Page 48 of Her Silver Fox Mountain Men

Her eyes widen with surprise. “Really?”

“Yeah. Go, have fun.”

She giggles and hugs me, then takes the apron off before grabbing her coat and bag from the back of the bar. A minute later, she is out the door and rushing down the street as the cold evening air settles over Rustic. The smell of burnt leaves lingers everywhere. It’s that time of the season but I like it.

I clear table six, carrying the last of the dishes into the kitchen, then load the dishwashing machine while Maury wipes down the stainless-steel worktable. “Maury, I hope you don’t mind, but I let Cherry go home a little early today.”

“She’s got a hot date, huh?” he grins.

“You know about that?”

“The whole town knows. Did she tell you who the guy is?”

I stare at him with a mixture of alarm and confusion. “No. Should I be worried?”

“Paddy O’Donnell.”

“Oh, dear.”

“The biggest hound in all of Rustic, and our sweet Cherry thinks she’s hit the jackpot with that doofus,” Maury says, shaking his head.

I kind of feel bad for her now. “I think he tries to date every newcomer in Rustic,” I mutter, briefly remembering my own experience. I’d just arrived in town, and I wasn’t really in the dating mood. Hell, I was still reeling from a nightmarish escape. But Paddy was charming enough to get me to go out for drinks and an order of fries at the Greenman Pub. “Did you know hemakes the woman pay?”

“Of course.”

“You didn’t tell me that when you knew I was going out with him,” I say, crossing my arms.

Maury just laughs. “I think Paddy has become a clownish initiating rite for every woman who thinks Rustic is a good place to settle down.”

“Poor Cherry. I’m going to hear all about it tomorrow for sure.”

“Better have the tissues ready.”

“Oh, Maury, you’re mean.”

“No, you gals are stubborn. You let his good looks fool you into thinking he’s actually decent until he proves he’s anything but.”

I can’t help but giggle. “He does play his part well until the check comes to the table.”

“Hello?” a woman’s voice calls out from the diner.

Maury groans and rolls his eyes. “I was hoping we’d close up early today. Clearly that’s not happening.”

I stop in my tracks when I see Shauna at the counter.

Crap.

“Hi, there,” she says, a sly grin slitting her face.

“Shauna. What brings you here?” I ask, my tone flat.

“We need to talk.”

I shake my head. “I don’t think there’s anything we need to talk about, unless you’re going to tell me who sent those flowers tomy place, in which case, I’m all ears.”

Shauna laughs as if I just cracked the best joke in years, then proceeds to climb onto one of the counter stools, arms resting on the counter while her perfectly polished nails clatter across the surface.

“Here’s the thing. Technically speaking, you’re still new in town, so I need to give you the lay of the land before you get yourself in trouble,” she says.

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