Total pages in book: 83
Estimated words: 79597 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 398(@200wpm)___ 318(@250wpm)___ 265(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79597 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 398(@200wpm)___ 318(@250wpm)___ 265(@300wpm)
“Perfect.”
I peered around Zeke’s, spotting the girls from headquarters. They were from dispatch, paramedics, front desk, and another female cop like me. Seven of them, sitting at a big table, laughing, drinking, and dancing. I joined them, getting hugs and greetings.
“How was shopping?” Annette asked. “I’m so glad you came!”
“It was great. Huge warehouse sale. My car was full, and I stopped at home to unload it. I got towels and sheets and all sorts of stuff. My mom and I barely got it all in. She went crazy too.”
“Awesome.”
I looked around. “Wow, the place is busy tonight.”
“It is. There were a couple of bigger groups, but they already left.” Annette pushed a glass of wine my way. “Drink up!”
I sipped at the glass of white wine. I had walked to the bar, leaving my car at home. Another girl came to the table, carrying a tray. “Tequila shots for all!” she crowed.
I grimaced. Tequila and I were not good friends. Annette laughed at my facial expression. “Just one,” she said.
I picked it up, lifting my glass in a toast. “Just one.”
CHASE
“You wanna stop and have a drink?” Dom asked. “Zeke’s is hopping.”
“Sounds good.”
It had been a busy day. We worked in the garage, and I helped on a restoration, totally geeking out over the interior with its burgundy-and-ivory leather diamond stitched seats. Recreating it was going to be a blast. Then we headed toward Toronto, going to a larger home reno store. I chose and ordered the shingles, and Dom and I spent some time with a sales guy before ordering the supplies for the deck. I went with composite decking—more expensive to start, but I would get years of wear from it. Then we went to a little place Dom knew and ate the best ribs and wings I’d ever tasted. The smoker out back was massive, and since Dom knew the owner, Harvey, he gave me a tour of the whole place. It was incredible, and we sat with him and his family, eating and enjoying ourselves, watching the customers come and go until they were sold out. Harvey smiled as he locked the door. “Went fast today.” He stretched. “Now I have to start tomorrow’s supplies.”
“So you’re only open until you sell out,” I mused. “Is that hard to plan?”
“No. We have regulars, and we post the rules. You want a huge order, I gotta know in advance. Otherwise, we base it loosely on open at eleven, closed by eight. Sometimes it’s seven, sometimes it’s eight. Never later.”
“I like it when it’s six,” his wife said with a laugh. “Those are my favorites. Home by nine and soaking in the hot tub.”
“Thanks for taking me, Dom. It was great. We’ll order a bunch of stuff for everyone, and I’ll pick it up one weekend.”
“Sounds good.”
We headed into the building, the music loud, the dance floor full. We pushed through the crowd to the bar, and Dom got us each a beer. We clinked bottles, and I took a deep swallow then turned toward the dance floor, leaning against the bar. There was a group of women dancing together, obviously having a good time. They separated a little, and I caught sight of a flash of red-gold hair I would know anywhere. I shifted a little and watched as Hannah danced with her friends, her arms high in the air and her hips moving to the beat. There was a slight shift of relief inside my chest. She was here with a group of women. Not on a date.
I leaned back against the bar, blowing out a long huff of air. Dom looked at me, then followed my gaze, smirking as he saw what I was staring at.
“Your girl’s having a good time,” he observed.
“Not my girl,” I replied, taking a long draw on my beer.
He chuckled. “Then you need to do something about that, son.”
“I don’t know how,” I replied honestly. “I don’t want to jeopardize the friendship we have. Or lose her as a roommate.”
“But you like her more than a roomie.”
I turned, facing the bar. “Yeah, I do. I like her a lot. But I come with some baggage.”
“We all do.”
I glanced at him. “You been in touch with her mother?”
He grinned, shaking his head. “Nope. That one is stubborn. I need to take it slow with her.”
“So is her daughter.”
He finished his beer. “Not a surprise.”
“You want another?” I asked.
“Nope. I am heading home. I’m looking at a couple of places tomorrow. One close to you, actually. On Boulder.”
“Oh, the two-story place?”
He rubbed his chin. “I like older places. More character. It looks decent from the pictures. I saw a brand-new build one town over last week. Hated it. Felt like a box. I would rather fix up a place a little and make it my own, you know?”