Page 11 of Rafael

Outnumbered by well-intentioned friends and outmaneuvered by a handsome Lothario, Gisele gave up. “Okay. He can stay. For Johnny.”

“Good. I’m glad that’s settled.” Bernie pushed her sleeves up her arms. “I don’t know about the rest of you, but I can’t just walk away when there’s this big a mess to clean up. Where’s your broom and mop?”

While the sheriff questioned Gisele and had her check her safe and jewelry cabinet, the men and women still there went to work cleaning.

Bernie and Felina swept the glass and damaged candles into piles.

Gerard and Lucas scooped the piles into a trashbag and carried it out to the bin behind the shop. Valentin followed the sweeping crew with a mop, cleaning up the potions and lotions.

Rafael repaired the broken doorframe and tested the deadbolt. “This will have to do for tonight. You’ll need a new lock. I’ll stop by the hardware store and drop by to install the lock tomorrow.”

“Thank you,” Gisele said grudgingly. She didn’t like being beholden to anyone—especially the man she had targeted for a lesson in humility.

After he fixed the back door, he gathered the broken pieces of the shelf unit. With a hammer and nails, he was able to put it back together almost as good as new.

Not only was he incredibly easy to look at, but he was also a talented handyman.

Double the trouble.

Gisele placed the items they’d salvaged on the shelf and stood back, overwhelmed by the outpouring of help from her friends. Tears pooled in her eyes. Other than the empty spots on the shelf, no one would guess the place had been broken into.

She turned to the men and women who’d come to her rescue and gave them a watery smile. “Thank you. That would’ve taken me half the morning to do all by myself.”

Felina hugged her. “You’d do the same for me.”

Bernie hugged Gisele next. “I’m just sorry thishappened to you. Hopefully, the sheriff will find the guy and lock him up.”

“Hard to find a man without fingerprints or video surveillance footage,” the sheriff said. “But we’ll do our best.” He tipped his hat. “I’ll have Jones drive by several times through the night and keep an eye out for you.”

“Thank you, Sheriff,” Gisele said.

After the sheriff drove away, Gisele walked out the front door with the others.

“We’ll be heading out as well,” Bernie said. “If you need anything, don’t hesitate to ask. We’re here for you.”

“That’s right,” Felina said. “Just a phone call away.” She turned to Valentin. “Since Rafael is staying, we can give you a ride back to the boarding house.”

Valentin nodded. “Thanks.” As he passed Rafael, he bumped his shoulder into Rafael’s and murmured something that sounded like, “You can thank me later.” Over his shoulder, and a little louder, he called out, “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”

As taillights disappeared down Main Street, Gisele stood in the doorway of the Mamba Wamba Gift Shop, along with Rafael Romero, the last person in the world she wanted to be alone with after the night she’d had.

“Well, I’m going to call it a night,” she announced and turned to reenter her shop.

“Hang on,” the man said. “I want to get some things out of my truck.”

She waited while he opened the back door of his pickup and dragged out a rolled-up sleeping bag and a gym bag.

Gisele frowned as he carried the items into the shop, imagining him using that sleeping bag with one of the victims of his charm. “Are you always this prepared?” she said, her tone dripping with sarcasm.

He nodded. “I keep a go bag in my truck at all times. It’s a habit I picked up in my days as a Navy SEAL. We deployed often and with little notice. We never knew where we were going or how long we’d be there.”

His response took some of the wind out of her self-righteous sails. That had to be hard on family life, which led to the next question that popped into her mind. “How does that work with married life?” She congratulated herself for the roundabout way of asking if he was or had been married.

His lips pressed into a thin line. “It doesn’t.” He marched past her into the shop, carrying the sleeping bag and gym bag.

So much for a straight answer to an indirect question.

“Well, I’ll leave you to get comfortable with Johnny,” Gisele said from her position at the front entrance. “Just lock the door behind me. I’ll be upstairs if you need anything.”

---