happier when Miriam waddled up, all smiles and wrinkles and blue hair.
A Munchkin come to life.
"So, you two having a nice chat?"
Gina just snorted and turned back to watch the door leading to the dressing room. Mica wanted to do the same — Where the hell was Gypsy?
— but nodded instead. It wasn't like Miriam to leave anxious,
paying
customers to talk with the hired help. She must have thought that he was trying to convert Gina again.
Like that could he accomplished with a Holy sledge-hammer.
Gina growled low in her throat and shifted farther back into the booth.
Following Gina's example, Mica leaned slightly to one side and glanced around Miriam's diminutive (but substantial) frame.
Anxious
was too mild a term to describe the three "dinner companions".
Frantic
was probably a better choice of words. Laughing, jostling one another, shooting nervous, jittery glances around the room… they reminded Mica of high school freshmen visiting their first whore house.
Or, at least, the first time
he'd
visited a whore house.
Sitting back, Mica looked up into shadows laying across Miriam's face and nodded.
"Yes ma'am," he said, "we've been having a real nice chat."
Gina huffed.
"Good… good. I like seeing my kindela getting along together. Makes things so much easier."
Her chubby, cold little hand reached out and patted Mica's.
His
eyes had already become accustomed to the dark booth, but Miriam had been able to find him without a moment's hesitation. Glasses or not, her eyes must have been a lot sharper than Mica thought.
"So why are you just sitting here in the dark like a mushroom?" she asked, patting his hand again. "A good looking boy-chic like you should be out seeing what kind of mischief he can get into."
"Or, least-wise makin' sure other people
don't
," Gina snarled.
Mica paid her just enough attention to forgive her
(again)
.
"I'm waiting for Gypsy," he said. "He and Luci sure have been back there a long time."
Was it his imagination or did the temperature in the room suddenly drop by thirty degrees? Mica hunched his shoulders against the chill and picked up the empty beer bottle. His fingers left dripping impressions on the frosted glass. It wasn't his imagination.
Lord? You working some kind of miracle here?
"Yeah, a long time," Miriam said, nodding her head. Mica half expected to see her breath plume out in front, and was surprised when it didn't. "But a real streak of luck for us. What you might even call a miracle
—"
A shiver raced up Mica's spine as the cold settled down around him. A
miracle
…
"— you should excuse me for stepping in your territory, Mr. Miracle-Man. Okay, so maybe miracle wasn't the right word… so sue me." Miriam shrugged and batted the air in front of her. "Anyway, Luci finds out that girl's a dancer and needs a job
— so what can I do? You know how big hearted our Luci is, she'd have all the dancers in Hollywood in here if she could."
The temperature dropped another degree as Gina's nails put four new scratches across the table top. Mica caught the scowl that passed between them and pressed his back tighter against the back of the booth. Getting out of the line of fire.
"
Anyway
," Miriam said, all smiles and talking faster than usual when she turned back, "the big Gypsy is working out the arrangements… lights, music, whatever they do out here when I'm back in the office paying bills. You know."
Mica nodded and chuckled. It was the first time he could ever remember Miriam lying to hum. She sounded exactly the way his mama had the day he came home early from school and found her and an Encyclopedia salesman sitting in the darkened living room… talking fast and trying to push her crumpled panties under the couch with her foot.
Stay close by, Lord
, Mica prayed,
and best put on Your hip boots… it's running pretty high in here
.
Whatever Gypsy was doing in the dressing room, Mica was dead certain it had nothing to do with music and lights.
"So I tell you
A Munchkin come to life.
"So, you two having a nice chat?"
Gina just snorted and turned back to watch the door leading to the dressing room. Mica wanted to do the same — Where the hell was Gypsy?
— but nodded instead. It wasn't like Miriam to leave anxious,
paying
customers to talk with the hired help. She must have thought that he was trying to convert Gina again.
Like that could he accomplished with a Holy sledge-hammer.
Gina growled low in her throat and shifted farther back into the booth.
Following Gina's example, Mica leaned slightly to one side and glanced around Miriam's diminutive (but substantial) frame.
Anxious
was too mild a term to describe the three "dinner companions".
Frantic
was probably a better choice of words. Laughing, jostling one another, shooting nervous, jittery glances around the room… they reminded Mica of high school freshmen visiting their first whore house.
Or, at least, the first time
he'd
visited a whore house.
Sitting back, Mica looked up into shadows laying across Miriam's face and nodded.
"Yes ma'am," he said, "we've been having a real nice chat."
Gina huffed.
"Good… good. I like seeing my kindela getting along together. Makes things so much easier."
Her chubby, cold little hand reached out and patted Mica's.
His
eyes had already become accustomed to the dark booth, but Miriam had been able to find him without a moment's hesitation. Glasses or not, her eyes must have been a lot sharper than Mica thought.
"So why are you just sitting here in the dark like a mushroom?" she asked, patting his hand again. "A good looking boy-chic like you should be out seeing what kind of mischief he can get into."
"Or, least-wise makin' sure other people
don't
," Gina snarled.
Mica paid her just enough attention to forgive her
(again)
.
"I'm waiting for Gypsy," he said. "He and Luci sure have been back there a long time."
Was it his imagination or did the temperature in the room suddenly drop by thirty degrees? Mica hunched his shoulders against the chill and picked up the empty beer bottle. His fingers left dripping impressions on the frosted glass. It wasn't his imagination.
Lord? You working some kind of miracle here?
"Yeah, a long time," Miriam said, nodding her head. Mica half expected to see her breath plume out in front, and was surprised when it didn't. "But a real streak of luck for us. What you might even call a miracle
—"
A shiver raced up Mica's spine as the cold settled down around him. A
miracle
…
"— you should excuse me for stepping in your territory, Mr. Miracle-Man. Okay, so maybe miracle wasn't the right word… so sue me." Miriam shrugged and batted the air in front of her. "Anyway, Luci finds out that girl's a dancer and needs a job
— so what can I do? You know how big hearted our Luci is, she'd have all the dancers in Hollywood in here if she could."
The temperature dropped another degree as Gina's nails put four new scratches across the table top. Mica caught the scowl that passed between them and pressed his back tighter against the back of the booth. Getting out of the line of fire.
"
Anyway
," Miriam said, all smiles and talking faster than usual when she turned back, "the big Gypsy is working out the arrangements… lights, music, whatever they do out here when I'm back in the office paying bills. You know."
Mica nodded and chuckled. It was the first time he could ever remember Miriam lying to hum. She sounded exactly the way his mama had the day he came home early from school and found her and an Encyclopedia salesman sitting in the darkened living room… talking fast and trying to push her crumpled panties under the couch with her foot.
Stay close by, Lord
, Mica prayed,
and best put on Your hip boots… it's running pretty high in here
.
Whatever Gypsy was doing in the dressing room, Mica was dead certain it had nothing to do with music and lights.
"So I tell you
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