Page 3 of Hold the Line

She pulled back, giving my shoulders a squeeze. “You’ve got a couple people who look like lingerers. I’ll get them moving along.”

“They can linger,” I protested, sweeping my gaze toward the two people pecking away on their laptops. They were both regulars and indeed had a habit of not taking a hint and staying well after closing.

I wasn’t good at telling anyone to get gone, but Hannah had no trouble. Problem was, she wasn’t as gentle as I would’ve liked. I adored everything about her, but Hannah Kelly had never been subtle a day in her life.

“Nope. You’ve been working for twelve hours. Closing time is closing time.” She glanced over her shoulder at my customers. “I’ll be nice. If they don’t get the hint when I start wiping down their tables, I’ll spray them a little. That should do it.”

I laughed, though I knew she wasn’t kidding. “You’re not going to spray my customers with cleaner!”

She agreed, but I kept one eye on her as she made her way around the tables. By the time the clock struck five, my two lingerers had cleared out. I didn’t even want to know what Hannah had said to get them moving. So long as it hadn’t involved threats or chemicals, I was good.

I let Camille go, leaving Hannah and me as I shut everything down. She leaned her hip against the counter, her long legs crossed at the ankle, and sipped her latte.

“On my way here, I drove by the house. Noticed a light on in my old apartment and a truck parked out front,” she said.

“Oh yeah? I guess someone moved in.” My stomach twisted at the idea of someone else living in Hannah’s place, as irrational as it was. Shoving that feeling aside, I reached for a to-go box. “Is it rude to bring leftovers as a welcome present? I don’t have the energy to bake anything, but I’d like to say hello.”

“If someone’s offended byanythingyou make, they’re an asshole,” she stated. “Hope like hell your new neighbor’s not an asshole.”

“Joy wouldn’t let an asshole move in.”

“Yeah. Probably not.”

Joy was our landlord and a Sugar Brush staple. She owned Joy’s Elbow Room, a bar at the other end of Main Street, along with several properties around town, including the duplex I rented. In her fifties, Joy had been hardened from working in bars all her life and didn’t tolerate nonsense. I trusted she’d fully vetted the new tenant. After all, I’d practically had to give blood samples, and Joy had known me all my life.

Hannah peered into the to-go box I’d loaded with pastries. “If the newbie doesn’t think you’re the best neighbor ever, let me at ’em.”

I snorted a laugh and closed the box, sealing it with one of my custom floral stickers. “You have to stop threatening violence, Banana.”

She held her hands up. “When did I say anything about getting violent? That’s all in your mind.”

She didn’t have to say it. Hannah had become mellow with age and her ADHD meds, but back in the day, she’d been known to take on any guy who looked at me funny. My sister was tall and strong, both from genetics and working with horses, and she’d socked a jaw or two when she’d felt necessary. I couldn’t picture her doing it now, but Hannah was good at keeping everyone on their toes. It was one of the best things about her.

As we walked out together, she bumped my shoulder. “By the way, Camille mentioned some guys gave you a hard time this morning.”

I waved her off. “It wasn’t a big deal, honestly. You know how those guys are. All bluster, no bite.”

I locked up, and she rounded on me. “You sure? I can put Caleb on it. He’ll find out which ranch they work on—”

The last thing I needed was our older brother dragged into this. If Hannah told Cay a guy had looked at me sideways, he’d wade in, no questions asked, and he had enough going on. There were four of us Kelly siblings, and we would all throw down for each other. My version of throwing down might’ve been a conk with a rolling pin, but still, I’d be there.

My siblings were more than protective over me, though. I wasn’t tough or strong. I liked sugar, collected cookbooks, and surrounded myself in all shades of pink, so they saw me as weak. They’d never say it, but they didn’t have to.

I laid my hand on her arm. “Banana, honest. I know you think I’m a wimp, but I can handle myself. I set them straight, and they went on their way. I’m hoping they’re too embarrassed to come back, but if they do, I’ll be fine. I mean, worse things have happened than some guy I’m not interested in asking me on a date.”

Her brown eyes, which matched mine, examined me for a long beat before she nodded. “If that’s how you want to play it. Now, hop in the truck. I’m driving you home.”

“I can walk a couple blocks,” I protested, though it was closer to a mile.

“Youcan, but you won’t.” She stole the bakery box from my hands and started walking toward her truck. “Not if you want this back!”

The drive to our place took a few minutes, but only because we had to stop at both traffic lights along the way. Our duplex was situated kitty-corner to a park with a gazebo and small playground. When it got warmer, the town held markets and summertime concerts there. All the small-town goodness right outside my front door. I understood why Hannah had moved out to the ranch she and Remi shared, but I liked living right in the thick of things—as thick as they got in a town this size anyway.

My good mood from time spent with my sister lasted until I saw the mess outside my door. The pots I’d bought from an artisan from the Wind River Reservation were in pieces, soil scattered around them. Heartbroken at the brightly colored beauties being in ruin, I crouched to inspect the damage. If the pieces were big enough, there was a chance I could glue them back together, but I was no potter. Even if I managed to reassemble them, they’d never be the same.

With a huff of frustration, I lifted my gaze, spying dirty footprints leading away from the crime scene directly to the stairs that went to the apartment above mine.

I wasn’t anything close to a forensic scientist, but I also wasn’t an idiot. I could’ve checked the footage from my doorbell camera, but it didn’t seem necessary. All signs pointed to my new neighbor being the culprit.Dammit.

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