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Today's Reading

"Ooh, I love that song." Botoxed Barbara sang a snatch of the '80s tune as she joined the girls, setting her smoothie on the table.

Daphne grimaced at the green concoction. "I don't know how you can drink that stuff."

"Kale's good for you. It's full of antioxidants and helps the body flush out toxins."

"And tastes like crap." Daphne bit into her croissant, crumbs flaking onto her Hawaiian shirt. "I'll stick with chocolate." She closed her eyes. "M'mm, heaven."

Barbara's eyes flicked to the former cop's muffin top poking above her sweatpants. Giving her snug yoga pants a reassuring pat, she reminded the girls, "Don't forget; we vote for book club selections tonight."

Daphne groaned. "Please tell me you're not bringing another celebrity 'you too can be fabulous at any age' book."

Barbara bristled. "What's wrong with wanting to be fabulous at our age?"

"And what age is that, exactly?" Claire tilted her pixie head at Barbara, shooting her an innocent look.

"It's not polite to ask a woman her age."

"Politeness is overrated." Atsuko smoothed her silver bob. "I don't care who knows I'm seventy-five."

"I'm happy to have made it to my sixties." A shadow crossed Daphne's freckled face. "I didn't think I'd live to see fifty, much less sixty-two."

Daphne rarely talked about her time as a cop, apart from joking about the stupid criminals she'd encountered during her career. Claire had glimpsed the scars, though, and knew her friend had been through the wars.

Barbara leaned toward Claire, blue eyes alight. "I've had the best idea for your seventieth birthday next month. Let's go skydiving!"

"No thanks," Claire said. "I prefer staying inside the plane."

"Exactly," Daphne, who'd been a sergeant in the Air Force back in the day, agreed. "The pilots I worked with always said, 'Why would I want to jump out of a perfectly good airplane?'"

"For the rush of it," the B member of their group said.

"I get enough of a rush finding my way out of IKEA." Atsuko lifted her coffee mug to her lips.

"Aw, c'mon girls," Barbara wheedled. "Where's your sense of excitement?"

"I'm excited by Taco Tuesday," Daphne said, "or when I find socks that match."

"OK, scratch skydiving, then. We can go ziplining instead."

"Now that's a possibility. Ziplining looks like fun." Glimpsing her nonagenarian friend at the coffee bar, Claire gave Evelyn a half wave.

Seeing her wave, Lenny Fink, Cedar Glen's most flirtatious resident, sidled over with Vince Merlucci, his partner-in-crime. "Good morning, ladies." Lifting his hat, Lenny revealed his bad gray rug. "Claire, that blouse really brings out your eyes. Maybe your eyes and mine can meet at Red Lobster tonight." Pulling a piece of paper from the pocket of his '70s polyester leisure suit, he added, "I have a two-for-one coupon." Eighty-year-old Lenny still fancied himself a ladies' man. He was unwilling to accept that times had changed, and so had women.

And fashion.

Vince, who in his '60s bowling shirt looked like an older, more dissolute version of Charlie Sheen, ogled Barbara. Smoothing his bottle-black combover with an age-spotted hand, he said, "I have a coupon too, gorgeous. Whaddya say we make it a foursome?"

Daphne waggled her eyebrows at Barbara. "Yeah, gorgeous, whaddya say?"

Barbara shot Daphne a quelling glance before turning to Vince and Lenny. "Sorry, y'all," she said, her Texas drawl resurfacing. "I already have plans. So does Claire. Tonight's book club."

* * *

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The Alphabet Sleuths (An Alphabet Girls Mystery) | Online Book Clubs Skip to main content

Today's Reading

"Ooh, I love that song." Botoxed Barbara sang a snatch of the '80s tune as she joined the girls, setting her smoothie on the table.

Daphne grimaced at the green concoction. "I don't know how you can drink that stuff."

"Kale's good for you. It's full of antioxidants and helps the body flush out toxins."

"And tastes like crap." Daphne bit into her croissant, crumbs flaking onto her Hawaiian shirt. "I'll stick with chocolate." She closed her eyes. "M'mm, heaven."

Barbara's eyes flicked to the former cop's muffin top poking above her sweatpants. Giving her snug yoga pants a reassuring pat, she reminded the girls, "Don't forget; we vote for book club selections tonight."

Daphne groaned. "Please tell me you're not bringing another celebrity 'you too can be fabulous at any age' book."

Barbara bristled. "What's wrong with wanting to be fabulous at our age?"

"And what age is that, exactly?" Claire tilted her pixie head at Barbara, shooting her an innocent look.

"It's not polite to ask a woman her age."

"Politeness is overrated." Atsuko smoothed her silver bob. "I don't care who knows I'm seventy-five."

"I'm happy to have made it to my sixties." A shadow crossed Daphne's freckled face. "I didn't think I'd live to see fifty, much less sixty-two."

Daphne rarely talked about her time as a cop, apart from joking about the stupid criminals she'd encountered during her career. Claire had glimpsed the scars, though, and knew her friend had been through the wars.

Barbara leaned toward Claire, blue eyes alight. "I've had the best idea for your seventieth birthday next month. Let's go skydiving!"

"No thanks," Claire said. "I prefer staying inside the plane."

"Exactly," Daphne, who'd been a sergeant in the Air Force back in the day, agreed. "The pilots I worked with always said, 'Why would I want to jump out of a perfectly good airplane?'"

"For the rush of it," the B member of their group said.

"I get enough of a rush finding my way out of IKEA." Atsuko lifted her coffee mug to her lips.

"Aw, c'mon girls," Barbara wheedled. "Where's your sense of excitement?"

"I'm excited by Taco Tuesday," Daphne said, "or when I find socks that match."

"OK, scratch skydiving, then. We can go ziplining instead."

"Now that's a possibility. Ziplining looks like fun." Glimpsing her nonagenarian friend at the coffee bar, Claire gave Evelyn a half wave.

Seeing her wave, Lenny Fink, Cedar Glen's most flirtatious resident, sidled over with Vince Merlucci, his partner-in-crime. "Good morning, ladies." Lifting his hat, Lenny revealed his bad gray rug. "Claire, that blouse really brings out your eyes. Maybe your eyes and mine can meet at Red Lobster tonight." Pulling a piece of paper from the pocket of his '70s polyester leisure suit, he added, "I have a two-for-one coupon." Eighty-year-old Lenny still fancied himself a ladies' man. He was unwilling to accept that times had changed, and so had women.

And fashion.

Vince, who in his '60s bowling shirt looked like an older, more dissolute version of Charlie Sheen, ogled Barbara. Smoothing his bottle-black combover with an age-spotted hand, he said, "I have a coupon too, gorgeous. Whaddya say we make it a foursome?"

Daphne waggled her eyebrows at Barbara. "Yeah, gorgeous, whaddya say?"

Barbara shot Daphne a quelling glance before turning to Vince and Lenny. "Sorry, y'all," she said, her Texas drawl resurfacing. "I already have plans. So does Claire. Tonight's book club."

* * *

What our readers think...