#WeWriWa: - The Case of the Fabulous Fiancé: Alex Needs To Get Laid

Welcome to the Weekend Writing Warriors. Sorry for missing last week. My brain went on vacation. Wish the rest of me had, too. The good news--Hubs is home from rehab. The not-so-good? I fell and broke my wrist. At least, I have a cute pink cast. 😊

I'm sharing another snippet from the 2nd Alex O'Hara mystery novel, The Case of the Fabulous Fiancé. Alex is a P.I. in the small Lake Michigan resort town near Grand Rapids. I skipped ahead a little. It's Monday morning and Pete's there to work.

Some changes were made to the original.

Snippet:  

“You’re frowning, my darling. Let me get you a cup of coffee, and you can tell me what’s troubling you.”

Before I could say ‘don’t bother,’ Pete scurried to the kitchenette. My Keurig was gone, and in its place was my old coffee maker.

“Where— Why?” I’m usually more coherent . . . after a second cup of coffee.

“I found it on the top shelf.” He pointed to the cabinet over the sink. “Since we both drink coffee, it’s too expensive to use the single-cup machine. I brought in my favorite beans and my grinder.”

 

 And a little more of the scene

“But—”

He handed me a mug. “Taste and tell me it’s not the best coffee you’ve ever had.”

I didn’t have the heart to tell him my ancient machine wasn’t reliable. I took a sip, “Oh. My. God.” I sipped again in case I was mistaken. “This is wonderful. Tell me what I owe you for the beans.”

Waving that aside, he snorted. “Self-preservation, my darling. I saw the store brand coffee in the cabinet. Sit. I have a surprise for you.”

He pointed to the chair he’d pulled out from the small table in our breakroom. With a flourish worthy of a professional chef, he presented a plate of pastries.

My mouth watered. “Where did you get these?”

“DeBoer’s.”

“You went all the way to Holland for pastries?” I picked up one of the banket sticks he’d sliced into pieces and took a bite. The flaky pastry around almond paste was my all-time favorite. I loved anything with almonds, especially almond paste.

“I died and went to heaven.” I took a krakelingen, a sugar cookie twisted like a pretzel and rolled in sugar. After demolishing it, I gave him a mock stern look then waved to the plate on which he’d piled several more Dutch treats, along with regular donuts. “Don’t make a habit of getting these.”

Pete sat across from me. “Don’t you like them?”

His grin said I couldn’t pull a fast one and say I didn’t. I was such a sucker for sweets, especially those from deBoer’s. They made their pastries like they did in the old country.

“Earlier, you were frowning. Tell me what’s wrong.”

“It’s nothing.” Nothing I wanted to talk about.

“Ah,” Pete said with a knowing smile. “Man troubles.”

I wasn’t going to tell him about my man troubles. Too private, too painful.

He reached across the table and patted my hand. “I’ve been there, my darling. I know exactly how you must feel. The solution is to forget him and find a new love.”

I snorted. “Is that what you’re doing?”

He looked so melancholy I regretted my comment. “I’m sorry, Pete. I shouldn’t have said that.” I pulled my hand away.

His expression changed. “What you need is to get laid.” He winked.

I spewed a mouthful of coffee halfway across the table. At least, I missed the pastries.

 Blurb:

She’s at it again. Alex O’Hara just can’t say no to a new investigation. What do a 45-year-old boyfriend, a deadbeat dad, and a teenage runaway have in common? All new cases. With no receptionist, phone and internet problems, and her own boyfriend in the wind, Alex has no idea how she’ll manage. But the question for the past three months is why did Nick disappear. Is this the end of O’Hara & Palzetti? 

Amazon US ~ Amazon UK ~ Kobo ~ iBooks ~ B&N ~ Smashwords

Be sure to check out the other WeWriWa authors. Stay safe and have a great week!