He must have talked with his nephew already. Speaking of Sparky, I had a bone to pick with the ol’ goat. “Why are guys up in Lead calling me ‘Sparky’ now?”
I heard the front door open, hoping it was Doc and the kids back from the Rec Center. I needed to tell him about my idea.
Harvey snickered. “I’ve been spreadin’ rumors about you at the senior center.”
He was what?!! “Why would you do that?”
“For one thing, all those people there are old and bored witless. They’re just sittin’ around all day waitin’ for their final number to be called so they can ‘Bingo!’ out. I figured they could use some gossip to juice things up.” He aimed the tongs at me. “And you, girlie, offer up one helluva tale.”
“I agree with Harvey,” Doc said, breezing into the kitchen. “You have one helluva tail, especially when you’re wearing those yoga pants.” He dropped a kiss on my lips as he passed me, smelling like fresh air with a hint of Rec Center pool, and then headed for the laundry room with his duffel bag. I stared at his backside as he left.
Harvey cleared his throat. “Feelin’ a little fertile this mornin’, are we?”
My cheeks warmed at getting busted ogling. “I was just admiring the tailoring of his clothes.”
“You mean his old jeans and T-shirt?”
“Yep.”
He grinned. “I see you’re speakin’ fluent in bullshit this mornin’.”
“I’ve been practicing what you preach,” I shot back with a wink.
He laughed at that and returned to making breakfast.
I heard a zip and the sound of the washing machine door opening. The rest was drowned out by the thunder of footfalls clambering up the stairs, sounding more like a herd of water buffalo than three kids.
When the commotion died down, I turned to the bucket mouth at the stove. “Harvey, what kind of stories are you telling about me at the senior center?” According to Bill the security guard, the old boy’s yarns were inspiring erroneous notions of wedding bells.
Now that I thought about it, I remembered a couple of ladies one night at Mudder Brothers Funeral Parlor talking about me and Harvey and Cooper. Somehow or other, we needed to get Doc’s name thrown into the mix. Maybe I needed to bust in during bingo night and make an official announcement between B14 and O62 that I was sleeping with the town “Doc” these days. Let the tongue-waggers chew on that fat for a while.
“Don’t bust your bloomers, Sparky. The tales ain’t that tall. I just sprinkled a little sugar about you seeing a ghost or two durin’ your day job. I figured it can’t hurt what with your new TV show coming out soon and all. Your boss would probably cheer me on if he knew I was promotin’ you like that.”
Sweet Mary Lou! “Like I need to be any more notorious than I already am in this town.”
He shrugged. “It’s January. Come April you’ll be old news.”
“Why April?”
“Because everybody in town will be bitchin’ about all of the snow still flyin’ around then. Winter wears on a person up here, sort of like a hat that’s a little too tight and gives you a headache in certain spots after a bit.” He grabbed a cast iron frying pan from the cupboard next to the stove. “You’re good entertainment, girlie. Not as excitin’ as when the brothels were still up and runnin’, mind you, but you have surely added some fireworks here and there.”
I heard the water in the washer kick on, and then Doc returned to the kitchen sans his duffel bag.
“Did you hear any of that?” I asked him, dropping into a chair at the table.
“Most of it.” He walked over to the refrigerator, grabbing some creamer. “Harvey’s right,” he said as he closed the door. His smile was downright sinful. “You’re my favorite distraction.”
I hit him with a level squint. “The last time you said that, you didn’t mean it as a compliment.”
At the time, he’d been in the process of buying his house while trying to avoid me, claiming I messed up his head—and not in a good way. He, on the other hand, had already gone and pretty much screwed up my heart. Calling me a “distraction” had burned deep, inspiring fantasies of hanging him upside-down by his testicles. Ahh, young love.
Lucky for him, I’d resisted violence and fallen ass over teakettle for him and his bedroom eyes.
Lucky for me, he’d fallen, too, for me and my kids.
Doc swung by the table with the creamer in hand. “Yeah, but this time I added the word ‘favorite’ in front of ‘distraction.’ ” He tipped up my chin, searching my face. “Your bruises are starting to fade, Killer. How about I kiss them better later?”
“Yes, please.” Although if I couldn’t figure out how to use that mirror, there might not be much kissing-better necessary, because I’d be dead.
His gaze held steady on mine, his brow tightening. “What’s wrong?”
I should have known he’d be able to read my mind. “I talked to Aunt Zoe about that special mirror in her shop.”
“And?”
I glanced toward the dining room, making sure we didn’t have an audience other than Harvey, who was grabbing eggs from the fridge. “She says the mirror has microscopic bits of ruby and quartz in it for protection and empowerment.”
I could see on Doc’s face that he was weighing that news. “Those both seem like good things.”
“And the marks on the frame are alchemy symbols, but there are too many possibilities on what they might mean for her to know for sure the mirror’s purpose, other than to possibly help me if used correctly.” I didn’t add that it could severely screw me over if not.
The edges of his eyes crinkled. “That still is good news. Now tell me why you don’t look happy about
