Will to Live

 

Monday morning, Detective Myers called him to say that the owner of the wine store was out of town, but when he got back he’d let them look at the security tapes. That there wasn’t one aimed at the parking lot per se, but inside the front and back doors watching the store. If there was anything they could do to help, they would.

Nothing was adding up and Vin was waiting for lab results that he hoped to get by the end of the day tomorrow. He’d overnighted the mice, and was told they’d put a rush on at least testing for anything they could find to match the bowl or the roses for prints. Until then, there wasn’t much more for them to do but try to continue on with life in general.

Piper was at work and he was sitting at his desk looking over a proposal for a new contract.

Was Piper right? Was he really thinking of trying to find a way to end things with her? Maybe a few days ago he was thinking that he brought this on her. That maybe it was him someone was trying to get to.

Then he realized that was crazy and brushed it off. There was no reason to think what she’d been going through had anything to do with him. For all intents and purposes, what was going on with her started long before they became neighbors and knew each other existed.

No, whoever was doing this to her had been for longer than she’d like to admit.

Did he feel guilty that their relationship—and if hearing her say that word formed a cold sweat to trickle down his back, he wasn’t admitting—caused whomever this was to escalate? Yeah, he did feel guilty over it. But he wouldn’t change a thing.

He deserved to move on with his life. Finding her was the best thing that had happened to him. He was willing to admit that.

Days later, he realized the cold sweat he’d felt was because he was falling in love with her.

Her crazy ways. Her independent nature. The horrible childhood that she’d had that she just brushed off like lint on her shoulder and proceeded about her day.

She had a strength behind her that he was jealous of in the best of times. It was hard for him to admit that, but it was there.

She was stronger than some of the toughest men he’d been with side by side in the army. Gender and physical strength had nothing on the will to live your life a certain way and know that nothing was going to stop you. That was her.

His phone started to ring, so he reached over to it, surprised to see Piper’s name come up. “Hey, what’s up?” he asked.

“Nothing. Just thinking of you. Silly, I know. I just saw you a few hours ago, but I felt like calling.”

“I’m glad you did. Everything okay there this morning?” he asked.

He’d followed her to work, went in with her, and walked around. No more dead rodents or anything else. Then he locked up behind her and watched the cameras around the building on and off until Sam showed up.

“Yeah. I’m just taking a quick break between orders. Nicole is watching everything for me.”

“Sure everything is okay?” he asked again. She sounded different and he couldn’t put his finger on it for some reason.

“I am. I promise. Thank you,” she blurted out.

“For what?”

“For everything. Being with me. Calming me. Talking to Detective Myers. Yesterday, cleaning up the mess, and the cameras. The list seems to go on and on.”

“Think nothing of it.”

“It’s hard not to. I’ve never had anyone do anything like this for me before. It feels odd and right at the same time.”

He knew that feeling. “There’s nothing wrong with that. Is there?”

“Not at all. Oh, I’m sorry, I’ve got to go. Jane is calling me right now. I’ll see you after work. Bye.”

She hung up before he could say another word and he realized he had a smile plastered on his face.

 

***

 

“How are things going with Vin?” Nicole asked her when she walked back over and saw her jumbos were out of the oven and cooling.

“They’re going pretty good. Can I ask you something?”

“Sure,” Nicole said, decorating cupcakes.

“How did you know Justin was the one? Was it fast or slow?”

“Do you think you’re in love with Vin?” Nicole asked, lifting her head.

“I think so. I don’t know. I’ve never really been in love before. I’m not sure if what I feel for him is gratitude or something else.”

“Gratitude?” Nicole asked, laughing. “Wow, he must be lighting up the sheets for you to say that.”

Piper laughed. She couldn’t believe she let that slip. “Well,” she said, batting her eyelashes, “some things are best kept secret.”

“Now you’re just bragging,” Nicole said. “Anyway, back to your question. I don’t really have an answer how I knew with Justin. I guess it came down to the fact that I was more miserable without him than with him.”

“Huh?” Piper asked. She’d never heard anything like that before.

“When Justin and I weren’t together, I found myself missing him. Thinking of him. What was he doing? What was he thinking? Was it me? Did he feel like I did? All those insecurities that I never had, I found I suddenly did. And when it was driving me insane, I decided to take a few days away with some friends to figure it out. I was miserable. I realized that being away from him was worse than all those insecurities. That’s when I realized I loved him. Come to find out, he was feeling a lot of what I was.”

“Strangely enough, that makes a lot of sense.”

She wasn’t about to ask Vin if he was feeling any of the insecurities that she was, but she sure the heck was thinking of him at the weirdest times.

Though she joked about him being in her face all the time, she was finding she was missing him if he wasn’t around. Thinking of him at the oddest times and wanting to be able to hold him. Touch him. Kiss him.

Yeah, she was in love. Now she just had to keep it to herself until she knew how he felt.

 

***

 

“Are you sure you’re okay about going to dinner with me?” Piper asked him later that night.

“I don’t want you going anywhere alone,” he said. He wasn’t thrilled about it, but she wanted to go and she really couldn’t put her life on hold.

“It’s Chris’s birthday. Jane asked if I could come and bring his favorite dessert. I couldn’t say no. He’s the closest person I’ve ever had to a father. They don’t ask much of me and gave me so much.”

Talk about guilt. “It’s fine. Do they know I’m coming? Or are you going to spring it on them?”

“I told Jane I was seeing someone. She was all excited and said she couldn’t wait to meet you. It’s not a problem. She’s always asking when I’m going to settle down. You’re the first person I’ve ever asked them to meet.”

That had to mean something, he was thinking. What, he wasn’t sure. “It’s fine. Where is dinner?”

“Their house. Skip and Michele both have plans and can’t make it, and she knew Chris would be upset if none of us would see him on his birthday. I feel honored. I mean, they’ve always invited me and I’ve tried to go, but sometimes I couldn’t. I really want to this year.”

“What is his favorite dessert?”

“Strawberry lemon cake.”

“Sounds good.”

“It is. It’s simple but one of the first things I made, too. Just a lemon cake that I’ve tweaked over the years. I fill it with strawberries and a lemon buttercream in the center, and then on top. I’ll make it tomorrow afternoon at the bakery and have it ready to bring over.”

“So if I come up with a favorite, will you make it for me on my birthday?” he asked, tweaking her nose.

“Absolutely! What’s your favorite? When’s your birthday?”

“So far my favorite seems to be everything you make. Well, everything but those crazy things. I’m pretty simple at the heart of things. As for my birthday, it’s in June.”

“Not very far away. June what? How old are you going to be? I mean, I know you’re older than me, but I’m curious.”

“Nosy,” he said, kissing her on the nose this time. “June twenty-first. I’ll be thirty-five. Much older than you.”

“Nah. Not old enough to be my sugar daddy. You’re good.”

He laughed. If she only knew. It’d be his little secret for now.