Page 28 of Coming Up Aces

Chapter Eleven

Rayna

Ripley’s father frozeupon seeing Rayna. She stood and wiped the dirt from her hands. “Hi. I’m Rayna Bellamy. You’re Conrad, right? Ripley’s father?”

“I am. Have we met?”

“No, but I saw you Saturday night at Haven.”

Conrad squinted at her. “You were at Haven?”

“Yes, Sir. It’s a long story.”

“I see. Is Asher home? He didn’t answer his phone.”

“No, Sir. He’s off doing something for Sutton.”

“Oh. I came by to see if he wanted to have lunch with my ma— wife and me.” He closed the distance between them, eyeing the turned soil. “Have you known Asher long?”

“No. We met Saturday night.”

“And you decided he needed a garden?” Conrad grinned, pointing at the ground.

“I was bored.” She shrugged. “I spent the last four months knitting, so I don’t want to see yarn for, oh, about a year. Asher gave me free rein to do something while he’s working. I can’t cook, so I thought I would grow vegetables he can use.”

“That’s mighty kind of you, especially since you just met.”

Rayna could tell Conrad was confused.

“Would you like something to drink? I’m not sure when Asher’ll be back. He went to Oasis.”

“You know about Oasis?”

“I do. I also know how you and Regina treat Asher like a son. And can I just tell you I am thrilled Glory has you in her life now?”

“We’re thrilled too. How do you know Glory?”

“She and I were cabinmates. Only while I was there, everyone knew me as Melinda. I was undercover for the FBI.”

Conrad took a step back. “If you hurt Asher—”

“Relax, Conrad. I would never hurt him. He’s my mate, but I’m not sure he’s onboard with the idea just yet.”

“Your mate?” Conrad sniffed the air. “You’re not… like us.”

“Nope. I’m a King Cheetah shifter.”

Conrad ran a hand across his dark hair. “I think I’ll take that drink now.”

“Come on in. I can’t do any more in the garden until I go get the plants, and I was hoping Asher would go with me to pick them out.” Rayna strolled past the male and into the house. She stopped at the sink to wash her hands. “What would you like? There’s beer in the fridge, but there’s also plenty of liquor in the den.”

“Are you living here?” Conrad asked, helping himself to a beer.

“For now.” Rayna poured herself a glass of water, then propped her hip against the counter while she explained her situation. “My partner knows I’m no longer at Haven, but he’s the only one. I haven’t told him where I am, though.”

“Do you not trust him? Your partner?”

“I do, but I don’t trust that the company won’t have eyes on him. He’s been looking into our boss and Spencer, and that could have thrown up red flags.”

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