Seer by Robin Roseau Read Free Book Online Page B

any of the tiramisu she made. I’ll see to it.”
    “Maybe we should pour a few more glasses down her throat,” he suggested.
    “Maybe you should let her regulate her own alcohol intake,” I countered.
    “Maybe I should pour another glass or two down your throat. You’re a little high strung, too. Tell Daddy what’s really going on. You’ve got the hots for the straight girl?”
    “You know I learned my lesson about that, Dean. You’re the only one I have the hots for these days.”
    “What’s not to love?” he asked, preening a little. He really was quite gorgeous when he put in the slightest effort. We smiled at each other, and he gave me a quick kiss before stepping away.
    “Dee,” he said. “Now that we know each other, you don’t mind if I call you Dee, do you?”
    I turned to see how she would respond to that.
    “Actually,” she said, “I wish you wouldn’t.” She sipped from her wine. She’d consumed the first glass quickly, but she was nursing the second, and she had a glass of iced tea she was working on, too.
    Dean cocked his head. “Is there a story?”
    “Someone I don’t care for used to call me that,” she explained. “Tell me, how did you and Mike meet?”
    Oh, good one, I thought. Change the subject, and Dean was a typical guy. He loved to talk about himself.
    Gabby and Elsa were the next to arrive, and I sent Dean to get the door. They arrived in time to avoid my “arrive by five or bring something” rule, flouncing into the kitchen and loudly demanding alcohol. They wouldn’t actually help cook — thank god — but they were good company.
    They both stopped and stared at Dolores, and I heard Elsa, in her thick, German accent , ask Dean sotto voce, “New girlfriend?”
    “Si d says no,” Dean replied, “but I don’t believe her.”
    Dolores overheard and immediately colored. Gabby and Elsa both noticed, and Elsa homed in on Dolores.
    “Oh. Straight girl,” she said. “Are you embarrassed I thought you were gay? Do you think there’s something wrong with being gay?”
    I spoke German, although my American accent was, according to Elsa, horrible. I told her in German, “Play nice, Elsa. I mean it.”
    Dolores surprised me. She responded to Elsa, in German, and her accent was far better than mine. “I could do far worse than Sidney,” she said. “She takes care of me.”
    Elsa stared at her then began laughing. She began babbling at Dolores in German, far faster than I could understand. It must have been too fast for Dolores, as well, as she held up her hands and replied, “ Sprechen Sie langsamer. Sprechen Sie langsamer. ” Slow down, slow down. Elsa poured herself a glass of wine and nudged Dean off the stool he’d been using, then proceeded to speak in careful German to Dolores. I lost my assistant, but Dolores had made a new friend, and so I didn’t worry about her.
    Gabby came around the counter to give me a warm hug and a quick kiss. “What’s for dinner, and what’s her story?”
    “Broiled salmon and curried broccoli soup,” I said. “And biscuits. She’s a client. She needs friends. We were short. I invited her.”
    “She’s straight?”
    “Yeah. If you want more, you need to get it from her.” I didn’t tell tales.
    “Who else is coming?”
    “Frank and Patty,” I said. They were the only straight couple amongst our regular players, although some of our substitutes were straight.
    “We should think about expanding to three tables,” Gabby said.
    “You know I use these parties as an excuse to cook, but I don’t want to cook for twelve.” Six was actually the perfect size, but eight was manageable. We needed eight for two tables.
    “You don’t have to get so fancy. We could eat pizza.”
    Dean must have heard that. “Shut up, Gabby,” he said. “Let Sid make what she wants.”
    “You and Elsa could begin hosting a second night each month,” I suggested. It was said tongue in cheek. They hated hosting. Well, that wasn’t entirely