the silence with more verbiage, lest she take that particular moment to jump into the fray. “And I guess you’re not always right after all.”
She said nothing.
“He did sleep with her,” I explained.
“Oh. Yeah,” she said finally, and shifted her gaze toward the hallway. “I’m sorry.” I drew a deep breath, took another handful of chips and soldiered on. “It’s all right.
You can’t know everything. I mean—”
Our gazes met. A figment of truth slithered into my poly-saturated brain.
“Yes, you can,” I said.
She stared at me in silence, body tense.
“And you are always right,” I said.
“Mac—”
“Fuck it.” I breathed the words.
“Mac, don’t do this.”
“He lied.” The truth came at me pretty hard.
She winced. “You don’t know that for sure.”
“But you do.”
“No. Like you said, I don’t know everything.” She skittered her gaze away for a moment, then rushed it back, eyes pleading. “And think about it, why would he admit to cheating on you if it wasn’t true? You’re a scary person. You’re—”
“For the same reason you would.”
Her face looked pale and strained. “I don’t lie.”
I took a deep breath. “But you would,” I said. “You would to keep me safe. He was framed.”
“You don’t know that.”
“He lied about sleeping with her so I wouldn’t investigate.”
“That’s ridiculous.” She laughed. I knew it was an act, but it wasn’t too badly done, not compared to the performances of her early years on film. “He’s not that brave. I mean, the chances of you killing him for having an affair are extremely high.
Astronomically high. He must know that. He wouldn’t—” But I had quit listening. In fact, I was pacing.
“Do you think he has an idea who did it?” I asked. “Do you think he’s protecting someone?”
“Listen…”
“I bet he does. He’s a good cop. A dumb ass and a liar.” I scowled at her. “But a good cop.”
“Please…”
“Coggins!” I stopped short. “The bullodog-faced cop. He said he’s been waiting for Rivera to screw up. He said—”
“I’m pregnant!”
I froze, numb to the core as her words seeped slowly into my fat-saturated system.
“What?” I drew the word out, lest she answer too quickly and throw my life into a tailspin. “What’d you say?”
She squeezed her hand into a fist near her heart, as if her emotions were a little too much to contain. “It’s a girl.”
I shook my head, perhaps to deny the fact that a guy as nerdy as the Geek God could reproduce. “You’re just saying that so I don’t do anything stupid,” I said, but she shook her head. There were tears in her eyes, but I was still in denial. “Solberg wouldn’t have shifted two millimeters from your side if he knew you were—” But the truth came home to me in one fell swoop. I sank into the closest chair. “He doesn’t know.” She looked pale and beautiful and so happy it almost made me cry. “You’re the first person I’ve told.”
“Which means…” I reasoned, mind spinning slowly. “You really did sleep with him.”
She laughed. The noise sounded a little more like crying, and suddenly I saw it…that glow they talk about. It radiated from her eyes and shone from her freakishly perfect skin.
I'd always assumed 'the glow' was a myth concocted by husbands who were trying to calm the fractious beast we know as gestating women.
“Mac,” she said, settling into the chair beside me. “I want you to be a part of her life. I want you to teach her to be obdurate and irritating and wonderfully perverse. Please, please don’t get yourself killed.”
Chapter 11
The presence of a well-endowed woman can often make men butt heads even if they’ve previously been on the most congenial terms.
—Dr. Candon, Chrissy’s psych professor
The presence of a well-endowed woman can make men buttheads.
—Chrissy
“Officer Coggins?” I was dressed to maim in an eye-popping yellow blouse, a
She said nothing.
“He did sleep with her,” I explained.
“Oh. Yeah,” she said finally, and shifted her gaze toward the hallway. “I’m sorry.” I drew a deep breath, took another handful of chips and soldiered on. “It’s all right.
You can’t know everything. I mean—”
Our gazes met. A figment of truth slithered into my poly-saturated brain.
“Yes, you can,” I said.
She stared at me in silence, body tense.
“And you are always right,” I said.
“Mac—”
“Fuck it.” I breathed the words.
“Mac, don’t do this.”
“He lied.” The truth came at me pretty hard.
She winced. “You don’t know that for sure.”
“But you do.”
“No. Like you said, I don’t know everything.” She skittered her gaze away for a moment, then rushed it back, eyes pleading. “And think about it, why would he admit to cheating on you if it wasn’t true? You’re a scary person. You’re—”
“For the same reason you would.”
Her face looked pale and strained. “I don’t lie.”
I took a deep breath. “But you would,” I said. “You would to keep me safe. He was framed.”
“You don’t know that.”
“He lied about sleeping with her so I wouldn’t investigate.”
“That’s ridiculous.” She laughed. I knew it was an act, but it wasn’t too badly done, not compared to the performances of her early years on film. “He’s not that brave. I mean, the chances of you killing him for having an affair are extremely high.
Astronomically high. He must know that. He wouldn’t—” But I had quit listening. In fact, I was pacing.
“Do you think he has an idea who did it?” I asked. “Do you think he’s protecting someone?”
“Listen…”
“I bet he does. He’s a good cop. A dumb ass and a liar.” I scowled at her. “But a good cop.”
“Please…”
“Coggins!” I stopped short. “The bullodog-faced cop. He said he’s been waiting for Rivera to screw up. He said—”
“I’m pregnant!”
I froze, numb to the core as her words seeped slowly into my fat-saturated system.
“What?” I drew the word out, lest she answer too quickly and throw my life into a tailspin. “What’d you say?”
She squeezed her hand into a fist near her heart, as if her emotions were a little too much to contain. “It’s a girl.”
I shook my head, perhaps to deny the fact that a guy as nerdy as the Geek God could reproduce. “You’re just saying that so I don’t do anything stupid,” I said, but she shook her head. There were tears in her eyes, but I was still in denial. “Solberg wouldn’t have shifted two millimeters from your side if he knew you were—” But the truth came home to me in one fell swoop. I sank into the closest chair. “He doesn’t know.” She looked pale and beautiful and so happy it almost made me cry. “You’re the first person I’ve told.”
“Which means…” I reasoned, mind spinning slowly. “You really did sleep with him.”
She laughed. The noise sounded a little more like crying, and suddenly I saw it…that glow they talk about. It radiated from her eyes and shone from her freakishly perfect skin.
I'd always assumed 'the glow' was a myth concocted by husbands who were trying to calm the fractious beast we know as gestating women.
“Mac,” she said, settling into the chair beside me. “I want you to be a part of her life. I want you to teach her to be obdurate and irritating and wonderfully perverse. Please, please don’t get yourself killed.”
Chapter 11
The presence of a well-endowed woman can often make men butt heads even if they’ve previously been on the most congenial terms.
—Dr. Candon, Chrissy’s psych professor
The presence of a well-endowed woman can make men buttheads.
—Chrissy
“Officer Coggins?” I was dressed to maim in an eye-popping yellow blouse, a
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