“Long enough,” he said. He studied my face, his eyes thoughtful, and I knew he was getting a virtual tour of the inside of my brain. “I thought you’d be happier, once I scared my mother into forking over the life insurance money.”

I laughed, sounding a little raw, and shoved my hair back from my face with one hand. “I need tea,” I said. “Feel free to join me and sniff a few Oreos.”

He followed me into the kitchen, Russell trotting at our heels. “Your head is a real jumble. Lillian’s awake. Greer’s acting weird. And you wish you knew where the cop is, and whether or not he’s sleeping with his ex-wife.”

I thought hard about Lillian, since I didn’t want Nick viewing anything else that might pop into my head, especially where Tucker was concerned.

He sighed. “I’ve accepted it,” he said. “You’re boinking the cop.”

I whirled on him, in the kitchen doorway. “You didn’t—?”

“Watch?” Nick grinned. I was blushing like mad, and he clearly enjoyed my discomfiture. “Nope. Too much male ego for that. And give me credit for a little class, will you?”

“I forgive you. Go away.” I wrenched open a cupboard door, tossed him the bag of stale Oreos.

He caught them easily and chuckled, but his eyes were sad. “You really don’t want me to leave. You’re lonely and you’re upset and you figure I’m better than nothing. Admit it. I’m right.”

“You’re right,” I said. I snagged the tea kettle off the stove, filled it at the sink and slapped it back down on the burner. I glanced around, almost afraid to ask the question. “Where’s Chester?”

“No idea,” Nick said, sticking his nose into the Oreo package and inhaling deeply. The exhalation came out as a long sigh. He looked down at Russell, who was sniffing his shoes, with an expression of speculative regret. “I hope you’re not counting on him as a watchdog,” he remarked.

“Why shouldn’t I?” I countered, getting out the tea bags and plopping one into a mug. I was still thinking mostly about Lillian; I should have been thrilled that she was awake, and even regaining her powers of speech, but something about the whole situation troubled me.

“Mainly because there’s a woman hiding behind your shower curtain,” Nick said.

Good thing I wasn’t holding the tea kettle. It was already beginning to steam at the spout, and Russell and I would both have been scalded when I dropped it. “What?” I started for the bathroom.

Nick sprang up in front of me like one of those ducks in an old-fashioned shooting gallery. “Wait a second,” he said. “She could be dangerous. Even armed. Better to call the cops, don’t you think?”

“It would take them half an hour to get here,” I replied, and kept walking.