Free Bitter Finish by Linda Barnes Page A

the moment denial was all he could come up with.
    " You know," she continued, posing in the doorway, "you guys should really give it up. I haven't dealt in years, and if I do happen to have a personal stash, what's the big deal?"
    The reason for Spraggue's temporary mental paralysis was Grady herself. Just from the way she stood, hands on tilted hips, he knew she was more than aware of her own effect; she counted on it. The Martinsons had been accurate enough in their skimpy description, but Grady outstripped adjectives. Her skin was like warm honey, so flawless it lent credibility to her outrageous hair color. She made a simple blue sundress look like it had cost plenty. His eyes kept coming back to her face. That hair had a life of its own.
    She didn't seem anxious to grab the phone and dial the cops. Spraggue thanked God for her previous run-ins with the police.
    " You're not the gas man," she said speculatively. "Or rent man. Or the telephone repairman .... "
    "I'm a friend of Lenny's." Spraggue offered the lie along with a tentative smile. "And you have got to be Grady. Lenny told me you were a knock-out, but I figured the old bastard was exaggerating again."
    Her mouth almost smiled at the compliment, but she caught herself. "Lenny told you to drop in any time, right?" she said sarcastically. "And you think this is a cool moment to make a move on his girl? Jesus, Lenny's friends."
    "Hey, I'm sorry—"
    " I thought I'd locked the front door."
    "I have hidden talents," Spraggue said. She seemed like the type who'd be intrigued by a hint of outlawry. "I didn't break the lock and I did try to call first."
    Her eyes narrowed. She was still blocking the bedroom door, his only exit. Spraggue wondered whether to push her aside and bolt. "What's your name?" she asked.
    He couldn't risk a lie on that. No false ID. "Michael Spraggue."
    "I may have heard him mention you." A frown of concentration lined her perfect forehead. Her voice stayed suspicious. "Just when did you talk to Lenny?"
    " It's been months. Look, Lenny and I go way back. I'm sorry I barged in on you. I'll leave him a note, okay? Or maybe you could tell me where—"
    "You don't know," she said softly. Spraggue took a deep breath; she'd bought it. She was worrying how to break the news of Lenny's death, not how to get to the phone and dial police emergency.
    He decided to jump to the wrong conclusion. "Don't tell me you and Lenny have split? Jeez, that man is a moron. He—"
    " I don't—" she began.
    Spraggue ignored her. "When I talked to him the last time, he was so happy. Told me you were thinking about getting married."
    "Really," she said. "He never bothered to ask."
    "From the way he was hinting around, I swear I thought I'd miss the wedding. And possibly other blessed events." He let his eyes slide down to her narrow waist. "But I guess I was mistaken about that."
    " Lenny talked a lot of garbage," she said angrily. "Look, let's straighten up a few things." She stared at the floorboards, said bluntly, "I had a miscarriage. Then we broke up. And—Look, why don't on you come in the living room? There's something else I have to tell you. You prefer Mike or Michael?"
    " Michael."
    She steered him over to one of the red floor cushions, folded herself as neatly as a kitten on the other.
    " Were you and Lenny really close?" she asked. "I mean, if you haven't talked to him in months, you weren't exactly like brothers."
    " Hey, if you want to bad-mouth him, go right ahead."
    "It's not that. It's . . ." She started to tell it several ways, considering various approaches. Spraggue watched her eyes. She didn't seem flustered by his attention; men must stare at her as a matter of course. Whatever Lenny had meant to her once, he decided, she wasn't that broken up by his death. She couldn't be and still search for the most effective way to announce it.
    She finally settled on a simple show of bravery: a quiver in her lip, a hand on his, and "Lenny's dead."
    Spraggue tried