Homecoming Homicides by Marilyn Baron

out of nowhere and scooped it up. She looked at Luke expectantly, giving him a good view of her cleavage. She and Misty must have been separated at birth.
    “Keep the change,” Luke said, lapping up the attention.
    “Thanks, babe.”
    “Babe?” Flippy said with a bite to her voice as she finished up the rest of Luke’s burger and fries.
    “You jealous?”
    “Of her?”
    “Hey, she’s hot.”
    “How do you know?”
    “You can just tell.”
    “If she wanted to follow through, you’d be hightailing it in the opposite direction.”
    “If it makes you feel better to think so, then go right ahead. I can handle Cathy.”
    “Like you handled me?”
    “If we’re going, let’s get out of here.” Luke bristled, grabbing Flippy’s hand roughly as he steered her toward the door.
    “And what’s with the hand holding?”
    “Just part of the service. We aim to please.”
    “Well, Dudley, I expect you to do the right thing.”
    Luke laughed and pushed the door open. It had stopped raining.
    Luke unlocked the car door and practically lifted her inside.
    “I’m not helpless.”
    “I never said you were. I’m shielding you with my body.”
    Flippy rolled her eyes and didn’t acknowledge the sparks that flew between them. Sparks that were almost visible in the dark.
    After they had driven the few blocks to Flippy’s apartment, she started to get out of the car.
    Luke grabbed her hand. The man wouldn’t stop touching her.
    “Wait, I’m going to go in and check it out first. You never know.”
    “It’s a mess,” Flippy warned him. “It’s really tiny. I-I wasn’t expecting company.”
    “You don’t have to impress me. I’m not Jack. Everything doesn’t have to be in its place. As a matter of fact, I’m the opposite of Jack. I’m not uptight, and I like my women with a little meat on their bones.”
    “I’m not one of your women. Let’s get that straight right now.”
    “Fine. Just open the door.”
    “Fine,” she snapped.
    She took out her key, and Luke preceded her into the apartment and flipped on the light. It didn’t take him long to determine there was no one in there.
    “This place is a dump, Flippy.”
    “I don’t need you to tell me that.”
    “It’s not even safe. It ought to be condemned. Why are you living here?”
    “I don’t have a trust fund.” Actually, that was a lie.
    “Neither do I.”
    “Well you’re spending your money as if you were. You left that server a twenty-dollar tip.”
    “I can afford to be generous. It’s the department’s money.”
    “I’m going to get some aspirin,” Flippy said, walking into the kitchen, which was just off the living room, which was just off the bedroom, which was just off the bathroom. She reached for a glass, ran it underneath the tap, and set it on the laminate countertop. She swiped the aspirin bottle from the cabinet, untwisted the cap, and downed two pills. Stuffing the bottle in her purse, she started packing.
    “I’m sorry,” Luke said.
    “For what?”
    “For insulting your place.”
    “Don’t you think I know it’s a piece of crap? It happens to be all that I can afford at the moment.”
    “Don’t you have heat?”
    “I have heat. I don’t always turn it on.”
    “Can’t your parents help you out?”
    “Of course they can. But I don’t want their help. I don’t even want them to know where I’m living. Let’s just say my mother would not approve. I’ve just started this new job. It’s going to take a while for me to get on my feet.”
    “I take it your parents don’t approve of your involvement in this case. Am I right?”
    “If my mother knew I was anywhere in the vicinity of the Homecoming Homicides case, she’d drag me back to Atlanta herself. My parents are just getting over the fact that I dropped out of law school and am working in a law enforcement office. In my mother’s mind, girls and guns don’t mix. Yada, yada, yada. ‘Don’t you want to settle down with a nice boy, preferably Jack