“Maybe you shouldn’t go home,” he said. “Maybe you shouldn’t be alone.”

Lexis said nothing. She just stared straight ahead and Frank drove two blocks, where he pulled the cruiser up onto another sidewalk in front of L’Adours, a French restaurant across the street from the stone sandcastle that is City Hall. Frank helped Lexis out and led her by the arm inside to an intimate booth in the nook beneath the staircase. He sat her down and whispered something to Sebastian, the maître d’, before taking the seat opposite her.

It wasn’t a minute before she had a glass of Alsatian Riesling in front of her and Frank was wiping the froth off his lip from a mug of beer.

“Take a drink,” he said, nudging the glass toward her.

Lexis stared at it. She wet her lips with the tip of her tongue.

“I stopped,” she said.

“I know,” he said. “This is a little different. After what you’ve been through I don’t think there’s anyone who wouldn’t give you special dispensation…”

Light from above glowed in the pale yellow wine. A small bead of condensation snaked its way down the side of the glass.

“I know I’ve got my issues,” he said with a sigh, “but the one thing you won’t get from me is any of this holier-than-thou crap. It’s okay, Lexis. One drink. You could use it.”

She reached out and touched the cool round glass. She pinched the stem between her fingers and ran them lightly up and down for a moment, then sighed and picked it up. She opened her mouth and filled it before setting the half-empty glass down on the table. She let the wine swish around gently inside her cheeks.

Frank smiled at her. Half a laugh spilled up out from his chest. Lexis looked at him and swallowed. Immediately she brought the glass to her lips again, finishing the glass before replacing it on the table without a sound. Frank upended his beer and pushed both glasses toward the edge of the booth. A grinning waiter quickly replaced them.

This time, Lexis took her time. She didn’t look at Frank, but his eyes peeked over the rim of his mug even when he was drinking. After she set down the third empty glass on the table, she cleared her throat.

“See,” she said, her face crinkling into a pathetic frown that suddenly darkened, “he promised me this wouldn’t happen.”

Frank took her hand, holding it tight and patting it softly with his other hand.

“I know,” he said, quiet and sad.

“Did he do it?” she said suddenly, her eyes locked onto his.

Frank looked down at the table and shook his head slowly from side to side. The waiter set down fresh drinks. He pushed the wine toward her.

“Three is enough,” she said. “It’s more than enough.”

“What’s the difference?” Frank said. “Stop worrying. It’s just me. Do you want something to eat? My mother always says it’s good for you to eat.”

“This isn’t a date, Frank,” Lexis said, her eyebrows knit together.

“I know,” Frank said in his best little-boy voice.

Lexis shook her head, looking down. Just the trace of a smile showed on her lips. She took a deep staggering breath and let it out.

“I’m drunk,” she said. “Is that good for me?”

“It’s not a cardinal sin,” he said. “Even the priests drink wine.”

“You eat,” she said, her words sloppy. “I’ll have just one more and then you can take me home.”

“I’ll order for both of us,” he said.

They talked quietly as they waited for the food. Frank led her into talking about how wonderful the past two years of her life had been. He kept going back and back until finally he got to them.

“You know, my mother still thinks you and I will end up together,” he said. “She thinks you’re the kind of woman who can forgive a mistake, but I don’t know.”

“You’re just a man, Frank,” she said with a crooked smile, taking a swig of wine, “and men lie. All of them…”

Frank just stared at her.

The food finally came and he ate it in big mouthfuls, but he was more intent on making sure Lexis’s wineglass was refilled. She didn’t even pick up her fork. After the waiter cleared the plates, he returned with a small tray of tall thin shot glasses. Smoky steam curled up and away from their frosted surfaces.

Frank took one and raised it toward Lexis.

“To forgetting,” he said.

She nodded and picked up a glass, letting it clink against his before she threw it down. They had two more each, and Lexis’s eyes were beginning to lose focus.

“I should get you back,” Frank said.

“Yes,” she said in a murmur.

Frank led her to the car by the arm again, helping her inside and dashing around the front. He pulled away from the curb fast and parked on the back side of the alley, away from the Tusk. As he helped her down the alley, she began to stagger.

“Do you have your keys?” he asked.

She fumbled with her purse and dropped it onto the bricks.

“Dizzy,” she muttered.

Frank scooped up the purse and tugged her to the green door. He punched in the code and half carried her up the stairs with one arm around her waist and the other holding her arm. They got to her door and he spilled the purse out on the step under the small carriage lamp. The brass key gleamed up at him. He bent down, holding her still, and scooped it up from the mess-one-handed-without bothering to pick up the rest. He jiggled the key and the door flew open.

Frank caught her over his shoulder and carried her in, where he laid her facedown on the big sleigh bed. He went back to the front door and with trembling fingers scooped up the contents of the purse while he scanned the common area. It was empty. He heard a loud group coming up the stairs as he pulled the door shut tight and bolted the lock.

When he returned to the bedroom, he wore a massive grin. His heart pounded as he stripped off his clothes. Lexis wore a skirt, and she swatted feebly at his hands as he unzipped it and slid it off over her shoes. He liked the shoes, dark high-heeled pumps, and he preferred that they stay on.

From his own pile of clothes, he removed a switchblade knife that snapped open with enough force to leave the knuckles on two fingers numb. He eased the blade up under her silk blouse and slid it up the length of her bony spine, exposing her back and pausing only to slice through the band of her bra.

Her head was sideways with her hair draped over her face. She began to blow it away so she could breathe, and Frank slipped his fingers underneath it, sweeping it aside and earning a smile from her.

“Raymond,” she said.

His own smile distorted slightly, but stayed big. He kissed the back of her neck, breathing into her ear, letting the stubble on his chin raise a strawberry on her skin.

“It’s me, baby,” he said.

“Frank?” she said, her body going rigid. Her breathing quickened and she shook her head no.

“Shh,” he said.

His fingers worked their way under the band of her dark red underwear. He slit through the silky material, exposing the round moon of her bottom to his thick probing fingers.

“Everything’s going to be okay now, baby,” he said in a husky whisper. “It’s Frank, and he’s gonna take care of you, just like he used to…”