The Root of All Evil (Hope Street Church Mysteries Book 4) (5 page)

“Sorry I’m late,” he apologized, removing his jacket and tossing it into the seat before sliding in himself. He wore a respectable eggplant purple dress shirt and black slacks that almost hid the fact that he’d worn exercise socks with his dress shoes.

“No problem,” Nathan replied kindly. “We went ahead and ordered an appetizer for the table. Hope you don’t mind.”

“Mind? I’m starving.” Edward grabbed a potato skin and shoved the whole thing in his mouth at once.

Cooper watched, partly horrified at his lack of manners and partly envious that his hunger seemed to be somewhat satiated. “Um . . . Where’s the girlfriend?”

“Oh, her . . .” Edward swallowed and reached for another skin. “We broke up.”

Taking an appetizer for herself before they all disappeared, Cooper donned an appropriately sad expression. “Sorry to hear it.”

Edward shook his head. “It needed to happen. I should’ve done it sooner.”

“Problems?”

“Not really
problems
in the traditional sense . . .”

Nathan took a drink of water and cleared his throat. “We don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.”

Edward drew in a deep breath. “Thanks, man. Let’s talk about the steak here. Is it any good?”

Cooper shot her boyfriend a dirty look for interrupting but realized he couldn’t have known that she wanted all the details. She turned a smile on Edward. Sooner or later, she’d get the rest of the story. “The steak’s great,” she said. “So is the fish, if you like fish.”

“I’ll take cow over fish any day.” Edward fell silent, and all three scoured the menu. After ordering thick steaks, medium-well, the guys slipped into work talk, while Cooper sat by, smiling idly and nodding as if she were paying attention.

There was something different about Edward tonight. With his pressed clothes and his clean, slicked hair, he almost looked
respectable
. Almost. Then he shoved another whole potato skin into his mouth.

“So Cooper,” Edward said, once he’d swallowed. “Take down any more drug dealers recently?”

“I’m afraid life has been a little more sedate than that,” Cooper replied. “How about you? Working with the police?”

Cooper could see him stiffen. Given his criminal history, Edward wasn’t a fan of the cops, even if he did assist them in one case. Before Cooper could change the subject, the waiter arrived with their food.

Saved by the steak.

The conversation lagged while they started their dinner. After some time, Nathan excused himself, heading to the restroom, and Cooper took the opportunity to talk to Edward again.

“
He
might not want to get into the whole relationship discussion with you, but I do,” she said. “You sounded so excited to come to dinner when we talked. I thought you were really looking forward to it, and frankly, I was looking forward to meeting . . . whatever her name was. What happened?”

“Well, I was excited for dinner . . . But I was excited to see the two of you, not to eat with
her.
See, I don’t have a lot of what you’d call
wholesome
friends, so you guys are really good for me. I was looking forward to a nice, civilized night out. When it came to me and her, though, it just didn’t work.”

“Before you said you didn’t have ‘problems in the traditional sense.’ What does that even mean?”

“Why do you care?”

“I’m female,” Cooper shot back. “And I’m your friend. Those two things mean I will
always
want to know what’s going on in your relationships. So tell me.”

“Fine.” He swallowed a gulp of soda. “I didn’t see a future in it.” He paused before continuing. “Now, I know what you’re gonna say: we weren’t together long enough to be thinking about the future, and just because I lack imagination is no reason to break up, but . . .”

“I wasn’t going to say that at all,” Cooper argued. “If you’d given me the chance, that is.”

“Oh, really? What would you have said?”

“I’d have said I support your decision.”

Edward looked at her with a quizzical expression. “Really?”

Cooper nodded. She found that, as the days and months wore on with Nathan, she cared more and more about that elusive thing called “the future.” She wanted one with Nathan, and she thought that he wanted one with her. But the closest she’d come to that commitment was the diamond earrings she wore. The hope she felt when Nathan gave her those earrings—and the crushing disappointment when she saw they were only earrings—made that future less elusive. She knew exactly what she wanted. Cooper wanted to marry Nathan Dexter.

And he wasn’t doing anything about it.

After a moment with her own thoughts, Cooper responded, “Yes, really. You were looking ahead. You want a real relationship, not just a one-night stand or short-term fun. It was good of you to be thinking about your future—and hers, by the way. Now you can both move on and find whoever’s right for you.”

“Humph.” Edward stabbed a bite of his steak. “Thanks.”

“And if you’re looking for some wholesome friends, you should come to the Sunrise Bible Study on Sunday. It’s a nice group.”

Something resembling a quiet growl escaped Edward’s lips. “I do
not
care for church.”

“Good, because I didn’t
invite you
to church. I invited you to Bible study. It’s totally different.”

“And where is this Bible study?”

Cooper got quiet. “At a church.”

“Mmm-hmm.”

“Actually, technically, it’s at a school. Come on, Edward.” Cooper tried to think of something that might entice him. “We have really good food and coffee. You could have a gourmet dessert breakfast for free.”

That seemed to do the trick. Edward sat back and thought.

Nathan reappeared at the table. “What’d I miss?”

“I’m trying to convince Edward to come to Bible study.”

“Hey, that’d be great!” Nathan agreed. “Will you come?”

Edward hesitated. “I’ll think about it.”

• • •

The week went by quickly, and as soon as work was done Friday evening, Cooper hurried home to get ready for Parent Night at Hope Street Christian Academy. She changed out of her work attire into comfortable jeans and a green tunic shirt Ashley had insisted she buy during their last shopping trip before the bed rest began. Then Cooper jogged down to the kitchen, where Maggie was just closing the lids on two boxes of cookies.

“Something smells wonderful,” Cooper said, inhaling the scent of freshly baked treats. “What did you make?”

“These are salted caramel banana cookies,” Maggie explained, handing the first box to Cooper. “And these . . .” she said, stacking on the second, “are chocolate chip cocoa cookies.”

“They’re perfect, Mama,” Cooper said, giving Maggie a hug with her free arm. “Thank you so much!” She lifted the lid of the chocolate cookies and breathed in the sweet smell. “These are gonna be a hit! Do you have some extra business cards I could take? Some of the parents may have connections.”

Maggie laughed. “I appreciate the support.” She retrieved a stack of cards from a little tin box by the refrigerator. “You have fun tonight.”

“Between your cookies and Quinton’s cupcakes, I fully intend to.”

Cooper sang along with her radio on the way to church and arrived fifteen minutes before Parent Night was scheduled to begin. Since the snacks were supposed to be set up at five till, she had a good ten minutes to park, deliver Magnolia’s Marvels to the Sunrise Bible Study food table and set up the feast. More than enough time.

Cooper found a space near the school’s main entrance and hurried inside with cookies in tow. The snack table was set up near the door to catch the eye of incoming parents, and Savannah, Jake and Quinton were already preparing the food. The group hadn’t failed to produce a tasty-looking spread.

There were three trays of mini-cupcakes—courtesy of Quinton. Jake ladled fruit punch from a heavy bowl into disposable plastic glasses, while Savannah prepped a pot of decaf vanilla hazelnut coffee.

“Looks good,” Cooper said, setting her cookie boxes at the end of the table. “Quinton, those cupcakes look delicious! I don’t suppose they need sampling.”

Quinton grinned. “Only if your Magnolia’s Marvels need sampling, too!”

“You’ve got yourself a deal.”

Quinton took a paper plate from the stack and set the first mini-cupcake on it. The cake itself looked chocolate, while the frosting was white with brown at the edges. “This is a s’mores cupcake,” he explained. “It has two layers of chocolate with a graham cracker crumble in between. The frosting is marshmallow fluff.”

“The fluff looks like it’s been cooked over a fire!”

“I took my crème brulée torch to the edges.” Quinton set the second mini-cupcake on the plate. The cake and frosting were all white, with what appeared to be nut pieces on top. “These are white chocolate cakes with vanilla coconut frosting, topped with macadamia nuts.”

He pointed to the third kind of cupcake. “That’s just standard red velvet with a cream cheese frosting. It’s nothing special, so don’t feel obligated to sample that, if you don’t want to.”

“I don’t feel obligated,” Cooper replied. She leaned over, took one of the red velvet cupcakes and added it to her sampling plate. “But I want one.”

Before she could take her first bite, Quinton cleared his throat loudly. Cooper turned her attention from her sample plate to see that he was nodding expectantly toward her Magnolia’s Marvels boxes.

“Oh, right!” Cooper set down her cupcake and opened the first box. “These are salted caramel banana.” She set a cookie on a plate, moved the box and opened the next one. “And these are chocolate chip cocoa cookies.” She handed the plate to Quinton, and as he tasted the cookies, Cooper went back to her cupcakes. She sank her teeth into the s’mores cake first. The marshmallow fluff melted in her mouth, combining with the rich dark chocolate cake and the crunch of graham crackers.

“Mmm,” she hummed. “This actually tastes like a s’more!”

Quinton chuckled. “That’s the idea.”

“Yeah, well, I may not leave any for the kids.”

“In that case, they’re out of luck, because I call dibs on the rest of your mama’s cookies.”

Cooper smiled and popped the other half of the s’mores cupcake into her mouth. Before she’d finished chewing, she reached for the white chocolate. The flavor was smooth and light, with the sweetness of coconut and the richness of the nuts. It tasted like a Sunday afternoon summer picnic, and for a moment, she imagined she was running in a grassy field in a white dress and broad hat.

“What do you think?” Quinton asked.

Cooper held up a hand to quiet him. “Just a minute. I’m in the middle of a reverie here.”

Quinton chuckled. “Glad to hear they’re up to par.”

“That’s an understatement.” Cooper downed the rest of the white chocolate cupcake quickly and then tried the red velvet. They were easily the best red velvet cupcakes she’d ever had—so moist and with the perfect amount of sweetness. “I think I’ve died and gone to heaven.”

Savannah laughed. “Don’t leave us just yet, Coop. We need you to serve cookies!”

“Oh, right. Volunteering.” Cooper took a last, longing look at the cupcakes before turning to Savannah. “What’s the plan, exactly?”

“Pastor Matthews wants us to do the serving,” Savannah explained, feeling around for her stool as she spoke. She took a seat. “He doesn’t want the students to gorge themselves, and he thinks the parents might be less inclined to eat if the students come through touching all the desserts.”

“I’m in charge of cupcakes,” Quinton said. “And you’re in charge of cookies. They’ll grab a plate and tell us what they want, but they’re limited to one of each.”

“For the whole evening?” Cooper asked.

Quinton nodded.

“I’m not sure I’ll be able to keep track of who had what all evening.”

Savannah waved away her concern. “You just have to make them
think
you can keep track. That’s the trick.”

Jake wielded his ladle like a sword of victory, holding it up over his head. “And I’ll be divvying out the drinks . . . Uh-oh . . .”

Cooper looked for something askew but couldn’t figure out what it was. “What’s wrong?”

Jake glanced at his watch. “I forgot to get the ice out of the kitchen freezer. I’ll have to break it up, too, before it goes in the ice bucket. And we’re supposed to be all set up in about a minute.”

“I’ll help,” Quinton volunteered. “It’ll go faster with the two of us.”

The men hurried off to the kitchen, leaving Savannah and Cooper together. Cooper helped herself to a cup of decaf.

“Working on any new art lately?” Cooper asked.

Savannah turned on her stool so she faced Cooper. “Jake found an old wagon seat for me—I love to paint on interesting surfaces, you know. I’ve been trying to figure out what picture it needs, and I think I’ve finally settled on one.”

“Do tell!”

“The wagon reminded me of a simpler time—working on a farm with family, having a small community—and I thought, when was it simpler than in the Garden of Eden? Right at the beginning. No sickness, no sadness, no sin. Just working in the Garden and walking with the Lord. I want to put Adam and Eve surrounded by plants and fruits, with all the animals wandering around. What do you think?”

“I think it sounds beautiful! I wish I could understand how you come up with these artistic ideas.”

“What artistic ideas?” a strange woman asked as she approached the table. Her eyes were wide and tired. Her skin was pale and her red hair rather unkempt. She wore a name tag that identified her as Ms. Cassel. “Sorry to interrupt,” she continued. “But I always butt in when I hear something about art or being artistic.”

“Are you a teacher here?” Cooper asked, eyeing the name tag.

“Yes, I’m Sylvia Cassel, the art teacher.”

Savannah held out a hand, which Sylvia kindly took. “That explains why you’re so interested in being artistic. It’s very nice to meet you. I’m Savannah.”

Cooper shook the teacher’s hand, too. “And I’m Cooper. We were just talking about Savannah’s work. She’s a folk artist.”

Sylvia did a double take. “Wait—the folk artist from Hope Street Church?”