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Hmm?”
    His eyes narrowed as he pushed his plate aside. “Look, this is all lots of fun, and might I say, extremely insightful, Miss Parker, but I’ll do just fine without your help. Perhaps you can answer a question now and then, but I’ll be running this one by the book.” She sat back as he tapped his forefinger on the table to punctuate his declaration. “No offense, but in my business, we can’t base an investigation on hearsay and rumors or small-town gossip. We require hard evidence. Data like dates and times and corroborated proof,” he tapped again, point by point. “Forensics, timelines, receipts—”
    “Of course you do, but how exactly will you find that kind of information, pray tell? From me . I’ve got more documentation than you could dream of. As I’ve already told you, I’m a perceptive student of human behavior. I’ve kept copious notes of the comings and goings of that office since the day I started. I told you, Agent Bryson. You need me. Besides . . .”
    He let his head fall back against the wooden booth. “Okay, I’ll bite. Besides what?”
    She straightened her shoulders again, held her head high, and took a deep breath. “I once played the part of Miss Marple in The Mirror Crack’d at our community theater. Granted, I was young for the part, but ask anyone in town and they’ll tell you—I was Jane Marple. Which, I’ll have you know, taught me a great deal about criminal investigations.”
    He dropped his head in his hands and moaned.
    “I’ll also have you know I studied criminology while doing research for my role. I checked out all the Miss Marple movies from the library; I watched an entire Murder She Wrote marathon one weekend, I have studied numerous episodes of Law & Order SVU and several of the CSI shows. I know all about DNA evidence and blood splatters—”
    He moaned again, his head still cradled in his hands.
    She stopped, her quiet sigh falling between them.
    “No,” he grunted without looking up.
    “You’d be a fool not to take my offer.”
    He said nothing.
    “Okay, maybe that was too harsh. I apologize. I don’t think you’re a fool.”
    Still nothing.
    She changed her tone with one last try. “Matt, why won’t you let me help you? I can help. I know I can. Nothing gets by me. Nothing.”
    He finally glanced up at her. “Is that so?”
    “Absolutely. We’ve just met, haven’t we?”
    “Yes. So?”
    “Yet I already know a lot about you. You’re fresh out of P.I. school, aren’t you?”
    He laughed a scoff. “‘P.I.’ school? Oh please . No, wait—let me guess. You have the entire Magnum, P.I . series on DVD. Am I right?”
    Julie kept eye contact as she swallowed hard. “Granted, Tom Selleck is good-looking and gave a refreshing performance as the quirky private investigator, but no, I did not study Magnum in my research. Now, if you don’t mind, I’ll continue.”
    He raised his palms. “By all means.”
    “You’re also completely intimidated by Berkowitz.”
    “Says who?”
    “You’re slightly vain about your appearance—”
    “I am not.”
    “—and you blush easily, which tells me you haven’t dated much.” She smiled with no small degree of satisfaction, watching his face blaze again.
    But just as fast, she felt the snark in her instantly drain away. She felt terrible. She had embarrassed this kind-hearted guy, a man she didn’t really know at all, regardless of her theatrical bravado.
    Suddenly at a loss for words, she searched for a fitting response. Then it hit her. A flawless exit would be required to make her point and seal the deal. What is it Marty always says? As it is upon the stage, so it is in life—timing is everything. Exactly.
    Matt dropped his napkin over his plate then stared at his hands. When he finally glanced back at her, his eyes looked weary and confused.
    She pulled a five-dollar bill out of her purse, tucked it under her plate, and slid out of the booth. “When the time comes, and it will, you