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was staying there.
    Either Lucy was cheating on him, or she was…in trouble.
    He gripped the bars of the cell and yelled for the guard. He just couldn’t sit in this cell and rot if Lucy needed him.
    “I need my phone call,” he yelled again.
    The skinhead next to him laughed. “Good luck with that one, buddy. They usually make you wait twenty-four hours.”
    Twenty-four hours?
    Reid yelled again and banged on the bars until his voice was hoarse. But the skinhead was right.
    No one came.
    Finally he sank onto the floor in the corner and closed his eyes. He’d tough it out tonight, but in the morning, they’d better give him his call.
    He just hoped something bad hadn’t happened to Lucy.

    Lucy laughed as the women gathered around, listening to Ellen read sex tips from a book on sex for seniors that she’d received in her Secret Santa gift bag.
    “Do you have a boyfriend, Taylor?” Sue asked.
    Lucy polished off her peppermint martini. “Well, yes, I do.”
    “What is he like?” DeEtte asked.
    “I bet he’s a hunk with a six-pack,” Nelda said.
    “Yeah, and not one with Bud’s name on it,” Ellen joked.
    “Are you two doing the deed?” Mae asked.
    Lucy laughed. “You mean sex?”
    Willene narrowed her eyes. “You don’t have to get personal, Mae. Just because getting laid is all you think about doesn’t mean everyone else thinks about it all the time.”
    “I wished men thought about it more,” Sue mumbled.
    “Of course they’re doing it,” DeEtte said. “All the young folks do it.”
    “You know what they say about not buying the cow if you’ve had the milk,” Ellen said.
    “That’s just old fashioned,” Mae said.
    “Taylor?” DeEtte said. “Is he good to you? I mean does he satisfy you?”
    Lucy blushed. “Well, yes, he does,” she said, remembering the wicked things he did with his tongue. “It’s just…I don’t know if he wants to ever get married.”
    “Oh, no, one of those commitaholis,” Sue offered.
    “ Commitaphobics ,” Ellen corrected.
    “You have to give them a little incentive,” Mae said.
    Willene frowned. “I don’t think baking pies works for the young kids.”
    “My coconut cake gets me some loving every time, “ Ellen said.
    Inez made a tsking sound to Ellen. “But we’re talking about marriage, not getting someone in the sack.”
    Nelda raised her eyebrows and winked. “Honey, the secret is to keep him guessing.”
    Ellen murmured Amen. “Yep, keep him fed and sexed up, and he’ll be faithful.”
    Lucy fidgeted. All this talk about sex only made her ache for Reid. “Thanks for all the advice, ladies, but I’m going to turn in now.” Although she might ask Ellen and Mae for their recipes later. She had conquered the sex thing, but she couldn’t cook worth a damn.
    “Don’t forget your Secret Santa bag,” Mae said as Lucy stood.
    Lucy eyed it as if she thought spiders might crawl out of it any minute, but retrieved it and headed to the door.
    The women dispersed, agreeing that Ellen would pass her new book around when she was finished.
    The clock struck midnight, and Lucy scanned the Sunset Vista property as she carried the Secret Santa bag back to her unit.
    Everyone in the group had a Secret Santa except her.
    So who had left her a gift?
    She checked over her shoulder again, then let herself inside the condo and flipped on the light. Nerves skittered through her as she scanned the living room/kitchen combination. Everything looked the same. The plain beige walls and sofa, the bowl of fruit Wallace had ordered to be sent to the condo, the painting of the seashore, and the calendar that reminded her how many days she’d been gone.
    And how many days until Christmas day.
    Frustrated that Wallace hadn’t caught Emmet, she checked the bathroom and bedroom. Her underwear drawer was closed. A good sign Emmet hadn’t been here.
    The photo she’d brought with her of Reid stared at her from the bedside table. Tears threatened, but she swallowed