Total pages in book: 146
Estimated words: 138588 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 693(@200wpm)___ 554(@250wpm)___ 462(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 138588 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 693(@200wpm)___ 554(@250wpm)___ 462(@300wpm)
His grandfather would have liked Sabrina.
Sawyer pulled into the parking lot and noticed the back door by the trash bins was standing open. Lark walked out, wearing jeans and her coat, a cell phone at her ear.
That was when his cell buzzed.
She looked up, and a visible sigh went through her.
Something was wrong. Sawyer cut the engine and was out of the truck as his longest-running server jogged up to him.
“Hey, boss. You know how you always say we have to make sure there are no holes in the walls because the rats will come in looking for warmth?” Lark frowned. “This time they were looking for cash and booze.”
“Is everyone okay?” Wyatt asked, Bella at his heels.
“Are they still here?” He didn’t want to think about what could happen to his servers if they came across some assholes trying to rob them. “You know what I said.”
Bella joined Lark, rubbing her head against the server’s thigh. Lark nodded as she ran a hand over Bella’s head, seeming to get comfort from the gesture. “Yes. Give them anything they want if I can’t get to your office and lock myself inside. I know, boss.”
His office was something of a safe room. The door was steel reinforced and had an electronic lock. It also had a way out. His grandfather had often kept large sums of cash and wanted protection.
Joe walked out. He didn’t bother with a coat. The big guy didn’t wear one even in the coldest weather. He was six foot four inches of pure muscle. “They were gone by the time we came in. Likely for more than a day given how cold it was in there. They knocked over some tables, took the hundred you leave in the register and a couple of bottles of the cheap stuff. Dumbasses didn’t find the twenty-one-year-old Scotch you keep for Taggart.”
He kept a small stash of more expensive stuff for the rich Texans who liked to walk on the wild side when they visited their vacation cabins. There was a reason he kept a hundred in the register. “They didn’t find the safe?”
“I can’t be sure they even looked for it.” Joe put a hand on Lark’s shoulder, which let Sawyer know she was more freaked out than she was letting on. “I don’t know this was anything more than a couple of kids looking for a thrill. They took some cheap booze and knocked over some of the tables. Hell, as far as I know they were caught in the storm and needed shelter, but they’re assholes about it.”
“And what happened to the security system?” It wasn’t like he simply locked the door and hoped for the best.
“It was going off when we got here, but I think the wireless got knocked out in the storm,” Lark said, sounding more sure now. “The physical alarm works on batteries, but the part that pings your phone requires the Internet to work, and it’s been up and down even in the valley. I called the mayor’s office, and they said they expected things would be back up and running sometime this morning.”
His cell started to ping. Apparently the mayor had someone working on it. Likely the Farley brothers. They were far faster than any professional group, though they would likely have to hack some systems. It was the way things tended to work in Bliss. Sure enough, he had a notification his security system had gone off. Helpful.
“Should I call the sheriff?” Wyatt asked.
Technically they were on unincorporated land and Wright didn’t have jurisdiction. Practically, he knew what he had to do. “Yeah. Insurance won’t pay unless there’s a police report, so give them a call. I don’t suppose the security cameras were working.”
“They were off and on because electricity was spotty. I told you we needed to upgrade the generator,” Joe said with a shake of his head.
He would never hear the end of it.
“Hey, Gemma. This is Wyatt Kemp out at Hell on Wheels. We had a break-in over the weekend and were hoping someone could… Yeah, he knows I’m calling,” Wyatt said. “He’s standing right here. Well, Sawyer might not think he needs the sheriff’s office involved, but I assure you the insurance company is going to…”
Sawyer sighed. Sometimes his reputation made things difficult.
He walked into the bar that had been in his family for over fifty years. At least the break-in would take his mind off the fact that the sweetest woman in the world was once again firmly out of reach.
* * * *
“Hey. Sorry I didn’t see you yesterday.” Elisa walked into the office, tugging the hat off her head. She was dressed in her khaki uniform, her hair pulled back in a neat bun. “There was a nasty accident coming into town, and it took forever to get it all figured out, and then there was the paperwork. By the time I got home, I thought you would be in bed. Then Hale let me sleep in because I got home so late, and I missed you this morning. So I thought I would catch you before school starts.”