Page 102 of Callahan

She laughed. “Yeah, they even went out and bought a car seat, so I don’t have to reinstall mine every time.”

“I’m surprised they didn’t already have one,” he mused.

I couldn’t help but chuckle. “Me, too.”

Sylvia’s Lexus pulled up to the curb on the street, and she got out wearing a pink sheath dress that showcased her muscular arms and nude three-inch pumps that emphasized her long, lean legs. Her perfectly coiffed hair didn’t have a strand out of place.

“It’s a good thing she’s so nice,” Lainey murmured through her smile as we watched her strut up the sidewalk. “Otherwise I might hate her for being so beautiful.”

Brian groused, “Her husband’s a prick,” then nodded to Sylvia with a tight smile.

Her greeting in return was a little too sweet as she approached.

“Sergeant O’Shaughnessy! Lovely to see you.”

A ghost of a real smile formed on his face.

“Come on, now, Sylvia. Since when did we become so formal?”

She didn’t answer the question, just turned to me and asked, “Are you guys ready to go inside and check it out?” and I couldn’t help but wonder what the story was with those two.

Lainey glanced at me, and I swear I could read her look that said, “I’ll tell you later.”

~~~~

Thirty minutes later, we were back in the same spot, and Sylvia asked me, “So what do you think?”

I reluctantly had to admit, “I love it.”

“Perfect.” She reached inside her satchel and produced a manilla folder. “I’ve got the lease already drawn up, so all you have to do is sign.”

I glanced at the papers she handed me.

“That’s all they want for rent?”

“Yeah, they’re happy to have someone trustworthy staying here.”

Lainey glanced at the number over my shoulder, “Wow. I don’t think you could even find a rundown one-bedroom studio for that much.”

“So, you think this is a good deal?”

That was as close as I dared come to asking her opinion in front of everyone, Although, she’d murmured “Oh my, that’s beautiful,” and, “Oh, look at this,” enough on our tour of the house that I thought she liked it.

“Absolutely.”

I signed without hesitation and handed the lease back to Sylvia. She tucked it back in the folder and said, “I’ll make sure to have a copy for you when I give you the keys tomorrow. If you really do like it, and the Garcias decide to move, I think you already living here will put you in a good position to buy it without it even going on the market.” She shot a dirty look Brian’s way and added, “Like Brian did.”

His eyes widened and a slow smile spread across his face.

“Aw, is that why you’re mad at me? You didn’t get a commission from the sale of my house?”

Sylvia pursed her lips and didn’t respond, so he continued. “I got you this rental commission didn’t I? And if all goes well, it will be an easy sales commission in nine months.”

Her nostrils flared, and she planted a hand on her hip when she turned to openly glare at him.

“Yougot me this commission? How do you figure that?”

“Mr. Garcia called me to ask what I thought about letting Adam stay here while he’s gone. I could have easily discouraged it and reminded him I’m already looking after his place.”

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