Chapter Six A New Suit
Chapter Six
A New Suit
Saturday
Madison hadn’t slept a wink. She missed Mario and Luigi taking up most of her bed.
She was sure they were enjoying having the bed to themselves at the shore house.
But the real reason she couldn’t sleep was the night ahead.
She checked the clock on the nightstand.
It was six in the morning. She barely got in an hour’s worth of shut-eye.
She knew she wouldn’t be fresh as a daisy if she didn’t get some kind of sleep.
She decided a hot shower and a cup of herbal tea might help her get the minimum four hours she would need.
She padded to the kitchen and made a warm beverage concoction of chamomile, peppermint, and lavender.
It was a first, and probably the last. It didn’t smell great.
Apparently, not all herbs go together. She added some honey and brought the mug to the bathroom, where she would let it steep.
She turned on the shower as hot as she could stand it.
Her shoulders were tight. She should have gotten a massage this week.
Too late now. After almost fifteen minutes of being pelted by the stinging shower spray, she wrapped her head in a turban and enveloped herself in a plush robe.
She was definitely more relaxed. Now to swallow the strange, lukewarm brew.
She sniffed it suspiciously, then took a sip.
It wasn’t as bad as it had originally smelled.
Must have been the two tablespoons of honey.
She checked her phone for any messages, not that she was expecting any at this early hour. But there was one from Victor:
Getting ready for your hot date?
Madison replied:
Don’t make me hurt you.
She was smiling at the word date. She finally got used to the idea: she had a date.
A date with a man she had longed to spend some special time with.
The night of the award ceremony was certainly special.
She hoped she could—they could—recreate that feeling of warmth.
She hesitated to use the word intimacy, but it was definitely intimate.
Intimacy wasn’t necessarily sexual. In fact, intimacy went much further, a deeper connection.
Although she wasn’t opposed to getting more physical with Viggo.
Madison smiled, then stopped herself. If she kept thinking that way, she’d definitely not get to sleep.
She peered into the mirror. She had to do something about the bags under her eyes. She went back into the kitchen and retrieved the eye mask she kept in the freezer for situations like this. She flung herself on her bed, plopped the mask on her eyes, and drifted off to sleep.
Three hours later, she was awakened by the buzzer, indicating that either someone was in the lobby or there was a delivery for her.
When she picked up the intercom phone, the doorman, Hector, hesitated, then spoke, “Ms. Wainwright, there was a man here a second ago who asked if I could ring you up. But then he left in a hurry.”
Madison got an uneasy feeling. “What did he look like?”
“Average, I suppose. He was wearing a hoodie. Dang, I hate those things. Everyone looks like a criminal.”
“And he asked for me?” Madison furrowed her brow.
“Yes. He asked if you were in, and before I had a chance to talk to you, he bolted.”
“Huh. That’s very odd,” Madison said and frowned.
“I’ll keep an eye out, and I’ll let Raul know when he comes on duty at five.”
“Thanks, Hector.” Madison ended the conversation slightly unnerved.
She took a deep breath and shifted her thoughts to the upcoming evening.
She phoned Elio to thank him once again for his craftsmanship, as she stared at the gorgeous suit hanging on the hook behind the bedroom door. He is going to be quite a hunk in that.
Viggo was up at his usual time. He didn’t need an alarm. Diogo would greet him by resting his head on the edge of the bed, with his tail thumping the floor in a marching cadence. Every morning, Viggo would wake with his dog staring him straight in the eye.
“Good morning, pal.”
Viggo stretched, sat up, and grabbed the terrycloth robe at the foot of his bed. Diogo stood at attention, waiting for his master to lead the parade into the kitchen. “You are so polite.” Viggo leaned over and scratched Diogo’s head.
Viggo let Diogo out through the patio door next to the dining table.
It was a crystal-clear morning. After Viggo started his coffee, he dished out Diogo’s breakfast. As soon as the coffee was ready, he took the mug and Diogo’s food outside to the stone patio.
It was warm but not disgustingly hot. He sat under the pergola’s canvas awning.
It was a nice, quiet spot to greet the day. Even in the winter.
An oak board-on-board privacy fence surrounded the rear yard of the property and was landscaped similarly to the front and sides with ornamental grass, stones, and large rocks.
A succulent garden created a natural barrier for Diogo’s “bathroom area” between his walks.
A double-flap doggie door in the laundry room gave him access to the yard.
Viggo sipped his chicory-flavored coffee while Diogo sniffed around, checking for any crawly visitors.
Viggo smiled at the beauty around him. He had to admit he had done a good job transforming the old summer cottage into a handsome and comfortable home.
He made the most out of the 1,100-square-foot space and the small piece of land.
But it was his piece of land. He was living the good life.
And soon he would be sharing an evening with a woman he admired. And liked. A lot.
Viggo decided it was time to stop dawdling and get down to his chores and take Diogo for a jog.
If he waited too long, the trail would be too crowded.
Not that it was ever cramped, but it wasn’t as peaceful.
“Come on, fella. Time to go for a run.” Diogo understood exactly what Viggo meant and bounded in his owner’s direction.
Arlo was always nervous when he had to handle the office alone.
Not that there was much to do lately, but he didn’t like answering stupid questions.
Why do they come to a dive shop and don’t know how to dive?
Arlo was much more comfortable with people who knew what they were doing.
At least the basics. Diving could be dangerous, depending on where you were and who you were with.
Geez, how he hated amateurs. The bell on the front door jingled.
“Yo, Arlo. How’s it goin’?” one of the local scavengers asked as he walked into the shop. “Got anybody out there today?”
“Nah. Slow day. Currents are running a little too hard. Don’t want the Coast Guard flagging us in if there’s small craft warnings.
Better to save the gas than get a crew together, head out, and then have to come back for nothin’,” Arlo said.
“We got a dive scheduled for tomorrow if ya wanna come back then.”
“Yeah. Might do that,” the man said, then asked, “Where’s Mikey? He’s usually up here at the front desk.”
“He had an errand to run. Won’t be back until later today. Anything you need from him?”
“Nah. Just wanted to say hello. Oh, by the way, did you hear anything about that break-in at Kirby’s?”
Arlo froze. Did something happen that he wasn’t aware of? He had to remain cool. “I heard about it. Why—what’s up?”
“One of the clammers said that one of their boats got stole, but then it turned up.”
“Huh.” Arlo paused before he continued. “What does the boat have to do with the break-in?” He imagined he sounded curious and not freaked out.
“Dunno, but somebody from the reclamation center said it coulda been.” The man sucked his teeth. “Coulda been kids.”
“Probably. Kids, that is,” Arlo agreed with a lack of sincerity.
The man turned to exit. “See ya tomorrow.”
“Right,” Arlo said as he sank down into his chair with the duct-taped cushion.
He closed his eyes and clenched his fists.
Mikey was going to kill him if this blew up in Arlo’s face.
He had to find out who knew what without pointing a big finger at himself.
Maybe he’d return to the scene of the crime.
If anyone knew anything, it would be Crusty.
Besides, he could go for one of Hannah’s clam sandwiches.
Then he realized he couldn’t leave the shop, just in case someone wanted to set up a dive.
Dang. He coulda used one of Hannah’s clam sandwiches.
Arlo was annoyed, and lucky. He had no idea he was Crusty’s number one suspect.
Viggo packed a small dopp kit and slipped it into his messenger bag, along with two fresh pairs of socks, black and gray.
He had no idea what Madison had cooked up for him to wear.
At least she had excellent taste. He presumed she would make him look good so she wouldn’t look bad.
He chuckled to himself. The plan was to take the late afternoon ferry and arrive at Madison’s loft by five o’clock, do a quick change, and head off to the event.