Chapter 10

Robby pushed through the door to Antony's Deli, listening to the merry tinkle of the entry bell over the door. The unseasonably warm weather had him carrying his coat, brought along against the possibility presented by overcast skies. He hung his coat by the door and found where his mother was waiting for him. She had picked a booth against the wall this time, and he slid in. Robby saw immediately there was something different about her.

"Hello, dear," his mother began diffidently. "Everything going well with the job?"

The choice of subject surprised him. Usually she went for the throat, asking after potential breeders for the cause of giving her grandchildren. It was almost like she was afraid of driving him off, something that had never happened despite how caustic she became. He decided to go with the flow.

"Well enough, I suppose," he replied. "The latest case proved to be a bust, but that's all for the better anyway." Martha frowned.

"Case? I thought you were an accountant. What's this about a case?" She showed a little fire with her question, but she was puzzled nonetheless.

Robby leaned forward, unaware he was taking an aggressive stance. Martha leaned back, her hands in her lap, similarly unaware that she was offering a conciliatory display.

"Mom, don't you know what I do for a living?" he questioned challengingly.

"Well, I thought I did. Now, I'm not so sure," she soothed, responding to his challenge.

"I'm a forensic accountant. That means I audit a company's financial records looking for signs of misbehavior, such as embezzlement. When I find something, I present the evidence to the district attorney, and if necessary, testify in court to my findings."

"In court?" she asked, her eyebrows nearly meeting her hairline.

"Yes. I'm what they refer to as an expert witness," he stated. He was somewhat pleased by his mother's reaction to his declaration. Maybe now she would see him for who he was.

"Wow. I'm sorry, Robby. I never knew." He could almost see the wheels spinning in her head as she upgraded his résumé in her mind. Then her features softened.

"I forgot to ask," she said apologetically. "How's Elaina doing?"

This further evidence of her change of heart rocked him. Could she have really changed that much, or was she waiting for him to fail again? He knew which he'd prefer but didn't think the other would bother him as much as it would have before.

"She's doing well, thank you. We've been on a couple of dates..." Martha interrupted him with a raised hand.

"No details, please. Remember, I changed your diapers. I have no desire to have those images in my head." He couldn't help it: he burst out laughing, causing heads to turn.

"Oh, Mom. I'm surprised at you!" he chortled, once he had his laughter under control. "I didn't know you had it in you."

"Yes, well," she responded, trying to hide a blush. "I was married, you know. I know what can happen..." She stopped when Robby laughed again softly.

Deidra approached their table cautiously, wondering what was going to happen today. She was pleasantly surprised to see Robby smiling; she considered him to be quite handsome when he was smiling. And Martha, too, was smiling. Instead of trying to regale Deidra with further details of Robby's résumé, she simply gave her usual order when Deidra asked after her needs. Robby did the same, giving her wink before she left.

She stuck the order in the carousel and gave it spin, calling "Order up." The cook reached up and stopped the spinning, reading the newest order.

She took advantage of the lull in new customers to relax and eye the room for customers needing something. No one was looking around and all were engrossed in their meals and conversations. A couple of professional women came in and headed to the take-out counter, where the counter girl would be seeing to them.

"Whatcha thinking, short stuff?" Tony asked from beside her. Deidra had heard his approach, so she wasn't surprised by his voice.

"Him," she answered, nodding at Robby. "I find him attractive enough, but ... Oh, I don't know."

"He's always been a bit of a mama's boy," Tony rumbled. "Until last week, anyway. That woman that joined them..."

"Yeah, nothing goin' on there, huh?" she stated flatly. Tony gave her the eye.

"Jealous much?" he asked. Deidra snorted.

"Don't get your panties in a twist with me, young lady," he scolded. "What? Second thoughts?"

"No, not really. Just wondering, ya know?" She perked up suddenly.

"Oh, now what's this?" she asked, nodding at Robby's table again. "Oh shit. They're heading right for him."

Robby was regaling his mother with the wrong-doings of some of the more egregious felons he'd investigated when he was struck with a sense of déjà vu. From behind him came a feminine voice, this one unfamiliar.

"Hey, Robby! Fancy meeting you here," the voice said in a sultry tone.

With dread in his heart, Robby turned to see who was addressing him. To his utter surprise, he saw Dawn standing there, looking every inch the young professional in her skirted business suit, her chestnut hair coiffed expertly upon her head. He saw the shine of lip gloss making her look oh so kissable ... It occurred to him that he needed to revise his estimate of her age upward; she had to be in her mid-twenties. He blinked and came out of his stupor.

"Dawn!" he exclaimed. "What a pleasant surprise!" He stood to offer his hand. Rather than shaking his, she offered her hand for him to hold briefly. For a moment, he thought about kissing her hand, but the moment passed.

Remembering his manners, he introduced his mother and Dawn to each other.

"So, how do you two know each other?" Martha asked. Her curiosity was piqued. Years of nothing, then suddenly a plethora of women. Had her son finally blossomed?

"We met at a party my boyfriend was having," Dawn answered brightly. "Well, ex-boyfriend." Robby patted her hand, and Martha's eyebrow arched at this small intimacy.

"My neighbor, Doug," Robby explained to his mom. "You've met him." She frowned at the memory of their meeting.

Dawn laughed at her expression. "Yeah, it was like that. I didn't get the bulletin until after we'd dated for a while. It's gonna be a while before I trust another man." She was watching Robby when she said it. Robby, of course, missed it, but Martha didn't.

"Oh! I'm sorry, Shar," Dawn said suddenly. Pointing to the blonde with her hands full holding a box stacked with sandwiches, Dawn said, "Robby, this is my coworker, Sharon. Shar, this is the guy I was telling you about."

Sharon nodded and said she was pleased to meet him. She wiggled her fingers on the box when he offered to shake and he shrugged. They chatted for moment more, then Dawn said they had to get going: they had food to deliver to the starving masses.

"It was nice seeing you again, Robby," Dawn said by way of parting, putting a light hand to his wrist. "See you around."

The girls left and Robby reseated himself.

"That was nice," said Martha. "I seem to meeting all sorts of women you kept out of sight." She patted his hand and smiled to show she was teasing. This was a kinder gentler mother than he had known before. Robby thought he could get used to that.

Their order arrived and they were digging in when something about the way the doorbell chimed drew his attention. To his delighted surprise he saw Elaina entering. His mother caught his expression and following his line of sight, also spotted Elaina's entrance. She was wearing mostly the same outfit as last time, but this time her silk shirt was robin's egg blue and her hair was down.

A young stallion seated near the door saw an opportunity and quickly rose to the occasion. Stepping close, he tried what may have been his best line on her, leering encouragingly.

Without breaking stride, Elaina placed her palm on his chest and pushed sideways. He all but flew back into the booth he had been seated in. When he made to stand back up, she turned her head sharply to look at him. Whatever he saw gave him pause, but he was too dull to know when he was outmatched. Continuing to rise from the booth, he paused yet again. Tony had moved in behind Elaina. He may have had more years on the chassis than most, but he was still a bear of a man, and he brooked no foolishness in his deli.

Elaina turned to look at Tony. "I got this, you know."

"A little girl like you deserves backup," he grunted back. "Beside, I didn't want you breaking the furniture. It's expensive." She smiled, recognizing the compliment. He'd expected her to be doing the breaking.