“Eddie’s busy,” Hank replied, bleeping open the doors and walking into the street to escort me to the passenger side.
“Busy with what? The meeting with Marcus?” He looked at me.
“That’s later.”
“How much later?”
“A lot later,” he said.
He opened the door for me.
Guess that was al I was going to learn about Eddie’s plans for the evening.
I got in, he did too. He pul ed out and started driving.
“I’m sorry you have to do this,” I said to the windscreen, feeling weird. I’d been around Hank, a lot, but never alone.
And anyway, Al y said he thought I was hot. What did I do with that?
“Everyone’s gotta eat dinner, might as well do it with a pretty girl, even if she is a friend’s woman.” Yeesh. The w-word.
* * * * *
He took me to Bonnie Brae Tavern, a no-nonsense family business on University Boulevard that hadn’t changed in seventy years. It specialized in pizza that some would come to blows about if you told them it wasn’t the best in Denver. I preferred Famous.
I wasn’t going to tel Hank that.
Luckily, they had a greasy spoon menu that hadn’t changed in seventy years either. There was a lot of choice and most of it was damn good.
We settled in a green booth, the plethora of neon beer and Colorado sports team signs providing Denver atmosphere. I ordered a Reuben. Hank ordered a cheeseburger. Then I checked my phone.
“Expecting a cal ?” Hank asked, sitting back, arm stretched out along his side of the booth, watching me.
“I left a message for Eddie,” I said.
“May be awhile before he gets back to you.” I nodded.
Hmm.
Dilemma.
See, first, I didn’t have a lot of experience conversing with hot guys. well , I guess I was amassing experience lately but mostly arguing with Eddie when we weren’t ha**ng s*x or when I was in the middle of a life and death situation.
Not hanging out at a pizza joint. Second, I was pretty certain that a crime was going to be committed, partial y because of me, and Hank was a cop. I was thinking I should report it, though I liked Shirleen and didn’t want to be a snitch.
Stil .
I looked anywhere but him, trying to think of what to say.
When I ran out of places to look, I caught him grinning at me.
“What?” I asked.
“It’s cute,” he said.
“What?” I asked again.
“You bein’ shy. I like it. It’s better than the attitude, though that works too.”