“That’s right, you never know. Wow, wouldn’t that be wonderful?”

Ted had always been a dignified guy, very smart and not impetuous. I thought then that he would make an excellent chief of police. There was nothing bubba about him.

“It sure would be.”

We stood on my top step, looking toward Archie’s house.

“That woman’s a nightmare, Ted. Between us, that is.”

“Yeah,” he said. “Doesn’t take much to get her all worked up, all right. Your momma’s still a character, isn’t she?”

“Oh, she’s that and a whole lot more.”

Why was he so slow to leave?

As though he read my mind, he said, “Well, thanks again. I’ll be seeing you around the island, I guess.”

“Anytime,” I said and slipped by him and back into the house.

“Hey, Holly?”

I turned back to him.

“You think you might like to go see a movie sometime?”

“I might.”

“Well, now I know where to find you.”

“Hey, Ted?”

“Yeah?”

“How’s the competition for the job of chief?”

“I don’t know. Probably stiff. I mean, who wouldn’t want to live on Sullivan’s Island?”

“Sometimes I wonder about that,” I said. “Well, listen, if we can do anything to help the process along, just let us know, okay?”

We waved to each other and I went back inside. I had a thought then that maybe he had a very good chance of getting the job. Why not? He’d been doing it for months anyway. Pretty long interview, I thought.

Momma was still in the kitchen and now Leslie was there, too. She was starting supper. That was one of the nice things about her return, having help in the kitchen.

“So what’s new with Charlie?” I asked.

“You wouldn’t believe it,” Leslie said. “He’s got it in his mind that since he’s got a private seamstress, aka Momma, that she can make Christian Siriano–esque costumes for him.”

“Who’s he?” I said.

“I guess you don’t watch the Oscars, huh? So he wants her to come out to Vegas, see a few shows, and get inspired. He’s going for it, Momma. Because of you!”

“I guess I’m going to spend my evenings in Las Vegas with a whole lot of Liza Minnellis,” Momma said. “I’m going to lose my mind.”

“You’ll have a blast!” I said. “Just do it.”

“Have you taken leave of your senses?” Momma said.

“Absolutely not,” I said. “Here’s what I’ve been thinking. A while back, I came to the conclusion that what we need in this family is more fun. Months and years are slipping away, and none of us are getting any younger, you especially, Momma. And what are we doing? I was thinking maybe we should take up bingo.”

“Bingo,” Momma said, as flat as a pancake.