Fur Ball Fever

Chapter 13

Grace faked sleep in the passenger seat while Auntie Beth drove. The idea of listening to her aunt dissect her relationship with Nick held less appeal than a tooth extraction without anesthetic. Her head was still spinning, her heart thudding. She'd practically jumped Nick's bones in the parking lot. The heat of his kiss still tingled on her lips.

Auntie Beth geared down with the expertise of a NASCAR driver. "I can tell you're not sleeping. You're clenching your jaw."

The car took a corner on two wheels. Grace's head cracked against the window. Struggling to maintain her balance, she forced her jaw muscles to slacken and deepened her breathing into a sonorous vibration.

After a fishtail, which nearly side-swiped a parked pickup, Auntie Beth continued, "You know you want to talk about it."

Maybe if she didn't answer, her aunt would shut up. It hurt too much to talk about Nick. His kiss had reminded her of how much she'd missed his warmth, his laughter, and, if she was truthful, his mind-blowing body.

The car picked up speed as Auntie Beth shifted into high gear. A minute later, she said, "You still have feelings for Nick."

No kidding! But I'm working on losing them.

"There you go, clenching your jaw again," her aunt said. "You'd better talk."

Grace sighed, opened her eyes. "Okay, so I got a little carried away in the parking lot. I guarantee it won't happen again."

"Nonsense. You can't ignore that kind of chemistry." The Chevy roared past a green pickup truck. "Don't you want to get back together with Nick?"

"Nope. He's more chauvinistic than my father and brother combined."

"He doesn't come close. All he needs is the right woman to set him straight."

"If I have one driblet of common sense, I'll stay as far away from him as possible."

"How can you say that? It's denying nature."

"Screw nature." Saying it made Grace feel better. "Nick doesn't know what to do with a woman who goes after what she wants. He deserves a mealy-mouthed, julep-swilling bimbo who wouldn't dream of doing the right thing if it meant getting her hands dirty." Or getting herself killed, her conscience felt compelled to add. She shifted uneasily in her seat. Was it possible she could have helped Elvira, yet avoided being shot at by that thief?

"You and Nick are meant for one another," Auntie Beth assured her.

"He thinks I'm a loose cannon. What if he's right?"

Without taking her eyes off the road, Auntie Beth reached over, squeezed Grace's hand. "He's wrong. You care about people and causes. You throw yourself into life."

"Yeah, I'm a bona fide, banner-flying crusader. Trouble is I don't want a white knight looking over my shoulder criticizing every move I make, smothering me."

Auntie Beth appeared to give the road her full concentration. When Grace glanced over, oncoming headlights revealed her aunt's worried expression. "What's wrong?" she asked.

"Nick's a good man, Gracie. Work with him to find Miss Coco."

The very idea made Grace shudder. If she allowed Nick into her life again, she stood a good chance of losing a giant chunk of herself, the chunk that made her who she was, simply to please him. She couldn't, make that wouldn't, take the risk.

She stared blindly out the window. Darkened cityscape whizzed by at warp speed. After a while, she said. "I know you want what's best for me, but I need to stay away from Nick." When her aunt started to protest, Grace added, "I'll find the dogs myself."

"Ah. The strong, independent, but real stupid route." Auntie Beth hunched her shoulders, radiating disapproval. "What's your next step?"

"Find Krissi," Grace said promptly. "Julius and Oliver hang out at Kinki. I bet Krissi does too. I need to figure out a way to get inside our favorite fetish club."

The car hummed along quietly as she considered various options. Sometime later, she said, "Remember my client, Shawn Easedale, or Shannon Easy, as he calls himself? He's the lead singer for Queenz in Concert."

"Damn straight I remember Shannon. I adore him, er, her. She's real talented, sounds exactly like Céline Dion."

Grace gave an exasperated sigh but allowed herself to be sidetracked. "How would you know what Shannon Easy sounds like?"

"I dragged Milt to Atlantic City to see Queenz in Concert. Shannon's version of The Power of Love brought the house down. It involved a blowup doll, fellatio, and some fancy maneuvering."

Grace tried to dismiss the picture that popped into her mind, that of Auntie Beth at a drag queen concert, no doubt lightly stoned on Acapulco Gold, and swaying in rhythm to a ditty about an inflatable lover.

"But we digress," Grace interjected, blinking the vision away and getting back on topic, "Shawn owes me big time for helping out after his bulldog had a run-in with a skunk."

Auntie Beth took the Saltwater Harbor exit. "I see where you're headed. Queenz in Concert performs in clubs across Atlantic City. If anyone can get us into Kinki, it's their lead singer."

"You're not coming, but don't worry about me. I won't be alone. I'llcoax Shawn into escorting me to Rodeo Nite tomorrow. What do you think RodeoNite is?"