A Quiet Evening At Home.
Laura closed the front door behind them and kicked off her shoes. "Did we achieve anything today? It just seemed like a lot of activity and not much real success."
Steele counted the successes on his fingers. "Two murderers in the hands of the proper authorities, the limo in the care of a mechanic who swears he can do wonders with it ... "
"Who has done wonders with lots of cars, so much so that we'd better hope he doesn't leave a fingerprint somewhere." she said.
"Trust me, he never does." said Steele, he continued his list, "Dinner en route care of Fred and two kids safely delivered to Junior Jay Camp."
"Do you think it'll be okay?" she said, "I don't think I could take all that again, the anxiety, the constant fears about spiders and snakes and psychopaths."
"Laura, I told you, I feel a lot better now I've seen the camp properly and asked some questions."
She smiled. "You're a lot calmer than you used to be."
He took her hand and led her to the couch. "You work too hard and worry too much and you don't limit your anxiety to the children. You need to rest and let someone else deal with everything for a while."
She sat down. He gently lifted her feet and turned her so she was lying on the couch, then he sat to hold her feet in his lap. She closed her eyes as he began to massage her left foot, using confident thumb-strokes to soothe away her tension. "I love your hands." she said.
She heard him laugh softly. "I love you." he said.
"We did okay." she said quietly.
"The case, you mean?" he asked, continuing a shifting pressure on her foot.
She opened her eyes and looked at him. "The case, as parents, life in general. And when I need you, here you are, always."
"Staying close to you is no hardship." he said.
"May I make an observation?" she said.
"As long as it doesn't involve my first grey hair or a bald patch." he said.
"You worked as hard as I did today."
"Historically unlikely." he said.
"I think you did. Maybe harder."
"And you're worried I've been replaced by a pod person?"
"A pod per... "
"Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Kevin McCarthy and Dana Wynter, Allied Artists, 1956. Or if you prefer the seventies remake, which I don't, but each to his own ... "
"B movies aside," she said, ignoring his raised eyebrows, "Why am I lying here getting my feet rubbed and not you?"
"Did you know that stroking a cat induces a feeling of peace and relaxation?"
"I own a cat."
"Well, so does stroking the soft, sensitive feet of a beautiful woman."
"Really?"
"Over the past decade, I've done a lot of research on it." he said seriously. He changed to her right foot as he went on, "In depth research. It's a compelling subject."
"What else have you discovered?" she asked.
"Well, for example, just having a beautiful woman in the same room is very good for the heart, brain and eyes, the eyes especially. However, the effect is greatly enhanced when there is actual and prolonged physical contact."
"I begin to see why this field of study appealed to you." said Laura.
"For example, just kissing the woman in question can add years to the lifespan of the average man."
She smiled. "And what about the exceptional man?"
"I'm doing fine, thanks for asking."
"I'm afraid all your research is completely useless when it comes to women. We need something else entirely but, coincidentally, kissing him is practically medicinal."
"I'm sure you know, Laura, that a gentleman such as myself could never deny a lady something that might grant her longer life and health." he said, leaning over to kiss her.
She touched his cheek tenderly. "You don't have any grey hairs."
"Aha! It's working!" he said, "Let's go to bed and live forever!"
The doorbell rang. "Maybe we should wait until after dinner." said Laura.
He grinned. "I suppose we should eat it, after dragging Fred across the city to fetch it."
"Give him a good tip." said Laura.
He nodded and opened the door with a theatrical sweep. "Fred," he said, "Find yourself a beautiful woman and kiss her until you're eighteen again."
Fred smiled, handed over the food and said, "You're crazy, Mr Steele, but in a good way."
Steele gave him fifty dollars. "Fred, you are a jewel, all of you, but especially you, our number one Fred."
"We're all happy to help." said Fred.
When he had gone, Steele closed the door and said, "We have dinner, we have peace and we have an empty house."
"Sounds like Heaven." she said.
"But with hopefully a touch more sin." he said and they smiled at each other as if they were both eighteen.
The End.