Page 54 of Fast Kill

He nodded. “It’s gorgeous. You’ll love it.” The spot he had in mind was quiet, tranquil, and would give them the perfect opportunity to relax and unwind together. He was looking forward to spending time with her, even if the circumstances sucked.

Two hours later they reached the sign welcoming them to Sugar Hollow. He turned onto Main Street, a quaint road lined with old shade trees and Victorian-style shops and B&Bs.

“It’s so cute,” Taylor said, staring out her window.

“Yeah, it is.” Like something from a postcard.

He followed Charlie’s directions and headed west once he was through town. The area turned into farmland almost immediately, with the Blue Ridge Mountains forming a smoky backdrop in the distance. A few miles out of town, he reached the mailbox at the end of the long driveway that read Colebrook.

Taylor leaned forward in her seat, excitement in her voice. “Is this Charlie’s farm?”

“Yes.” And Easton’s. Well, it actually belonged to their father, but all four Colebrook siblings still came home to visit whenever they could, to spend time with their dad.

She looked over at him, the sunglasses still hiding her eyes. “What are we doing here?”

“Just picking up a few things.”

The pale yellow farmhouse stood at the end of the driveway on a slight rise amid a carpet of green lawn. Beyond it, horses grazed in the pastures behind the barn.

Before he’d even put the truck into park in front of the detached garage, the back door to the house opened and Colebrook Senior came out with his cane, and an old basset hound waddling along at his heels.

Logan got out and walked toward him. “Hi.”

“You Granger?”

“Yessir. Logan.” He held out a hand. “Good to meet you.”

Colebrook Senior shook it, his sharp hazel eyes scrutinizing Logan. “So you’re the FNG Easton and Jamie told me about.” His speech was slightly slurred, another side-effect of the stroke he’d suffered.

Oh. “Uh, yes sir.”

Senior slapped him on the side of the shoulder and cracked a crooked grin, one side of his face unmoving. “Just giving you a hard time, son.” He waved toward the garage. “Go on and help yourself to whatever you need. I want to meet your lady.”

She’s not my lady. Yet. But he hoped to change that today.

Taylor was already out of the truck and heading for them.

“And you must be Taylor,” Senior said, his entire demeanor softening as he shuffled toward her, the dog at his side.

Taylor smiled back and took off her sunglasses. “Yes. Hi, Mr. Colebrook.” She shook his hand warmly. “Charlie’s told me so much about you, I feel like I know you already.”

“Gray. Call me Gray, sweetheart. And I feel like I already know you too. Charlie loves you to pieces, and that’s all I need to know about you.” The dog was sniffing at her legs and wagging its tail. “This lazy, fleabitten thing is Sarge.”

“Fleabitten, my butt. Charlie told me how you spoil him.” She knelt down and ruffled the dog’s long, droopy ears. “Hi, Sarge. I’ve heard lots about you too, and your friend Grits.” Taylor’s eyes twinkled as she looked up at Charlie’s old man. “But I think my favorite story of all is the one when you took Jamie into your office for a little ‘chat’ when they were here last, before they moved in together.”

Senior let out a gruff chuckle. “Yeah, that was a good one. Been planning that for a long time, ever since she started dating.”

Taylor pushed to her feet and grinned at him. “Did you really clean your rifle the whole time?”

Logan grinned. Ah, yeah. Classic. Jamie had told the entire team about it a couple weeks back, about how he’d had to face down his girlfriend’s scary-as-fuck former Marine Corps gunny sergeant father, and break the news that he and Charlie were planning to shack up together.

“I did,” Senior said, his voice full of pleasure.

She laughed, and it sounded so carefree it made Logan smile. “It’s just too awesome.”

Senior’s hard mouth quirked and his eyes glinted with pride. “It’s a father’s job to look out for his little girl, and I take that seriously. Jamie still treating her right?”

“Oh, yes. He loves her to death, treats her like a princess. Well, not a princess exactly, since Charlie would hate that, but you know what I mean.”

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