“What do you mean he didn't tell you?” Lula said. “After all you do for him?”
“Yea
h,” Connie said. She looked over at Lula. “What do you mean?”
“I'm talking about the nasty,” Lula said.
We all thought about that for a moment.
“Okay, maybe that's not a good example,” Lula said. “Everybody wants to do the nasty with Morelli.”
“There must be other things you do,” Connie said.
Connie and Lula waited to hear what I did for Morelli.
“Sometimes I babysit Bob,” I said. “See that,” Lula said. “She babysits Bob. Right there he should have told her. He didn't tell me, and I'd slap him a good one.”
“You'd slap Morelli?” Connie said. “Joe Morelli?”
“Okay, maybe not Morelli,” Lula said. “But most men.”
“Seems to me he was just doing his job,” Connie said.
“Yeah, and it don't look like Stephanie does a whole lot for him,” Lula said. “Maybe you should do more for Morelli,” she said to me.
“Like what?”
“Well, we wouldn't expect you to cook or clean or anything, but you could pick his undies up off the floor and fold them. I bet he'd like that.”
“I'll keep that in mind,” I told Lula.
“Boy, you get into a lot of trouble,” Lula said to me. “Trouble finds you. Good thing you got Morelli riding shotgun for you, even if it is sort of humiliating and demeaning.”
“Yeah,” I said. “Good thing.”
I took the FTA folder from Connie, left the office, and got into Morelli s SUV.
“What s new?” he asked.
“I have some new FTAs. And Lula said I should pick your undies up off the floor and fold them. She said you'd like that.”
“I'd hate that. I leave them on the floor so I can find them if I have to leave in a hurry.”
Grandma Mazur called on my cell phone.
“You'll never guess,” she said. “That nice Mr. Coglin just called to thank me again. And we got to talking, and one thing led to another, and he's coming for dinner.”
“Get out.”
“Good thing I got my hair and my nails done. I guess he's a little young for me, but I'm pretty sure I can handle it. I thought you and Joseph might want to come to dinner too.”
Fd sooner poke myself in the eye with a sharp stick.
“Gee,” I said. “I think we have plans.”
“That's a shame. Your mother made lasagna. And she's got chocolate cake for dessert. And I was sort of hoping you could come in case your father don't like taxidermists. It's always good to have a police officer at the table in case things get cranky.”
I looked at my watch. Almost five o'clock. Dinner would be at six. Morelli and I would have an hour to take Bob to the park for a walk.