Sunset Beach(55)

“Really?” Vera dabbed a french fry in the puddle of ketchup on her plate. “Did they actually have somebody else in mind?”

“Oh yes,” Colleen said. “Morton’s partner’s oldest daughter, Suzanne. Miss Perfect. Miss Debutante. Miss Sun Goddess beauty queen.”

“And then you had to show up and make Allen fall in love with you, and spoil everything,” Vera said, giggling.

“Yeah. Something like that.” Colleen stood up and slung her shoulder bag strap over her arm. “I’ve gotta find the bathroom. Be right back.”

She walked slowly toward the back of the room, as though she had no idea where the ladies’ room was, although, of course, she’d used it when she’d been here three months ago. And she’d used it four more times, each time she’d come back to Mastry’s.

He was watching her. His partner was watching too. They’d turned halfway around on the bar stools, waiting for her to pass by.

Should she speak, or wait to see if he would?

His partner, the shorter, older one, reached out, brushing her arm with his fingertips.

“Look here, Officer Campbell,” he said. “Isn’t this our damsel in distress from the Dreamland?”

“I believe you’re right,” Brice said, a slow smile spreading across his face.

She stopped, blushed, looked away. “Oh hi.”

“Everything okay at home now?” the partner asked, his eyes stern.

“Just fine, thanks,” Colleen said, feeling the blush creep down her neck and across her chest. “It was a misunderstanding. Really.” She could feel Vera watching her, wondering why she was talking to these two cops.

She gestured toward the corner, where the ladies’ room was located. “Okay. Good to see you. Gotta go now.”

Colleen forced herself to walk slowly, until she’d entered the bathroom. She pushed the stall door open, locked it and sank down onto the toilet. Her pulse was racing, her nerves jangling. She was breathing so fast she thought she might hyperventilate.

“Oh God,” she whispered. “Oh God.” She fingered the tiny gold cross she wore on a fine chain around her neck, absentmindedly turning it over and over between her fingers as she rocked back and forth.

Brice, she’d noticed, was no longer wearing a wedding ring. Was that a good sign?

Finally she stood up, adjusted her hose, smoothed the skirt of her uniform. She stood in front of the sink, washed her hands and reapplied her lipstick.



* * *



“Everything okay?” Vera asked, when she got back to the booth.

Colleen grimaced. “Swell. Aunt Minnie just showed up.”

“Yuck.” Vera craned her neck to see the two officers, who were standing now, putting money on the bar.

“Who are they?” she asked, nodding her head in their direction.

“Just a couple cops,” Colleen said, choking down a bite of her burger. The grease had congealed and the bun was soggy, but she busied herself chewing.

“They were flirting with you?” Vera asked enviously. “The tall one’s kind of cute, don’t you think?”

Colleen kept chewing, staring down at her plate as they passed. “Not interested,” she said finally.

Vera’s eyes followed the two as they pushed the plate-glass door open. “I forgot. You’re married to the sweetest guy on earth. Why would you be checking out a couple dudes in a bar?”

“Exactly.”

“Maybe you could introduce me,” Vera said slyly. “I love a guy in uniform.”



* * *



It was Friday, and the dentist’s office closed at noon. “Want me to give you a ride back to the office?” Vera asked, as they stood by her parked Toyota.

“Thanks, anyway, but I can walk,” Colleen said.

“Well, don’t have too much fun at that dinner party,” Vera said teasingly. “If you get bored, you can always come help me babysit my hellion nephews.”

It was the kind of sunshiney late-winter day that made you understand why snowbirds flocked to Florida.

She was in no hurry to get home, so she stopped to window-shop at Maas Brothers, studying the new spring fashions: candy-colored minidresses and cork-soled platform sandals. The dress with the spaghetti straps and yellow daisies? She wondered idly if it would make her hair look too brassy. They were supposed to be on a strict budget, saving to buy their own house. Allen tracked every penny they spent, entering each purchase or bill paid into his ledger. Right now, though, she just wanted a dress that hadn’t been sewn by her mom from a Simplicity pattern. Like that darling yellow daisy dress.

Something tickled her neck. She whirled around, startled. He ran the antennae of his police radio down her arm and she shivered.

“Oh hey,” she said haltingly, looking to see if his partner was nearby.

“Playing hooky from work?” He playfully slapped his nightstick in his open hand.

“The office closes at noon on Fridays.”

“You work for a doctor?”

“Dentist. I’m a dental hygienist.”

He nodded. “What happened to your friend?”

“She went home. I decided to walk back to the office. My car’s there.”

“Maybe I could give you a ride.” He gestured toward his cruiser, which was parked at the curb in a no-parking zone.