The fact is, I love animals; I really do. But I was never very good with pets. While I was growing up, there were always animals in the house. My brothers had dogs and my baby sister had a cat. There were hamsters and gerbils and little white mice, but none of them were mine. At age seven, I finally insisted on getting a pet of my own, but my mom drew the line at another furry beast. I could have a goldfish, she told me.
I was thrilled. Goldfish were so pretty and shiny. I could have a fishbowl in my room and decorate it with colorful pebbles and fake seaweed and a ceramic treasure chest. At the pet store, I picked out the one fish I thought had the best personality in the tank. Shiny and bright orange-gold, she wasn’t the fastest swimmer, but she seemed to like me. And I liked her. I’d already named her in my mind. Goldie. Undulating back and forth near the side of the tank where I stood watching, she seemed to stare back at me, reaching out, calling my name. Take me home, B-B-B-Brooklyn, she seemed to say in her bubbly little voice. I am your fish.
Who could’ve known that Goldie had a weak gill? It was so unfair. That was why she undulated. That was why she wasn’t a fast swimmer. I came home from school and found her dead, bloated, floating on the surface of the water in her pretty little bowl. I’d had her only two weeks.
I took Goldie’s death personally. It broke my spirit and destroyed my confidence as a pet owner. Fear and guilt were my new watchwords. I could never ask for another pet after that. For goodness’ sake, I couldn’t take care of a fish. How could I be trusted with a mammal?
And Pookie knew it.
I called Suzie to tell her the cat wasn’t eating and she hung up on me. Twenty seconds later, she was knocking on my door.
“Thanks so much for coming over,” I said as I closed the door and led her into my living area.
“No worries, kiddo,” Suzie said as she followed me. “Hey, are you okay? Looks like you’re limping.”
“What? No.” Oh, God, I’d pulled a muscle in my leg the other night when Derek and I were doing research, but I wasn’t about to let anyone know. “I… bumped into a chair. I’ll be fine.”
“Hope so, but if it keeps hurting, Vinnie’s got a poultice that’ll set you right.”
“Thanks. I’ll be fine.”
Pookie came skittering across the floor at the sound of Suzie’s voice.
“There she is,” Suzie said, picking up the cat and hugging her. “She’s only got two more days left here. Splinters’s medication is finished, but we have to wait until Saturday before the cats can be together again.”
“She must feel like she’s in solitary confinement over here,” I said, then couldn’t help but smile as Pookie draped herself over Suzie’s shoulder, a boneless, furry lump of love.
“No, no,” Suzie said as she scratched the cat’s ears. “She likes it here.”
“Nope. I think she’s had it with me,” I muttered. “She’s ready to go home.”
“Don’t be cracked,” Suzie said, stroking the cat’s fur. “She loves you. Don’t you, Pookers, don’t you? Yes, you do. Yes, you do.”
Suzie’s normally tough-chick voice shot up three octaves as she continued crooning to her cat. “Yes, you do. Yes, you do.”
Pookie’s purrs of sublime love radiated through the room. I could feel her blissful vibrations from several feet away. She never vibrated around me. Of course, that was probably a good thing. Still, seeing the love generated between the two left me feeling bittersweet. Maybe it was time I found an animal of my very own to love.
“Hello, darling.”
I lit up like a Christmas tree at the sound of Derek’s voice. As he crossed the living room, I ran to greet him. “You’re home early. I’m so happy. What’s going on?”
He wrapped me in his arms and whispered, “Maybe I just missed you.”
“Oh.” I hugged him back, loving the masculine scent of him. Hmm, who needed a cat?
Suzie sighed. “Sweet.”
“Hello, Suzie,” Derek said over my head.
“Hey, Derek. Just visiting my baby, here.”
“She’s a lovely cat.”
“Yes, she is,” Suzie murmured, then repeated it straight to Pookie. “Yes, you are. Yes, you are.”
I chuckled. There was a whole lot of love going on in here. I looked up at Derek. “Does this mean you’ll be here for girls’ night?”
“Are you serving Cornish pasties, by chance?”
“God, no,” I said, wrinkling my nose.
“Then, sadly, I can’t make it,” he said, smiling wryly. He eased back to check his watch. “I’ll be heading out in a while to meet Clive and his partners at Gary Danko.”
“Wow, how’d you swing that one?” Suzie said, putting the cat down. “It takes three months to get a reservation there.”
With a brief shake of his head, he said, “Corinne takes care of these things.”
Suzie snorted and winked at me. “I’ll give Corinne a call next time I’m in a jam.”
Pookie wandered over to her bowl of mashed salmon and began to nibble.
“She’s eating,” I marveled.
“My work here is done,” Suzie said. “I’ll be back at seven for margaritas.”
“Thanks so much for coming over.”
“She just needed a little Suzie love,” she said, grinning. After bending to give the cat one more affectionate scratch behind her ears, she stood up and punched my arm. “See you later, gator.”
As soon as I heard the door close behind Suzie, I looked at Derek. “How long before you have to leave?”
“Long enough,” he said, grabbing hold of my arms and backing me toward the couch.
I laughed. “What are you doing?”
“I should think it would be obvious.” He yanked off my sweater in one brash move. I shook my hair back and watched him watching me, his dark eyes glittering with intent.
“You’re awfully dressed up,” I said, fingering his tie. “Aren’t you afraid you’ll wrinkle your suit?”
“No.”
My knees hit the couch and I fell backward. He followed. I pressed my hand to his chest. “What if I told you I’m not in the mood?”
“I’d have to call you a liar.”
Chapter 16
Earlier that day, I’d made the margarita mix and chopped up all the ingredients for the tacos. Good thing, because Derek had put a wrench in my schedule, so to speak. I wasn’t complaining. On the contrary, I felt like bragging, but I’d never been that kind of girl. No, our afternoon interlude would be my little secret. I hoped so, anyway. Knowing Robin and her big mouth, the whole world was likely to hear the full details if I wasn’t careful. I made a mental note to avoid eye contact with her.
The only thing that had dampened my pleasure was that just before Derek left for his evening out, we heard from Inspector Lee that Galina had been questioned and released. Despite my protests, Lee stood firm. Galina had an alibi for the actual time of death, and her story had checked out. But they would be watching her, Lee assured me. I reminded her that Robin was back in town, and if Galina was free, then Robin was in danger. Lee again insisted they’d keep an eye on her.
Her word should’ve been enough to ease my worries, but it wasn’t. I would be sure to warn Robin to be on guard.
The doorbell rang and I ran to the front to answer it. Robin and Shiva smiled as I pulled the door open. Then Robin’s eyebrows shot up in surprise-and a touch of admiration, I’d like to think.
“Somebody got lucky,” she murmured.
“Shut up,” I whispered, then quickly smiled at Shiva as they both walked inside.
As Robin passed me she winked, and we both knew that she knew and wanted me to know she knew. Twisted, but that’s a best friend for you.
Shiva stepped into my studio and gazed around the room. “Brooklyn, this is wonderful. A truly professional space. You have come so far since your days as Abraham’s pupil.”
Pleased, I gave her another big smile. I really had worked hard to get where I was now. Nice that someone noticed. “Thank you, Shiva. I’ll give you a quick tour in a minute, if you’d like.”