Page 5 of Absinthe Minded

After everyone had their marching orders, I closed the laptop and walked into the bathroom in search of antacids. I didn’t love my job as much as I needed it. As a freelancer, they allowed me to work from home. The small amount I took from the children’s trust funds each month barely paid the bills, and not paying daycare had helped. Sure, I could use more of their money, but I hated feeling like I’d somehow profited from my sister’s death. I took one look at myself in the mirror and groaned.So much for a professional appearance.

My hair had drooped and my mascara had bled. One shoulder of my jacket had a white and brown smear. The substance looked suspiciously like the peanut butter and fluff sandwich I’d fed my nephew for lunch. Ryan must have wiped his hands under the table. No wonder Marlena had planned to fire me.

The weight of what I’d done settled on my shoulders. While I knew for sure my sister would never marry into the mob, I hated the idea of investigating Rebecca’s in-laws. Gabe was an ass, and I loathed his parents, but the rest of the bunch were good guys—even if they hadn’t bothered to check on me and the kids in over a year.

The alarm on my cell phone chirped, reminding me to pick up Ryan from the sitter. In another hour, the house would be full of children, backpacks to check, papers to sign, dinner to cook, baths, and pajamas. I’d never thought of myself as mother material and never imagined I’d be raising three children before my twenty-sixth birthday. Sometimes, no most times, life wasn’t fair. However, I’d promised three children we’d make the best of a bad situation, and that’s exactly what I intended to do.

First things first, I needed back-up, and my bestie just so happened to work for a private investigator.

“I need a favor,” I said the moment Shanna answered the phone.

“Hello, to you too.” She laughed.

“I’m sorry. It’s been one of those days.”

“What can I do?”

I drew a breath. “I need some help finding info on the Marchionni Corporation and the brothers.”

“Dare I ask why?”

“Marlena pulled my regular article. I have to put together a proposal for something new this week. I’m thinking about a standing piece on new money families in New Orleans, starting with the Marchionnis.”

“Are you crazy?”

“Probably.”

“I’ll look into it.” She hadn’t mentioned Gabe, but I had a feeling she would soon enough.

“Thanks, Shanna. I have to run.” I smiled despite my mood.

“Uh uh, no way. You’re on your cell. Take me with you.” She sucked in a breath. “Are you planning to see He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named?”

Am I? Can I do the story without coming in contact with Gabe?The part of me who needed closure to see him and demand he tell me the real reason he ended our relationship. That, I could handle. The part of me still completely and utterly in love with the big jerk was an entirely different matter.

“Maggie?” Her voice rose. “Tell me you’re not going to see him.”

I sighed. “I’m not going to see him.”

“Why do I have a feeling I’m going to regret doing this?”

“Because you love me, and you worry.”

“I do love you, but I worry because this is Gabe we’re talking about.”

I grabbed my keys and hurried to the car. “Shoshanna, this is business, not personal.”

“It must be if you’re using my full name.”

3

Gabe

My mother showedno signs of ending her lecture anytime soon. As it was, she’d damned near paced a rut in the travertine floor.

“I don’t understand what I did wrong with the lot of you. Why can’t you boys find nice Italian girls to settle down with?” Evelyn patted a rhythm on Ella’s diapered bottom. “At least you could find a good Catholic girl.”

“Ma, Rebecca was Catholic and you know it.”

---