| |
Alice (Tommy & Alice) Friday, 9:30 a.m.
I’m aware that it’s crazy to interfere in the relationships of others, but Ray O’Connor was obviously clueless when it came to love. A man over thirty who’s still on his own has probably sabotaged a string of promising affairs by not recognizing the unspoken—yet very real—rules of the romance game in this day and age. In the past, the promise of sex led men to commit to a woman long-term. Now that sex is easy and everywhere, some men view dating as a way of life. Marlene might or might not be O’Connor’s ideal partner, but in my estimation, she’d never garner the nerve to ask him what his intentions for their future were. As for the detective, I pegged him as the type who couldn’t fathom he might lose a woman he cared about until she was gone.
When I saw the man’s car at Julie’s Friday morning, I made a decision. Picking up a coffee cake I’d made for Tommy and me to have at our mid-morning break, I hurried across the street.
I knocked, and Julie called for me to come in. O’Connor was sitting at the table and Julie was pouring them each an iced tea. “How about a slice of this to go with your drinks?” I invited, and O’Connor perked up like a seal offered a fish.
Since it had been a while since we met, Julie said, “Detective, you’ll remember my friend Alice Murgasson. She’s helping with our project.”
“Oh, yes,” he said politely, but his eye was on the treat. Taking it from me, Julie cut the detective a hefty chunk. Hers was much smaller, and I said I’d wait and have some later with Tommy. The detective remembered my husband and asked about him. I said he was fine and turned to my purpose.
“I can’t stay,” I told Julie, “but I wanted to let you know my nephew from Charleston will be here this afternoon. You said you might be able to fix him up with Marlene in the office, right?” Julie gave me a look, but I went right on. “I think they’d be perfect for each other, and you said she isn’t seeing anyone seriously.”
Julie glanced at O’Connor, who’d stopped with a forkful of cake halfway to his mouth. “Actually, Marlene is seeing someone.”
“But she isn’t engaged or anything, right?” Turning to O’Connor I explained, “Kevin’s a real sweetheart. He’ll be taking the bar exam soon, I know he and Marlene will hit it off.” I rose from the chair. “If he arrives before closing, I’d like you to take him down to the office and introduce them.” Picking up the remains of the coffee cake I said, “It was good seeing you again, Detective.”
When I glanced back, O’Connor was looking dazed and a little unhappy. Julie raised an eyebrow as if to say, You sly devil.
I winked. I’d given him a shove. Now we’d see what happened.
