“I have something for you that might cheer you up.” Zane waited for Tessa to look at him.
When she did, there was a trace of curiosity in her expression. “You got me a surprise?”
“I did.”
“When did you have time?”
“I’m sneaky.”
That earned him narrowed eyes and blatant skepticism. “What is it?”
“Sit tight.” He jogged to Luke’s desk and retrieved the small bag he’d had Luke carry in. He returned to Tessa and extended the bag to her.
She took it. “Thank you.”
“You don’t even know what’s inside. You might hate it.”
“Unlikely. You give good gifts.”
He hadn’t known she thought that about him. “Then I hope I haven’t set the bar too high. As you said, there wasn’t much time.”
She opened the bag and peered inside. A small gasp escaped as she removed the crème brûlée doughnut and studied it. “How did you get this? They were sold out.”
By the time she, Zane, and Gil had the opportunity to go back inside, the crème brûlée doughnuts were gone, the doughnut case empty. The doughnuts they’d already purchased had been scarfed down by grateful first responders, law enforcement officers, and FBI agents, but Zane had acted long before then. “I may have run inside and asked Cherry to set one aside for you.”
“Thank you. I could kiss you right now!”
His gaze flicked from the doughnut to her mouth, a mouth that was hanging open, the doughnut forgotten as she stared at him.
“Anytime.”
Her eyes flared and she turned to her desk, opened a drawer, and removed a plastic knife and a napkin. That drawer was Tessa’s version of a Mary Poppins bag. She had everything in there.
Ten seconds later, the moment was over, the doughnut had been cut, and she handed him half.
“No. You eat it. I got it for you.” Zane tried to give it back, but she refused to listen.
“Please. I wantedyouto try it. I can’t sit here and eat the whole thing while you watch.”
“Fine.” He took the doughnut, then tapped it to her half in a toast. “To a week of questions that can be answered.”
“Amen.” She took a bite and sighed. “Perfection.”
He took a bite and had a moment of regret that he hadn’t asked Cherry to hold back a dozen. “This,” he said around another mouthful, “is amazing.”
“I know, right?” Tessa told him about how she’d discovered The Slam Dunk and how she’d made it her personal mission to make sure everyone knew they existed.
“I’ve told people at church, in my cycling club, at my AA meetings, and in my apartment building about them. I even sent some to Detective Morris for his birthday. He’s now devoted. I have yet to find anyone who’s tried them and hasn’t fallen in love.” Her eyes met his, and a spark of something flashed between them. She cleared her throat. “With the doughnuts.”
He wiped his mouth with a corner of a napkin. “That’s a relief. For a second I thought you meant they infused their doughnuts with a love potion.”
She tossed a wadded-up napkin at him, and her laughter was real and unforced, her eyes clear, and her mood lighter than it had been all day. “Can you imagine the chaos? People falling in love with random strangers because their lemon-filled doughnut made them? No thank you.”
“I don’t know. It might not be so bad. You might fall in love with a millionaire who wants to whisk you away to the Amalfi Coast.”
She snorted. “With my luck, the guy would be running some kind of scam and living in a van down by the river.”
Zane laughed, but before he could comment further, Jacob called from down the hall. “Zane? Tessa? Could you come here, please?” Jacob’s yell told Zane two things. Littlefield was long gone, and Jacob had enjoyed getting rid of him.
