Page 57 of Hazel and Elijah Find Out: First They F*cked Around

I laughed, big and loud, focusing my attention on the present, determined to have a good time.

This was definitely not Ransom’s scene, and it just went to show how much he wanted to help that he was willing to be here. He stood front and center with his arms crossed over his chest, his feet planted shoulder-width apart. His auburn hair gleamed in the light, and behind his beard, he scowled.

“Ladies,” Ben began, “I know he seems feral, and he possibly is—there are rumors he was raised by wolves—but he’s offering up ten hours of masonry work, including a one-hundred-fifty-dollar budget toward supplies. Let’s start the bidding.”

It shot through the starting bids quickly.

“Do you need any masonry done?” I asked Hazel. “That could be a hell of a deal.”

She lifted her head from my shoulder. “You don’t mind if I bid on other men?”

“When you put it that way, I don’t love it,” I joked. “But if you need something done, throw your hat in the ring. And you shouldn’t bid on me. If you need IT work, I’ll just do it.”

She brightened. “Okay.”

An intense battle raged, until elderly Mrs. Peters, who owned the town’s flower shop and greenhouse, punched both of her dark brown arms in the air victoriously. “I told you I’d get a better price on that quote!”

The whole bar broke into laughter, except for Ransom, whose demeanor didn’t change. He jerked his head in acknowledgment and exited the stage.

“We have over eight hundred dollars, and it’s just been two people,” Hazel said to no one in particular. “If we average this for the rest of the auction, we’re gonna meet our goal.”

Nora scoffed. “Oh babe, we’re gonna beat the shit out of our goal.”

“We’re gonna beat the shit out of our goal!” Hazel beamed, her brown eyes so bright, they could have lit the stage.

I hugged her tight, her excitement and relief palpable.

The energy in the bar was still high forty minutes later. There were only a few more men, including me.

Remi had caused quite the uproar. Judging by the zeal in which three final women bid, it had more to do with Remi than the veterinarian work he was offering.

When Lily Nelson won, Nora leaned forward with her eyes narrowed. “Does Lily even have a pet?”

Hazel shrugged. “If she does, I’ve never heard of it.”

Alcohol buzzed in my blood. I held Hazel in my arms, her back to my front, and she let me sway her side to side. “This isn’t too close to dancing, is it? I know how much you’d hate that.”

Her giggle sounded distinctly drunk. “If it was dancing, I wouldn’t allow it. Not on my watch.”

“Can I call it dancing?”

“You may not.”

“I’ve danced before, and this feels a lot like dancing.”

“This isswayingor snuggling;definitelynot dancing.”

My chest bounced against her back as I laughed. This was good.Wewere good. Even if I had to quiet my lingering insecurities. It was just because I was leaving soon, and our fresh relationship was going to change. But that didn’t mean it would fail.

Ben took a drink of water. He was doing a good job of remaining enthusiastic, but he was beginning to look a bit frayed at the edges. “All right, ladies, let’s all welcome our man Brooks!”

With cool, easy confidence, Brooks stepped onto the stage, a long neck bottle pinched between two fingers. An audible gasp rippled through the crowd. Of all the transformations, his was the starkest. Instead of the baseball cap he usually wore, his hair was swooped back on top and the sides were in a tight fade. He’d shaved his beard, showing off a strong jaw. The outfit we’d chosen fit nicely. He was still Brooks, just a more fashionable and better maintained version.

“Holy shit!” someone yelled.

“You are looking like a drink of water, and I amthirsty,” Ginny, the waitress from the Pour House, called out.

It took a moment for the noise to calm down before Ben was able to begin the auction. “Standing here in his new digs is Jack Brooks. This strong, silent man is offering to,” to himself Ben muttered, “I can’t believe I’m about to say this”—he cleared his throat—“tend your garden.”

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