Lil'Abner. She had regal diction with a good ol' southern girl accent.
I tapped a pencil on my desk blotter, opened my bottom drawer for an Almond Joy.
Empty.
I kept forgetting. And I wished I wouldn't. Every time I saw that empty drawer, it made me want to cry.
I am so not a crier.
Maybe the new me was. Would that be so bad?
"Then what?" I asked.
"There are . . . people, Nina. People I'd rather not have know where I am. If they saw me on TV . . . "
"Tam!"
"Let's just say I hacked into someone's computer a few years ago," she explained, "and they still haven't forgiven me."
"Are you in danger? Does Ian know?"
Ian Phillips was Tam's live-in love, but not the father of Tam's baby. Nic's dad was in jail on bigamy charges, and I doubted he even knew of her existence. If Tam had her way, Nic would probably grow up thinking Ian was her dad. And I think Ian wanted it that way too. Ian had recently switched from the FBI to the DEA, taking a job that would give him more free time at home. Tam, who had a law-enforcement phobia, hadn't quite reconciled herself to living with the law quite yet.
This could be part of the reason they hadn't made wedding plans.
"I'm not in danger if they don't know where I am! Which is why I can't be on TV. I'm sorry, Nina, but I just can't come in this week."
"It's all right." My goodness, I didn't even want to think about life without Tam in it. She was like the little sister I'd always wanted. Not the bratty spoiled one I actually had. Over the years Tam had become part of my family—everyone had welcomed her with open arms. "The whole somebody's-after-you thing is freaking me out, but if you're not worried . . . "
"I'm not."
"You sure?"
"Positive."
"Okay."
"And Nina?"
"Yeah?"
"Could you please tell your mom I don't need a baby shower? Break it to her gently—I don't want to hurt her feelings. I have everything I need. It would feel wrong to get any more."
I doodled a cake onto my blotter, imagined it was German chocolate with extra coconut. "So, you did know."
She laughed. "Don't I always?"
"I tried to tell her that."
"She is stubborn. Just like someone else I know."
I heard the chimes out front. "I don't know who you're talking about."
"Right."
"I'll see what I can do," I said.
Brickhouse poked her head in the door. "Someone here to see you."
"Who?"
"Jeff Dannon."
"Who?"
I heard a young male voice say, "Ana sent me."
Tam must've heard.
"Are you laughing?" I said to her. "Do I need to remind you Sassy is here at my mercy?"
"You wouldn't!"
"'Bye!" I flipped the phone closed, looked at Brickhouse. "Tam will probably be calling back in a minute."
Brickhouse clucked and turned away.
"Jeff, you can come on in!" I probably should have gotten up to meet him at the door, but I was feeling lazy. Not a good sign the morning training session I'd scheduled with Duke would go well.
Jeff came in, and I did a double take. He was cute. Seriously cute. Much too young for me, but I wasn't blind. Dark hair, light eyes, olive skin that had the look of a perpetual tan. He shook my hand and sat down in the ancient wing chair facing my desk.
"Um, Ms. Bertoli sent me. She thought you could, um, maybe, uh, help me out. Get a job."
I knew why Ana sent him. She was a sucker for goodlooking younger guys. "I don't suppose you have any experience?"
He shook his head.
"What were you arrested for?"
"Petty theft."
I was going to kill Ana.
"I don't—"
"Ms. Quinn, I'm a hard worker. Strong." He showed me his bicep.
Yep. He was strong.
"I made a mistake and now no one will hire me."
I took a deep breath. Ana wasn't the only sucker in the Ceceri family tree. My weakness was for sob stories.
As I thought about it, this was my chance to implement a
key element in my self-discovery quest: saying no. Wasn't I supposed to be changing? Doing things I normally wouldn't? Wasn't I freshly waxed and coiffed?
"Please?" he said with eyes that reminded me of BeBe.
"Oh, all right. But just
I tapped a pencil on my desk blotter, opened my bottom drawer for an Almond Joy.
Empty.
I kept forgetting. And I wished I wouldn't. Every time I saw that empty drawer, it made me want to cry.
I am so not a crier.
Maybe the new me was. Would that be so bad?
"Then what?" I asked.
"There are . . . people, Nina. People I'd rather not have know where I am. If they saw me on TV . . . "
"Tam!"
"Let's just say I hacked into someone's computer a few years ago," she explained, "and they still haven't forgiven me."
"Are you in danger? Does Ian know?"
Ian Phillips was Tam's live-in love, but not the father of Tam's baby. Nic's dad was in jail on bigamy charges, and I doubted he even knew of her existence. If Tam had her way, Nic would probably grow up thinking Ian was her dad. And I think Ian wanted it that way too. Ian had recently switched from the FBI to the DEA, taking a job that would give him more free time at home. Tam, who had a law-enforcement phobia, hadn't quite reconciled herself to living with the law quite yet.
This could be part of the reason they hadn't made wedding plans.
"I'm not in danger if they don't know where I am! Which is why I can't be on TV. I'm sorry, Nina, but I just can't come in this week."
"It's all right." My goodness, I didn't even want to think about life without Tam in it. She was like the little sister I'd always wanted. Not the bratty spoiled one I actually had. Over the years Tam had become part of my family—everyone had welcomed her with open arms. "The whole somebody's-after-you thing is freaking me out, but if you're not worried . . . "
"I'm not."
"You sure?"
"Positive."
"Okay."
"And Nina?"
"Yeah?"
"Could you please tell your mom I don't need a baby shower? Break it to her gently—I don't want to hurt her feelings. I have everything I need. It would feel wrong to get any more."
I doodled a cake onto my blotter, imagined it was German chocolate with extra coconut. "So, you did know."
She laughed. "Don't I always?"
"I tried to tell her that."
"She is stubborn. Just like someone else I know."
I heard the chimes out front. "I don't know who you're talking about."
"Right."
"I'll see what I can do," I said.
Brickhouse poked her head in the door. "Someone here to see you."
"Who?"
"Jeff Dannon."
"Who?"
I heard a young male voice say, "Ana sent me."
Tam must've heard.
"Are you laughing?" I said to her. "Do I need to remind you Sassy is here at my mercy?"
"You wouldn't!"
"'Bye!" I flipped the phone closed, looked at Brickhouse. "Tam will probably be calling back in a minute."
Brickhouse clucked and turned away.
"Jeff, you can come on in!" I probably should have gotten up to meet him at the door, but I was feeling lazy. Not a good sign the morning training session I'd scheduled with Duke would go well.
Jeff came in, and I did a double take. He was cute. Seriously cute. Much too young for me, but I wasn't blind. Dark hair, light eyes, olive skin that had the look of a perpetual tan. He shook my hand and sat down in the ancient wing chair facing my desk.
"Um, Ms. Bertoli sent me. She thought you could, um, maybe, uh, help me out. Get a job."
I knew why Ana sent him. She was a sucker for goodlooking younger guys. "I don't suppose you have any experience?"
He shook his head.
"What were you arrested for?"
"Petty theft."
I was going to kill Ana.
"I don't—"
"Ms. Quinn, I'm a hard worker. Strong." He showed me his bicep.
Yep. He was strong.
"I made a mistake and now no one will hire me."
I took a deep breath. Ana wasn't the only sucker in the Ceceri family tree. My weakness was for sob stories.
As I thought about it, this was my chance to implement a
key element in my self-discovery quest: saying no. Wasn't I supposed to be changing? Doing things I normally wouldn't? Wasn't I freshly waxed and coiffed?
"Please?" he said with eyes that reminded me of BeBe.
"Oh, all right. But just
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