Page 9 of Fresh Old Bounties

Dru looked two seconds away from rubbing her hands in glee. “How much are you going to ask for it?”

“Nothing. I destroyed it.”

Her obvious disappointment was almost comical.

“Can you take care of the shop?” I asked. “And get started on our plan to chase your ex out of Olmeda?” I added to cheer her up.

Her face lit up with nothing short of evil delight. “Yes.”

I thanked her and went out through the backyard. At this time of day on a Sunday, Ian would be at home, so I drove my Vespa to the cemetery, my heartbeats increasing as the distance decreased.

This thing between Ian and me felt both old and new. Comfortable and like staring down at the abyss at the same time. Part of me knew that I didn’t need any excuse to drop by, but the rest of me felt more secure using the excuse of the card to explain the trip.

Would this ping-ponging of eagerness and nerves ever stop? I wasn’t new to dating, but this felt like the major leagues compared to playing around in the park.

It felt real in a way few things had felt before.

And that scared the hell out of me sometimes.

I arrived at the cemetery without incident or Bee-Bee breaking down and found the side door open. I rang once anyway, to alert Ian of my arrival, and parked the Vespa inside the fence. Ian’s house, a lovely two-story construction of warm brown and red bricks and slate gabled roofs, rested on top of a small hill overseeing the cemetery spreading on the opposite side. On my way up to the house, I crossed paths with a wiry man with pasty pale skin making his way down the slope.

He gave me a slight nod but didn’t pause.

I waved at his back like an idiot.

Curious, I walked up the rest of the way to find Ian standing on his porch, busy on his phone, his free hand hooked on his jeans pocket, looking as harsh, forbidding, and impressive as ever.

My heart fluttered in my chest. I could eat him right up. Tall, broad-shouldered, with shoulder-length brown hair gathered back with a tie, and dressed in his usual all-black—black thin sweater, black jeans, black matte belt buckle, black boots.

A bark of greeting broke the spell, and I crouched to catch the white ball of supersonic fluff that was Fluffy.

She laved me with attention, and I petted her happily. Being in the presence of Fluffy cleansed my soul like nothing else could. There was so much goodness contained in her fluffy eagerness that I doubted Bagley had ever met her or all her evilness would’ve been washed right out.

“Hi, Ian,” I said, straightening. The words came out breathless, and not just from the walk up the slope.

He pocketed his phone and took the steps down to the ground, one side of his mouth kicking up. “Hi, Hope.”

Ah, his voice. I suppressed a shudder of delight as I allowed it to tingle its way down my spine. I wanted to follow it to its source, roll onto my tiptoes, throw my arms around his neck, and get lost in his mouth for a little while. Maybe continue with a proper roll on the grass on his lawn.

Really, this was getting out of control. I was twenty-six, not thirteen with my first crush.

“Who was that?” I asked, thumbing toward the gate.

Ian crossed his arms, and I noticed a distinct cooling of the warmth in his eyes. “My ex-partner’s son.”

“Ex-partner? The one who died?” The one people thought Ian had murdered, to be more specific. People could be so dumb. If Ian had killed his partner, the bounty hunters would’ve put him down. But the reputation served him well, so I doubted he put much emphasis on correcting the rumors.

“Yes.”

A prickle of alarm made me tense. Had the son heard the rumors and come to cause Ian trouble? “What did he want?”

Ian shrugged. “Asked if I had anything left of him.”

I studied his face, searching for any signs that he was downplaying the encounter, but beyond his usual granite facade, I saw no reason to believe he was lying or upset. I exhaled with relief. Good.

“Hey, Hope,” Alex called from behind us. He and Key stood by the detached garage that Ian used as a workshop for his repair and restoration business. The white van with its adorable knight-and-dragon logo was parked right in front.

“Hi there,” I answered loudly with another energetic wave. Fluffy backed me up with a bark, because she was the best. I was happy to see that Key looked happy, if still slightly shy, dressed in her usual jeans and sweatshirt. Her brown hair gathered in a ponytail made her look younger than her nineteen or so years of age.

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