Sleeping with the Fishes by Mary Janice Davidson Read Free Book Online

he'd ignored her.
    Now he was tagging along, as he so often did, partly because he smelled excitement, and partly because he was hoping to get another glimpse of the delectable Dr. Barb. He'd been wondering for years what her hair would feel like in his hands, if it ever was out of that silly braid, if her eyes narrowed or widened or closed completely during orgasm. It was a full-on crush, the one secret he kept from Fred. Just the thought of her scorn (or indifference) made him cringe.
    "It's pretty late," Fred said over her shoulder, leading them to a darkened employee entrance. "I doubt anybody's around. Which is good. Technically neither of you should be here."
    "Technically, you're a frigid bitch," he reminded her.
    "Shut up."
    "
You
shut up."
    Fred sighed. "Are you ever going to leave the second grade?"
    "Are you ever going to do anything about those split ends?"
    She ignored him, the way she ignored the stare Artur gave her. That was also business as usual. He'd long given up trying to point out the guys (and occasional gal) checking her out pretty much daily.
    Fred wasn't gorgeous, but she had—something. The hair, of course. The long legs and waist. Skinny, so she could wear anything and look good. And the height. He had barely an inch on her. Altogether, she was a striking, if startling, woman.
    And the smile. Fred had a perfectly beautiful smile, he happened to know from seeing it three, maybe four times in twenty years.
    And a wonderful sense of humor. The trouble was…
    He thought about it. The trouble was , she was also the loneliest person he knew. And it wasn't hard to figure why. She worked so hard shoving people away, nobody had a chance to dump her first. Psych 101, plain and simple.
    "Yeah," he replied, "but Dr. Barb doesn't have a life any more than you do."
    "Says the moron tagging along at ten thirty at night on a Friday." She turned, walked backward for a second, and narrowed her sea green eyes. "What do you care if Dr. Barb is here?"
    "I'm just warning you," he covered.
    " Muh ," she replied, turning back around.
    And lo and behold, the gods of frustrated sexual yearnings smiled on him as the employee door slammed open and out darted Dr. Barb! Who, he happened to know, trotted everywhere, like a little kid. She nearly slammed into Fred, checked herself, skidded to a halt, straightened, blew her bangs out of her eyes, and said, "Dr. Bimm ! You're back. Everything all right at home, I trust?"
    Instantly, Jonas seized Artur and dragged him away so Dr. Barb wouldn't realize Fred had been about to sneak two unauthorized persons into the NEA in the middle of the night. There was a convenient corner near the outdoor seal tank and he hissed, "Put your arms around me."
    "Pardon?"
    "Like we're boyfriends."
    "No."
    "Look," he snapped, "I don't like it any more than you do, but d'you want Fred to get into trouble?"
    Stiffly, like a recently animated marble statue, Artur placed his arms around Jonas's waist.
    "Not like
that
, You look like someone's sticking a gun in your ear."
    "Someone will most likely have to very soon."
    "Put some feeling in it," he commanded. "Love me tender!"
    "No."
    "Look, I'd much rather be snuggling with
her
," He jerked a thumb over his shoulder. "But we can't get caught, okay? And we can't get Fred into trouble. So snuggle. Now."
    Instead of snuggling, Artur grabbed him by the shirt front and hoisted him to eye level. This was the most alarming thing to happen since he tried to invent chocolate shampoo and blew up Lab Six.
    "You do not touch her," Artur was telling him, while Jonas struggled and kicked, his feet a good foot off the ground. "Ever. Do you understand, biped?"
    "Not—one of—your subjects," he coughed.
    "Then I will simply have to beat you until you comply."
    "This shirt—cost—one-fifty—at Macy's—" he gurgled.
    Artur set him down (reluctantly, it seemed to Jonas).
    "Good thing you did that," he said, straightening his clothing and blowing his hair out of his eyes,