Page 16 of Be A Detective, They Said. It’ll Be Fun, They Said

Chapter Six

“Bigfoot?” my husband Heath said, his eyes wide as he sipped at his mug of blood. Heath’s a vampire. It’s a long story, but he became one again to save me. He’s truly my knight in shining armor. “He’s real? Get out.”

I smiled, relaxing against the soft cushions of Nina’s sofa, relishing the warmth of the fire on this freezing cold night. “He’s very real and his name is Hank.”

Heath whistled while he bounced Charlie on his knee, making her giggle with infectious squeals. We’d finished up another framily dinner, and as we relaxed by the fire in Nina’s great room, I told Heath about our day.

“How absolutely incredible,” he muttered, the wonder in his deep voice evident. “And you invited him for dinner?”

I chuckled, patting his leg. “I did. Who are we if not inclusive? He seemed so lonely, and as crazy as this sounds, he speaks like a scholar. It was truly a revelation. He’s not a monster, just one of a kind and lonely for it.”

He leaned forward and pressed a kiss to my lips, one that to this day, all these years later, made my stomach do somersaults. “I miss your face, beautiful lady. It’s good to spend some time with you.”

Sighing, I nodded, pressing another kiss to his lips. “Same. I know it’s been busy as of late. Promise after we figure out what’s happened to Neerie, we’ll do date night.”

Charlie grabbed our jaws and made kissy noises, to which we responded by smooching her tiny cheeks, as one does, making her giggle hysterically.

“I understand,” Heath said, his chestnut hair falling over his forehead, making him look sexier than ever. “I know you love what you do, honey, and I would never ask you to stop. I’m just saying, I miss you, and it’s nice to have a minute with you.”

What Heath said was true. He’d never ask me not to pursue what fulfilled me, and helping people fulfills me—even when the person is Neerie. But we had periods of time where we didn’t see each other as often as I’d like because of OOPS and our detective agency, and I was going to make a point of doing better, for the health of our marriage and our family.

“How about this? I promise to carve out more time for us and the children. I love you, and I don’t ever want you to feel neglected or like I’d taken advantage of you.”

He smiled that smile that made my heart flop like a fish out of water. He cupped my face, running his thumb over my jaw. “I love you, too, honey. Don’t let me get in your head. You’re an amazing wife and an even more amazing mother. I wouldn’t change a thing about us.”

Oh, this man. There was no one I wanted to do immortality with more than I did him. “Thank you.”

He tucked me against him on the couch, his hard frame instantly relaxing mine. “So tell me about the phone Bigfoot…er, Hank found. Have you gotten anything from it?”

I shook my head, pulling Charlie into my lap and snuggling her chubby body to mine as she tucked her face into my neck. “We tried every passcode we could think of, but nothing. So Tottington is going to have his contact look at it. Until then, we have to go through Neerie’s house and see if it’s her basement she meant in that text.”

“She’s a little left of center. I’ve run into her a couple of times when I was picking up the kids. She lost her mind when I parked in the incoming lane instead of the outgoing for pickup.”

Neerie was certainly a stickler for the rules. “She’s definitely difficult and I swear to you, if I find out she’s run off with one of her conspiracy friends from Facebook and left her sister and her daughter to worry, I’ll drain her myself.”

Heath covered Charlie’s ears and gave me an admonishing look. “Little ears, honey.”

“Drain her! Drain her!” Charlie cried, her head popping up.

Oh dear. I winced.

Nina gave Heath’s shoulder a shove from behind. “Hey, what are you teachin’ my kid, big guy?”

He took Charlie from me and handed her over to Nina, then promptly threw me directly under the bus. “It wasn’t me. It was her.”

I narrowed my eyes at him and shook my finger. “Oh, you.”

He chuckled, his eyes lighting up. “You know what she’s like. I’m not up to a massacre tonight. It’s been a long day with the kids and she can take me.”

Nina laughed, swinging Charlie up into her arms. “Dang right I can.”

“Speaking of the kids, they need baths and bed,” I reminded him. I wasn’t a stickler, necessarily, but I did like the children to stay on schedule. It made for happier campers and a happier mommy.

Marty winked at me. “Auntie Marty took care of that. All bathed and ready for a bedtime story.”

I mouthed a thank you to my friend, who was as much an integral part of their lives as I was. Both she and Nina made parenting our children a collective effort. I don’t know what I’d do without them. And I say that even with Nina’s gruff exterior and unfiltered opinions. She’s nothing short of a blessing when it comes to our children.

She loves my babies almost as much as I do, and when I’m weary, when I feel as though I’m drowning, she’s the first hand to reach for me and yank me out of the water. Mostly because she’s quicker than Marty—you didn’t hear me say that—but also because there isn’t anything she wouldn’t do for me.

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