“Yep, they’re all accounted for.”
I wanted to make a joke about counting chickens, but I was too damn tired. When we got to the house, Adrian said goodbye and headed home while Lyric and Memphis followed me inside.
“Is Maegan still up?” Lyric asked, sounding almost shy.
“Probably, would you like me to go upstairs and get her?” I offered.
“No, I’m being silly. I’ll see you guys tomorrow for my first ever French toast brunch. I just wanted to ask if she was serious when she offered to hire me to do the baking for Books and Brew.”
“She wouldn’t have said something if she wasn’t serious,” I told him. “She’s very impressed with your baking skills, and to be honest, your muffins are better than the ones they buy from the commercial bakery in Cincinnati. More importantly, she’ll be happy you’re sticking around.” I extended my hand to him. “Welcome to Blissville, Lyric.”
Lyric shook my hand and thanked me before they headed home. I took the steps two at a time to tell Maegan the good news, but she was curled up around Lulu sound asleep. Instead, I turned off the television and lamps, climbed beneath the sheets, and spooned up behind her. I thought it would take forever for me to fall asleep after all the chicken sting setup, but I drifted to sleep almost as soon as my head hit the pillow.
TYPICALLY, THE MOST EXCITEMENTI got on Wednesdays involved a ride on Elijah’s cock followed by French toast brunch. Afterward, I had the rest of my day to myself. I admit in the past that “me time” usually amounted to planning out the rest of the week, month, or even my life with a bubble bath and a good book thrown in. I also scheduled my hair, manicure, and pedicure appointments on Wednesdays, but Josh was out of town on vacation with his husband, Elijah’s captain, so my usual eight weeks between hair colorings was stretched to nine.
My morning started out earlier than usual when I drove Elijah over to April’s house to pick up his truck. I was disappointed neither April’s black Audi nor Violet’s dark blue Mustang were parked in the driveway. That didn’t mean Vi didn’t spend the night though. They both could’ve left for work already.
Candace and Vanessa eagerly awaited me at their prospective front doors.
“Was her car there?” they both asked when I picked them up.
“No one’s car was there,” I told them.
“I think it’s pretty pathetic we didn’t walk to get our cars this morning,” Vanessa said.
“Speak for yourself,” Candace said, running her hand over her sleek, red waves. “It’s too humid for outdoor activities if you have naturally curly hair.” I could see her glancing in my direction out of the corner of my eye and knew she was checking out my extra week of roots showing. “Besides, I’ve already been on the elliptical for an hour, showered, and styled my hair.”
I returned home after I dropped them off at their cars, indulged in a long, hot shower then set about putting my weekly French toast brunch together. Most of the time, I stuck to making traditional French toast on the griddle, but I liked to try something new at least once a month. Last night while Elijah was romping in the woods, I put together a French toast slash cinnamon roll casserole dish that smelled scrumptious and had to rest in the refrigerator overnight. I had a feeling it would be a big hit, which was confirmed when my guests arrived and began salivating before the casserole was even out of the oven.
Elijah’s schedule didn’t always allow him to attend my weekly brunches and other times he popped in for a quick bite and a lingering kiss before he returned to work. On the latter occasions, Adrian always came with him. I loved seeing the two men ribbing each other and watching their bond grow. Besides, it was lovely to have another fan of my spectacular French toast and crispy bacon extravaganza.
Instead of praising my cooking skills as I was accustomed to, Elijah, Adrian, Lyric, and Memphis were gathered around Memphis’s laptop to watch surveillance video from the woods around our house overnight. They were able to watch whatever the trail camera recorded overnight and also watch real-time videos. Even Andy and Milo were caught up in the sting operation.
“The chickens look well cared for,” Adrian said while staring at the screen. “Someone is providing them with food and water on a regular basis, so we’re going to find our snatcher soon. I feel it in my gut.”
“That’s the pound of bacon you wolfed down, partner,” Elijah said, slapping him lightly on the back.
Adrian glanced up at me suddenly. “I’ve let this chicken snatcher sting take over my brain and have completely forgotten my manners. Pardon me, Maegan. Thank you so much for a delicious breakfast.”
“You’re very welcome.” I looked at Elijah with a raised brow. “Is the chicken snatcher sting the reason why you forgot to thank me for brunch?”
“I’m sorry, Freckles. I admit I’m excited about making a bust. Can you forgive me?” Elijah’s tone said he was pleading for forgiveness, but his smile and twinkling eyes said he wanted me to punish him—long and torturously slow.
“Maybe,” I replied noncommittally. Elijah’s dark eyes narrowed, assessing to see if he was really in trouble or not. Our arguments were few and far between, but they weren’t nonexistent.
“Well, whoever is taking care of the chickens hasn’t returned yet this morning,” Lyric said. “So far, we’ve only seen a curious buck and adorable bunnies and squirrels checking out the enclosure.”
Memphis shut the laptop and pushed it aside so he could return to his breakfast. “This fancy software Lyric’s friend designed allowed me to set up a perimeter around the coop. I will get a notification anytime something steps inside the zone. We’ll catch whoever this is very soon.”
“Sally Ann said everything is quiet on the home front, so our snatchers haven’t taken the bait.”
“They may not if they’re familiar with the residents. You are a police detective and acting captain with Gabe gone, so maybe they know better than to mess with you.”
“If we haven’t nabbed them soon, I want to take the birds back to their rightful owners. I don’t want to take a chance the snatchers saw or heard us in the woods last night and will neglect the chickens to avoid capture,” Adrian said.
“I agree,” everyone around the large table said.
“Let’s hope we wrap this up today so we can strut around like Foghorn Leghorn,” Elijah said.
