Page 49 of Life’s Too Short

My cell phone pinged, and I pulled it out. It was a video from Vanessa. Harry in a diaper, growling at a chair leg. I laughed.

When she’d had my phone the other day, she’d changed my lock screen to the selfie of us. I didn’t notice it until a few hours later.

I hadn’t changed it back.

She was wearing that stupid cereal necklace in it and I had on that Maryland crab shirt and a glow stick bracelet. Her arm was peppered with stickers. The baby was smiling and the dog had his tongue out. It was this colorful, fun slap of happy right in the middle of my black, serious phone—and it made me smile every time I looked at it.

“What is going on?” Becky demanded. “Are you on drugs?”

I squinted up at her. “No, I am not on drugs.” I looked back at my computer. “I just had a good weekend.”

“Is it a girl?” She gasped into her hands. “Oh my God, if it’s a girl, it’s serious. Your horoscope today said your soul mate is in your midst!”

I scoffed. We had the same sign, and the idiot Becky was dating was definitely not anyone’s soul mate, let alone hers.

I waited a moment before replying, just to torture her.

Becky was practically gyrating.

“She’s a neighbor,” I said. “Her name is Vanessa, and we’re just friends.”

She squealed, obviously ignoring the just-friends part. “Oh my God! Okay, tell me everything. What does she do? Is she pretty?” Then she stopped bouncing and went serious. “You’re not acting all gloomy and Interview with the Vampire around her, right?”

I gave her a look as my cell phone rang. It was my PI returning my message.

“She’s a YouTuber. She’s beautiful. And again, we’re just friends,” I said, swiping the Answer Call button and putting the phone to my ear. “This is Adrian.”

“Tom Hillbrand here. Got your message.”

I swiveled my chair to give Becky my back. “Thanks for returning my call so quickly. The ring was stolen on Friday. A police report was filed with the Eagan police department by a Vanessa Price. Can you get access to that?”

Wind came through the phone like he was outside. “Shouldn’t be a problem. Any identifying features?”

“She said it’s got an inscription inside. ‘Kismet.’”

“Good. Makes it easier to know what I’m looking for. How hard do you want to hit this? I can get my guys over to the pawn shops easy enough, but if it’s not there, hunting this thing down could get expensive.”

I smoothed my tie down. “Whatever it takes. It has sentimental value. Just find it.”

“You got it. I’ll keep you posted.”

I hung up the call.

I didn’t tell Vanessa what I was trying to do. I didn’t want to get her hopes up. But if anyone could find this thing, it was Tom.

I swiveled back around to find Becky standing there like a marble statue. Her face had gone white. “You’re Jesus’s Abs,” she breathed.

I leaned over my desk for a pen. “What?”

“Jesus’s Abs,” she whispered. “Windowless white van guy. I can’t believe this is happening…”

“You can’t believe what is happening?” I asked, clicking the pen.

“This is the greatest day of my life. I’m in the presence of a hero.”

I hovered over a legal pad. “Becky, I’m going to give you five seconds to explain to me what you’re talking about, and then I’m going to need you to go,” I said.

“The girl you’re seeing is Vanessa Price? She talks about you. In her videos. Your abs are famous!”