Lionel sucked in a deep breath of the hot, humid air and wished he hadn’t. He was a hairbreadth away from losing it. “No, Mr. Lomax, I did not do that, because the moment I turned the engine off in the car, I saw your office door open and you walking toward me. I didn’t see any point to it in this heat. If there’s nothing else I can do for you, then, I’ll go along to meet Mr. Cricket’s people. They’re parking their vehicles now, as you can plainly see.” Lionel clenched his teeth so tight, he thought his jaw was going to crack. He didn’t mean to say the words, but somehow they slipped through. “So am I dismissed?” he said, snapping off a sloppy salute. Without waiting for a response, Lionel turned and sprinted toward the clubhouse and the people Mrs. Cricket wanted him to talk to.

“Introductions can wait until we’re inside,” Lionel said as he ushered the small group ahead of him. “We need to get out of this heat.”

“Did that guy back there give you a hard time? It looked like it from where I was standing,” Jack asked.

Lionel snorted. “The man lives to make my life miserable. Nice dog. Does he need water or anything? It’s 110 degrees, with the humidity in the high nineties.”

Jack said Cyrus was good. Cyrus barked to show his appreciation of Lionel’s concern for his well-being.

Even though it had only been a few minutes, the inside of the clubhouse was frosty cold. Dom offered cold Cokes from the kitchen refrigerator, and they all accepted as Maggie made the introductions.

“Nice room,” Jack said, looking around. And that’s all the clubhouse was, incorporating a huge kitchen, his and her bathrooms, and a pantry lined with shelves that held mostly paper products. A mini stage of sorts was raised against the far wall, with a portable podium pushed into a corner. Folding chairs and long folding tables were neatly lined up against the far wall. Eddie and Dom set up one of the tables and unfolded the chairs. Nick handed out napkins from the pantry for the dripping Coke bottles.

Maggie liked the look of the young men. They were all dressed in jeans, boat shoes, and button-down shirts, the sleeves rolled up. All of them had regulation haircuts, and she didn’t see even one piercing or tattoo. A definite plus. She could tell they were all good friends and had respect for one another regardless of their ethnic background. Lionel was black, Dom appeared to be a mix of Italian and Asian blood, Eddie was Spanish, and Nick was a Brit.