Read Hide and Snoop (The Odelia Grey Mysteries) for Free Online

the dirt around the tree downstairs, but some of it was just general grime. She didn’t smell that fresh either. She’d arrived at my door on Tuesday bright and shiny as a new penny, but as the week wore on she’d become more disheveled in appearance, like she was sliding into neglect feet first. It seemed odd because Erica’s grooming was meticulous. Before I could stop her, Lily smacked her mitts down on my thigh, leaving noticeable tiny handprints on my cream-colored skirt. My eyes rolled up into my head like snapped window shades. How did women do this day in and day out? And Lily Holt was well-behaved. What if I’d been put in charge of a miniature Tasmanian devil?
    The dirt smudges on my skirt made up my mind for me. After a couple of days watching Lily eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and spill milk, I could use a good lunch with some adult talk. My usual lunch companions were thinning out.
    “Okay, Steele. You’re on, but I have to run by Zee’s house first and drop off … um … a package.”
    “Can’t you do that after lunch? I have a meeting in two hours. Meet me in ten minutes at Morton’s.”
    I studied Lily. She was starting to look tired. No doubt she would conk out right after she ate. And I really should give her lunch before depositing her with Zee, not to mention lunch with Steele might be interesting with a tiny third party.
    “How about in fifteen minutes?” I said into the phone, my mind made up. I rooted around in my brain for a nearby restaurant with a kiddie menu. “And not Morton’s. How about Red Robin?”
    “Are you joking?”
    “Hey,” I protested. “They make great burgers, and they’re reasonable. Greg and I eat at Red Robin all the time.”
    “I rest my case.”
    “It’s that or nothing, Steele.”
    There was a pause.
    “Steele, you still there?”
    “I’m thinking.”
    My office phone rang. The display said it was Carl Yates.
    “Take it or leave it, Steele,” I said again, this time with urgency.
    “Okay, but make it ten minutes.”
    I looked at Lily’s dirty face. “I’ll need at least fifteen.”
    My office phone rang again, and again it was Carl. I ignored it and grabbed my bag and Lily. As we exited the ladies’ room with empty bladders and clean faces and hands, I heard my name announced over the PA system, asking me to call Carl’s extension. Instead, I punched the down button on the elevator, hoping our receptionist didn’t see me making a getaway and try to stop me. There would be enough time after lunch for Carl to kill my legal career. No sense him killing my appetite, too.

four
    Steele was waiting just inside the front door of the restaurant, looking handsome and spiffy in his usual combination of designer suit and impeccable grooming. He and Erica shared that trait. I’d seldom seen either with a hair out of place. I had driven the two blocks to the restaurant, ready to take off immediately for Zee’s after we ate, and had called her to let her know when to expect us.
    When Lily and I came through the front door hand in hand, Steele did a double take on Lily. “I take it that’s the reason we’re eating here?”
    Instead of answering him, I told the waitress seating us we’d need a booster seat.
    Once settled, I introduced my former boss to my new boss’s niece. “Steele, this is Lily Holt, Erica Mayfield’s niece.”
    “Whoa!” Steele leaned back in his chair, a wide grin plastered on his face. “And you thought I saddled you with wild demands.”
    “Yeah,” I told him. “Who knew I’d wind up with someone who makes you look sane.”
    The waitress brought over a kiddie place mat and a couple of crayons for Lily. She immediately went to work coloring the cartoon forest creatures on the mat while we looked over the menu. When the waitress returned, Steele and I both ordered salads and iced tea. When it came to Lily, I was stumped.
    I looked up at Steele. “What should I order for her?”
    Steele held up his hands, palms out,