Debra was cautious. "Yes. Afterwards."
"Think he'll ever divorce you?" I asked.
Debra tried to smack my face. I caught her hand in mid-swing and bent it back without effort. When I released her, she sullenly rubbed her wrist.
"Yeah, I guess not," I mused. "He's not the divorcing kind. But then neither are you. I wonder when you two are gonna stop trusting each other."
"We won't."
"Your husband died in an auto accident? Two years ago?"
Debra gritted down. "I don't see--" Exasperated: "Yes."
"Did Corky kill him for you?" I asked.
Debra was outraged. "Ask him yourself!" She turned, called to Corky. "Corky!"
Corky entered the lounge. He acted like the pit of his stomach dropped a thousand feet seeing us together. Walking up to us must have been like walking those last few yards to the Death Chamber.
He said, "You two shouldn't come out in the open together like this."
"Why didn't you tell me your girl friend is the sheriff's sister-in-law?" I asked.
"She isn't any more," Corky said.
"Did you kill her husband? Is that why you want me to kill your wife? Because the sheriff thinks there something suspicious about his brother's death that might tie the two of you together?"
Corky looked guilty. "His death was accidental. Even the county coroner's report shows that."
"How much did that cost you?"
Debra was smug. "We didn't kill him."
I disagreed. "You did it. And somehow you got away with it. Lady, you musta figured you couldn't get away with it twice. So, now you both need perfect alibis."
Debra could not have been angrier. "Okay. Forget it. We'll do it ourselves."
"No, you won't," I said.
"You're fired!" Debra insisted.
I ignored her. "See, Corky, if you do waste the old lady yourselves, the word goes out about how you both came looking for somebody to ice her. And if anything happens to her, we'll make sure the cops nail you both for it."
"Blackmail!" Debra called it.
I left my bar stool. "I ain't getting paid enough to take the rap for you." I pocketed my money from the bar counter. "Ciao, babes."
Ivy worked her full shift. She found me parked outside the Pier Inn when she got off work. She went over to my Mustang and leaned inside my window, letting me get a clear glimpse of her cleavage. She had nice breasts.
"Hey, sailor, you wanna party?" Ivy joked.
But I got sour with anger. "Get in!" I barked.
Surprised by my ferocity, Ivy got into my rental.
I was pissed. "Don't ever talk like that again!" Then, calming down: "It's not you and it's not me." Then, filled with a sudden remorse, I added, "That's not the way I want us to be." I slammed into first gear and peeled rubber away from the restaurant.
I could see Ivy was astonished. He cares about us!
More than G-forces from the Mustang kept her off-balance.
That night as she lay naked atop me and the covers, while I was cuddling her breasts, nuzzling her earlobes, I guess Ivy found herself thrilled by my proposal, but also puzzled by it.
She said, "You want me to go with you?"
"Yeah," I said.
She pushed me away from her ear. "How come?"
I didn't know what to tell her. I kept staring at the cottage cheese ceiling of the motel and couldn't add any more to what I was asking of her. How could I tell her how much I hated the hollowness I was becoming from my job? How could I tell her she was a rope tossed to a man swept up in a flash flood? Better I start anew, without any chains to my past.
Ivy didn't know what to think. "No guy ever said to me he wanted to take me away from here." She tried joking. "A guy'll say anything to get whatever he wants."
"You're already sleeping with me," I retorted.
Ivy was confused. "You trying to live with me, Michael?"
"Yeah."
"Why?"
Then she acted like I was ignoring her. That she wasn't here. That I had run out of words at such a special moment like this really pissed her off.
She shook me angrily. "Why!" She shoved harder. "Damn you! Why!" She had to know.
"I love you."
Ivy stared at me, and I stared back.
I was thoughtful, still mulling over my runaway words.
She said, "Jesus Christ Almighty!"
I said, "Are you saying no, or do you need more time to think about it? We got only one or two more days."
Ivy was both astonished and desperate. "What am I supposed to think now? How could you--demand--so much after such a short time together? How could you be so sure after such a short time together?"