Florida Straits Read Online Free Page B

that," Steve said. "Well, that's
what most people do down here. You'll fit right in. Anyway, you
wanna think it over, think it over. This is where I'll be."
    Sandra tugged at Joey's sleeve.
    "Excuse us a minute," said Joey, and they
retreated to a shady alcove in back of the gas grill. Joey took off
his sunglasses and put them on again.
    "I don't know about this, Sandra. I came
here to be a businessman, not a goddamn nudist. I mean, you gonna
get naked with these people?"
    "Me?" said Sandra. As if by reflex, she
reached up toward the high collar of her blouse. "Joey, I'm the
original prude, you know that. I blush if someone sees my slip. But
if other people wanna take their clothes off, I got no problem with
that."
    "I dunno," said Joey. "And I'm not crazy
about the idea of living with a Fed right here."
    "Who's a Fed?"
    "What's 'er name? Lucy."
    "Joey, she's a mailman."
    "A Fed's a Fed. You think they don't all
work together? They all wanna know your business. Right away it's
the IRS, the FBI."
    "Joey, admit it. You're just uptight about
the naked part."
    He languidly dug a toe into the compound's
white gravel. "Awright, I admit it. I didn't bring you down here to
hang around a bunch of guys with their dicks out. Am I weird? No,
I'm not weird. Sandra, this is a weird town."
    "You're the one who wanted to come here,"
she said. "I was perfectly happy to stay in Queens. Say what you
want about Queens, Joey, at least people don't go around with
nothing on."
    Joey raised his hands up around his temples.
It was a gesture of surrender but also a warning that he didn't
want to hear any more. "So, Sandra, you're telling me you wanna
live in this freakin' nudist camp?"
    "I'm telling you we haven't seen anything
better we can afford. I'm telling you I don't wanna go back to some
depressing motel that stinks of mildew. And I'm telling you that if
we don't make a decision, I'm gonna scream."
    Joey tapped his foot; the gravel dust did
not come off his black loafer. Then he walked back to the pool.
    "So, Steve," he said. "We're innerested. But
eighteen hundred—it's a little steep for us. Take fifteen."
    Steve looked at the broker. The broker
looked at Steve.
    "Fifteen if it's year-round," said the naked
landlord. "If you'll sign a full-year lease."
    "Deal," said Joey. He felt like he'd gotten
away with something, and it cheered him up. Three hundred bucks off
just for signing a stupid piece of paper.
    "I'll get the lease," Steve said, but Joey
stopped him with a gesture before he could wade to the stairs.
Underwater was bad enough. He wasn't ready for full frontal in the
glaring light of day.
    "We'll go get our car and stuff," said Joey.
"We'll sign the papers after."
     

 
    — 5 —
    On a breezy morning at the end of January,
Joey Goldman stood in front of his bathroom mirror and tried to
figure out how best to display his sunglasses on those rare
occasions when he wasn't actually wearing them. Some guys, he'd
noticed, hooked them around their second shirt button, and let them
hang straight down. This was stylish, Joey thought, but maybe,
well, a little feminine. Of course, he could simply drop them in
his breast pocket, but then they were invisible, he got no benefit
at all. Maybe the suave compromise was to put them in the pocket,
but with an earpiece looped outside.
    Joey spent about ten minutes on this
problem, and told himself he wasn't killing time, he was working on
his image, which after all was an important aspect of his business.
He wasn't hiding out inside the compound, inside the cottage,
behind the bathroom door. Or maybe he was. Had he ever in his life
had a more frustrating few weeks? He couldn't say for sure.
    He hadn't made a nickel, and it was a damn
good thing Sandra had right away found a job. Seems there was a
shortage of bank tellers in south Florida, and considering what
they were paid, that was not surprising. Her salary at Keys Marine
was just enough to halve the pace at which they were going
broke.
    Meanwhile