A Body to die for

Max under the table. He looked up angrily, then smiled when he saw me kiss the air at him.
    Alex and Leeza ordered a chicken cutlet platter with mashed potatoes and a green salad respectively. Max popped the last bite of his stuffed peppers into his mouth. I watched. He had a nice chew.
    I said, “I’d like to say that Alex and I have no lingering romantic feelings for each other, and that he was a wonderful boyfriend, except for the fear of commitment problem. Not that you’d care.”
    Leeza smiled. “You’ll have to excuse me if I seem tired. I didn’t get much sleep last night.” She turned to Max. “You didn’t get much sleep either. You must be exhausted.” She gave him a secret smile. I was now certain nothing happened between them.
    “I am exhausted,” Max said, clearly irritated by her.
    “Wanda.” Leeza turned toward me, her long neck in a graceful stretch. “Alex tells me you’re making progress investigating the murder at the club.”
    I glared at Alex. “Another thing about Alex. He’s a pathological liar. But don’t you worry. He only lies about important things.”
    Leeza bowed her blond head. She seemed perplexed and upset. Alex watched her in apparent amazement. He said, “Your hair is like a sunshine waterfall.” I gagged inside.
    Leeza seemed appropriately embarrassed, especially in front of a hostile stranger and her ex-boyfriend. All the bitchy spunk she could muster couldn’t hide her loneliness. She must hate the fact that I would be hanging around her new job. And her new boyfriend. Tough, I reminded myself. Murder is intrusive business.
    “So tell us about your day as an aerobics instructor, Leeza,” I spurred. “I’m fascinated by jumping up and down.” I realized after I said it that I’d sure lobbed an easy one out there.
    Alex didn’t take the bait. “I’m sure Leeza had a physically challenging day—which isn’t intellectual, but neither is visiting a client in jail.”
    Max defended me. “For your information, Alex, Wanda had a physical day, if you know what I mean.” Alex responded, “So did Leeza, if you know what I mean.” They squared off in their chairs, eyes locked. We all knew what both of them meant. I hadn’t seen Max and Alex spar like this in quite a while. I wondered if it was for Leeza’s benefit or mine. Their food arrived. I ordered tea.
    I didn’t want the night to be a complete ruin. I said, “Despite what you may have heard, Leeza, I am capable of overlooking people’s faults to benefit a common good. The idea of you working on this case is growing on me”—like a fungus—“and I’m still at the information gathering stage at this point. Did you meet a guy named Freddie Smith at the club today?” I asked Alex, too. Leeza joined him in shaking her head. “About thirty-five. Mediterranean skin. Chubby. Goatee with sideburns. Bubbly butt. Meaty hands, soft skin.” Max raised his eyebrows at that.
    Leeza paused between munches on lettuce. She searched my eyes. I tried to hide my true feelings, but my emotions are as opaque as lead. She seemed to make some mental decision—to be nice and try to have a pleasant dinner, I supposed. She had manners which I hate. She said, “Freddie Smith? No bells. But I did meet a lot of people. Including the head aerobics instructor—Janey Johnson. She gave me a tour of the place when I got in after my morning at the convention. That’s when I met Alex. During my tour of the weight room.”
    “And you were impressed with his bulging muscles?” I asked.
    “Leeza, tell Wanda what Janey told you,” Alex said with a drop of the mashed potatoes on his chin. I pointed. He brushed.
    I held up my hand. “I want to hear about the bulging muscles.”
    Leeza laughed prettily at Alex’s expense. “I was taking the tour,” Leeza continued. “Just as Janey and I were walking past Alex on the bench press, he started to call out for help. He’d put too much weight on the bar. I spotted him, and one look at his struggling, twitching face was enough.”
    “And how much weight was that?” asked Max. He could bench press three hundred.
    “Forget it,” Alex protested. “Tell Wanda about the old man.”
    “One hundred twenty pounds, was it?” Leeza asked. She then kissed him on the cheek, which had turned maroon. “Strong muscles don’t mean you have a big heart.”
    “How much was this old man lifting?”
    Leeza flung an errant strand of her blond hair over her shoulder. The movement sent a