Page 59 of Sneak Attack

“She was a nine?”

“Maybe an eight-point seven, but it ended quick. Nate stepped in, which…was surprising?”

Not really, but a lot had changed over the years. “Trust me, there’s no love lost between the two of them. Where were you when this happened?”

And who was shewith? Because she’d mentioned friends, and as far as I knew, she didn’t have any here.

“McLaughlin’s. I um, well, I ran into the new veterinarian last week. Nora?”

“Dr. Kessick, right? I know her. Take Bongo to her.”

“Oh. Of course, well, I ran into her and since I wanted to do some work with animals, she introduced me to the woman who owns the Waggin’ Tails, the dog rescue? That’s why I’ve been at BarkTown, they’re short on foster homes for dogs, so BarkTown has been letting them board dogs there. I volunteered to go in and help them out, take care of the rescues during the day so they can focus on their own business.”

“That’s nice of you, Eden.”

“Being around animals helps me,” she said and stopped so abruptly I wouldn’t be surprised if she didn’t mean to speak it out loud.

Too late now, but we’d get to that.

“So you went to dinner….”

“With Nora and Sarah. Selma showed up. She was, well, mean, but whatever, didn’t say much except surprised I’d show my face in town again. Then Nate showed up, told her to leave or the owner—”

“Palmer.”

“Right, or Nate would have Palmer kick her out again. Anyway, she left, but Nate said you’d want to know…so here I am.”

There she was. Skittish on the phone, even with me, and rambling over a story that didn’t sound like much, but given Selma’s recent attitude toward me, I was glad to know.

“It’s probably nothing, same old crap, right?” She tried to laugh it off, but I wasn’t in a laughing mood.

“Selma…shit, there’s so much more I need to tell you about her. And I don’t want to do it over the phone.”

As I said it, my phone buzzed with an incoming call. Glancing at the screen, I let loose a low growl seeing Selma’s name. There wasnoreason for her to call me, except to rant about Eden, or do more threatening with Jasper and it’d been enough hours since dinner. She was probably a few glasses of wine in and on a rampage.

“Oh. We can wait then. I should probably go—”

“Don’t. Come over here. I can’t leave with Jasper here but come here.”

She inhaled a sharp breath. Surprise, probably, but that sound went right to my groin, making me think of other raspy little sounds she could make.

Not tonight though. Talk.

We still needed to talk.

“I can’t. Marley—”

“I’ll call Ma. Just come, Eden. Please?”

CHAPTER20

EDEN

For the second time that day, I pulled into a driveway I’d insisted I’d avoid with every fiber in my being once I agreed to help Marley. But there I was, his floodlights braced at the corners of the garage illuminating my way up the drive and the porch lights on, welcoming me.

And it wasn’t just the porch lights, Cole himself was outside, standing on the top step and leaning against the dark stained post as I turned off my engine and climbed out of the 4-Runner.

“Hey. Your mom get to Marley’s?”

---