Free DEAD BY WEDNESDAY by Beverly Long Page A

sleep.”
    Carmen grabbed her bright blue cape from the closet. She stuffed her hands into dark gloves. “I know that I need to treat him more like an adult. It makes him crazy when I baby him. It’s just that I’ve been taking care of him forever,” she said, her voice quiet.
    “You have been. And you’ve done a great job. If you don’t mind me asking, what’s the story behind Raoul’s leg?”
    “He’s had it from birth. It’s actually a problem with his hip but it looks as if his legs are not the same.”
    “Doesn’t look as if it slows him down much.” Robert wrapped an arm loosely around her shoulder. “Give him some space. It’ll be fine.”
    They had barely pulled away from Carmen’s apartment building when she dug her feet in. “If we go to Maxine’s, I want to pay my half.”
    Robert counted to ten. “That’s not necessary.”
    “Yes, I insist. I wouldn’t be comfortable any other way.”
    Well, hell. She’d been right earlier. Maxine’s could get a little pricey. There was no way that he was imposing that kind of expense on her budget. He had some idea of what social-worker types made and he doubted there was much left at the end of the month.
    “Maybe we could go somewhere else?” he suggested.
    “Gordon’s is close. I love their soup.”
    He made a quick right. Gordon’s had been a neighborhood favorite for years. It had a tile floor, worn booths, surly waitresses and great comfort food. Sometimes he and Sawyer had lunch there.
    It wouldn’t break anybody’s budget. “Whatever floats your boat,” Robert said easily. He found a seat as far away from the door as possible, knowing that every time the door opened, cold air would blow in. They read the plastic-covered menu, and then he ordered the meat loaf special, and Carmen got a turkey club with broccoli soup.
    There was a young couple in the corner with a squealing baby. An old couple was in the next booth, both reading sections of the newspaper. A young black man, wearing a white apron that came to his knees, was unloading clean glasses and cups onto the shelves.
    He’d never brought a woman to Gordon’s before. Never even considered it. The women he dated were generally successful in their own careers, had discretionary spending and expected him to have the same.
    Both Mandy and Janine would have been severely disappointed in Gordon’s.
    “What’s so funny?” she asked.
    He hadn’t realized that he was smiling. “Nothing,” he said. “Just thinking that Sawyer will be jealous. He loves the hot beef sandwiches here.”
    She glanced around. “I imagine it’s not your usual place for dinner.”
    There was an underlying message in her simple words. It went sort of like this. I realize you had something different in mind, but this place is really more me, which is just one more sign of how different we are.
    She wasn’t the only one who had studied human behavior in college.
    “I think I’m ready for the unusual,” he said.
    Her dark eyes widened. But at that moment, the waitress returned, slapped their food down and refilled their water glasses. Carmen picked up her turkey sandwich and chewed. She looked very thoughtful.
    Robert dug into his meat loaf. It was delicious. And the potatoes were equally good. Neither of them spoke for several minutes. Finally, she pushed her plate away. She’d eaten her soup and most of her sandwich.
    “I should be getting back,” she said.
    He nodded and motioned for the waitress. He ordered a large chicken noodle soup to go. Carmen unzipped her purse and started pulling out money.
    “Please,” he said. “It’s on me. Consider it payback for the spaghetti, although I certainly got the better end of the deal.”
    She hesitated and then nodded. She leaned back against the booth and yawned.
    “Tough day?” he asked.
    “Sort of. Uncooperative pregnant teens can be a bit trying on the nerves.”
    “How are things with Alexa Sage?”
    “Okay. I got a message from her today. In the