Class Act
- Автор: Вудс Стюарт
- Серия: Stone Barrington #58
- Год: 2021
- Язык: английский
- Год: G.P. Putnam's Sons
- ISBN: 978-0-593-33166-8
- Жанр: Триллеры
Электронная книга - «Class Act». Краткое содержание книги:
As Stone sets out to unravel a tangled web of crime and secrets, his mission becomes even more complicated when he makes an irresistible new acquaintance. In both the underbelly and upper echelons of New York, everyone has something to hide — and if Stone has learned anything, it’s that history has a way of repeating itself...
They all ordered strip steaks, and Stone ordered a good cabernet.
“I’m sorry if Stone’s a little quiet,” Dino said to Tara. “He just got some bad news.”
“Ignore him,” Stone said. “It’s just bad news in Dino’s head.”
“Did I mention that the shooter was a woman?” Dino asked.
“Why would you? It’s irrelevant.”
“If you say so.”
“ ‘Shooter’?” Tara asked. “Was somebody shot?”
“A bookie named Tiny, down in Little Italy,” Dino replied. “You didn’t know him, did you?”
“Dino,” Stone said, “I’m about to spill a lot of wine on you. You’ll have to pay Madame Paulette a fortune to get the stains out.”
“I’m sorry,” Dino said, holding up both hands in surrender. “Not a fit discussion over dinner.”
Tara looked at Stone. “How is that bad news for you?”
“It isn’t. In fact, I think the world is a better place without him. Gamblers everywhere are rejoicing.”
“Are you a gambler, Stone?” she asked.
“Not even on sure things,” he replied. “Especially not on sure things.”
“A man after my own heart,” she said.
“My experience with gambling is that I go to a casino with Dino, buy a hundred bucks’ worth of chips, then I put them on a table, and somebody takes them away. Where’s the fun in that?”
“Stone is not lying about his skills as a gambler,” Dino said. “Anything else, well...” He waggled a hand back and forth.
“Are you a liar, Stone?” Tara asked.
“Only when paying Dino compliments,” Stone said. “Dino, didn’t I hear your phone ringing? The one you always have to answer, then go see about something?”
“I didn’t hear anything,” Dino said innocently.
“Dino is a police officer,” Stone said to Tara. “His hearing is a little on the selective side.”
“You two are a riot.”
“That’s what everybody says,” Dino chimed in.
“Dino’s work is what makes him so entertaining, with lines like ‘two in the head.’ It’s one of his best. Where are you from, Tara?”
“I’m from a small town in Georgia called Delano.”
“I’ve heard of that,” Dino said. “What do you do, Tara?”
“I design handbags,” she said.
“I’ll bet you’ve got a huge wardrobe,” Dino said.
“Well, I’ve got a lot of handbags.”
“You deserved that, Dino,” Stone said.
“Do you have a brand name?” Dino asked.
“Yes. ‘Tara.’ ”
Stone burst out laughing.
“I know that name,” Dino said. “My wife has some handbags with that name on them.”
“Well, let me know when her next birthday is, and I’ll give you a deal on something in alligator. That’s my specialty.” She produced cards and handed one to each of them. They responded in kind.
“My goodness,” Tara said, reading Dino’s. “You are a policeman, aren’t you? You’re the commissioner!”
“I cannot deny it.”
“As I said, his work is the source of all his brilliant dinner-table conversation,” Stone said. “Any gory sex crimes today, Dino?”
“Nothing good enough for the dinner table.”
“What a disappointment,” Stone said.
“Are you two sure you’re not married?” Tara asked.
“You’re not the first to ask,” Stone said. “If we were, we’d be divorced.”
“Well, if you keep up this banter I’m going to have to spank one of you and send him to bed early,” Tara said, reprovingly.
They both raised their hands, and she finally laughed.
After dinner they made their way to the street.
“We both have cars,” Stone said. “Can one of us offer you a ride home?”
“Mine has a siren,” Dino said. “If you’re good, I’ll let you turn it on.”
“You don’t have to be good in my car,” Stone said, as the Bentley pulled up to the curb.
“This one looks nice,” Tara said. “Thanks anyway, Dino. Maybe another time.”
Stone got in beside her. “Where do you live?” he asked.
“Bucks County, Pennsylvania,” she replied.
30
Tara was only kidding. She lived in the West Thirties, in Hell’s Kitchen. “Sometimes, it seems like it’s all the way to Bucks County,” she explained.
“My house is closer,” Stone said. “Why don’t we save you the trip to Bucks County?”
“Well, that’s blunt,” she said.
“It wasn’t intended to be.” He kissed her lightly. “It was meant to be affectionate.”
“Funny how a good steak and a bottle of wine can make you affectionate,” she said, kissing him back. “I don’t usually do this, but all right.”
“ ‘All right’ is good enough for me,” Stone said. “Home, Fred.”
They had cognac in Stone’s study.
“This must be a staging area,” Tara said.
“Think of it as a springboard,” Stone said, leading her to the elevator.
“Too long a climb, is it?” she asked.
“I have to conserve my strength.”
“Good idea,” she said, and he led her into the bedroom. Undressing didn’t take long.
The sun woke them early, and they took the opportunity.
“Would you like some breakfast?” Stone asked afterward.
“Thank you. Whatever you’re having.”
Stone called down for breakfast. They had just finished making love again when the dumbwaiter chime rang. Stone took the trays to the bed and used the remote controls to sit them up.
“I have to say,” Tara said, “I made the right decision last night.”
“I’m glad you think so.”
“I mean, I thought I’d get a cup of bad coffee, then be cast into the street.”
“Fred will drive you home or to work, or both, whenever you like.”
“I have a studio in my house,” she said, “and a showroom, too.”
“Sounds like a big house.”
“Not as big as yours. I live on the top two floors and deduct the bottom two from my taxes.”
“I work on the ground floor, in what was a dentist’s office when I inherited the house.”
“Nice inheritance.”
“She was a nice great-aunt,” Stone said. “I hold her in fond remembrance.”
“Were you ever married?” Tara asked.
“I’m widowed.”
“Kids?”
“A son, who lives in California now.”
“What does he do out there?”
“He writes and directs films at Centurion Studios. His partner, Ben, who is Dino’s son, runs the studio.”
Stone showed her where her dressing room and bath were, and she showered and dressed. “That was refreshing,” she said. “Nice dressing room. Not a shred of another woman’s clothing visible.”
“The staff has standing orders to donate any stray garments to Goodwill.”
“I plan to leave fully clothed,” she said. “The girls in my workshop don’t mind if I wear the same thing on successive days.”
“What took you across town last night?”
“A failed trip to Bloomie’s. I had hoped to find a thing or two and didn’t, so I went to P.J.’s to console myself with Scotch.”
“I’m so glad you did. May I call you again, soon?”
“You’d damned well better!”
Stone called Fred, and she kissed him and left.
Stone’s cell rang. “Good morning, Dino.”
“I’m sure I didn’t wake you. Has she left already?”
“I’m sure I don’t know to whom you’re referring.”
“Yeah, sure. You said Hilda left for Florida yesterday afternoon?”
“Sometime after five. Why are you interested?”