“Hmm,” he murmured as he drove away from the Red Lantern Inn. “That’s odd.” The mischievous grin was firmly in place, the sparkling blue eyes hidden once again behind the mirrored aviators.
She fixed him with a look that he caught out of the corner of his eye. “You went back and bought the dresser, didn’t you? When you went back for your sunglasses.”
Bobby smiled and drove toward the main highway. “You liked it, cher.”
“Bobby, that was expensive. And you’ve paid for everything: dinner, two rooms at the hotel... I can’t accept such an extravagant gift.”
“Why not? Have you enjoyed yourself?”
“Of course I have, and that’s not the point. The point is...”
“The point is, I have plenty of money. When I can use a little of it to make someone happy, it makes me happy.” He kept his eyes on the road, his mouth a tight line.
“Like the Little League uniforms,” she said, quietly thoughtful.
“We’re not going to have our first fight over money, are we?” he chuckled softly.
Maggie smiled reluctantly. “We’re not fighting. We’re just...discussing divergent opinions.” They both laughed. “I don’t mean to make this a big fat hairy deal. I just like to pull my own weight, that’s all.”
“Duly noted, counselor,” he teased.
They drove along through the snow-covered landscape, Norah Jones playing softly in the background. Bobby leaned his right elbow on the center console and Maggie rested her left hand there, occasionally stroking his arm absently, each of them enjoying the peaceful ride.
“Easter is next weekend,” Bobby said, breaking the silence. “My folks are bringing Savannah up for her first visit to New York.”
Maggie glanced his way. “Oh?”
He nodded. “I’d like them to meet you.”
Her eyes widened. “Wow. Meet the family. That’s kind of...”
“I know, it’s a little soon.” He looked at her for a moment before returning his eyes to the road. “But I know they’re going to love you.” I’m pretty sure I do.
Maggie knitted her fingers together in her lap and exhaled. “I don’t know, Bobby. That’s a little intimidating.”
“Well, think about it,” he said more casually than he felt. “I suppose that means we won’t be going out next weekend. And I’m working nights this week. Maybe we can get together for lunch one day.”
She forced a smile. “That sounds good. I’m in court all week. But they have to let me out for lunch.” She laughed nervously.
I’ve pushed this too hard, he thought. I never was good at dating games.
Too soon, they were making their way through lower Manhattan toward Maggie’s apartment. Bobby parked in front of her building and together they went to find the apartment super who lived on the first floor and was none too pleased to be disturbed on a Sunday.
He glared at Maggie from his doorway, his usual weekend attire of old jeans and a stained wife-beater firmly in place, a plaid flannel bathrobe completing the ensemble, an accommodation for the cold day. “Hi, Victor. Can you help us get a dresser upstairs?” Maggie asked.
“Maggie, it’s Sunday, for Pete’s sake,” the man grumbled, annoyed to be interrupted during his lunch.
Bobby stepped up to the doorway. “If you have a hand truck I’m pretty sure we can get it ourselves.”
“Holy shit! You’re Beau Beaulieu!” Victor exclaimed. “Maggie, you know Beau Beaulieu?” The building super wiped his hands on his robe and grinned broadly. “Of course I have a hand truck, no problem, no problem at all. I’ll be right there.” The man retreated into his apartment.
Maggie smirked at Bobby. “It must be nice,” she said.
“It has its perks,” he quipped.
Victor returned to his door with his keys, having made a side trip to put on a clean sweatshirt and ditch the robe. “I keep the dolly in the basement.”
Hand truck retrieved, Maggie stood back and let the two men slide the dresser from the back of Bobby’s car and she opened the door for them as they maneuvered it into the building and up the stairs to her apartment.
Victor stood back and stared unbelievingly at Bobby. “I tell you, Maggie, you and Beau Beaulieu.” He shook his head. “Beats the hell outta that bum you used to live with.”
Maggie flushed pink. “Wow, Victor, thanks for opening that can of worms,” she murmured.
He turned to Bobby. “Seriously, Maggie had that cop here with her for a while. That guy was a bum.” Victor just happened to have his phone in his pocket and Bobby dutifully posed for a couple of pictures before the man left with his hand truck.
They stood for a moment taking in the jarring quiet of Victor’s absence. Then Maggie grinned at Bobby. “So, you want the nickel tour?”
Waving at the stove, she said, “That’s the kitchen.” She turned around and pointed to the sofa. “That’s the living room.” She took a few steps and waved through a doorway. “This is the bedroom. And the bed. With fresh, clean, un-fucked-upon sheets...” She grinned wryly.
Bobby matched her grin. “We’ll have to see what we can do about that as soon as possible.” He fixed her with a devilish leer and a pink flush crossed her cheeks again.
Maggie looked down. “About your parents. And your daughter.” She looked up at him through her eyelashes. “I’d love to meet them.”
His eyes lit up. “Would you? Really?” She nodded. He leaned down to plant a gentle kiss. “That means the world to me, cher,” he whispered.
Together, Bobby and Maggie carefully unwrapped the plastic protecting the dresser. She stood back and admired it. “I forgot how beautiful it is,” she breathed. “Thank you. I can’t believe you were so sneaky and went back to get it.”
He beamed at her. “My pleasure, cher. I’m so glad you like it. Surprising you with it made me very happy.”
She threw her arms around him, kissing him tenderly. “Bobby, I...” She stopped, blinking back the words that wanted to follow.
He smiled softly. “Me too, cher.”
Chapter 4
Bobby and Maggie were quiet on the elevator ride up to the twenty-first floor. When the door opened he took her hand, and they walked down the hallway, stopping at his door. “Do you want to come in, cher?” he asked softly.
Maggie shook her head. “You need to get ready for work,” she replied. “I’ll go check on Michael and head home. I’m a little tired, you know.” She gave him an impish grin.
“Are you, now?” he smirked, touching his lips to her forehead. “I do have to be at work in an hour.” He looked down at her. “I was thinking, this bag of girly things in here?” He held up the leather case. She smiled and nodded. “I thought maybe we could leave it here at my place. That way, on the off-chance you maybe ended up spending the night sometime...” he raised his eyebrows innocently, “you’d have what you needed.”
Maggie tried but failed to suppress a smile. “I think that sounds like a fabulous idea.”
“That settles it then,” Bobby murmured, his eyes on her lips.
She nodded, leaning up on her toes to kiss him. “I had an amazing time. Thank you, Bobby.”
He grinned as she turned to walk down the hall. “My pleasure, cher. I’ll call you tonight.”
* * *
“Her full name is Mary Margaret Flynn,” Michael said. “Birthplace, Charlotte, North Carolina. Father’s name, Patrick J. Flynn. He was an architect, if that helps.”
The other man nodded, jotting quickly in his small notebook. “You never know what might come in useful.”
“I don’t have a clue about the mother’s name. Obviously I can’t ask Maggie.”
“That won’t be hard. Do you have any idea about what the mother did for a living?” Michael shook his head. “Well, don’t worry about it. I’ve done cases where I had less to go on than this,” he said confidently.
“I appreciate this, Sam,” Michael said, standing to shake the man’s hand.
“No prob
lem, Mike.” Sam’s brow wrinkled slightly as he regarded Michael for a long moment. “I suppose it’s none of my business, but how are you doing?”
Michael smiled tightly. “I’m hanging in there.” The other man recognized the tone and knew not to push the issue further.
Both men heard a key in the lock and they turned in the direction of the front door. “Hey, Michael, it’s me.” Maggie walked into the living room, digging into her purse as she did. “I forgot to check your mail, I can get it...” She stopped mid-sentence as she looked up at Sam. “Oh, I’m so sorry, I didn’t realize...” Her face broke into a smile. “Sam Mainor, holy shit, it’s been a while! How are you?”
He returned her smile. “Hi, Maggie. How are you?”
“Well, I’m...” she frowned and looked from Sam to Michael. “I’m great. Michael, are you working?”
“Nah, Sam just stopped by to say hello.”
Sam nodded. “I did, but I’m on my way. Good to see you Maggie.” He turned to Michael. “I’ll call you soon.”
Maggie watched as Michael closed the door behind Sam. The slight frown was back. “What was that about?”
Michael shrugged. “I told you. He just stopped by to say hello, see how I’m doing.” She crossed her arms and gave him a skeptical look, clearly not buying his story, so he changed tactics. “How was your time with Beau?”
She whirled around and headed into the kitchen. “Great! We had a nice time,” she called over her shoulder. “Have you ever been to Holly Springs?” Michael followed her into the kitchen and leaned casually against the counter, watching her as she focused intently on searching through the fridge. “Did you eat the chicken I left you?” She turned to look at him.
Michael smirked at her. “How was last night?” He delighted as she blushed profusely. “Somebody got laid,” he sang lightly.
“Dammit, Michael, do you always have to be so fucking infuriating?”
“I just do it to watch you blush,” he chuckled and she softened a bit. “Seriously, you had a good time?”
Maggie looked up at him. “Yeah,” she smiled. “We had a very nice time. He’s a really great guy. Do you know, yesterday morning he did a ‘Make-a-Wish’ thing?”
“I saw it. You were on television, Mags.”
Her eyes widened. “What?”
Michael nodded. “They ran the story before the game last night.”
Maggie breathed deeply, taking in the information.
“So where is lover boy now anyway?”
Maggie shook her head and her eyes blazed. “Don’t you even start that bullshit! Or I’ll be out of here so fast it’ll make your head spin and you’ll never see me again.” Her tone was low and menacing.
He sighed. “Sorry, Mags. I’m just teasing you. Where’s Beau?”
“He’s on his way to work. I’m going to get a list of what you need and I’ll stop by after work tomorrow. Are you ready for round two of chemo?”
His shoulders slumped as reality made its reappearance. “I’m as ready as I’ll ever be.” He turned and made his way back to the living room, sinking onto the couch and propping his feet on the coffee table.
* * *
Maggie’s phone rang, startling her out of a light sleep. “Hey there, cher. Did I wake you?”
She smiled sleepily and glanced at the clock. 11:35. “No. I mean, I must have just dozed off. How are you? How was work?”
“Aw, you know, it was work. Were you watching?”
“I was. You looked very handsome in that purple shirt.”
“You think so?” he asked. She could hear the grin in his voice.
“Yes, I do.” She pictured his lopsided smile and felt heat returning to her nether regions. That would require some attention later.
“I wish I could see you right now,” he drawled.
Maggie giggled. “I don’t know. I’m in my black tank top and panties.”
“Tell me about the panties.”
She giggled again. “They’re white with pink hearts, trimmed in pink lace.”
Bobby groaned into the phone. “We are definitely going to have to have phone sex soon.” Maggie laughed. “But not tonight, cher. It’s late and you need to go back to sleep. We’re still on for lunch one day this week?”
“Absolutely. I can’t wait.”
“Good. I’ll talk to you tomorrow. Good night, cher.”
* * *
Bobby was smiling as he disconnected with Maggie. He was standing in front of his apartment building, his phone in one hand and two bags containing beer and subs in the other. He bypassed his door and knocked on Michael’s.
“Hey, man,” Michael greeted him when he opened the door.
“It’s not too late, is it?” Bobby asked. “I picked up some subs and Heineken on my way home.”
Michael laughed. “Beer and subs? It’s never too late.” He led Bobby to the kitchen and retrieved two plates from a cabinet.
“I figured you could use some man food. I know Maggie’s got you eating all healthy.”
“This will be our secret,” Michael said as they sat on the living room couch. “I cheated yesterday, too. Chili dogs.” He smirked at Bobby, who laughed good-naturedly. “So how was your trip?”
Bobby smiled. “It was good, man. We had a nice time.” He gestured with his beer bottle. “This is kind of a ‘thank you’ for putting us together last week. Maggie’s a great girl.”
Michael chewed his lip thoughtfully. “Yes, she is. She said you two had a good time.” Bobby nodded and sipped his beer. “And you stayed out of town last night?” Michael’s tone was quizzical.
Bobby fixed him with a look that told him to pursue this line of conversation no further. “Well, she mentioned something about Holly Springs,” Michael backpedaled softly. Bobby didn’t break eye contact.
Michael sighed. “I’m glad the two of you enjoyed your trip.” He gazed across the room. “It’s time she had somebody nice.”
Bobby relaxed, turning his attention back to his sandwich. He took a bite and chewed thoughtfully. “We ran into her building super today. He mentioned that Maggie’s ex-fiancé was a cop.”
“Was he?” Michael seemed surprised. “I met him once. At a wedding. He seemed a little uptight to me. Not exactly friendly, but I figured he was just being territorial.”
“The super called him a ‘bum’.” Bobby glanced up at Michael. “She mentioned him to me the other night. Said he was ‘not very nice’.” He shook his head. “I wouldn’t stand for anybody treating her badly.”
Michael watched him carefully. “Well, she told you more about him than she told me.” They were both thoughtful as they finished their late night snack.
It was nearly 2:00 am by the time Michael saw Bobby to the door. “Thanks again for the contraband,” he laughed.
“You’re welcome. We’re blackmailing each other now. Maggie would skin you for eating crap. And I’d be in Dutch for aiding and abetting.” They both laughed as Michael closed the door.
Back in his own apartment, Bobby glanced at the leather case that was still in the middle of the living room where he’d left it. He grinned to himself. He hadn’t bothered to unpack from moving four months ago. Why would he have unpacked from this weekend?
He took the bag to his bedroom, however, and opened it, removing the L’Occitane bag. In the bathroom, he opened and closed several cabinets until he found a suitable place. There. It’s ready for Maggie when she stays over. The thought of her being here with him pleased him more than he could say.
Returning to the leather bag, he took out the silk pajama top. He pressed it to his face and inhaled. It smelled like her, all roses and female. His body responded at the memory. There’d be some urgent business to address in the shower.
But first, he padded out to the living room where he’d left his phone, typing a quick message for Maggie to read in the morning.
Chapter 5
When Maggie woke up in the morning, checking her phone was the first thing on her mi
nd. It was becoming habit. On his way home from work each night, Bobby had been texting her, knowing that she was most likely asleep and wouldn’t see it until the morning. “Good morning, cher. Hope you had sweet dreams. Have a great day and I’ll talk to you soon. x”
She grinned, feeling as giddy as a school girl, and she entered a reply. “Good morning yourself, bayou boy. I had wonderful dreams about a huge four-poster bed and a fireplace and baseball. I can’t wait to talk to you and I’m excited about lunch tomorrow. xx”
She dressed quickly and headed out for the day. Being in court all week was a pain but her thoughts were on Michael as she stepped onto the subway and held tightly to the pole just inside the door. Today was his third day of five for this round of chemo. He’d seemed tired last night, and she worried that he’d be sick by the time she stopped by to see him that afternoon. She made a mental note to pick up soup after work.
* * *
Bobby returned to the apartment from his run in the park and immediately checked his phone for messages, smiling when he saw the one from Maggie. Bayou boy. He loved when she called him that. I can’t wait to see you, either, cher, he mused. Working opposite schedules sucks.
He shook his head as he headed into the master bathroom. Hot water poured over him from the "rain" shower head in the center of the huge marble shower and he closed his eyes, thinking about introducing Maggie to his folks. He knew she was anxious about meeting them. It was a little early in the game to spring the family on her. It was just dumb luck that they were coming for the weekend.
He’d be glad to see his folks. It had been longer than a month since his last trip home. Besides, he trusted his mother’s instincts. Jerilyn Beaulieu had a hell of a bullshit meter. He’d learned that the hard way growing up.
The thought made him grin. There was no getting away with anything with his chère maman. She’d been right about Deanna, too. He just hadn’t listened. Not that he had concerns about Maggie. Maybe I just want her to validate what I already know.
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