s murder, did Sean know that too? Hell, he could be in on it with Sabrina and Todd, for all she knew. But no matter how hard she tried, she just didn’t peg Sean as a murderer.

Her brows drew together. “Is that how you knew Nikki?”

The coffee cup stopped halfway to Sean’s mouth, and his eyes hardened. He set it back down on the table. “I told you already, Blake. I didn’t know Nikki. And what do Todd and Sabrina have to do with her, anyway?”

“Come on, Sean. If Todd was your friend, then you must have known he and Nikki were dating.”

His eyes widened almost imperceptibly, and his lips firmed into a thin line. He certainly didn’t act as though she’d dropped a bombshell. If anything, he may have been a little surprised that she knew. “He wasn’t dating Nikki.” When his eyes shot down to study the table, Blake remembered what Kyle had told her about questioning suspects. Body language was the key to figuring out whether a person was lying. A suspect who looked down and away as he spoke was a dead giveaway.

“Then why would he tell the police he was dating her?”

“The police? Todd said that?” His eyes flickered with an emotion she couldn’t quite place, and his gaze darted around the restaurant before landing on her face. “How do you know that?”

Uh-oh. Keep your mouth shut, Blake. Kyle was going to kill her.

“That’s beside the point. I’m just trying to connect the dots. Nikki was dating Todd. If Sabrina wanted to work it out with her husband, then that gives her motive—”

“Motive? So now Sabrina’s on your list too?” His voice rose, and he shoved a hand through his dark hair, looking exasperated. “She didn’t kill anyone, Blake.” But the uncertainty in his eyes didn’t match his words. She could see that those gorgeous green eyes held doubt.

She leaned her elbows on the table, pushing away her half-eaten slice of quiche. “Maybe you know Todd, but how well do you know her, Sean?” She shook her head. “I’ve known her for a long time. She’s not a nice person.”

Sean wiped his hands on the napkin and tossed it on the table before sliding out of the booth. “I think you’re wrong, Blake. Sabrina didn’t kill anyone. I can’t imagine Todd would marry someone who would be capable of that. And him dating Nikki?” He shook his head. “She was way too young for him. Just let it go, Blake.”

“Look, Todd is divorcing Sabrina. Or was divorcing Sabrina. So it’s not a big stretch that he might be dating someone else. And why would he tell the police he’d been dating Nikki if that wasn’t true? He wouldn’t just implicate himself for no reason.”

Tight lines creased Sean’s face as he stared down at her, but he said nothing.

Blake drew in a slow breath and leaned back. “Look, if you don’t believe me about Nikki, then ask him.” But she was pretty sure he didn’t need to. He already knew. And Nikki was the woman he and Todd had been arguing about the night of the murder.

Sean’s strong jaw worked as he clenched and unclenched his teeth. He pulled out his wallet and threw a twenty on the table before he turned and walked out without another word.

Blake stared down into her coffee, her mind spinning. He hadn’t seemed surprised that Todd had been dating Nikki. So why was he putting on an act? Why was he trying to feign ignorance?

With a groan, she pressed her palms against her eyes.

“Everything okay?” Molly asked.

Blake lowered her hands to see Molly standing next to the table, looking concerned. “I don’t know, Molls.” She frowned. “Did you know Sean used to be a teacher? I didn’t ask where he taught.”

“Oh yeah.” Molly slid back into the booth and reached over to break off a piece of crust from Blake’s discarded quiche. “I did know that. He taught college. I remember him mentioning it when he came in for dinner after he first moved to town.” She popped the crust in her mouth. “He moved here from Lawrence. Said he used to teach at the University of Kansas.”

“KU?” Blake thought her heart stopped for a moment. “He taught at KU?”

Molly’s concerned eyes darted to Blake’s face. “Yeah. What’s wrong? Why is that a big deal?”

“Because.” She swallowed. “Because Nikki went to KU.”