“Yeah, I would. I’ll put it on,” Michael offered.
Myra shook her head. “No, that’s all right. I’ll do it.” While Myra was measuring the grounds and water into the coffee maker, Michael set the table.
When the coffee was poured, Myra looked Michael straight in the eyes and asked, “You said you had something important to discuss with me tonight—what is it, sweetheart? I’m all ears.”
“Well—” Michael wasn’t sure where to begin. “Before we got married, you said you wanted to have children right away. Now, it seems you’ve kinda put the idea on hold.”
Myra laughed loudly. “Oh, so that’s why you’ve been so petulant lately. You think I’ve changed my mind about raising a family. Honey, I want us to have kids just as much as you do—my biological clock is ticking, too, you know—but, we really can’t afford the added expense of a child right now. You know you’re not making enough money at the Times for me to quit my job at the Gold Crest and stay home and have babies.”
Michael’s face acquired a downhearted expression. “Maybe I should start looking for a better-paying job. Abe Fox once offered to hire me in the security department of the Byrd Group casinos.”
Myra shook her head. “No, silly, that’s not the answer. I know you love what you’re doing. Things will work out. Maybe not as fast as you or I would like them to, but, eventually they will. I’m sure of that.
“Actually, I’ve been able to set aside a pretty good chunk of my earnings. I didn’t tell you what I was doing because I wanted it to be a surprise, but I’ve saved enough money to make a down payment on a house.”
Michael’s brows wrinkled. “A house? What’s wrong with our condo?”
Myra looked at him in amazement. He really didn’t understand. She tried not to sound patronizing. “We can’t raise kids here, Michael. There isn’t nearly enough room. We need a place with at least three bedrooms and a back yard. This condo was fine when you were a bachelor, and it’s a cozy little love nest for just the two of us. But it’s not a good place to raise a family. Look around. There aren’t any small children in the complex at all and only a couple of teenagers. Everyone here is either single, newly married, or retired.”
Michael nodded. “I guess you’re right. I never thought about it that way.”
“I’ll tell you what,” Myra suggested. “Why don’t you start looking at houses—you have more time available for that sort of thing than I do right now. When you find a place that interests you, we’ll go back and check it out together. With the low interest rates right now we should be able to get into a real home for smaller payments than we’re making on this condo. After we move we can review our finances again. Hopefully, by then we’ll have enough money set aside so we can start on a family.”
Michael looked positively relieved. “I’m glad we talked tonight, Myra. You’ve eased my mind a lot. I was beginning to think there was something wrong with our marriage.”
Myra’s jaw dropped open. She was shocked by the implication. “Heavens, no! Why on earth would you think that?”
“Well … I guess … because you always seem to be so preoccupied lately. You haven’t had much time for me.”
Myra rose from her chair and went to the other side of the table. She gave Michael a big hug. “Oh, you poor thing!” she commiserated. “I’ve been neglecting my big teddy bear! Well, it’s still early tonight, and I’m here and you’re here, and I think we should hurry to bed and get in a little baby-making practice. Does that sound okay to you?”
Michael gave Myra a big kiss. The question didn’t require any other answer.
MICHAEL SAT AT HIS COMPUTER writing a review of his previous night’s meal at Porky’s Barbecue. He was deeply engrossed in his work and did not hear Kimberly Cohen enter the small office they shared. Kimberly stood behind Michael, her hands on her hips, and watched him type. He continued to be totally unaware of her presence. Kimberly stepped nearer, a subtle smile growing on her face. Michael still did not know she was there.
After several minutes, Kimberly took out a Winston Lights 100 and lit it. Michael was startled by the noise and the puff of smoke and spun his swivel chair around quickly. As he turned, his face bounced into her breasts. He looked up with a dazed expression. Kimberly was wearing a white silk two-piece pantsuit outfit—she often wore a solid white ensemble—with several gold chains around her neck.
There were no two ways about it. Kimberly Cohen was an extremely attractive woman. But then, so was Michael’s wife. Although Michael tried to be objective, he could not decide who was the more desirable of the two—Kim, with her light complexion, honey-blonde hair, and sparkling turquoise eyes; her pouty lips; her large, firm breasts, diminutive waist, and voluptuous hips. Or, Myra, whose sultry olive complexion, brown eyes, shoulder-length brown hair, and tall, leggy, slender but well-proportioned frame contrasted sharply with the other woman’s more generous attributes. He only knew they were both drop-dead gorgeous and he would enjoy sitting and staring at either of the two women for hours on end. Nothing pleased him more than escorting the two beauties somewhere, one attached to each arm.
Michael’s relationship with Kimberly had started off awkwardly. He had been on an investigative reporting assignment while Myra was out of town. In the course of the investigation, Michael saved Kim’s life. She, in turn, tried to maneuver him into bed, but he managed, just barely, to resist her advances.
To Michael’s surprise, when the assignment was completed E J. Geller hired Kim to work at the Times. Michael panicked. He didn’t know if he was going to be able to handle the daily temptation. Then, to everyone’s surprise, on Kim’s first day on the job, Myra walked into the newsroom and recognized her. It turned out Kim and Myra had been best friends in high school, but they’d lost touch with each other over the years. The two women were deliriously happy to be able to renew their friendship.
The three of them became close friends. Things might have been different if Myra knew that, at every possible opportunity, Kimberly tried to entice Michael into her bed.
Michael dismissed Kimberly’s frequent sexual overtures without serious consideration, believing her flirtatious banter was nothing more than a running joke. The thought Kimberly might truly be lusting for him never crossed Michael’s mind.
“How was dinner last night?” Kimberly asked pleasantly. She was still upset because Michael had expressly excluded her from last night’s dinner plans, but she did not want to give him the satisfaction of knowing how she felt.
“The silverware was relatively clean,” Michael muttered matter-of-factly.
“That bad, huh?” Secretly, Kimberly was pleased the dinner-for-two had been a flop.
“Yeah … that bad.”
“I guess I know what restaurant won’t be advertising in the Times in the future.”
“You’ve got that right. I call ’em the way I taste ’em. I’m not one of those wimpy restaurant critics who believes that if you can’t say something good about a restaurant, say something good anyway.”
“In other words, you have integrity.”
“God, I hope so. Sometimes I think that’s all I have.”
“You can have me, whenever you want,” Kimberly teased. She licked her lips with her tongue lasciviously, knowing full well the erotic body language turned Michael on.
Michael smiled weakly. “You’re a day late, Kimberly. Yesterday, I might have taken you up on your invitation. That’s the honest truth.” He really didn’t mean what he said.
Kimberly pouted. “Drat. My timing is off again. That seems to be the story of my life. What happened between yesterday and today to cause you to change your mind about wanting to sleep with me?”
“Well … last night Myra and I straightened something out between us.”
“Humph. I can just imagine what that was.”
“Yeah … you get the picture.” There was a mischievous glint in his eye.
“From what you just said, I’m getting the impression there hasn�
��t been much sex lately in the Kaplan household. Is the honeymoon finally over, Michael? Are you about ready to try something new and improved?” She started massaging his shoulders tantalizingly. Michael decided to let her continue. What the heck, it felt damn good.
“No, our marriage is fine. Ouch.” Kimberly had pinched a tight muscle. Hard. Deliberately.
“Myra and I just had a little misunderstanding, that’s all,” Michael continued.
“I know it’s none of my business, but since you brought the subject up, what was the misunderstanding about?” she queried.
“You’re right, it is none of your business, but I’ll tell you, anyway. Before we were married, Myra said she wanted to have kids right away. But she’s been putting it off, and I thought possibly there was something she wasn’t telling me.”
An eyebrow raised. “Oh? And was there?”
Michael shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly. “Not exactly. Myra just wants to get our finances in order first. That’s why she’s been working so hard and putting in a lot of overtime. At least, that’s what she says.”
“So now Myra’s ready to get pregnant?” Even though she was Jewish, Kimberly crossed her fingers. Please, let him say no.
“Well, not just yet. Perhaps soon, though.”
Kimberly breathed a sigh of relief. It would be much more difficult to wrest him from Myra’s clutches once they had children. “I’m really glad to hear you say that, Michael,” she told him.
Michael did not realize Kimberly was referring to the first half of his statement, not the second. “Thanks, Kim. I know you want what’s best for us.”
“Yes, I certainly do,” she agreed. Of course, Kimberly’s idea of what would be best for them was very different from Michael’s concept. For the moment, anyway. In time he would come around. All it would take would be for her to get him in bed once. Just once.
“Kim, will you do me a big favor and finish this critique? I’ve written down all the facts. You’ll just have to smooth out my copy.”
“Sure, Michael, I’ll do anything you ask, any time. You know that.” She really had intended to go to lunch and was hoping Michael would join her. “Are you going somewhere?”
“Yes. I have an appointment with a real estate agent. Myra and I are thinking about buying a house.”
“How nice.” That was bad news. The more commitments Michael made with Myra, the more difficult Kim’s goal of prying him loose from her would become. But perhaps even this decision could be turned to her advantage. “I can whip your restaurant review out in just a few minutes. Want to wait for me? I’d love to come along to look at houses with you,” she told him enthusiastically.
“Perhaps another time. I’m late already. I should be back in just a couple of hours. Myra has to work again tonight, and there’s a restaurant I need to check out. Want to have dinner with me?”
“Sure. Why not? I can arrange that,” she replied, without enthusiasm. Inside, Kimberly was absolutely thrilled, but she didn’t want Michael to know how much she looked forward to spending another evening alone with him—without Myra. If he really knew what was constantly on her mind, he would be much more on the defensive and thus much less vulnerable to her charms.
Five
“I’M SOOZIE. FOLLOW ME. We’ll go to my office, so we can talk in private.”
Soozie Snyder led the way from the shared office area, where several secretaries were busily typing or talking on the telephone, down the hall to a small cubicle outfitted with a desk, three chairs, a filing cabinet, and a computer. She swayed sensually as she walked. Soozie knew what she was doing. She knew the undulating motion of her hips would emphasize her callipygian appearance. Michael had a difficult time looking anywhere other than at her backside.
Once they sat down facing each other, he noted Soozie’s uncanny resemblance to Barbra Streisand—the high cheekbones, the distinctive nose, the bedroom eyes, the full mouth, the ample breasts. But her hair—brilliant orange, in a pixie cut—seemed more like a style he had seen on Shirley MacLaine, perhaps in an old Technicolor movie musical.
Michael did not notice, but, while he was looking her over, Soozie was also evaluating him. She liked what she saw. He was tall, dark, and handsome, with an engaging smile and an athletic build. Early thirties, she thought, just a couple of years older than she. Soozie rated him a ten plus, a real hunk. When she suggestively moistened her lips with her tongue, Michael turned away slightly. Was that a blush of embarrassment she noticed? His reaction to her gesture could be charged with hidden meaning.
Soozie sat up straight and blinked to clear her head. It was not a good idea to mix business with pleasure. She poised a ballpoint pen, to signify she was prepared to make notes. “So, Mr. Kaplan, you’re interested in buying a home. What do you have in mind?”
“Call me Michael, please. A single-family residence, not a condo. Three bedrooms, possibly four. At least two thousand square feet. In a good neighborhood, of course, with a decent-sized lot and back yard. Not a fixer-upper, either. I’m not much of a handyman,” he admitted with a grin.
Soozie seemed puzzled. “Are you going to be the only occupant of the house?”
Michael laughed. “No. It’ll be for me and my wife. And hopefully for a bunch of kids, one of these days.”
Soozie looked down to Michael’s left hand. There was a plain gold band on his ring finger. She hadn’t noticed the ring earlier. She must be slipping. That was usually the first thing she checked out. Still, a man’s marital status made little difference to her. All men were fair game, married or not.
“No children yet, I take it?”
“You take it right. We’ve decided to wait on starting our family until we’re settled in a nice home.”
Soozie frowned slightly. Maybe he didn’t really want to buy a house. Maybe he wanted to get her alone somewhere and rape her. It had happened to other real estate agents, many times before.
“It’s a little unusual for a married man to be looking for a house by himself,” she commented. “Perhaps we should reschedule our appointment for some time when Mrs. Kaplan is also available.”
“No, that isn’t necessary,” Michael informed her. “I’m going to do the initial screening. I’ll bring my wife back to look at any places I like. Myra’s very busy at work right now. If I can weed out the obviously unacceptable properties by myself it will save her a lot of valuable time.”
He seemed sincere enough. Soozie decided to take a chance. She could take care of herself. “I understand, Michael. And I don’t mind at all.”
From a purely business standpoint Soozie didn’t like the idea, because it made her selling job more difficult. She knew it was always better to show property to the husband and wife together. She could watch for the subconscious signals they sent out to each other and see the involuntary exchanges when their eyes met. By interpreting their nonverbal language, she always knew exactly the right moment to press for the sale. But in this instance perhaps there could be advantages in leaving the wife out of the picture for the time being. Only time would tell.
“Let me get a little bit of information about you and your wife, and then I’d like you to fill out a checklist about your likes and dislikes. When you’ve finished with the checklist, I’ll key the information into my computer. Within a few minutes I’ll have a list of homes that should meet most or all of your specifications. Hopefully, one of them will be just right for you.”
“Are you saying we won’t have to spend hours poring through multiple listing books and driving all over town for days on end?” Michael asked.
Soozie laughed. “Heavens, no. That’s the old-fashioned way of trying to locate the right property. Computers have changed that. It’s much more efficient for the computer to do the research and match your needs with what’s available on the market. Computers take most of the drudgery out of home-hunting.”
“Sounds good to me,” Michael told her enthusiastically. “Let’s get started.”
“Where
do you work, Michael?”
“At the Las Vegas Times. I’m a reporter.” Michael was not supposed to tell anyone he was the Anonymous Gourmet. Geller repeatedly said if the restaurateurs knew the A.G.’s identity, his objectivity would be compromised.
Soozie’s eyes lit up at mention of the Times. “How long have you worked for the newspaper?”
“About five years now.”
“What did you do before that?”
“Various part-time jobs. I was a student. I went to law school in California. I’m a member of the California Bar. But I’d rather write than practice law.”
“That’s a coincidence. I have a similar situation. I’m a registered nurse, but I can make much more money selling real estate. Oh, I keep my RN license active, just in case I ever want to get back into the nursing field, and I volunteer a couple of days each month at the blood bank, so my years of medical training won’t be a total waste.
Blue Goodness (Michael Kaplan Mysteries) Page 4