Total pages in book: 131
Estimated words: 131387 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 657(@200wpm)___ 526(@250wpm)___ 438(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 131387 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 657(@200wpm)___ 526(@250wpm)___ 438(@300wpm)
“Uh…hey,” the redhead said.
“Hey,” Abigail and I greeted at the same time, but Abigail’s syllable was wobbly, like she was laughing.
Or choking.
“Okay, I didn’t apply for the CIA not only because I never wanted to be in the CIA, and possibly with my family’s Soviet history, wouldn’t get in anyway, but because I’d suck at being a spy,” the blonde with the baby said.
More confusion, this time about her statement, at the same time I was intrigued about the Soviet history mention.
She wheeled her stroller (cute, dressed-up-against-the-cold baby sleeping in it) through our displays with the redhead bringing up the rear, and when she made it to us, she stuck her hand out to me over the stroller.
“Nadia Riggs,” she said like I knew who she was.
I took her hand. “Hi.”
“Doc Riggs’s wife,” Abigail added.
Where had I heard that name before?
“Hey, Lillian,” Abigail said to the redhead.
“Hey,” she replied. Looked to me and repeated, “Hey.”
“Hey,” I also repeated.
“Lillian is married to Harry Moran,” Abigail supplied.
“Oh!” I cried. “I know Harry. Hi.”
Lillian smiled at me before she and Nadia looked at each other in what I could swear was a she’s not getting it way.
Back to confused.
“And this is?” Abigail asked after the baby in the stroller.
“Cicely,” Nadia said.
At that, Abigail smiled huge and replied, “I love it.”
“Took a while for me to talk Riggs into it,” Nadia replied. “But I got there in the end. Though, he refuses to address the origins of her name and insists on calling her LeeLee.”
“Can I ask the origin of her name?” I requested.
She threw an arm toward the big windows at the front of the store like that was an answer.
It wasn’t.
Lillian came to my rescue and explained, “Some folks think MP is like Cicely, Alaska. You know, from the show Northern Exposure?”
“Oh. Right.” It hit me how apt that was, and I grinned big and cried (not too loud, baby sleeping), “Right!”
“Can’t call her Twin Peaks,” Abigail put in, then added, “Definitely not Laura.”
Since I so got that reference, we all burst out laughing (quietly, again, baby sleeping).
When we stopped, Nadia told me, “Riggs and I got a dog from Hutch.”
“Ah,” I said.
“And I think I nearly broke him because I was intent on looking at Gia as my very big puppy, and he’d spent months training her to be anything but a puppy. He’s good with training dogs. He’s not so good with training soppy women,” Nadia told me.
Through a smile, I asked, “Which kind did you get?”
“Gia’s a Corso.”
“Like Hannibal. So essentially, she’s a puppy and a killer all in one,” I replied.
“Essentially,” Nadia agreed through her own smile.
“I’m just going to keep doing this while you gals chat, is that okay?” Abigail asked as she went back to her spiders.
“Sure,” Lillian said.
“Your shop is awesome. I’ve been meaning to come in here,” Nadia said.
“I’m addicted to Ida’s sugar scrub.” Lillian paused. “And her green tea mask.”
“Ida has some amazing stuff,” I agreed.
“Okay, so, um…just to be clear, you know Lug?” Nadia asked.
Back to confused.
“Yes. I met him at The Link,” I answered.
“Jaeger?” Lillian asked.
I shrugged. “I haven’t met him, but I know Hutch knows him. He met him in town for a game of one-on-one the other night, and they went out for a drink.”
“Add Doc, Harry, Rus, maybe Bubbles, definitely Jace and Jesse, and occasionally Cade, and that’s Hutch’s bestest buds friend posse,” Lillian shared.
It was then it hit me.
“Oooooooooooooooooh,” I said.
“Yeah. Sorry, we’re here checking you out,” Nadia admitted.
I started laughing softly. “That’s okay.”
“Well, Lillian is here to check you out. I’m here to do that too, but also to possibly recruit you and Hutch as pinch-hit babysitters when Riggs’s mom or Kimmy are out of commission,” Nadia added.
“And me and Harry,” Lillian put in.
“And you and Harry,” Nadia agreed.
“And Cin and Rus and Cade and Delphine. Not to mention Celeste,” Lillian kept at her.
Nadia smiled and said, “Just you wait. You think a babysitter list will be a mile long, but it’ll seem super short when your mother-in-law is out of town, Kimmy is stapling Christmas lights to someone’s house and there’s a double bill of Sunset Boulevard and Chinatown you’re dying to see at the Misted Lake.”
Lillian’s lips turned up in a gentle way. “We have Ronnie and George right next door.”
“Oh. Right. With Ronetta around, when you have a baby, you might find yourself needing an appointment with her to see it,” Nadia joked.
Lillian laughed.
I peered down at the rosy-chubby-cheeked baby girl in her chunky, cable knit sweater, thermal leggings, baby hat with a big bow at the side, and fuzzy socks, and said, “I’m all in for babysitting.”
“I also thought you and Hutch could come over for dinner,” Nadia went on. “Maybe next week?”
I was about to tell her I’d like that, and I’d talk to Hutch, but she kept going like she had to convince me.