Gilda walked up her front sidewalk in the semidarkness with a vague, uneasy feeling. She hadn't noticed Gary or his car along the street, yet the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end as though something was out of place.
Ahead on the front porch, someone moved, and a flame flared to life. Chloe lit a cigarette, took a long drag, and blew a stream of smoke toward Gilda before she doused the lighter. "About time you got home. I've been sitting here half an hour. I always thought you could do better than dating Razi."
Gilda started to apologize, then reconsidered. "What do you want?"
"You don't have to sound so hostile." She shifted in the lumpy wicker chair and tossed her hair over her shoulder. "You really need better furniture. You get this at a garage sale or something?"
"It was my grandmother's." Gilda climbed the steps and waited.
Chloe took another drag and blew out the smoke. "I know you and Mick hang out a lot, but don't get too familiar. He's mine."
"I heard you guys broke up."
"You're a good secretary, but that's where his adoration ends. I'm the one with the looks, the brains, and the money." The cigarette glowed before Chloe released a long breath. "I used to be a bikini model. I'm a trophy. You're nothing."
Gilda, self-esteem at a new all-time low, pulled out her keys. "I'm going to bed, so I'd appreciate it if you left."
"Oh, I will," Chloe said. "Right after I warn you to stay away from my father too."
"Your father?" Her entire body tensed.
Chloe stood and teetered in her four-inch spike heels. Without the heels, she was Gilda's height. "I've heard rumors you and my father are having a fling, and I want it to stop. I won't have you ruining his good name."
"Are you serious?" Gilda gagged as smoke wafted into her face. Gary del Garda had established his "good name" long before she was ever born. "I am not having, nor would I ever have, an affair with your dad. I do have some standards."
"What's wrong with my dad?" Chloe asked.
He's twice my age. He's a criminal. He's stalking me. Take your pick. Gilda sighed. "Nothing. He's a nice guy, but he's not my type."
"Good." She gazed toward the street and tapped her toe on the porch.
Gilda shifted her weight, longing for an ice pack. "Is there something else bothering you, or can I go about my business?"
"Yeah," she said. "Tell that old Japanese dude to stay away from me."
"Yoshida?"
"Yeah. Him. Every time he's in town, Mick insists we take him to dinner. I usually get out of it, but lately he's been hanging around town a lot more. The other day, I bumped into him in the grocery store of, all places."
Gilda frowned. "What was he doing there?"
"Probably getting food while he was in town. That's why I was there." Chloe took one last puff on her cigarette then buried the butt in the planter full of marigolds. She walked down the front path and to the left around the corner. Seconds later, the Ferrari's engine roared to life and faded into the night.
"Stay away from Mick and Gary, and keep Yoshida away from Chloe." Gilda unlocked the front door. "Sounds easy enough."