In Love by Design (The Adventures of Anabel Axelrod) (32 page)

Texting
the required E to Luke, I cursed cell phones and boyfriends. This time it was a full five minutes before Luke’s K text was returned.

I was
still smiling at that pissed off K when the phone buzzed in my hand.

“Anna! Where are you?” I asked immediately.

“Hey, I called you!” she complained, then answered, “I’m at the Fare still. Why? Where are you?”

“Did Pete drop off the jeep?” I ask
ed, instead of answering.

“Yep, I have the key right here.”

“Cool, put it in your pocket for me. So, would you say it’s evening out about now or still afternoon?” I inquired, leaning forward to log off the computer.

“
It’s just five, so I guess its evening. Why?” Anna asked, and then demanded again, “Where are you, Junior?”

“Right above you.
Are you done down there? I need you desperately up in the apartment. If you are ready, I’ll buzz you up.”

“Did
you really change the code?” Anna exclaimed, indignantly. “And wait, I want to…”

“Yes, yes,” I interrupted, laughing, “I changed the code, deal with it
.” Or I would be in a minute, so close enough. “Yes, I know you want to come out with me and the girls tonight. That’s fine by me, as long as you wear dark clothes and shoes that you can run in. Wait, you can still run if you’re pregnant, right? Or at least trot swiftly, if needed?” I ignored her yelling and went on without waiting, “And yes, Anna, my best friend and the woman who is incubating my brother’s demon seed, I know you need to bring food over to Reggie’s for poker tonight. That works out great. You can drive my jeep and I’ll follow you over there. Just hurry up here, ‘kay?”

There was silence and then Anna
shouted, “I am going to kill you!” before hanging up.

The minute Stella said Reg
messed up the dates and was playing poker; I knew Anna would want to come with me tonight. I’d asked Mac’s permission to add another ninja during my earlier call. Due to Mac’s repugnance over the cheek kissing debacle, she’s beyond caring if I invite every friend and relative we have to go prove Diego’s a cheating, dago bastard.

Her words, not mine.

Before leaving the office, I took a moment to select a present from the pile waiting to be wrapped. I folded some tissue paper around it and placed it in a black and white checkered gift bag. Smirking, I stapled a frothy, curly white ribbon dotted with little pink hearts onto the top of the bag, sealing the gift and making it pretty.

Setting the bag on the
bench in the foyer, I reached the control panel right as Anna lay on the buzzer. I went to meet her, smiling at hearing her huffing and puffing while running up the stairs. Rounding the landing, Anna was loudly calling me every kind of stupid for not taking one measly day off without having to call into the store. Also, I was stupid for being here in the apartment, instead of with dreamboat Luke, especially when someone was trying to kill me.

S
he reached the top and I raised my brows. “Finished? Do you feel better now? Because I can wait if you want to keep telling me, in your own special way, how you’re my bestie and have my back.”

“And you’re an even bigger smart ass than your brother
! There! Now I’m finished and I do feel better, thank you.” She flashed a brief grin and hugged me, but then an anxious look flitted over her face. “I’ve been worried all day. Have you heard any news from that fixer you hired?”

I shook my head. “Not yet,” To
assuage her concerns, I added, “Luke’s all over it, too. He’s convinced I don’t have anything to worry about today because the killer should think I’m dead, but we’re still being careful. We also started my self defense lessons today.”

Anna’s face immediately relaxed at the mention of Luke’s name. On second thought,
I decided I wouldn’t be telling Jazy and Tre about last night’s exploits, since it’s very fresh in my mind how overprotective they got when the Hammer was on the loose. I reminded Anna that she and Reg are the only ones who knew about my abduction and I wanted to keep it that way.

She
agreed and reassured me that Reggie was sworn to secrecy this morning. She rubbed her hands, bright-eyed and excited. Anna loved a good mystery, as long as she doesn’t have to worry about death or dismemberment.

“So why the desperation? What
’s going down tonight, June?”

Laughing, I
said, “So much is going down, you won’t even believe it!” I stopped her from taking off her shoes and handed over my phone. “What time do you have to deliver the sandwiches to Reggie’s?”

She
glanced confusedly from the phone in her hand to my face while answering, “He said they’re starting early tonight, so six at the latest. Can you believe he freakin’ forgot it was their annual Christmas poker party night?” She snorted and shook her head sadly at the vagaries of men. “Reggie makes the chili himself every year. Ugh! His chili is so spicy hot, I don’t know how those guys all eat it,” she smiled and said, “but it’s got to burn like a son of a bitch coming out the other end.”

“Oh, thanks a lot for that charming visual. Gross!”
I exclaimed, as I lead the way into the living room.

Anna
laughter was tinged with evil, chipmunk satisfaction. “That ought to teach them all for screwing up my date night!”

Waving Anna to sit,
I said dryly, “I won’t even ask what you did to the subs.”

Anna gigg
led, plopping down on the sofa.

I sat beside her
and asked carelessly, “What did Reggie say the other guys are all bringing tonight?”

My brother’s been doing his annual Christmas poker
bash for years and the men all bring their different contributions to the party. They eat holiday foods, smoke expensive cigars, drink good booze, and the pots are much larger than normal. Several wives and girlfriends have been really mad at my brother in the past for having this party in December. It’s been known to affect the size of their Christmas gift if their man loses. I know all this, but I had a thought and now I’m fishing.

Anna wave
d a negligent hand. “Let’s see, you know Luke’s supplying the beer from that microbrewery in Chicago that he said is so great.” She rolled her eyes, “Guys and their beer.”

She went on with the list, but I tuned out after hearing my hunch confirmed; Luke had always planned on attending this poker party tonight.

‘Is that why he bothered coming back to the farm this weekend?’
demanded the mean mommy voice.

Feeling a glowing heat from the fiery sparkle of the diamonds and gems on my finger,
I’d like to think this wasn’t true, but no wonder my Dark Prince laughed when I suggested lessons in multitasking. I was more curious at his instructions this afternoon when I left to meet Pam. Was Luke’s plan to have me waiting in his bedroom, stripped to only my stockings while he was off playing cards until late and I idly did scissor kicks on his lonely bed?

Thinking over the timing, I
bet his plan was that I’d be back at the farm between two and three, we’d have some fun and games and then he’d go whistling off down the road to my brother’s.

‘Is that his idea of training?
’ asked the sex kitten in a dubious, disappointed voice.

It look
ed that way, and his plan would have worked had he not been a Dissembler. I would have trotted happily back to the farm after my lunch, eager and willing to strip for my boyfriend. I’d probably be getting tied up in the secret basement, even as we speak, and left dangling from some meat hook while Genghis went riding off to strip poor, defenseless men of their Christmas savings.

‘Excuse me, but did you tell Luke about the plans with Jaz and Tre J tonight?’
timidly asked the accountant voice.

‘That’s not the same thing,
’
argued the gruff detective voice.

I agree
d it wasn’t the same thing at all. It’s not like I wanted to go ninja Diego’s ass tonight, I had no choice. Luke was choosing to leave me hanging at the farm without any advance warning of his plans.

Ann
finished her list and laughed. “At least now I don’t blame you for having plans tonight with Jaz and Tre. You’d better warn Luke about that chili, though, and I’m not joking.”

I smiled
faintly. “We’ll get going in a few minutes, but please listen to this app on my phone. I need you to translate and then I’ll explain after.”

Anna screamed
and I jumped up. Whirling around, I reached for my gun. Not seeing anything I needed to shoot, I quickly glanced back. Anna had one hand over her mouth and the other was pointing at my right hand.

She
yelled, “Oh my dear frickin’ God, where did you get that ring? Is that real?”

“Well, it’s not a mirage,” I
retorted, sitting in relief while my heart fell out of my throat and back into place behind my breastbone. Oblivious to anything but the ring, she grabbed my hand for inspection. I explained grudgingly, “It’s an early birthday present from Luke.”

Anna
looked closely at the brilliant sparkler happily showing off for her and glanced up, tears filling her round brown eyes. “It’s so beautiful!” She brushed off the tears while laughing. “Look at me! I cry now over everything, it’s the craziest thing. I told you it was so romantic that Luke wanted to kidnap you and now look at this!” She looked down again, and turning my hand, sighed loudly. “I just love it. Tell me how Luke gave it to you. I’m sure he did something awesome.” Her thin eyebrows met in a frown. “Are you sure it’s a birthday present? That’s a lot of big diamonds, Junior.”

I took my hand back and
smiled at my goofy friend. “Oh, I’m sure, Anna.”

I
know women and they were relentless when it comes to making other women tell about the romantic things their men do for them, and at reciting their baby birthing stories. I believe this was so they can compare your man to their man, and woe to the man that was lacking. The recital of baby birthing stories must be because misery loves company.

I groan
ed internally. “I promise to tell you how Luke gave me the ring, but not until everyone’s around because I’m not telling the story more than once.” I pointed to the phone. “Now we’ve got to get moving here, girlfriend, so please listen to that.”

“I can’t believe you! Are you sure you’re a girl?’
Anna griped. She gave me another dirty look and then played back the recorded Spanish conversation.

As she concentrate
d on listening and then played it a second time, I breathed a secret sigh of relief at what Anna was wearing; jeans, a brown sweater, running shoes, and her auburn hair pulled up in a knot.

It
would seriously screw with my schedule if we had to stop at Anna’s house for her to change. No lie, she could take ten minutes to decide which one of two identical white T-shirts to wear. It should be interesting when she has to dress herself and a baby. I foresee a lot of pacing in my punctual brother’s future.

Watch
ing Anna’s intent expression, I’m still amazed that she’s eleven weeks pregnant with the next poet laureate in the Axelrod family. She’s glowing with happiness, hormones, and health. She was relieved that it’s been four days since she last puked her guts out. I was profoundly happy this was so because she and Stella, at only six weeks along and proudly strutting around puke-free, have a mommy rivalry going on.

Anna
hasn’t started showing yet, except for her breasts growing plumper. This also thrilled Anna to no end because she’s always despaired of her small cup size. She’s daydreamed for years of breast implants and shimmying her bountiful abundance in men’s faces. She was the one female in Northfield that was actually envious of my ex-cousin’s set of painfully ginormous, porn star, balloon breasts. I know this only because I was the lucky person Anna chose to be the recipient of this drunken confession. I could’ve happily lived a long time longer, say about a thousand years, without knowing that fun fact.

Anna passed the phone back to me and her gaze
was full of speculation. “Okay, that was obviously Diego and some other woman, right?” At my nod, she continued, “It’s hard to hear really well, but I think they were arguing about something important located in Diego’s office or about something they did in his office.” She hesitated and then said slowly, “Whichever it is, Diego is not happy that it happened and the woman’s trying to convince him not to worry that anybody will find out. Jesus, does Mac know about this?”

“
Sort of, and I’ll explain everything, but was there anything else?”

Anna
bit her lip and responded, “Oh yeah, that last part where the woman said something in Spanish after you introduced yourself?”

“Ye
s?” I prompted.

“She told Diego
not to worry because you don’t understand Spanish and,” Anna’s voice strangled over her laughter, “you’re obviously not too bright!”

I smiled
calmly. “Good.”

Anna’s brows raised high
under her long bangs. “How is some bimbo of Diego’s calling you stupid good?”