An hour later, I was feeling a little better. I’d washed my face and laid on my office floor with an ice bag until I could breathe again. I decided the pity party was over. Savage was right. If I didn’t get myself under control I’d end up on the ledge of the bridge, and nobody looked good after jumping off that thing.

I decided to call Nick and let him know what was going on. It’s not like I could hide it from him until after we were married, though the thought had crossed my mind. I also needed him so we could go to the courthouse and get our marriage license.

“Hey, Siri,” I said to my phone. I waited for the little beep and then said, “Call Nick.”

“Calling Rick.”

“Rick? Who’s Rick? No, call Nick.”

“Calling Vicki.”

I sighed. “Stupid thing. Can’t you understand English?”

My phone rang before I could call Nick the old-fashioned way, and I saw it was my mother.

“We’re back,” she said as a greeting. “I think someone broke into the house while we were gone. All the junk food is gone and there are rolling papers next to the bathtub.”

I pressed my lips together. “Did you have a good trip?”

“It was nice to get away. It’s the only recourse I have when Scarlet comes to town. I spent thirty years having to put up with her when your father was alive, but now that he’s gone I can get the hell out of Dodge. It’s either that or kill her.”

“I’m glad you had a good time,” I said.

“Have you seen your sister?”

“Nope, last I heard she had to go paint.”

“Is the wedding still on?”

I was silent for a few seconds. Someone must have already told her about my face. It was impossible to keep secrets from my mother. “Is there any reason it wouldn’t be?”

“Just curious,” she said, her voice unusually high. “Is there anything you need me to do? I hope you don’t mind that I’m recycling the dress I wore at your last wedding. I didn’t figure I should go to the expense of getting another one when that one has hardly been worn.”

“Good thinking,” I said.

“You could’ve done that with your wedding dress, and saved yourself a fortune. I’ve heard how much those dresses at Le Couture are.”

“Nothing to worry about. Nina and Aunt Scarlet picked up the tab.”

My mother was silent as she contemplated what that meant. “Is it anything I want to know about?”

“Nope, water under the bridge.”

I said goodbye to my mom and then called Nick.

“You must have left early this morning,” he said. “I just got home and you were gone.”

I dodged a bullet there. I could imagine how pissed he’d be if he’d come home and found me looking like Michael Jackson from the “Thriller” video.

“We should probably talk about a couple of things,” I said.

“Should I sit down for this?” he asked.

“Not necessary. But maybe don’t get too comfortable. We haven’t gotten our marriage license. I totally forgot we needed one.”

Nick blew out a breath. “I forgot too. I can meet you at the courthouse in half an hour. I should probably shower first.”

“And maybe we could get our wedding bands while we’re out. And ice cream.”

“What are you not telling me?” he asked.

“My face might look a tiny bit different when you see me. But don’t be alarmed. I can wear my veil. Or a mask.”

“How different?”

“Remember when we saw Mickey Rourke that day in Charleston, and we weren’t sure if it was him or not?”

“Damn,” he said. “What happened?”

“It wasn’t my fault,” I assured him.

“It usually isn’t. You’re just a magnet for disaster.”

“I was trying to keep Aunt Scarlet from assaulting this girl who’s going to jail for insurance fraud, but the girl thought I was coming after her instead of Scarlet, so she punched me in the face. The good news is my nose isn’t broken.”

He sighed again. I was a trial. “I’ll see you at the courthouse.”

When I hung up the phone I was feeling a little better. Nick had a calming effect on me, probably because nothing ever really got him bent out of shape. He let things roll off his back. Unless they didn’t, and then it was best to get out of the way.

I grabbed my emergency makeup kit from my bag and put my concealer to good use. It didn’t make a huge difference, but my nose didn’t look so red and swollen. I put on a little extra eyeliner and mascara and smudged it some, so maybe people would think I was just going for an extreme smoky eye look.

By the time I was finished, it was almost time to meet Nick. I put my coat on and a pair of sunglasses, and headed to Kate’s office to let her know I’d be out. When I got to the end of the hall I saw her door was closed and the light was off. I’d forgotten she was stuck in court all week testifying. Better her than me.

The courthouse was literally across the street from the agency, so I turned my completed files over to a silent Lucy on the way out and cut through Telfair Square. Nick was already waiting for me on the front steps.

He was wearing dark-gray slacks and a light-blue, button-down shirt. His badge was clipped at his waist, and he wore a black wool overcoat. His lips pressed together tighter the closer I got, and when I stood right in front of him he carefully removed my sunglasses.

“Weirdly enough, this isn’t the worst I’ve seen you,” he said.

“And you’re marrying me anyway,” I said, leaning in to kiss him gently. “Maybe everyone inside will think you’re forcing me to marry you. Should I slip someone a note that says Help, I’m being kidnapped?

“Not funny,” he said. “I’m already going to take flak from the guys once they hear about this. Your story better be credible for how this happened.”

“Easy enough. Scarlet hit a woman with a banjo, and then the woman punched me.”

“Yeah, that’s totally credible. Let’s get this done.”

He took my elbow and led me up the stairs and inside. We went through the security process and they locked up Nick’s weapon so we could go through the metal detectors. Every person we passed stared at me and then scowled at Nick. I put my sunglasses back on.

It turns out getting a marriage license isn’t that complicated. What dragged it out was the poor woman behind the counter who kept sending Nick on errands and then asking me over and over again if I needed help, or if she could give me the number for a woman’s shelter. I appreciated the Good Samaritan in her, but I was really needing that ice cream and she was holding me back.

By the time we left, Nick’s jaw was clamped tight and the little vein in his temple was throbbing.

“We can take my unit to finish up,” he said. “Black Betty doesn’t exactly scream low profile. We’re already getting enough stares.”

“No one who knows you would ever think you did something like this to me,” I said, trying to reassure him. “This isn’t the first time I’ve had a black eye. I’m sure it won’t be the last.”

“That’s very comforting,” he said.

Nick was driving his truck today, and it was big and black and the headlights bulged like bug eyes. While I was gracefully hitching myself into the passenger seat, I had a thought about Pastor Charles and the information that Savage had given me. I wasn’t using my greatest strengths to my advantage in solving this case. Despite the fact that Pastor Charles was a murderer and wasn’t actually a real preacher, he still belonged to Whiskey Bayou. At least until everyone found out the truth.

I scrolled through my phone until I found the number Jolene Meader had called me from. She answered on the first ring.

“Jolene, this is Addison Holmes.”

“Yeah?”

“This case I’m working on is a real head-scratcher. You see, Pastor Charles is having a little trouble with a stalker.”

Jolene gasped and said, “Get out of town. You think it’s that guy?”

“I think it very well could be. The guy keeps leaving Pastor Charles photographs of himself. He even broke into his house and left some on the nightstand.”

“I told you he had creepy eyes. Creepiest eyes I’ve ever seen. Dead inside if you ask me. Who would do such a thing to a preacher of all people?”

“That’s what Pastor Charles hired me to find out. But in the meantime, we can’t let this man get away with what he’s doing.”

“Nobody messes with our preachers. I’ll kick his ass the next time I see him.”

“Maybe don’t do that,” I said, wishing I’d thought a little farther ahead in my plan. “He’s armed and dangerous.”

“Don’t matter none to me,” she said. “I got that sawed-off under the counter. I’ll put a hole right through his face and go back to serving pie.”

“Hmm,” I said. “Do you think you can put the word out about this man? What he’s driving? I’ll text you a picture of him and you can pass it around. Everyone needs to look out for Pastor Charles, but without letting Pastor Charles know we’re looking out for him.”

“Got it,” she said. “He sure does have a lot of pride for a preacher. He should probably repent about that.”

“I’ll pass it on to him next time I hear from him.”

Jolene disconnected, and Nick was staring at me. “I feel like I’ve missed something important,” he said.

“We’ve run into a slight hiccup with the wedding,” I said. “We don’t actually have anyone to marry us. It turns out Pastor Charles isn’t really a pastor after all. His name is Carlos Rodriguez and he killed the real Pastor Charles and took over his identity.”

“That seems like more than a slight hiccup.”

“I’m sure we can find someone to marry us. Everyone is ordained nowadays. I was watching Pitbulls and Parolees on Animal Planet the other day, and one of the dogs was ordained.”

“Why hasn’t Pastor Charles been arrested?”

“We can’t find him,” I said. “He’s a slippery devil. Savage is all over this case. Turns out the fake Pastor Charles used to be in WITSEC and flipped on Frank Cardonas.”

Nick whistled long and low. “I’m guessing Frank is a little pissed since he’ll be behind bars the rest of his life.”

“You could say that,” I said. “The physical description Jolene gave me of a guy she’s seen around town fits the description of Frank’s brother. At this point, we need to find Pastor Charles before Emile does.”

“What makes you think Pastor Charles hasn’t gone into hiding?” Nick asked.

“He’s been checking in with his secretary. His car is parked outside the rectory. Maybe he’s hoping I would do enough to stop whoever has found him without digging too deep. I’d think you’d reach a point in your life where you’d want to stop running and constantly looking over your shoulder all the time.”

“He’s underestimated you,” Nick said. “And he’s using you to get rid of his problem, and assuming you’re not good enough to dig too deep into his past.”

“I wouldn’t have been able to dig back so far without Savage.”

“It’s good to have friends in the right places,” he said.

He parked the truck in front of the jewelry store, and I sighed. “I don’t suppose you know a preacher who can perform a last-minute ceremony.”

“It depends on if you want the marriage to be legal.”

“I’ll let you know.”

The jewelry store was right next to the ice cream shop, and I looked back and forth between them, not sure which I wanted first.

“The ice cream shop doesn’t open for another half hour. Rings first. Then ice cream.”

“I love it when you’re decisive.” I walked my fingers up his sleeve, feeling very warm in some very interesting places. I moved in close and he arched a brow, his full attention on me. “I could be persuaded to skip ice cream for a different kind of dessert.”

Nick reached up and took my sunglasses from the top of my head and put them on my eyes. “And I could be persuaded into eating two desserts. Maybe. The black eyes are throwing me off my game.”

“We should’ve brought Black Betty,” I said, grabbing his hand and dragging him toward the jewelry store. “That’s a multipurpose van.”

Nick and I were no strangers to DeLuce’s. We’d worked a case last year that had involved stolen Russian diamonds and a dead courier, and Christian DeLuce had been right in the thick of things. Fortunately, he’d been cleared so he was free to continue to make the beautiful jewelry designs he was famous for. We’d gotten my engagement ring from Christian, though it hadn’t been for the purpose of being engaged at the time.

We walked through the door, and Nick nodded at the security guard who sat on a stool to the left. There was one other couple in the store, and they were bent over looking into one of the cases.

“Detective Dempsey,” Christian DeLuce called out as soon as he saw us.

He was a bird-like, flamboyant man with thinning strawberry-blond hair and the palest skin I’d ever seen. He was close to fifty in age, but looked much younger, and his eyes were the palest of blues.

“Oh, my,” he said, rushing up to kiss both of my cheeks, but he stopped at the sight of my face. “Good Lord, what happened to you?” I removed the sunglasses and he gasped audibly. And then he looked at Nick.

“I had a small incident while on a case,” I said.

He cut his eyes back toward Nick like he was expecting him to start throwing punches. “Well, in any case, it’s so lovely to see both of you again. I hope you’re here for pleasure and not because of dead bodies. I’ve bought no foreign gems lately.”

The people at the counter turned and looked at us, and I smiled and said, “He’s kidding.”

“We’re here for wedding bands,” Nick said.

Something in my brain clicked and I realized I recognized the woman at the counter. Her name was Heather Labo, and her husband had hired us to see if she was having an affair. The man she was with was definitely not her husband. And as if on cue, she reached down and patted his butt.

“A wedding,” Christian said, clapping his hands. “How exciting. I, of course, have the loveliest bands. When is the big day? A summer wedding, perhaps? Fall?”

“It’s Friday,” I said, following him to the counter on the opposite side of the store. DeLuce’s only dealt in high-end jewelry, and they were known for their rare and exclusive pieces. DeLuce was the jeweler to the stars and most of the world’s billionaires.

“I’m sorry, what?” he asked, somehow managing to look even more pale.

“Yes,” I said. “It’s all been put together very fast. I’ve only had a week to plan.”

Christian looked down at my waistline and raised his brows.

“And not because of that,” I said, offended. “We just don’t want to wait.”

“Hmm,” he said, clearly not believing me. “You’ll wear your veil, I suppose.”

I narrowed my eyes at him, but it hurt too much so it wasn’t very effective.

“I just don’t know what I can do,” he said, waving his hands. “I keep a selection, of course, but not in all sizes. Most of our bands are custom-made and unique in some way.”

He was getting all flustered and clearly upset at the thought of selling us something plain.

“Just show us whatever you have,” Nick told him and Christian walked off to the back room, shaking his head and muttering about people expecting him to work miracles.

I took the opportunity to put my bag on the counter and dig through it until I found the file on Heather Labo.

“What are you doing?” Nick asked.

I opened the file and showed him the picture paper-clipped to the front.

He sighed. “Of course this would happen. I forgot who I was with.”

“If you help me do this now I’ll do that thing you like during second dessert.”

He arched a brow at that. “Which thing? The thing you sometimes do, or the thing you almost never do?”

“The thing I almost never do,” I said.

“I’m in. But you realize I’m supposed to be working on a case right now.”

“What would you be doing if you were working right now?” I asked, curiously.

“Banging my head against a wall trying to get warrants.”

“My thing seems like more fun,” I said.

“Yeah, you’re right. The case is out of my hands right now. My grandfather is pulling some strings. I just need to be patient and let him work his magic. He’ll get to the bottom of things. Money always talks.” Nick subtly looked at the couple at the other counter. “I take it that isn’t her husband?”

“Right on the first try. She’s married to Martin Labo, and there’s about a thirty-year age difference and no prenup on the line.”

“Yikes,” Nick said. “Bet he’s regretting that one.”

“He seems to have many regrets. Like marrying her at all.”

“She reminds me of someone,” Nick said.

“She’s like a generic Real Housewives of Orange County. Big lips, big boobs, too much tan, and fabulous shoes. Looks like she’s getting a new bauble.”

“Do you know who the man is?” Nick asked.

“No, never seen him before.”

“He works in the DA’s office. Up-and-coming attorney with political aspirations. I’ve seen him in passing, but we don’t know each other on a personal level.”

“He’s wearing a wedding ring, too,” I said. “Sometimes I hate this job.”

Nick squeezed my hand and I put the file away when Christian came back with a tray of only four rings. I was having trouble focusing on them because I kept sneaking glances at Heather. A woman like that would never be satisfied with what she had. There would always be something just out of her grasp and she’d throw everything away with the hopes of getting just a little more. In the end she’d be left with no one—alone and withered—until people forgot she ever existed. It was sad, really.

“Ms. Holmes?” Christian said, clearly having tried to get my attention multiple times.

“I’m sorry, I’ve got a lot on my mind.”

“Of course you do,” he said. “I couldn’t imagine throwing a wedding together in a week. I couldn’t throw a dinner party together in a week. How many people will be attending?”

I thought about the small wedding for friends and family that had somehow turned into a block party for an entire town and said, “Around three thousand. It’s open bar.”

Which reminded me that I needed to ask Rosemarie if she’d been able to secure plenty of booze. The last thing we wanted was a bunch of angry, almost drunk townspeople. They’d burn Whiskey Bayou to the ground.

Christian choked and went into a dramatic fit of coughing. “Well,” he finally said. “You’re both much braver than I could ever be, that’s for sure. Now take a look at these rings. I just happen to have two matching sets in your sizes.”

“That one,” Nick and I both said at the same time, pointing to the plain silver bands.

“I guess that’s a match,” Christian said. “Oh, I do love weddings. So romantic. I consider myself in the wedding business. So many repeat customers. You really get to know people on a personal level.”

“I bet,” I said. “We’d love to have you at ours if you’re free.”

“Oh, I wish I could,” he said sympathetically. “It sounds like it could be a real spectacle. But I’ve got to fly off to Italy for a show. You can pick the rings up on Friday morning before the wedding. My assistant will be here.” He pointed to the woman who was helping Heather Labo select a necklace and matching earrings.

I didn’t have an excuse for sticking around and waiting for Heather and her lover to finish up, so Nick and I left and he turned toward the ice cream shop.

“I’ll wait in the car if you’ll get mine,” I said. “I don’t want to miss them if they leave. I’ll only have one more case to wrap up before the end of the week if I can get this done.”

He reluctantly handed me the truck keys and said, “What do you want?”

“Triple hot fudge sundae. Extra sauce and whipped cream.”

“How you don’t weigh four hundred pounds I’ll never know.”

“Good metabolism. By the time I’m Scarlet’s age think of how small I’ll be. I’ll have practically shrunk to nothing.”

“If I ever get to be Scarlet’s age I’d prefer you just take me in the backyard and shoot me.”

“We should probably make some adjustments in our estate planning.”

We knuckle-bumped and I headed toward the truck. I turned on the heater and then got my long-range Nikon out of my bag. Sometimes a camera phone wouldn’t do it.

I was able to zoom in and get a couple of clear shots of them at the jewelry counter, but Heather and her lover never turned their faces completely toward the camera. They finally wrapped up their purchase and came out just before Nick did with our ice cream.

“Hurry,” I said once he got in the car and handed over my sundae. I looked at his single dip of chocolate and shook my head. I was glad he had more imagination in the bedroom than he did in ice cream choices.

“They’re getting into that Mercedes down there. The one that looks like it belongs to a Stormtrooper. I didn’t realize working in the DA’s office paid so well. That’s an expensive car.”

“They don’t pay that well,” Nick said. “Maybe he’s got family money.”

“I guess he’d have to if he’s got political aspirations. And that was no cheap piece of jewelry he just bought for her either. We’ve got to follow them,” I said.

“Addison…”

“Come on, you’re going to lose them.” I got my laptop out and connected it to my hotspot, and then I ran the license plate on the Mercedes. “It’s registered to a Julia Petrie.”

“Petrie,” Nick said, nodding his head. “That’s his name. I couldn’t remember. Not sure of his first name. I want to say John or James. Something with a J.”

“Jerrod,” I said. “Looks like the money comes from his wife’s side. I’m sure she’ll appreciate knowing what it’s going toward.”

“They’re heading out of the city,” Nick said, turning left onto Bay Street and then merging onto the highway and heading toward Chatham.

“You’re really good at tailing someone,” I said, appreciating how he was able to keep cars between them and us and not lose them in the process.

He spared me a glance. “Thanks,” he said dryly.

I was down to the bottom of my sundae and was all but ready to lick the bottom of the plastic container, but decided the stakes were too high at the moment. I put down the container and grabbed my Nikon, and then I zoomed in through the back window of the SUV.

“Where’d she go?” I asked, only seeing the back of Jerrod’s head behind the wheel.

“Where do you think she went?” Nick asked. “If you hadn’t been so preoccupied with your ice cream you would’ve noticed she hasn’t sat upright the entire car ride.”

Jerrod was swerving between the lanes and he finally cut across three lanes of traffic, causing cars to slam on their brakes and honk their horns. He was driving like an idiot.

“Oh,” I said, finally realizing why. “I guess that’s his reward for the jewelry. They’d better pace themselves. He’s going to have a wreck.”

“They’re getting off here,” Nick said. “No pun intended.”

I snorted out a laugh as he maneuvered his way across traffic to take the exit ramp.

“Looks like a bunch of middle income neighborhoods,” I said.

Nick slowed down and waited until they’d turned onto Magnolia Street before following.

“Look,” I said, pointing. “They’re turning into that driveway.” The garage door opened and the Mercedes disappeared inside.

I typed in the address on the computer. “Looks like a rent house. It’s owned by Arthur Coolidge, LLC. I can’t tell who’s currently renting it.”

Nick blew out a breath. “Arthur Coolidge is the DA. They probably all use it for whatever trysts or illegal activities are happening in that office. They’re all dirty as hell.”

“That’s terrible,” I said.

“It is what it is. Corruption at its finest. All we can do is our job and collect pieces of information. Maybe one day we’ll have enough information for a lot of people to go down. Right now, we don’t have it.”

“I’m starting to think we should move for real. This place has issues.”

“All places have issues. No one is honest anymore. Everyone is in it for themselves and whatever serves their best interest. It’s one of the reasons my grandfather wants to retire. He doesn’t feel like he can make a difference anymore.”

“Maybe you should run for his seat,” I said, and then wondered what the hell I was thinking.

But Nick didn’t say anything. He just made a U-turn at the end of the street and then parked a few houses down from where Heather and Jerrod went. Almost all the driveways were empty since it was still the middle of the workday.

“Do what you’ve got to do,” he said. “I can’t go with you.”

“It’s a shame because you could boost me over that fence. Good thing there are trees in the backyard.”

Nick closed his eyes and shook his head. “I could get fired for this.”

“You’re right,” I said. “You stay here. I’ll be right back. Lickety-split.”

“I’m not letting you climb fences and trees by yourself. I’d prefer to get married to a live person on Friday.”

“I can do this. Really,” I said. “I don’t want you to get in trouble. And you’re dressed kind of fancy.”

He just gave me a look that said I’d do best not to argue with him, and I figured he must really want me to do that thing I almost never did. “Get your camera.”

I strapped it around my neck and hopped out of the car. I watched as Nick took off his long wool coat and put it in the back cab, instead grabbing his black Northface jacket. He grabbed my hand and pulled me along toward the rent house, just a couple out for a stroll in freezing temperatures.

“We’ll get in through this one,” he said. “Take a couple of pictures and then we’ll go around back.”

It was then I realized what he was doing. The house next door had a For Sale sign in the front yard. I took a couple of random shots of a traditional two-story brick house with nice big trees in the front and back. There was a realtor’s lockbox on the front door, and there were no blinds or curtains in the front windows so people could look into the house. It was staged perfectly, so I was guessing no one currently lived there.

I moseyed casually behind Nick as we walked around the side of the house, and he opened the gate to the backyard like he had every right to be there. Once we were through he closed the gate and did a quick look around. There was a big tree close to the fence that looked like it would be simple enough to climb and then drop down into the yard next door.

“Oh, man,” I said. “I hate trees.”

“I’ll go first,” Nick said. And he climbed up the tree like a monkey, took a good look at the yard next door to make sure there was nothing there, and then hopped down and out of sight.

I sighed and hung my camera around my neck, and then I started the climb up the tree. The problem with my gorgeous and practical winter boots was they weren’t all that practical for tree climbing. I hauled myself up to the limb that Nick had crossed on, completely out of breath and reminding myself to start exercising again. I’d pretty much stopped after I’d passed the physical fitness portion of my P.I. exam. Apparently you’re supposed to keep it up.

“Come on,” Nick hissed. He held out a hand for me, but it looked like an awfully long way down.

I crawled out farther onto the limb and it started to bend some, and then a little more. I was wrapped around it like a possum, and I swung upside down, holding on for dear life.

“What now?” I hissed back.

“Just let go. I’ll catch you.”

“Are you nuts? I’m upside down. I’ll break my head.”

“Just do it,” he said. “They’re probably already finished by now.”

That thought kicked me into gear and I let go suddenly, reaching for Nick as I came down. He caught me with an oomph and staggered back a few steps and then set me on my feet.

“Thanks,” I said.

“Let’s not do that again.”

“Usually when I’m stuck in a tree I’m with Savage or Kate.”

“Does that make it better?”

I thought back to those times and shook my head. “Not really,” I said. “Pretty much the same outcome.”

I got myself together as best I could and then made my way toward the house, staying away from the windows. The backyard was a good size and there was a nice outdoor patio and deck, along with a hot tub.

“Gross, I can only imagine what that poor hot tub has seen.”

“You don’t know the half of it,” Nick said. “You haven’t seen the guys at the DA’s office. There’s not enough bleach in the world to clean that thing.”

I shuddered in disgust and looked in the first window I came across. I could barely see through the slats in the blinds, but I could make out what looked to be a small guest bedroom. Nick had been right, they’d been using this place as some kind of DA frat house. The bed took up almost the whole room and all I could see was a lot of black satin and a weird chandelier.

The back of the house was pretty open and I could see into the living room and kitchen area. But there was no sign of Heather and Jerrod.

“You think they even made it out of the garage?” I asked.

“Maybe not,” he said. And then he moved in closer to the window so his face was almost pressed against it.

My heart was beating a hundred miles a minute.

“Look there,” he said.

I came up next to him and followed where his fingers were pointing. A trail of clothes led through the living room and kitchen into what I was guessing was the master bedroom.

“Come on,” I said, and made my way toward the three bay windows. The blinds were closed and I couldn’t see inside, not even a speck of light. But there were three narrow, rectangular windows above each of the bay windows. “You’re going to have to boost me up.”

Nick closed his eyes again and looked to be counting to ten. Then he started over. I smacked him on the shoulder and gestured toward the windows. He rolled his eyes and then knelt so I could sit on his shoulders, and then he slowly came to a standing position. My feet were tucked behind his back and I wobbled back and forth on his shoulders.

“Let go of my hair,” he hissed, and I realized I had a death grip on his hair.

“Sorry,” I said and tried to sit up straighter. I was right at eye-level with the window, and it surprised me when I actually saw Jerrod and Heather in the room. And boy did I see them. I brought the camera up and took a couple of quick shots. And then I tapped Nick on the top of the head and leaned down.

“Hey, I don’t think you have to worry about this guy having too many political aspirations. He’s dressed in a red lace bra and panty set. It’s just like the one I have that you like.”

“You should probably burn that,” Nick said. “Are you done?”

“Almost.” I popped back up to get another couple of shots, and Jerrod must have caught movement from the corner of his eye because he turned and we made eye contact.

“Oh, shit,” I said, and kicked my foot in Nick’s kidney like I was spurring on a horse. “He saw me. Go! Go!”

The last thing I’d seen through the window was both of them scrambling for clothes. They were coming for us.

“Get down and run,” Nick said.

But I was frozen, and I had a death grip on Nick’s head and my legs were wrapped around him like an anaconda. I wasn’t going anywhere. So he started running. I bounced on his shoulders as he plowed through the gate and across the front yard.

“Move your hand,” he yelled. “You’re covering my eyes.”

I was laughing hysterically. I couldn’t seem to stop and couldn’t seem to get control of myself. I imagined we looked like an ostrich weaving back and forth, running willy-nilly down the street.

Nick opened the driver’s side door and tossed me inside, and then shoved me across to the passenger seat. I was completely useless because I couldn’t stop laughing and Nick somehow managed to get the car started and speed down the street just as Jerrod Petrie came running out of the front of the house. He was only wearing his pants and the red bra.

Nick ducked down in his seat, but I could tell he was laughing too.

“You’re right,” I said. “I’m going to have to burn that bra and panty set.”

“We should also probably get a new car. I doubt he was able to see my plates, but there aren’t a lot of people who drive this kind of truck and park at the municipal building.”

I looked at the clock. It was going on noon. “Do you still have time for sex?”

“Sex first. Car later.”