I backed out of the stall and headed out of the lot. I glanced in the rearview mirror. Carly was red-faced, and her eyes were glazed over. She was exhausted. Which meant a nap was on the horizon. Which meant . . .
“We may get some alone time,” Julianne whispered.
“Was just thinking the same thing.”
“You sure you aren’t too tired, Coach?” She moved her hand and rested it on my thigh.
I smiled. “I’m so irresistible, aren’t I?”
She lifted her hand. “I just need you to make the next baby. You’re a conduit.”
I glanced at her, and she wore the smirk she always wore that put me in my place.
We were ready for another child. We’d relished the first five years alone with Carly, and we’d done that on purpose. She was our first, and we wanted to dote on her, give her as much attention as possible. And we wanted to be rested before the second one came along. Not that Carly was a tough kid—she wasn’t—but any child will wear you out as he or she goes from infancy to toddlerhood to kindergarten.
People looked at us a little strangely. In Rose Petal you were expected to follow one kid with another, and then maybe another, so that your house was filled with small people all under the age of five. But Julianne and I had stood our ground against the peer pressure and had stuck to our plan.
However, it was time to enact phase two of our plan. Which, you know, I was kinda looking forward to. I wasn’t going to mind if it took a while. Practice makes perfect.
I pointed the minivan in the direction of our home and tried to obey the speed limit. This was a hard thing to do, particularly when I saw Carly nod off in her car seat.
“She’s out,” I whispered.
“I know,” Julianne whispered back. Her smirk morphed into a smile, and my foot slammed harder on the accelerator.
I slowed down enough so as not to cause the van to go airborne as we pulled into the driveway, and eased it into the garage. I kept the engine running until the garage door was down behind us, then shut off the ignition. Carly wasn’t exactly a light sleeper, but she didn’t need a lot of encouragement to wake up, either.
“I’ll run her upstairs,” I said.
“I’ll be in the living room.”
“The living room?”
The smile grew devilish. “We can be a little . . . noisier in the living room.”
Oh, my. “I’ll meet you there.”
I managed to open the van doors, remove Carly from her seat, and get her into my arms without her stirring. I gave Julianne a thumbs-up, turned, and walked as quickly as I could into the house, up the stairs, and into her room. I laid her down on her bed and she squirmed a little, settling onto the blankets, but kept her eyes shut, smacking her lips.
I paused and smiled. It would be nice to have another of those. I liked being a dad. Even better, I loved being a dad who got to stay home with Carly, far more than I ever anticipated I would. Everyone had warned me that adding a second child to the mix might change my mind, but I was willing to take that chance.
If only because phase two sounded like so much fun.
I bounded down the stairs, careful to keep my footsteps light. I kicked off my sneakers, tossed my socks on top, and found Julianne stretched out on the sofa.
In black lingerie.
“Whoa,” I said.
The devilish smile returned. “Such a way with words.”
“Whoa,” I said again.
“Good thing I don’t need to be wooed.”
“I could try and woo you.”
“Come closer and whisper your woos in my ear.”
I leaned down and stretched out my body on top of hers, every synapse in me firing like pistons in a race car. I felt sorry for those men who got bored with their wives. Julianne was more attractive now than the day I met her, and every time she smiled at me, butterflies still took off in my stomach.
She wrapped her arms around my neck and kissed me, setting off fireworks inside my head. Our bodies meshed together, and I realized there was no possible way phase two could ever be overrated.
“Don’t you two have a bedroom?” a voice said from the entryway.
Julianne’s body stiffened beneath me, and the fireworks in my head disappeared, replaced by a gathering fury that could be brought on by just one person.
“Don’t stop on my account,” the voice said. “I’ll wait till you’re done.”
“What is he doing in here?” Julianne whispered, shrinking beneath me.
“I have no idea,” I said, resting my forehead against hers. “Do we have to stop?”
“Deuce!” Julianne said in my ear. “Do something!”
I sighed and swiveled my head in the direction of the other, unwelcome voice.
Victor Anthony Doolittle waved his tiny fingers at me.
Friggin’ midget.
4
I shooed Victor outside so Julianne could get out from beneath me and scamper upstairs to get dressed. I took a couple of deep breaths, clenched and unclenched my fists, and walked out to the front porch.
Victor was sitting on the bench swing, legs a foot off the ground, sipping a Dr Pepper.
“Really,” he said, grinning, “you didn’t have to stop on my account.”
“What the hell are you doing walking into my house uninvited?”
He shrugged. “I knocked. You didn’t answer. I walked around back. Back door was open. I was thirsty.” He shrugged his shoulders again. “I was gonna walk back out, but then I saw you and the luscious missus about to get down and dirty, and . . . I musta forgot to walk out.” He smiled and bounced his eyebrows.
“Do not walk into my home uninvited again. Ever,” I said, leaning against the wooden railing that encircled the porch. “Got it?”
He rolled his eyes. “Settle down, Kareem. No way I was gonna stand there and watch you get naked.”
“Ever.”
His eyes widened, like he couldn’t figure out why I was so angry. “Fine. But you should lock your doors, pal.”
My fists tightened into balls, something that happened quite frequently when I was around Victor Anthony Doolittle. Every time I saw him, I contemplated ending our little partnership.
Pun intended.
I took a deep breath. “Why are you here?”
“I need a reason?”
“Absolutely. And most of the time, that isn’t enough.”
“You’re starting to hurt my feelings.”
“Like you have feelings.”
He held the soda can to his lips. “Good point.” He tilted his head back, emptied the can, and ripped off a huge belch, crumpling the can in his fat little hand. “I got a call.”
“A call?”
“Some woman about some soccer guy? Said she spoke to you?”
I should’ve known Belinda wouldn’t wait. “Belinda.”
“That’s it, Kareem. Yeah, Belinda. What’s the deal?”
I explained what Belinda told me about Huber.
Victor took that in and made a noncommittal face. “Doesn’t sound that complicated. Doubt he’d be hard to find.”
“Probably not,” I agreed.
“Any reason we shouldn’t do it?”
“The fact that working with you makes me wanna vomit?”
“Again. The feelings.”
“You said you don’t have any.”
“Oh. Right. So maybe just stop being a jerk, then.”
“Where do you get jeans that small? The Children’s Place?”
His face flushed and I smiled. He could pretend all he wanted, but cracks about his size always produced a rise. Which almost made it worth him showing up.
“Ha-ha, Kareem,” he said, struggling down from the swing and setting his feet on the porch. He was barely bigger than Carly, even with the fedora on his bald head. “Okay. You wanna tell her we’ll take it, or you want me to call her?”
“You sure you wanna do it?”
“Sure. Seems like a piece of cake.”
> “You tell her what our rate is?” I asked.
“Of course.”
“And she said?”
“No problem.”
I laughed. “She doesn’t have any money, Victor.”
“Excuse me?”
“Huber took all the money. Literally all of it. She wants to pay us when we find him. If we find him. And the money.”
“Well, forget that,” he said, waving a dismissive hand in the air, his facial features scrunching up with irritation. “That ain’t gonna fly.”
“Oh, it’s gonna fly, Victor,” Julianne said, stepping through the screen door and out onto the porch, a T-shirt and shorts now hiding the lingerie. “It’s gonna fly.”
Victor quickly removed his hat and cupped it to his stomach. “Well, hello, Julianne.”
He’d had a crush on her since the moment he’d laid eyes on her, and while it annoyed the crap out of me, I’d been willing to leverage that on several occasions, as had Julianne. He was hard to ruffle, but he came undone anytime she was around.
“Hello, Victor,” she said, folding her arms across her chest. “It’ll fly. You’re taking the case.”
“Ma’am?”
“I’m not your mama, so don’t ‘ma’am’ me,” she said, wrinkling her nose. “You and Deuce are going to help Belinda.”
“We are?” Victor said.
“We are?” I repeated.
She glanced at me, a warning to keep my mouth shut, then moved her gaze back to Victor. “Yes. You are.”
“But if she can’t pay, then . . .”
“Carly plays in that soccer league, and while I think it just might be the dumbest thing on this planet to chase around a ball, kicking it into some oversize net, she loves it,” Julianne explained. “I mean, she lives for it. And if Mr. Huber took all that money and doesn’t come back, she isn’t going to get to play. And that will make me very unhappy. Do you understand, Victor?”
His cheeks flushed. “Well, yes, ma’am, but—”
“Seriously, honey, if you call me ma’am again, I will break one of your itty-bitty fingers,” she said, smiling much the way I imagined pit vipers might smile if they could smile.
His cheeks went from pink to red. “Okay . . . Julianne. But if she can’t pay—”
“Victor, honestly,” she said, cutting him off again. “You just saw me almost naked. Isn’t that payment enough?”
I brought a hand to my mouth to hide a smile.
“And I’m sure you can understand how upset I am that not only were you in my house without permission, but you also interrupted my afternoon with my husband,” she continued. “You got to see me in my underwear, but I didn’t really get what I wanted.”
“Yeah, that’s—” I started.
“Shut it, Deuce,” she said, without looking at me. “So don’t you see, Victor? You owe me.”
“I do?” he asked.
“Oh, most definitely. So as payment, I would like for you and Deuce to help Belinda.” The pit viper smiled again. “Because otherwise, I will be very, very angry with you. And I don’t think you want that.”
Victor’s mouth tightened into a knotted swirl, and he stared down at the hat in his hands. He shifted his feet against the porch. Finally, he set the hat back on his head.
“Okay,” he said. “We’ll do it.”
Julianne clapped her hands together. “Excellent! I knew you’d see it my way.”
Victor nodded, then shook his head like he wasn’t sure what had just happened.
I knew the feeling.
“I’ll call you,” he said, stepping past me and heading down the steps to the sidewalk.
“Oh, and, Victor?” Julianne called, stepping over to the railing.
He stopped and turned around. “Yeah?”
“If you tell anyone that you saw me in my undies, I will stick my fingers so far into your eyes, you’ll never see anything ever again.” A wide smile settled onto her face. “Okay, sweetie?”
He pursed his lips and nodded his head before getting into his car and driving off.
5
Before we could even attempt to reestablish the mood, Carly stumbled down the stairs.
“I’m hungry,” she said, rubbing her eyes.
Julianne swept her up, kissed her cheek, and carried her into the kitchen.
It would’ve been incredibly sweet if I wasn’t so incredibly worked up.
Phase two was put on hold for the rest of the day.
I spent the rest of the afternoon mowing the lawn, washing the cars, and cleaning out the garage in an attempt to burn off my phase two energy. Carly came out and helped me weed along the fence in the backyard, ripping up handfuls of stems, leaving the roots firmly in place.
We finished and, hot and flushed, changed into our swimsuits and walked down to the community pool with Julianne. I commandeered two chaise lounge chairs beneath the awning, while Carly scrambled into the shallow end, already spotting friends to play with.
“Brainstorm with me,” I said to Julianne.
She shifted in her chair. “I’m sunning myself.”
“Multitask.”
“That’s what I do during the week.”
“Jules. Please.”
She sighed. “Fine. How can I be of service?”
“Why does Moe Huber walk off with that money?”
“He wanted to buy a lot of doughnuts?”
“Very funny.”
“I don’t know him, Deuce,” Julianne said. “I have no idea.”
I watched Carly cannonball into the water and doggy paddle back to the wall. “Debt. Maybe he owes someone money.”
“See? You don’t need me.”
“Jules.”
She sighed and propped herself up on her elbows, keeping an eye on Carly in the water. “All right, all right. Yes, debt would make sense. Probably the first reason anyone steals money. Unless you’re Robin Hood.”
A beach ball bounced across the surface of the water.
“So maybe he’s Robin Hood,” I said. “Stealing to help someone.”
Julianne wrinkled her nose beneath her oversize sunglasses. “Nah. You don’t steal that much if you’re giving it to someone else. I like debt better.”
“So how does one accrue the kind of debt that would cause one to clean out the coffers of a youth soccer association?”
She swung her legs over the side of the chair and sat up. “A long-building debt? Like it started small and grew. Like you weren’t prepared for the hole you dug yourself?”
I thought about what Belinda had told me about poker games.
“Gambling?”
“Sure,” she agreed.
I glanced at the water. Carly was splashing water over the side of the pool. “Some sort of get-rich-quick scheme?”
“Okay.”
“Drug problem?”
“Maybe.”
“What do you think?”
“Isn’t this what you’re supposed to do as a P.I.?” she asked, an eyebrow arching above the glasses. “Are you putting me on retainer?”
“Jules, I’m being serious.”
She held up a hand. “Okay, fine. You can’t take a joke this afternoon. I can see where missing out on sex with me might do that to you.”
A smile found its way onto my lips.
Carly materialized at our chairs, hugging another little wet girl.
“Audrey’s here!” she squealed.
I smiled. “Yes, she is. Hi, Audrey.”
“Hi!”
They were preschool pals. They could’ve been twins and had a penchant for hugging one another as tightly as they could.
“Can Carly come to my camp?” Audrey asked.
“Please!” Carly said.
“What camp?” Julianne asked.
“At my church. VBS!”
“Please!” Carly said again.
Julianne glanced at me. “It’s okay with me.”
“We’ll see,” I said.
Carly frowned. “When will we
see?”
“We’ll see,” I repeated.
“When?”
“Carly.”
“Please, Daddy.”
The word Daddy had a profound effect on me. In that it usually caused me to acquiesce.
“Okay,” I said, shaking my head. “We’ll figure it out.”
They started jumping up and down and headed back to the water.
“You are such a pushover,” Julianne said, smiling.
“Here’s where I’m stuck,” I said, watching Carly grab onto the metal railing that descended into the water, then spin herself upside down on it like a monkey. “Belinda said Huber insisted on full financial oversight, giving him the power to do whatever he wanted without having to involve anyone else.”
“Right. Unbelievably stupid and irresponsible on the association’s part.”
“Yeah. But that was almost a year ago when he was reelected.”
Julianne eyed the pool and rested her chin in her hand. “So it was something he was planning.”
“Or there was something he was already into and he was worried that it was going to get out of hand.”
“You really don’t need me for this,” she said, smiling.
“You make me feel smart.”
“I seek to serve.”
“So then where does he go with the money?”
She thought for a minute. “To whomever he owes it to. Or to hide. Or to Jamaica.”
“Maybe I’ll need to go to Jamaica to look for him.”
“Or maybe just send Victor.”
“Not sure he’s capable of handling that trip alone.”
“Not sure you’d have a wife to come back to if you went to Jamaica without her.” She stood. “I’m hot. I’m getting in the water.”
“That much cash is a lot to travel with.”
“Probably didn’t fit in his wallet, no.”
“That’s what I’m saying,” I said. “Physically, that is a lot to carry.”
Julianne leaned down and set her hands on my shoulders. “You don’t need me. Hash it out with Victor. He’s unbelievably annoying, but he’s actually good at this. Don’t forget that.”
I nodded. He really was. For all the hair he made me want to pull out, Victor really was good at investigating. I’d never say it out loud, but he was better than I was.
Julianne leaned down and kissed me. “And don’t forget to help me make a baby tonight, after Carly goes to sleep. Get all your hashing out done before you get naked.”
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