Ted opened the door for Mia, and she all but floated into the house.
“She’s had a bit too much to drink,” Ted whispered. “She’s in an I-love-everyone kind of mood.”
“Even you?” Cid asked, teasing.
“Especially me. We had to stop on the way home and…”
Cid blushed.
Mia ran up the stairs to peek in on Brian before she came down the steps and into Cid’s arms. “I just want you to know how much I love you,” she said. “You are so understanding and smart and…”
“Mia, let Cid go,” Ted said, pulling her clenched hands off of Cid’s waist.
Mia smiled and did so.
“Coffee, I have fresh coffee,” Cid babbled. “And cheesecake…”
This brought Mia right back into his arms. “I love a man who feeds me,” she said.
Ted couldn’t help it; he burst out laughing. “I’m at fault here. I dared her to drink a Rum Robin before supper. Mike gave her a whiskey, and Burt ordered wine at dinner.”
Cid lifted Mia’s chin and said in a very brotherly way, “You are going to have a hell of a headache unless we get some water into you quick.”
Cid guided her to the kitchen.
Mia looked back at Ted and said, “We’re going to get some water. Wanna come?”
“No, you two go ahead. I’m going to get out of this monkey suit,” Ted said.
Cid pulled out a chair and sat Mia down. She drummed her fingers on the new table while Cid fetched the water, coffee and cheesecake.
“Do you want to tell me why you drank so much?” Cid asked, handing her a fork.
“I’ve been squashing down my feelings. Too much emotion, too hard not to feel,” she said. “I still feel like I’m losing him, Cid,” Mia said. “I can’t lose him; he’s my world.”
Cid put a comforting hand on her shoulder. “Don’t worry, Mia. Ted’s not going anywhere. He knows he’s damn lucky to have you. Uh, so that’s why you’re throwing a lot of sex at him? Are you trying to show him what he would miss?” Cid asked.
“No, yes, I don’t really know. I think it’s still the good part of our marriage. Maybe I can hold on to him that way until I can fix the other parts.”
“Mia, I have no experience or good words with which to guide you, but I know that the truth is never a bad idea. Sometimes when we are trying to protect our loved ones, we hurt them just the same,” Cid said. “I still think that we shouldn’t bury our problems.”
“Speaking of buried problems, remind me to call Father Santos tomorrow. I need to find out where he and Angelo interred Chastity Murphy.”
“Why?”
“Murph wants to visit her grave. Oh, could you go with him? He doesn’t want me to,” Mia said sadly.
“Ah, the other woman.”
“Stop, don’t you start that nonsense. Can you? I’ll owe you a favor.”
“Really, a favor? I’ll take that favor. You can exchange working with me on a new cookie recipe for the bachelor’s auction next weekend.”
“Deal,” Mia said and shook Cid’s hand. “You do know that Burt also asked me to make his cookies, don’t you?”
“Yes, that’s why we have to come up with another recipe,” Cid said.
“I’ll be happy to,” Mia said.
“Happy to do what?” Ted asked, walking in the kitchen.
Cid explained, and Ted nodded. “Sounds like a good trade. I remember when Gerald and Father Santos showed up to remove Chastity’s remains. I was a bit frightened by Angelo. He was like this walking wall.”
“I remember thinking he was an angel,” Mia said. “Pblsst. I know angels, and that man is hardly an angel.”
“Mia, how much did you have to drink?” Cid asked, worried that she was way too drunk for only three drinks. He put his hand on her forehead.
“I don’t remember,” Mia confessed. “Too many. Did Ted tell you the news?”
“No.”
“I’ll leave you two to your conversation. I’ll be back down after I change. I think I have to dry-clean this thing, and that’s expensive.” Mia sniffed her armpits. “Still okay.”
They waited until they were sure Mia was upstairs before talking.
“So what happened?”
“Mike and Burt offered me a partnership.”
“Congrats! Are you going to take it?”
“I don’t know. Mia suggested I talk to Alan about it. He’s coming here tomorrow morning to take care of that thing we talked about.”
“That thing that got postponed when Mia went to the aerie?”
“One in the same.”
“It’s something that should have been done when you married her, dude,” Cid pointed out.
“There was so much going on, it had honestly slipped my mind at the time. Turned out to be fortunate that it didn’t happen, otherwise Bev would have never gotten Mia out of that contract.”
“Are you doing this now to hold on to Mia?” Cid asked. “Because if you are, I can assure you that she doesn’t need to be bribed. She loves you.”
“I want to take care of her and Brian. What if something happens to me? I could blow myself up…” he said.
“Don’t let Dupree’s jokes influence you,” Cid counseled. “How are things working out between the two of you?”
“Mia and I came to an understanding. We are both going to try to be more truthful with each other.”
“Does that include your long dalliance with Beth?”
“It was no such thing,” Ted said, frowning. “I confessed how long Beth had been in play after Mia asked me about it. In turn, she told me all about how she felt about Burt, Whitney and Murphy. It was touch and go for a while there, especially the Beth part.”
“She knows you set Beth straight?”
“Yes, and I’m never going to answer an email or accept a text again from that person.”
Cid felt Ted wasn’t giving him a complete answer, but he didn’t want to push him. “I hope you stick to that promise,” Cid said.
“If I don’t, Mia said she would leave me and take Brian away.”
“I think this time she would.”
“I do too,” Ted said. “After we made love, she was so clingy, very unlike
