A Wanted Woman Part 62

"I'll move on."

"My treat."

"Nope. I'll look for something better, or something worse."

"Wait. Hold on. He gave you your first o.r.g.a.s.m?"

"First, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth."

"Serious?"

"Serious."

"How was it?"

"The bomb. That s.h.i.t was the bomb."

"You don't want a repeat?"

"Someone new can pick it up from there."

Petrichor said, "You're staying."

"For a while. Never been to a carnival. Could check out Kadooment and Foreday."

"We can hang out from time to time, could get a drink at every rum shop."

"Two thousand rum shops, more or less."

"More like twelve thousand, depending on how you define a rum shop."

"I'll have to get used to rice and peas, macaroni pie and chicken. Pudding and souse."

Petrichor said, "We should do the b.u.mper cars at Casa Grande."

"We could do that. We could do that and go bowling."

"We could hang out, try to eat at every nice restaurant on the West Coast."

"Yeah, we'd get fat like Rachel Pringle and have b.u.t.ts like Mother Sally."

"You'd get fat and that b.u.mper would get so broad they'd write a song about it."

"Not the way I train, Child Support Waiting to Happen."

Petrichor smiled. "Does this qualify as the start of girl talk?"

"Probably does. Probably does. If you get me a venti extra-dry nonfat cappuccino with whole-milk foam, sure, we can girl talk while I sip and clean my guns and be ready for whatever."

She looked back toward Trinidad, then in the direction of the United States.

She said, "This isn't done, is it?"

"Probably not. I'll know in a day or two, but probably not."

"It's just on pause."

"Just on pause."

"We need to find my sperm donor."

"Yeah. We need to find Old Man Reaper."

"I'll clean my guns, get my bows and arrows, and be ready too, Reaper."

"Okay. Fine. Child Support Waiting to Happen."

"Stop saying that before you jinx me. Call me Petrichor."

"You have my name."

"Thought it didn't bother you."

"I lied."

Her cellular ping-ping-pinged.

I took her phone, sent her husband a wicked message.

She wiped a tear from her eye.

I asked, "You okay?"

"You're okay. You're safe. I'm okay because you're okay."

"What's wrong?"

"Ice cream."

"What about it?"

"They had ice cream."

"Who?"

"I need to take some ice cream home to my husband."

"Let's go find your ice cream."

"Yeah. Let's go get that ice cream."

Then I looked up at the sky, at the stars.

I said, "Hope Old Man Reaper can see them too."

Petrichor nodded. "We killed them all."

I nodded. "We killed them all."

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS.

O ye faithful reader, here we are again at the end of a marvelous roller-coaster ride.

As you exhale, I hope that the ride was worth the price of the ticket.

Reaper just pa.s.sed by and Petrichor is in a rush to get back to her boo, so I'll keep it short.

Reaper is angry. I mean, the woman is p.i.s.sed off. So I'm slipping on my bulletproof jacket.

Okay. Now. Let's all hide under the desk, ignore Reaper yelling my name, and roll.

Come closer. Closer. I'll have to whisper. Closer. Not that close, unless you pop a mint.

Thanks to the NYC family back at Dutton. We've crossed the twenty-book mark. Yay. Eighty more to go. ROFL. Denise Roy, my wonderful editor, thanks for everything. You're brilliant.

Ava Kavyani and the many people working in publicity, much love and thanks to all of you.

Sara Camilli and Ray, back in the Midwest at the Sara Camilli Agency, we've made it to the end of another project, so I'll take a few deep breaths, a thirty-minute nap, then move on to the next one. Okay, I'll skip the nap. Nothing comes to sleepers but dreams. We're all about reality. 'Nuff said.

Karl Planer and Tamala Whittley, my peeps at the Planer Group in L.A., thanks for holding down the fort as I again waved good-bye to the USA, packed up, and moved to another country.

Barbados. Love you.

Hey, look, the third act . . . yeah . . . sorry about the destruction . . . but thangs happen. I will bring a tube of Super Glue and make sure all landmarks are restored by the time this book is published.

Lyn, Lyn, bo byn, banana fana fo fyn . . .

Skye, Skye, bo bye, banana fana fo fye . . .

Book Source in Barbados, Government Hill. I want to give a special thanks to Beverly, Erica, Russell, Whitley, Christina, Jennifer, Gillian, Ashley, and the rest of the Book Source crew. My bro Johan has moved on, but thanks to him as well. Thanks for giving me much support and allowing me to chill out and use one of your offices five days a week. That was awesome. I mean that from my heart. I loved it. You guys are the best of the best. Holla at the fruit guy for me. I need grapes. LOL.

The girls at Coffee Bean Warrens, thanks for being so cool. Y'all kept me laughing and smiling while I sipped my brew, ate, and worked. Same for the girls at Graeme Sanctuary.

Sky Mall. Chefette, Six Roads. Sheraton Centre.

Novel Teas. Thanks for the love, and the teas. Back soon. Everyone, meet me there.

Hugs to the wonderful people at LIME in Government Hill. Thanks for the love, support, and putting up with an American from time to time. I'm heading to the lobby to top up my phone.

John Downes and the crew at the Six Roads branch of the public library, thanks for the support. We still have to hook up and lime down at the shooting range at some point.

Now it's time for me to hitch a ride on the back of a flying fish to the next island.

I have to give a shout to Trinidad. Put the Soca War on pause and listen up. Thanks to Dionne Baptiste for answering questions and letting me get on her nerves from time to time. To my friend from Tobago, shouts to Liselle Des Vignes Quash. (See, I didn't call you a Trini, so put your cutla.s.s down.) Nigel Khan Booksellers and staff, thanks for the many years of support.

Once again, saving the best for last, it is imperative that I thank ___________ for all of their help while I was taking Reaper from the States to the West Indies to Canada, and back to the West Indies. It's between you and Reaper what you did to make this novel possible, but if you want the world to know, feel free to write it here-> _______________. :-) Just remember, Reaper has ears and the man behind the red doors sees all.

f.u.c.k. Reaper is heading this way. Everybody, run. Gotta go, gotta go, gotta go.

Just hope I don't b.u.mp into Gideon.

Writing is a wonderful journey. Thanks for keeping me company.

Time to pack my bags.

Thursday, November 7, 2013, 11:31 a.m., PST.

Estoy a: 34 3' 8" N / 118 14' 34" W.

85 degrees. Adidas shorts, Jimi Hendrix tee, bare feet on wooden floor, CNN in the background.

In 1864, E. P. Dutton & Co. bought the famous Old Corner Bookstore and its publishing division from Ticknor and Fields and began their storied publishing career. Mr. Edward Payson Dutton and his partner, Mr. Lemuel Ide, had started the company in Boston, Ma.s.sachusetts, as a bookseller in 1852. Dutton expanded to New York City, and in 1869 opened both a bookstore and publishing house at 713 Broadway. In 2014, Dutton celebrates 150 years of publishing excellence. We have redesigned our longtime logotype to reflect the simple design of those earliest published books. For more information on the history of Dutton and its books and authors, please visit www.penguin.com/dutton.

Also by Eric Jerome d.i.c.key.

Decadence.

The Education of Nia Simone Bijou (e-book).

An Accidental Affair.

Tempted by Trouble..

Resurrecting Midnight (Gideon series) Dying for Revenge (Gideon series).

Pleasure Waking with Enemies (Gideon series) Sleeping with Strangers (Gideon series).

Chasing Destiny.

Genevieve Drive Me Crazy Naughty or Nice The Other Woman.

Thieves' Paradise Between Lovers Liar's Game Cheaters Milk in My Coffee.