Page 99 of Call it Reckless

I eyed her. She said his name casually enough, but there was extra interest in her tone.

“Yeah,” I answered slowly, giving her a curious look. “Are you interested in him?”

She played with a lock of her hair. “He’s just cute, in a quiet, rugged kind of way. He’s different from anyone I’ve met. I just wonder what makes him tick.”

“I think he’s single. He never talks about anyone. Do you want me to ask him?”

“I supposed a little intel never hurts.” She wrinkled her nose at my hands. “How about a manicure?”

“Sure.”

She led me over to another chair and had me soak my fingers.

“How’s your deputy?”

I smiled like I did any time Reid’s name was brought up. “He’s amazing.”

“I’m really happy for you. All your worries about moving back and look at all you found here. A home, great job, new friends, and a guy who understands you.”

Paige grabbed a sterile nail kit and cleaned the grime from under my nails while we chatted about the business. She grabbed a cream and rubbed it into the cuticles, and then rubbed another cream into my hands. “There. All set.”

“Thanks. What do I owe you?”

“Like I’d charge my partner in crime. Not to mention, this isn’t my specialty, so I’d feel bad charging anyone.”

A loud engine sounded outside, and headlights flashed through the windows. Griff positioned the truck perfectly so the van could be unloaded and ready to move into the garage tomorrow morning.

Another man got out of the passenger seat. It looked like he and Griff were in the middle of an intense conversation. Paige and I stepped out of the front of the salon.

“Gentlemen. Everything okay?”

They both spun on their boot heels toward us. “Hey, boss,” Griff called. “We were just discussing a general timeframe for when we might be able to have his van ready. I was telling him we don’t work on the weekends, and we’re already packed for tomorrow.”

“Of course, you want your van back as soon as possible. I understand.” I held my hand out. “I’m Bristol Allen, the owner. We’ve already closed up everything for tonight, but I promise I’ll take a look first thing in the morning myself. Why don’t you come inside, and we’ll double-check the info we have while Griff unloads your van from the tow truck. Do you have a place to stay while you’re here in Sterling Mill?”

His gaze swept over me, lingering on my chest before finally meeting my eyes. I held my ground, refusing to be intimidated by his crudeness. “I’m Nick Rhodes. I appreciate your kindness. I’m here to meet up with an old friend. Maybe I can crash with him.”

I already knew The Dogtrot was full, so no point in suggesting that, but there was something about his leer that made me uncomfortable, so there was no way I’d suggest my cousin’s inn anyway.

I opened the front door to the lobby and gestured for him to go inside. Buddy lumbered out from his bed behind the counter and sat next to me, practically on top of my feet.

As soon as Nick saw him, he held out his hand only to jerk it back quickly when Buddy growled.

“Buddy,” I scolded. I glanced at Nick. “I’m so sorry. He doesn’t usually do that, but he’s very protective of me.”

“Not a bad trait in a dog,” he said.

“Buddy, come,” I commanded as I moved around to the back of the counter. Buddy followed, but he remained on all four feet with his hackles raised as he kept his eyes on Nick. Sterling was uncharacteristically quiet.

I made quick work of double-checking that I had the right information for Nick. “I’ll call you in the morning once we’ve diagnosed the problem. At the moment, I can’t promise how long it will take until we know if we have the parts on hand or not.”

“I understand. I am under a rather tight deadline, so I hope it won’t be anything too serious.”

Griff had finished unloading the van as we made our way back outside. I kept Buddy inside, where he now stood at the door, barking. No matter what I thought of Nick, I didn’t like Buddy’s behavior around my customer, something that had never happened before.

Paige stood near the tow truck, talking to Griff. He looked at her as she talked, but didn’t offer much in the way of conversation, only a smile or two. His eyes kept darting back to me and Nick.

“I’ll give you a lift into town,” Griff offered Nick, who nodded his appreciation.

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