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had been forged.
    Joanne was married to Michael Claramotta, and together they owned the butcher shop–deli More than Meats in the center of town that was
the
place to buy lunch. They had relocated to St. Stanley from Brooklyn ten years before, and although they had opened the deli and invested their money in several apartment buildings in town, they had both grown up poor, and thrift was a way of life for them. No one in the Good Buy Girls club got a bigger charge out of getting a good deal than Joanne.
    “I was just saying that if I had known what my grocery bill would be, it would be unlikely that Roger would have had the opportunity to make any more babies with me,” Ginger said softly.
    It was well known in the group that the one thing thirty-seven-year-old Joanne wanted more than even a good deal was a baby, but so far she and Michael hadn’t gotten lucky.
    “As if!” Joanne busted out with a laugh, reassuring them that she was fine. “I’ve seen you two together. You are the most lovey-dovey couple on the planet. It’s positively disgusting. Now, come on, I’ve got the tables ready.”
    The ladies filed out through the French doors to the sun porch on the back of the house. The glassed-in room with its hanging plants and cushy wicker furniture and freestanding air conditioner was their weekly base of operations. This week was particularly important, as Labor Day was rapidly approaching, and they needed to finalize their battle plans.
    Fliers, mailers and circulars littered the card table that had been set up, and they each took a seat in a folding chair.
    “Wait, where’s Claire?” Ginger asked. “She’s bringing the eats, isn’t she?”
    “She’ll be here,” Maggie said. “She may have gotten held up at the library.”
    “All right then, do we all have our diaper coupons for Sandy?”
    Maggie pulled out her coupon pouch, blue and mauve paisley; it had been her constant companion since starting her own household when she was newly married twenty-two years before. She called it “Old Blue” and its well-thumbed tabs were as familiar to her as her own smile. Old Blue was divided by sections, and Maggie went right to the baby products one and pulled out the clippings she had gathered for her niece.
    The others all pulled out their coupon pouches as well, and a small pile accumulated in the center for Sandy. Being a solo parent and a full-time student, she didn’t have the time to be an official member of the Good Buy Girls, but they considered her one of their own and always kept an eye out for bargains for her.
    “Aunt Maggie, I’m taking Josh to the park. Back in an hour,” Sandy called, poking her head into the room.
    “I go park!” Josh cried, and he waddled into the sun room to Maggie to give her a banana-scented hug.
    “Have fun, sweetie,” Maggie said, and she squeezed him back, enjoying the petal-soft feel of his mop of blond hair against her cheek.
    Sandy held out her hand, and Josh grabbed it. As theyleft the room, the doorbell rang and Sandy called, “I’ll get it.”
    They heard the door open and the murmur of voices. Then the door shut and Claire raced into the room with her coupon pouch in one hand and a boxed cake in the other.
    “Sorry, I’m late,” she cried. “It was murder getting here.”

Chapter 3

    “How so?” Maggie asked, taking in Claire’s disheveled appearance.
    “I hit every red light going across town,” Claire said. She shook her short blonde bob, and drew in a long breath before continuing. “Then I stopped in at the Perk Up to see what they had on sale, but their bakery case was wiped out. Gwen had just taken all the day-old baked goods down to Spring Gardens, the assisted-care living facility for seniors.”
    “Well, it looks like you brought us something yummy.” Ginger sat up straighter in her chair, trying to peek inside the mangled box that Claire still clutched.
    “Oh yeah, so then I ran over to Santana’s to see if the grocery store had