He stopped and listened. “Rain?”
“It’s raining? How long has it been raining?”
“It started when I pulled into your lot.”
“Is it just a shower?”
“It’s supposed to rain for the rest of the night.”
I jumped away and straightened my T-shirt. “You have to go. The game will be called.”
“And?”
“Disaster!” I pushed him toward the door. “This is a sign,” I told him. “An act of God. I swear I’m going to church tomorrow.”
“That sounds extreme,” Ranger said.
“Morelli wanted to see me tonight but he promised his brother he’d go to the ball game with him. And now it’s raining!”
“Babe,” Ranger said, “you need to make some decisions.”
“I made decisions. I’m just having a hard time sticking to them.”
Ten minutes after Ranger left, Morelli showed up with Bob and a box of hot dogs. He shucked his shoes and his soaking wet windbreaker in the foyer and handed the box to me. “It started raining and they put the hot dogs on sale.”
I took the hot dogs into the kitchen, pulled the six-pack of beer from the fridge, and we stood at the sink and tore into hot dogs and beer. Morelli flipped a hot dog to Bob, who snatched it out of the air and ate it in one gulp.
“Catch any murderers tonight?” Morelli asked me.
“No. But Lula, Grandma, and I got kicked out of the Senior Center.”
Morelli looked over his hot dog at me. “So the night wasn’t a complete bust.”
“True. It’s not like I didn’t accomplish anything. How was the game?”
“Short.”
I debated telling him about Uncle Sunny getting an assful of buckshot, but decided against it. He’d find out soon enough, and he’d probably calm down by the time I saw him again.
Morelli polished off a third hot dog and slung an arm around my shoulders. “Do you know what I’d like now?”
“Ice cream?”
“Not even close.” He kissed my neck.
“Remember I have a broken finger.”
“I can work around it.”
I woke up smelling coffee. I opened my eyes as Morelli was setting a mug on my bedside table.
“How’s your finger?” he asked.
“Okay. How’s your leg?”
“It’s okay. I’m on my way out. I need to walk Bob and take him home. What’s going on with you today? Anything I should know about?”
“Bingo at the firehouse tonight.”