Page 8 of Sycamore Circle

Feeling weary, he got to his feet. “Wait for me at the door, Mace.”

Mason’s expression tightened. “We’ve got to go.”

“I know. Just give me another second.”

The minute Mason walked out of earshot, Bo leaned down slightly. Joy was still sitting. She also looked more than a little shaken by everything that he’d just thrown in her lap. “Joy, thank you. I appreciate you letting me sit with you for a spell. You take care now.”

He’d taken less than a step when she called out to him. “Bo, wait.”

He turned. “Yes?”

“Give me your hand.” When he held it out, she pulled the cap off the pen she was holding and wrote her number on his hand. “That’s my phone number.” She smiled.

Feeling like a goof, he smiled back as he closed his fist, like he was worried the numbers she’d written there were going to go off and leave him. “Thank you for this.” He stood there another moment, wondering if he should say something else. But he couldn’t think of a thing that would come close to summing up how he felt.

So he headed to the door. “Let’s go,” he said to Mason.

Mason got in the driver’s seat and pulled out. When they were out of sight, he grinned. “Come on now, fess up. Did she really just write her number on your hand like you two were in middle school?”

“No comment.”

“Come on. Really?”

“Really.” When Mason looked like he was tempted to argue, Bo added, “Did Lincoln really buzz or were you just bored?”

“He buzzed.” Looking irritated, he said, “You know that kid who started working for Seth? That punk named Red or what have you?”

“What about him?” The guy actually went by Blaze, but whatever.

“Well, he got himself arrested last night.”

He mentally groaned. “Doing what? Have you heard?”

“Sounds like he was harassing someone, then mouthed off to the cops when they showed up.”

“I knew that guy couldn’t keep his mouth shut.”

“You were right. From what I’ve heard, he’s saying all kinds of stuff too. No doubt hoping something sticks so he can catch a break.”

That wasn’t likely. “And let me guess. He named all of us as his new best friends.”

“Bingo.” Stopping at the light, Mason added, “Seth is ready to go beat him up. I tell you what, for a guy who was raised to ride around in buggies, Seth’s got a temper.”

“I reckon that’s why he isn’t Amish no more.”

“You have a point. Anyway, Seth being pissed off ain’t the worst of it. Lincoln is going to be ticked.”

“Yeah, he is. He wasn’t too happy about Blaze in the first place. The guy is going to be lucky if Lincoln doesn’t start calling in favors just to make the rest of his life miserable.”

While Mason drove, Bo pulled out his phone and entered Joy’s number. He sure didn’t want to risk smudging one of the digits and therefore not being able to call.

Of course, Mason noticed. But instead of looking amused, he merely looked curious. “Hey, Bo, no offense, but what was it about her? I mean, you didn’t know her before you went to Madisonville, did you?”

“I’d never seen her before in my life.”

Mason darted another look at him but kept his mouth shut. He knew he was treading on thin ice.

“I’m not really sure,” Bo answered at last. “I guess it was the way she was speaking to the guy she was tutoring.”

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