I did a hand gesture to excuse his language. It wasn’t his using the word “fuck’ that was making me freak out.

“It’s pretty damn clear Hank wants you and that boy doesn’t make stupid decisions. He’s smart, he’s control ed and he’s decisive. If he wants you, there’s somethin’ to want and that’s al I need to know.”

I looked at him, feeling funny. It wasn’t a bad feeling, it was a good one, a really good one and that scared me even more.

“You remind me of my dad, he doesn’t bul shit either,” I told him.

“Sounds like I’l like your dad,” Malcolm said.

He said this like it was a done deal that he’d meet my dad. I had visions of Malcolm meeting Dad and it made my heart skip a beat.

Mom and Dad had never met Bil y’s parents, neither had I. Bil y never even talked about them; he would close up the minute they were mentioned.

My parents would like Malcolm and they’d love Hank. I could hear Mom cal ing Sweet Jesus al the way from Brownsburg, Indiana at the mere thought of me with a guy like Hank.

“Thank you for tel ing me al of this,” I said to Malcolm.

He smiled at me and his smile was just as drop-dead gorgeous as his son’s. “My pleasure.”

We sat for a while longer, talking about Denver weather and then we started talking about sports. He told me it took awhile for him to warm to the Rockies; he’d been a Mets fan. I teasingly congratulated him for at least remaining faithful to the National League. Then, I told him I thought there was nothing better in the world than eating a hot dog and drinking a beer in the humid sun at Wrigley Field. After I finished with that, Malcolm gave me another one of his smiles, making me think I’d passed another test.

Then Hank walked into the room and I stopped talking.

His eyes settled on us and he didn’t take them away as he walked across the room.

“What’d they get?” Malcolm asked when Hank arrived.

Hank grabbed my hand, pul ed me up, stood close and didn’t drop my hand. Malcolm rose as wel .

“Not much, they’re not talkin’. I cal ed the Chicago PD

yesterday to have them check Roxie’s apartment. Prints from the apartment match these guys and Chicago tel s us these boys are linked with a bigger operation. We’re waitin’

for reports on the prints they lifted in the hotel in Nebraska to check if we can place them there too. We don’t hold to check if we can place them there too. We don’t hold much hope for that. The place was a shithole, filthy, prints everywhere. They didn’t get much except partials from around the sink. It’l be Roxie’s word that puts them in Nebraska.”

After he said that, his mouth got tight at the thought of me and the sink.

I stared at him. I had no idea that anyone had gone back to that hotel in Nebraska and I certainly had no idea the cops checked out my loft in Chicago.

“What are you talking about?” I asked.

It was Malcolm that answered. “The minute Vance found you, Hank and Jimmy’ve been runnin’ what’s become a three state investigation.”

Holy cow.

“Wel , Hank hasn’t been runnin’ it, at least not official y,” Malcolm went on as if I was going to hightail it to Internal Affairs and snitch on Hank’s efforts to keep me safe.

Before I could react to what Malcolm said, Hank tugged my hand.

“Let’s go,” Hank said, nodding to his father, obviously done talking.

“Where?” I asked.

He looked down at me. “Home,” he answered.

I pul ed my hand from his and gave Malcolm a kiss on the cheek. When I pul ed away, I saw Malcolm’s eyes crinkled at the corners in a smile that didn’t reach his lips and I figured, somehow, I’d got another “A”.

Then I turned back to Hank. He grabbed my hand again and we left.

and we left.

When we got in the 4Runner and Hank had it on the road, he asked, “How’re you doin’?”

“Not good,” I answered honestly. “You?”

“I’m angry,” he said, just as honest.

“I can tel .”

Then, after a beat I sighed, huge and loud and looked out the side window, trying hard not to cry.

“Roxie,” he said.

“What?” I asked, stil looking out the window.

“I’m not angry with you.”

“I know.”

I believed him, stil , I felt like a total and complete pain in the ass.

“I like your dad,” I offered as a change of subject.

“Good,” he replied and, for the first time that afternoon, I felt some of his anger had slipped away.

* * * * *

He parked in front of his house. There were familiar cars lining the street, including Uncle Tex’s El Camino. When we walked into the house, we were assaulted by the smel of garlic, the sounds of Led Zeppelin and an overexcited chocolate lab.

If that wasn’t overwhelming enough, the place was fil ed.

Indy, Jet, Al y and Annette were sitting at Hank’s dining room table playing cards. Kitty Sue (Hank’s Mom) and Nancy were in the kitchen cooking. I could hear (just, Led Zeppelin was kind of loud) a bal game playing on the TV in the other room.

“Yo bitch!” Annette greeted when we walked in. “And, um… dude,” Annette went on, looking at Hank.

“Is everything okay?” Kitty Sue asked, her eyes on Hank.

She was holding up a wooden spoon that looked like it was coated with spaghetti sauce.

Nancy moved toward me and gave me a one-armed hug.

“Bet you’re hungry,” she said into my ear.

Hank answered his Mom while I relaxed into Nancy’s hug and nodded to her. She moved away and Uncle Tex was standing behind her.

“For f**k’s sake, girl. We don’t want it borin’ but this ain’t the goddamned French f**kin’ Connection,” he boomed and I could tel he was trying to make a joke but he didn’t think the situation was al that funny.

I grinned at him, but it was weak.

He put his big hand on the top of my head for a second then took it away.

I grinned at him again, this time it was stronger.

“We got al your stuff in, it’s in the extra bedroom,” Al y announced and I turned to her.

“Nancy and I packed your things at Tex’s and brought them over,” Kitty Sue added and I looked to her, in total shock. I opened my mouth to say something, something like, “Are you f**king insane?” but then Tex caught my look and started booming.