Family Affair (29 page)

Chase looked at Nora and read the panic in her face. "Oh, shit, I mean shoot," Chase said.

"How long have they been coming to work?"

The dogs leapt up on Chase's leg and kissed her. Then they went about exploring her and Nora's shared office space. The trash can was of special interest. Chase watched them closely and hoped they wouldn't do anything horrid.

"Well?" Gitana said.

"Since before Labor Day. I wanted them to be more socialized. Everyone loves them and they haven't destroyed one single orchid." Chase refrained from mentioning their other minor misdemeanors.

"How can I trust you anymore?" Gitana said.

"I did it for Bud."

"Bud doesn't want Scooter Libby for a father."

Nora laughed, caught herself and faked a cough.

Chase glared at her. "No more minor indiscretions," she said.

"Lies," Gitana said.

"All right, lies. Can the girls stay?" Chase said, doing her best to look penitent.

"No customer contact. I don't want a lawsuit. Work areas only. Okay?"

"Gotcha."

"I'll place the order," Gitana said, taking the form from Nora.

"What, now you don't trust me?" Nora asked.

"Does duplicitous sound familiar?"

"Not really. Look, from now on I'll be your snitch," Nora declared.

"That's better."

"Thanks a lot," Chase said, going back to her receipts. At least this made her look busy. She put her trash can up on her desk as the dogs' interest in it had gone from curiosity to search and seizure.

"You get what you give," Gitana said, going to her office door.

"That sounds hostile," Chase said.

Gitana smiled and went into her office.

"Well, that went well considering," Chase said, giving the dogs a biscuit from the can she kept in her top drawer.

"We were lucky," Nora said, going over next week's schedule and making minor changes—one of the cashiers had a dentist appointment.

"I'll say. You could've been fired and I could have been thrown out of the house."

Nora laughed.

"Okay, out you go," Chase said to the dogs. "Mama's got work to do." They cruised out the door in search of perpetrators who could have infiltrated the perimeter while they were away from their post.

Eliza came in. "Hi there," Chase said. She liked Eliza now. She had been very patient with Chase while she learned about orchids. Thanks to her Chase had grown quite knowledgeable.

"Hello," Eliza said. She looked at Nora who smiled at her and then Eliza burst into tears.

"What did you do to her?" Chase said, leaping up, getting Eliza a chair and a box of Kleenex.

"I didn't do anything," Nora replied, gaping at Eliza.

Eliza blew her nose. "It's not her. It's my life. I just can't take it anymore. I give up." She raised her hands overhead.

Chase wasn't sure if this was a sign to God that like Job his test was ruthless or unlike Job, Eliza wasn't up to the task.

"What's wrong?" Chase asked, hoping none of this had anything to do with her. She was fairly certain she hadn't stepped on Eliza's toes in her dealings with the staff. She was taking a positive attitude toward discipline and no one had been fired yet.

"Oh, nothing," Eliza said tearfully.

Chase had read in her Guide to Women's Health book that some menopausal women had crying jags. Eliza didn't look old enough to be menopausal—but sometimes it started early. Chase was learning everything about girl-parts. Gitana had threatened to take the book away several times. Chase was now hiding it in the bathroom cabinet.

"It must be something," Nora prodded.

"Well, I'm having a bad patch. I guess. I keeping hoping things will get better but then another bad thing happens." She grabbed another wad of Kleenex.

Chase braced herself. "Like what kind of things?"

"My dishwasher flooded the kitchen floor this morning. The faucet keeps leaking into the cabinet under the sink so the whole room stinks of mildew. I sat on a melted candy bar during lunch and totally ruined my pants—now I look like I have poop on my pants. My check engine light came on and my gyno says I have to have my uterus cauterized to stop my abnormal bleeding cycles."

Chase winced at this last one. "Okay let's break it down. There's the plumbing issues, the car issues and the laundry issue. But first, turn around and let's see the pants."

Eliza did so.

"Yep, that looks like poop all right," Chase said.

"That's helpful," Nora said.

It seemed to Chase that Nora was intently staring at Eliza's ass in more than a professional manner. But she said, "I know— we've got coveralls for the cleaning crew. You could wear those."

"Now, there's a fashion statement," Eliza said. "But it is better than poop-looking stuff on your butt." Her eyes met Nora's.

Nora smiled.

"Okay, next." Chase looked at her list—plumbing. She picked up her cell phone and scanned through her call record until she found Ricardo's number. They had used him to fix their plumbing issues. "One of Gitana's cousins is a plumber." She dialed the number. "Ricardo, it's Chase. I need a big favor. I have a friend with a bad plumbing problem."

Chase listened and pursed her lips. "Yes, okay I'll edit your science fiction story if you fix her sink and do not say or do anything perverted. Understand? And just a heads-up, her girlfriend is six feet tall and built like a truck so I highly recommend you behave yourself." She gave him the address and clicked off.

"Do I really want this guy at my house?" Eliza asked, sitting on the corner of Nora's desk and looking more relaxed.

"He's all talk. Besides he's a midget and a coward. Your well-built girlfriend is a deterrent."

"I don't have a girlfriend," Eliza said.

"Yeah, right." Chase drew a heart on a piece of scratch paper with Eliza's and Nora's names in the center. She held it up to show them.

Nora tried to grab it, but Chase held it away from her.

"Look, I've been watching you two. It's so obvious. Just get it over with."

Nora blushed and then seemed to summon up all her inner butchness. "Eliza, will you go out with me?"

An endless silence.

"I'd love to."

"How about dinner?" Nora said shyly.

"Wonderful."

"Now, to continue the problem solving, the check engine light, we can utilize the mobile auto service that keeps up our trucks. They're scheduled up here tomorrow to do oil changes anyway." She consulted her list again. It was the uterus cauterization. "Well, that last one might prove difficult."

"It's all right, Chase. I think you've done enough," Eliza said.

"Whew," Chase said, taking the list and wadding it up.

"I've got to see about the seedlings," Eliza said, making for the door. She turned around. "I'll see you later, Nora."

Nora did this wave thing and Chase thought that love was fucking weird. It could turn the biggest butch into a sappy ball of emotional mush.

Chase rolled over in her chair to the door to make sure Eliza was out of earshot. "So where are you going to take her?"

Nora seemed dumbstruck. "I don't know. Do you have any ideas?" Nora appeared to have jumped into panic mode.

"I'm not very good with romance."

"But you're a romance writer," Nora said, her voice rising.

"That's different. I don't know how exacdy but it is," Chase said, pondering the question and just as promptly dropping it. Creation had never made sense to her. It happened and she was thankful. One does not question the Muse.

Gitana came in and sat on the corner of Chase's desk and casually reached for the Java Juice cup. Chase snatched it up.

"Nora asked Eliza out on a date. We're trying to figure out a romantic place for dinner," Chase told her.

"The Melting Pot," Gitana said.

"It's fondue. You have to cook all your food in that stupid pot of oil. You could starve," Chase said, remembering the episode vividly. She'd come home and made two peanut butter sandwiches.

"And while you wait you can talk," Gitana said.

"How do you know when it's done?" Nora asked.

"You will. The wait staff tells you everything you need to know. It's very educational," Gitana said.

"Educational is good. Eliza likes to learn things," Nora said gratefully.

"Don't forget to carbo load before you go," Chase advised.

"Problem solved." Gitana reached over and hit the enter key on Chase's laptop.

"What are you doing?" Chase said as the black screen came to life.

"Seeing what you're working on."

"It's a paper on orchids." She moved the laptop closer.

Gitana moved over. "I don't think so." She read it aloud. "She took the wet pink folds in her mouth, waiting for the thrust of her lover's hips."

"Will you stop," Chase said, covering her face.

"Boy, is that hot. Can I read the rest?" Nora asked.

"No." Chase snapped her laptop shut.

"You're behind," Gitana said.

"Just a little." Chase didn't meet her gaze.

"You need to be finishing your book. I'm sure little Miss-Snotty-Editor has been calling."

Chase scowled. Gitana despised Ariana who treated writers like minions of the monarchy. When Ariana called and Gitana answered the phone she would yell across the house, "Your snot nose editor is on the line." This pissed Ariana off to no end.