“Guess so but Ricky never impressed me as a mystery man. Where did we meet? He picked me up at Coast, the lounge at Shutters. When I left my husband I moved from our house in the Valley to an apartment in Pacific Palisades. But you probably know that.”
“Actually, we don’t.”
“Oh,” said Blunt. “Of course, I haven’t changed my DMV, better do that soon so my churl of an ex doesn’t get hold of my registration and throw it out. Anyway, I’m in a tiny little place with no charm but at least it’s close to the beach so Shutters seemed like a practical choice for meeting men. I didn’t want to do the online thing, too many unknowns. I trust my own intuition and ability to read people. Not that it was easy, I’d been out of circulation for a while. But at some point, you just dive in.”
Brief, furious glower. “Unlike the churl, who circulated the whole time—sorry, I’m doing what I despise, bleeding in public. My dad was a colonel in the air force. He’d be giving me the death-stare.”
Milo said, “You and Rick both happened to be at Coast?”
“Yup. He was already at the bar when I arrived. Cute, nicely dressed, well built. Nice hands with clean well-shaped nails, I always look at the nails. And he wasobviouslyinterested.”
Another smile, this one broader, flashing luminous teeth. “The moment I sat down he was sneaking looks at me. Then I allowed him to catch my eye and he smiled. The second time, I smiled back. The third time, he bought me a drink. Then he came over. Pretty boilerplate, but I was primed and ready.”
I said, “You were both interested—”
“For him sex was probably a state of being. For me, it was a mission and Iwashorny as hell.And lonely. The churl had taken our daughter to visit his parents. That night, I wasgoingto meet someone and Rick was the cutest guy in the lounge. I talked to him long enough to decide he was safe and brought him to my apartment. Before the door closed we were up against the living room wall.”
Blue eyes turned to gas flames. Daring us to judge.
“I’d seen it in the movies but never did it that way. Not the most comfortable position but I figured time to be open-minded. In the end I was okay with it but had to eventually lie down. Ricklovedit. And afterward he wassowell behaved. Soft-spoken, solicitous, not one of those where-are-the-frozen-waffles troglodytes. We hooked up maybe…six, seven times, essentially the same deal: drinks, sometimes a light dinner, and…I don’t need to spell it out. The seventh time he tried to explore me anatomically in a way I didn’t welcome and that was it.”
“Did he get pushy about it?”
Joan Blunt smiled. “Literally or figuratively? No, he started poking around, I said uh-uh, he pouted a little so I…gave him compensation. But that was enough for me, he’d become boring. Not a genius. I told him it had been fun but now it was over. It’s the kind of thing guys do to women all the time. That’s not a political statement, merely fact.”
I said, “Time to chart another course.”
Joan Blunt cocked her head to the side and touched a fingertip to her lips. “That’s rather insightful or you’re faking it well. Are you single?”
“Sorry, no.”
She laughed. “At least you’re apologizing.”
Milo said, “How did Rick take to being dumped?”
“He sent me a couple of weepy-face emojis, called a couple of times, are you sure, Joanie, we can just do it the regular way. I told him it had nothing to do with that and he gave up. As much as I’d like to think of myself as irresistible, I knew he’d just find another green pasture.”
“Why?”
“Handsome, inoffensive, reliable erection, good stamina. He was made for dalliance.”
I said, “Did he ever talk about having conflict with anyone?”
“Never. He didn’t talk much period, thank God. I wasn’t interested in learning about his psyche or his family or his aches and pains. This was all about reassuring myself.”
She grinned. “And, of course, having fun.”
Milo showed her the photos of the other three victims.
Blank look. “Who are they?”
“People Ricky knew. Please don’t be offended but I need to ask. Where were you Friday night through Sunday morning?”
Joan Blunt said, “Really? Like in the movies? I spent the entire weekend from Friday afternoon through Sunday night with Brooklyn, my daughter. Friday we were in my apartment streaming movies, Saturday we saw a matinee ofThe Little Mermaidat the Pantages, Saturday evening we had dinner at Ivy at the Shore, Saturday night we watched TV in bed—bingeing onChopped,this month she wants to be a chef. Sunday, we went horseback riding in Griffith Park. Sunday night, I drove her back to you-know-who. If you must have them, I can get my CPA to dig up the credit card slips.”
“At your leisure,” said Milo.
“You’re serious.”
