Killer Summer by Lynda Curnyn (knowledgeable books to read TXT) 📕

along in the police department process, until I saw him point at the ground. “I hope you’ve got some bags with you to clean that up.”

I turned to find Janis hunched over, doing her doggie duty. Ah, crap.

Literally. I reached into the pocket of my shorts for a bag. “Yeah, I do.” Then, maybe because I didn’t want to start picking up dog turds in his presence, or I was hoping to get the conversation back on track, I said, “So, do you ever get out to the Yaphank office?” Yaphank was the headquarters for the Suffolk County P.D., where the homicide department was located.

“Well, my patrol is the beach. But when I check in, it’s in Great River. That’s where the Marine Bureau is based.”

“Ah,” I replied, not sure where this left me.

“So you like living in the city?”

I was startled at that, trying to remember if 1 had told him where I lived.

As if he read my mind, he said,“I was the first officer that night. I took your address and phone number, remember?”

Right. I had, after all, been questioned. Funny that he remembered where I lived. “Yeah, I like it.” Then, as if hoping my Long Island roots might make him feel a little more kinship with me, I said, “I grew up on Long Island though.”

“Oh yeah? Whereabouts?”

“Babylon. Well, for high school anyway. Before that I was in Huntington.”

“Well, a Suffolk County girl.” He smiled. “I’m from Bayshore. Born and bred.”

Bingo. I smiled again, suddenly wishing I had on something a bit more flirtatious than this oversized shirt. Maybe I might get somewhere with this guy.

A moment later, I realized I was getting somewhere with this guy, though I wasn’t sure it was where I wanted to go.

“So, Zoe, I was hoping to run into you. I’m coming into the city next week to help a friend do some work around his new apartment. I was wondering if maybe you wanted to hang out or something.”

Or something. What the hell was “or something?” I started to panic, realizing that “or something” was a date and I hadn’t gone on a date since Myles.“I, uh—”

“Maybe we can catch a little dinner. Talk.”

Then I realized “or something” might very well be something. At the very least, I would have a chance to pick his brain a bit more about Maggie’s death. “Sure, that would be fun.”

“Great,” he said, smiling at me. But that smile dropped off his face instantly, and his body went rigid as he sat up higher on his quad, his head turning slightly as he looked at some point beyond my head.

“I gotta go. I got an open container violation at three o’clock.”

I turned, spotting a group of guys off in the distance, two of them holding beer bottles in their hands, which apparently was a no-no in Kismet.

I turned to Jeff, who had already kicked into gear, and with a nod of his head, he took off.

Leaving me with nothing.

I looked down at Janis, who smiled happily up at me, next to the little pile she’d just made.

Nothing but shit, that is.

And a date, I thought, studying Jeff’s broad shoulders as he hunched over the motorbike. Not a date, I thought, shaking off the warmth that seemed to fill me at the sight. An interview, I reminded myself, trying not to stare at his ass as he stepped off the bike.

Of sorts.

“Next up on Oprah, women who risk their lives for others. Tune in to see if you have what it takes!”

I changed the channel, since 1 was pretty sure dating police officers didn’t qualify. What had I been thinking when I accepted that date with Jeff?

Well, I knew what I had been thinking. But as I’d walked back along the beach with Janis, all I could think about was Myles. I probably wouldn’t even have to go on this date if Myles hadn’t abandoned me.

“You would never leave me, would you, Janis?” I said, ruffling the dog’s ear as she sat beside the couch where 1 was reclining. She looked up at me, cracking a doggy smile. Of course, I couldn’t be sure how genuine that love was, considering that Janis had bolted on me at the beach. She seemed pretty loyal right now, but that might be because of the mountain of dog treats I fed her when we got back to the house.

Now, as I scratched Maggie’s dog behind the ear while staring at the paintings of beach scenes Maggie had so lovingly hung on the living room wall of her house, I realized I had to go on that date, even if the idea of sitting across a cozy little table from someone other than Myles was starting to depress me. I wondered just how far I would have to go for Maggie’s sake.

“Anybody home?”

I sat up suddenly, startling Janis, who began to bark.

“It’s just Myles,” I said to Janis when I spotted him peering through the screen door.

Just Myles? I thought, standing up quickly and shutting off the TV, as if to make sure I hadn’t somehow beamed him in here. “Come in,” I said, once I realized the man standing at the door wasn’t some phantom I’d conjured up but Myles in the flesh.

“Hi,” I said, stopping at the kitchen island, all at once feeling wary. Janis began to whine, probably sensing my sudden discomfort.

Or not, I realized as Janis trotted over to Myles, tail wagging.

Traitor, I thought, watching as Janis nuzzled affectionately at his hand.

“You must be Janis Joplin,” Myles said, giving her a good scratch behind the ears that had her tail moving so furiously her whole back end was getting into the action.

I understood all too well why Janis had succumbed so easily to his charms. He did look good. A little too good. In fact, he was dressed rather nicely for the beach, in a pair of cotton Dockers and a baby blue polo shirt.

“Nice place,” he said, looking up at the wall of