It Started With A House: Lizzie. Book 1 (The Westport Mysteries) (18 page)

“What pink
tablets Grandma?” I asked.

“You know, the
ones that make his bits stand to attention.”

“Do you mean
the blue tablets?” asked Danny.

“Oh. Maybe
that’s why they didn’t work then,” she said thoughtfully.

This was all way
too much information for me.

“Grandma,
doesn’t the Church frown upon sex outside of marriage?” asked Molly.

“Well, the
rules are more like guidelines at my age. You’ve just got to take the
opportunity when it’s there. I mean, he could be dead tomorrow.” There’s a
thought. By the time we’d dropped Grandma home and got back to my place it was
nearly midnight.

As I was waving
everybody goodnight, I noticed the black sedan pull away from the curb and
slowly disappear into the night.

Chapter
Eighteen

Standing
in my shower, the following morning, I looked out over the back yard and
groaned. That was it, this grass had to be mowed. I could put it off no longer.
Another one of the disadvantages of showering on the back deck is that you have
to look at the grass. And the weeds. And the crumbling fence. It didn’t make for
a good start to the day.

I decided I
needed to borrow Dad’s mower and would ask Riley if I could borrow his truck so
I could pick it up. I also decided that when this job was over, I would have to
give Riley a huge bonus. He’d done so much more for me than we’d originally
agreed on. Luckily for me, Riley was very easy going and agreed to pick me up
at nine am.

Grandma was
still asleep when we got to Mum’s. Her night on the town had obviously
exhausted her. I think Mum was just grateful for the peace and quiet.

“I still can’t
believe your grandmother was out with a man,” said Mum, shaking her head. “She
had us all so worried. I was too relieved to say much too her last night, but
when she gets up I’m giving her a piece of my mind.”

We hadn’t told
Mum the finer details of what we had seen last night. None of us had really
wanted to relive it.

“You seem to be
spending an awful lot of time with Riley,” she continued. “And I’ve seen the
way you look at him.” I could hear the warning tone in her voice. “You’ll have
to watch yourself, young lady. People will start to talk and how will Scott
feel about that?” Riley was at present outside with Dad loading the mower onto
the back of his truck.

“I don’t think
Scott cares too much, Mum. He’s only rung me once since I left the hospital the
other night, and that was to check I wouldn’t get behind on work.” I chose to
ignore the comment about the way I looked at Riley.

“Well then,
maybe you need to put some spice back into your relationship. Why don’t you
organize a weekend away somewhere nice?” she suggested.

“Nice idea, Mum
but this house is costing me more than I budgeted for. I can’t really afford to
go away.”

“Well then,
what about a nice romantic evening. You could cook him a lovely meal and have a
nice night at home. Some fancy new underwear never goes astray either.” I could
see the twinkle in her eye from here.

“Yeah, I’ll
think about it, Mum.” Probably not today, but I’ll see what the future brings. Just
then Dad and Riley walked into the kitchen.

“What are you
thinking about?” asked Dad.

“I was just
suggesting that Lizzie cook Scott a nice romantic dinner to spice up their
relationship,” smiled Mum.

“
What
have I told
you, woman?” bellowed Dad. I jumped so high I spilt my coffee all
over my t-shirt. “Keep out of it and mind your own business!”

Gee, Dad felt
pretty strongly about something. Mum quickly busied herself making Dad a cup of
tea so we couldn’t see her embarrassment and I grabbed a cloth and started
wiping my shirt.

“Something
smells good in here, Mrs. Fuller,” said Riley giving Mum his killer smile. Mum
was baking a cake and loved nothing more than people complimenting her baking
skills.

“Well, thank
you Riley, but please call me Ellen. If you can wait around for another ten
minutes or so, I can send you home with some.” Mum warmed at Riley’s smile. I
guess no-one is immune.

* * * *

Starting
Dad’s mower was always a bitch. I’m pretty sure this mower is as old as I am
and only likes to be started by a male. I’d long ago realized that was because
the ripcord was longer than my arm and I just couldn’t pull it far enough to
start the damn thing. However, not one to be beaten, I gave it my all today. Twenty
minutes later, I was kicking the stupid mower and cursing when I heard my neighbor
call over the fence.

“Yoo Hoo,”
called Helen with a little wave.
Great
.

“Hi, Helen, how
are you?” I called back. She waved me over to where she was standing. Looking
around, I could come up with no excuses not to go, so I reluctantly walked over
to her.

“I was
wondering if you’ve seen a large, ginger cat hanging around?” she asked.

“Why’s that?” The
large, ginger cat in question was at present sound asleep on my bed.

“Well, I
happened to be looking out my back window the other night and saw him toileting
in my garden again. If I catch it, I’m calling the pound,” she said with a
huff. Looking at my garden and then at hers, I could understand why Cat
preferred hers.

“I’ll keep my
eye open for it,” I smiled, making a mental note to keep Cat inside for a
while.

“I hope you
don’t mind me saying,” she said, leaning in towards me and lowering her voice,
“but you are a busy girl on the man front aren’t you? I don’t know how you have
the energy.”

What? Was she
kidding? It’s been that long since I’ve been laid except for that one
unmemorable night with Scott recently and that didn’t count as I didn’t get to
the finish line—that I can hardly remember what passion feels like. Dreams
involving Riley do not count, okay?

“What do you
mean?” I asked, a bit confused.

“Well, it’s
just not good for the neighborhood, you know. Oh don’t look like you don’t know
what I’m talking about. First there’s the Mercedes, then there’s this one,” she
said pointing, to Riley’s truck “and then there’s the black car that’s always
parked out front.”

Whoa, slow down
a minute. “Which black car are you talking about?” I asked.

“The one that
always parks opposite your drive. I know he’s with you because we never saw him
before you moved in, so please don’t deny it.”

“How often do
you see this car?” I asked.

“Well, most
nights since you moved in. I see this truck move out and the black one move in.
You’re not running some sort of business are you?” she asked, looking
horrified.

WTF?
“No!” What sort of a person did she think I
was? I mean I know she didn’t like me that much, but seriously?

“Well, you
don’t exactly conduct yourself properly, do you? First I see you take your pants
off at the front door, and then we have to put up with you showering outside. I
mean, my husband doesn’t want to see you naked in the back yard. And I’ve seen
some of the people you entertain.”

“What do you
mean by that? The only people who come over are Riley and my family. And if
your husband doesn’t want to watch me showering—in my swim suit I might
add—then tell him to stay inside at seven in the morning and six in the
evening.” With this I turned on my heel and stomped towards the house.

“Riley!” I
yelled. I could hear him banging around in the bathroom upstairs, so up I
stomped. “When is my bath coming back?”

Riley sat back
on his heels. He’d been tiling the bathroom floor. “They said it would be about
a week. Why, what’s wrong?”

“My neighbor is
a pervert and his wife is a bitch!” I said. I’m not sure Riley was taking this
seriously as he had a very big smile on his face. “And the black sedan has been
parked outside every night since I moved in.” This removed the smile. I retold
the conversation I’d just had with Helen.

“Can you
believe the nerve of her? She actually asked me if I was running a business
selling my body!”

“Maybe I should
have a chat with her. See if she got the license plate number.” He was
obviously more concerned about the sedan than my reputation.

About twenty
minutes later he was back. “Helen seems like a nice lady,” he smiled. “She
invited me in, gave me a coffee and cake.”

“Maybe she
wouldn’t be so upset if it was you showering on the back deck,” I snarled.

“Lizzie,
Lizzie. There’s no need to be jealous. She’s not my type,” he laughed.

“Did her
snooping come to any good?” I asked, referring to the license plate.

“No. She
thought it was just another of your boyfriends. She was a bit concerned that I
didn’t know about the others.” He started to chuckle. I have to say it is a
particularly sexy chuckle, all deep and throaty.

“God, I should
be so lucky,” I said, more to myself than Riley.

“What’s that?”
he asked.

“Nothing.”

“Seriously
though, this guy worries me. Too many things have been happening for all this
to be coincidental. I’m going to talk with Jared again. Keep your doors and
windows locked when you’re alone and don’t shower unless I’m here.”

“Do you think
this guy wants to hurt me?” I asked suddenly scared, real fear creeping in.

“No, I think
he’s just watching you for some reason. As for the shower, from what your neighbor
tells me, it’s a pretty good show.”

* * * *

The
rest of the weekend went pretty quickly and uneventfully, and before I knew it,
Monday morning had arrived. Stupid me had organized with Molly to go shopping
in the city for a new bag, wallet and phone to replace the ones which were
stolen. Don’t get me wrong, it could be fun shopping with Molly, just as long
as she was the one spending the money and not me. But it could also be a bit
stressful. Sometimes I felt like her bag lady, my only purpose in life being
someone to hold and carry everything she bought, while I followed her around
like a lost puppy.

Like now for
instance. Here we were, standing in a camera shop, looking at a new camera bag
for Molly. This was about the tenth shop we’d looked in and she’d bought
something in every single one.

Stupid me had
offered—only once I might add—to hold her bags whilst she had a
better look at something, and had been left with them ever since. My feet were
killing me, my back was aching and I had a serious tension headache brewing
behind my eyes. Please, please let her make up her mind soon.

“That one looks
great, Mol. You should buy it!” I said with fake optimism. Seriously, the bag
really wasn’t that nice, but I honestly didn’t care.

“I don’t know. What
do you think?” she asked, turning to me, the new bag hanging from her shoulder
as she spun it around, trying to see it from every angle.

“Molly, you’ve
already asked me that question ten times in every shop we’ve been into and you
haven’t listened to what I think once. So just pick one and let’s get the hell
out of here!”

“Well, I just
don’t want to get the wrong one.”

“What does it
matter what color your camera bag is anyway?” I asked impatiently.

“Well, I’m
sorry I care about my appearance Lizzie!”

“What the hell
does that mean?” I looked down at myself. Sure I wasn’t as dressed up as Molly
in her short little white Guess dress and leather jacket, but I thought my
Levi’s and sweater looked okay.

“Hello there,”
said a salesman, approaching me from behind.

I turned to
look at him and noticed his crooked smile and gold chains glittering from his
inappropriately buttoned shirt. The words sleazy may as well have been tattooed
on his forehead.

“What can I do
for you?” he asked, innuendo dripping off his every word, completely ignoring
me and focusing solely on Molly’s chest. Okay, maybe she did dress better than
I did. I will admit I felt a totally invisible when I was around her.

“Oh, I was just
looking for a new bag,” answered Molly, completely unaware of the way he was
leering at her.

“That one is a
beautiful bag. It’s one of our best sellers and, I hope you don’t mind me saying,
it looks even better on you,” he smiled, pulling himself up to his full height
of approximately five foot three.

“Hmm, I’m not
sure,” said Molly, still turning from side to side, looking at the bag.

“Well, there’s
a way you could make it look better,” he said, leaning in closer to Molly. I
looked at him, wondering what he meant by that, when he continued. “You know, I
was recently overseas at a camera expo.” He looked, finally noticing me
standing there. “The hotel was amazing, offering many services you would not
usually find at an establishment here,” he winked. “A single man like me has
needs you know, and the ladies over there really know how to look after their
patrons. I think a lot of girls in this country could learn from them, if you
know what I mean?” he laughed.

I stared at
him, my mouth hanging open. I couldn’t believe a man, no matter how sleazy,
could open a conversation with that!

Molly finally
stopped looking at herself in the reflective glass and turned her attention to
him. I could see the frown form between her eyes. Looking him up and down, she
folded her arms across her chest and said, “No. What do you mean?” She knew
exactly what he meant.

 
The man started to squirm under her gaze
as he realized he had probably said too much and sweat had started to bead on
his top lip. I knew what was going to happen next, I had witnessed it many
times before. Molly was about to tear shreds off of him. This was so fun to
watch. I never had the confidence to deal with creeps the way Molly did.