Chapter 40
CHAPTER FORTY
Drops of sweat trickled down Titus’s temples as he led his introductory kickboxing class through the routine of warming up and stretching before they started on the fundamentals: footwork, stance, punches and kicks, then cooling down and stretching again.
As the students filed out, one woman complimented him on the class.
He smiled. “Glad you enjoyed it. It’s great exercise.” The gym was full today, and Titus felt a sense of pride that it was doing so well. Then his thoughts went to Emelia, whose own business was doing well.
The sound of fists hitting punching bags and grunts from the clients on the machines echoed throughout the gym. Titus went over to Vanessa to check his schedule for the day. He was free for a couple of hours.
Titus thought he’d stop by the bakery and surprise Emelia. She had a busy day with two large orders to fill. Hopefully, she’d be able to take a break for a few minutes.
While he missed having her in his cabin, staying at her place with her was equally fine. Someday they’d have their own place —he hoped. Maybe a house with lots of land so their kids could grow up free-range, similar to Emelia’s upbringing.
Wow, he was getting ahead of himself. They weren’t married, and here he was thinking about kids. As Zach would say, he had it bad. Besides, he didn’t even know if Emelia wanted marriage and kids. They needed to talk. He prayed they were on the same page.
He showered, put on clean clothes, and walked over to the bakery. Pulling open the kitchen door, he saw Josie was plating some pastries. She looked over and smiled warmly at him.
“Hey, Titus. How are you?”
“Great. I came over to have coffee and a snack with Emelia.” He looked around. “Is she here?”
Josie’s smile dimmed. “She and Stacy took Leo to the park.” Josie looked at her watch. “They should be back any minute now. How about I get you a cup of coffee while you wait?”
“Sounds good.” Titus found a table in the corner. Almost every table was full, and scents of olive oil and rosemary competed with cinnamon and vanilla. Soft jazz played in the background as customers chatted, laughed, and enjoyed their food. Abby was busy at the coffee bar. The espresso machine buzzed and hissed as it churned out espressos and cappuccinos.
He leaned back in the chair, and Josie brought him coffee and a pastry.
“Emelia’s been experimenting with mango.” She placed the plate in front of him. “What you have in front of you is a slice of cheesecake with mango and coconut, topped with a light raspberry sauce.”
“Looks delicious.” Titus’s stomach growled in anticipation. “And just in time.”
Josie laughed as she set down a fork and went to help other customers.
It took Titus two point five seconds to demolish the cheesecake and determine Emelia had another winner on her hands.
He sipped his coffee, enjoying its rich aroma and flavor, then glanced at his watch. Emelia should have been back by now.
“How about a refill?”
Titus was startled to see Josie stand next to him with a pot of hot coffee. His thoughts were of the gym, then Emelia, and he hadn’t heard her return.
He looked at his watch. A half hour had gone by since he arrived. Shouldn’t Emelia be back by now?
“Emelia isn’t in the back, is she?” he asked Josie.
“Not yet.” She looked at the clock and blew out her breath. “They should have been back already. Stacy is late for her shift.”
Something wasn’t right. “What time did they leave?” he asked urgently.
Josie thought for a moment before answering. “It was … about twenty minutes before Stacy was to start work.” She looked at her watch. “Dang, that was over forty-five minutes ago.” Her brown eyes looked worried. “You don’t think anything happened to them? Emelia has been so cautious ever since someone broke into her apartment.”
Titus’s stomach dropped. The cheesecake he enjoyed just a short time ago was churning in his gut. Forty-five minutes wasn’t a long time to walk a dog. But Emelia was working today. She would have kept it to twenty minutes, thirty tops.
“Where would they have gone? Did Emelia say?”
“Hmmm.” Josie thought for a moment. “They were going to the dog park.”
“I’m going to check.”
“Please let me know everything’s okay,” Josie said.
Titus nodded. Afraid of what he would find, he hurried toward his truck and the dog park. His stomach twisted in knots. While he wanted to believe everything was fine, he just knew it wasn’t.
He found a parking space in front and got out. As he approached the dog park, he saw several dogs and people sitting on the benches or standing and talking. He scanned the entire park. Who he didn’t see was Emelia or Stacy. Who he did see was Leo running towards him, his tongue hanging out.
Fuck. Where were they? He desperately glanced around the park, knowing deep in his soul they weren’t there.