could wave a wand and make her realize how dangerous a game she was playing, but a strong arm pulled me back.
“Take it easy, kitten.”
Leo only called me that when I was under extreme distress. Unfortunately, that was more often than either of us would have liked.
He turned me around and regarded me like I was wearing a bright shiny bow he wanted to unravel.
For a minute, nobody spoke. When I got my bearings I said, “Oh, so now you understand about this stuff? Do you have any idea how old she is?”
Leo’s lips turned just at the corners, apparently amused at my frenzy. “Your little sister did mention that she’s not yet old enough to drive.”
Ivy spoke up then. “I told Leo about how we met in the program?”
I looked at her, puzzled. What the hell was she talking about?
“I think it’s great you joined Big Brothers, Big Sisters,” Leo said.
So now we were stealing, hustling and lying. Tomorrow, we’ll be making moonshine in the bathtub.
Ivy’s face pleaded with me to keep her story straight so I said nothing. Why was she hiding our sisterly secret from everyone but me? Granted, Chance knew because we had to crash his place, but why no one else?
Thankfully, John swung around the corner then and shoved a bottle of beer in Leo’s hand. “Hey, it’s the cat burglar,” he said.
“Aren’t you supposed to be on your honeymoon?” I asked.
“Yeah, well you kinda spoiled that didn’t you? Anyway, Deirdre’s firing up the Karaoke machine,” he said. “That Sayer fella talked her into a duet.”
The bars to “ Summer Lovin’” crooned through the speakers then.
“Oh, Stacy, can I sing next?” Ivy asked.
Suddenly, I understood how Leo must have felt dating my family and me. Reality challenged, every last one.
Exasperated, I said, “Do you not understand what’s happening here? What you’ve done?”
She shrugged. “I get it, you’re mad. You’ll get over it.”
John laughed and I back handed his shoulder.
He didn’t flinch but he did point out that assaulting a peace officer was a felony. Naturally, Leo chimed in with the time he arrested me for launching a snowball at his cruiser.
Ivy said, “You’ve been in jail? That is so cool.”
“It’s not cool and it’s not what you think. I’m about as threatening as Mary Poppins.”
“Didn’t Mary Poppins ply kids with sugar and make them fly off the roof?” John said.
“Why are you here again?” I said.
Leo explained that John was his mentor many years ago back in Chicago. Now he investigated judges, which is how he met Deirdre. She was a court stenographer.
“This guy was your mentor? Really?” I asked and Leo just smiled.
Monique made a Herculean effort to two-step through the doorframe then, carrying a shot that she handed to John. “For Deirdre,” she said.
Her seashell bra must have been exceeding the manufacturer’s recommended capacity because the ladies were pointing in two different directions, clearly trying to escape.
“You owe me a dance officer.” She looked right at me, put her arms around my former man and stuck her tongue down his throat.
It took everything I had not to kick her fin out from under her.
The storm of the century was brewing back outside. That’s another quality of Bloodstone—it wreaks havoc on the weather. Call a cab, call Chance or walk?
“Why didn’t you just punch her?” Ivy asked after a minute.
“Why would I do that?” I said, but I was really thinking, yeah, why didn’t I?
“It’s so obvious Officer McHottie has it bad for you and she is a total tartlet. I would have sunk her to the ground.” Then she did some swift martial arts move that was most impressive.
“Boy, are you going to like Cinnamon.” Luckily, my cousin was due back tomorrow.
I couldn’t wait for Cinnamon to get home. I missed her but I also had a suspicion that she could relate better to Ivy than I could. She wasn’t that much younger than me, but she was craftier in the
“Take it easy, kitten.”
Leo only called me that when I was under extreme distress. Unfortunately, that was more often than either of us would have liked.
He turned me around and regarded me like I was wearing a bright shiny bow he wanted to unravel.
For a minute, nobody spoke. When I got my bearings I said, “Oh, so now you understand about this stuff? Do you have any idea how old she is?”
Leo’s lips turned just at the corners, apparently amused at my frenzy. “Your little sister did mention that she’s not yet old enough to drive.”
Ivy spoke up then. “I told Leo about how we met in the program?”
I looked at her, puzzled. What the hell was she talking about?
“I think it’s great you joined Big Brothers, Big Sisters,” Leo said.
So now we were stealing, hustling and lying. Tomorrow, we’ll be making moonshine in the bathtub.
Ivy’s face pleaded with me to keep her story straight so I said nothing. Why was she hiding our sisterly secret from everyone but me? Granted, Chance knew because we had to crash his place, but why no one else?
Thankfully, John swung around the corner then and shoved a bottle of beer in Leo’s hand. “Hey, it’s the cat burglar,” he said.
“Aren’t you supposed to be on your honeymoon?” I asked.
“Yeah, well you kinda spoiled that didn’t you? Anyway, Deirdre’s firing up the Karaoke machine,” he said. “That Sayer fella talked her into a duet.”
The bars to “ Summer Lovin’” crooned through the speakers then.
“Oh, Stacy, can I sing next?” Ivy asked.
Suddenly, I understood how Leo must have felt dating my family and me. Reality challenged, every last one.
Exasperated, I said, “Do you not understand what’s happening here? What you’ve done?”
She shrugged. “I get it, you’re mad. You’ll get over it.”
John laughed and I back handed his shoulder.
He didn’t flinch but he did point out that assaulting a peace officer was a felony. Naturally, Leo chimed in with the time he arrested me for launching a snowball at his cruiser.
Ivy said, “You’ve been in jail? That is so cool.”
“It’s not cool and it’s not what you think. I’m about as threatening as Mary Poppins.”
“Didn’t Mary Poppins ply kids with sugar and make them fly off the roof?” John said.
“Why are you here again?” I said.
Leo explained that John was his mentor many years ago back in Chicago. Now he investigated judges, which is how he met Deirdre. She was a court stenographer.
“This guy was your mentor? Really?” I asked and Leo just smiled.
Monique made a Herculean effort to two-step through the doorframe then, carrying a shot that she handed to John. “For Deirdre,” she said.
Her seashell bra must have been exceeding the manufacturer’s recommended capacity because the ladies were pointing in two different directions, clearly trying to escape.
“You owe me a dance officer.” She looked right at me, put her arms around my former man and stuck her tongue down his throat.
It took everything I had not to kick her fin out from under her.
The storm of the century was brewing back outside. That’s another quality of Bloodstone—it wreaks havoc on the weather. Call a cab, call Chance or walk?
“Why didn’t you just punch her?” Ivy asked after a minute.
“Why would I do that?” I said, but I was really thinking, yeah, why didn’t I?
“It’s so obvious Officer McHottie has it bad for you and she is a total tartlet. I would have sunk her to the ground.” Then she did some swift martial arts move that was most impressive.
“Boy, are you going to like Cinnamon.” Luckily, my cousin was due back tomorrow.
I couldn’t wait for Cinnamon to get home. I missed her but I also had a suspicion that she could relate better to Ivy than I could. She wasn’t that much younger than me, but she was craftier in the
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