Page 7 of Flick

She was in town for the next couple of weeks surrounding Thanksgiving. She might try to take an out-of-town job between Thanksgiving and Christmas to give her a break. She’d really enjoyed the surveillance in Dallas.

And by next fall, all of her sisters would have children. Bluff Creek needed to be safe before the babies came, and if it meant Beth taking out the trash, she’d do it. When she’d gone through her angry phase of grief, she wished she had gotten a couple of hits in on Kerwin before he left instead of leaving it to her dad. Maybe then she wouldn’t still feel like there was unfinished business with him.

Chapter Five

Beth changed into her comfy yoga pants and a sweatshirt, waiting for Flick to show up. Christmas Day had been busy with Roam and Sprite’s wedding and reception. Between opening presents on Christmas Eve and their secret deliveries through Santa’s Slay MC, it had been an exciting night.

Beth still couldn’t believe Slice had found a baby abandoned in a house. Thank goodness there was a good foster mom approved for emergency placement. Flick had let her know Slice was staying there to help with the baby. Talk about a crazy time.

Now, Beth was ready to relax with her best friend, watching some movies. They were having her favorite popcorn as a snack because she was still full from the reception food.

She’d picked Die Hard as the Christmas movie to watch because it was Flick’s favorite Christmas movie. He’d picked It’s A Wonderful Life because it was her favorite Christmas movie.

She was looking forward to relaxing and decompressing tonight. She’d had so much fun at all the activities, but it had stillbeen tiring. Tonight, she could be herself, hence the no makeup and yoga pants with a sweatshirt.

She’d fed the dogs and played with them a little. Lilly had lost some weight and was doing better. Dolly was being a little needy. Sometimes she noticed that because Dolly was so much larger than the other dogs, she didn’t get as much cuddling time. Flick was a big guy and would probably pull Dolly onto the couch where he lay when they watched movies. He was a big softy with the animals and didn’t care that as a German Shepherd, Dolly got hair on everyone.

Beth had bought one of those automatic vacuums because she despised housework, but the large amount of Dolly’s hair had clogged it, and the vacuum had died. Maybe she could find someone to clean her house.

She had plenty of money to afford it. Most of her clothes were for surveillance, so they were a business expense. Her house was hers, free and clear. Her biggest expenses were books and her animals. She could stop working tomorrow and live comfortably for the rest of her life, but she’d be bored.

She enjoyed the thrill of surveillance. The process of changing her appearance and becoming someone else was enjoyable. Catching people who needed to be off the streets gave her that adrenaline boost she loved. It was also a specialty that made her different from her sisters.

She loved them dearly, but as the youngest, she’d always felt like she had to work harder and strive to be better than they were. When she’d realized she had a gift for surveillance, a peace had come over her that it was something that was all hers.

A knock and the door opening had all the dogs running to greet Flick.

“I’ve got snacks!” he called.

She chuckled, walking out. “Like we need any more food after the wedding.”

“Yeah, but what would a movie be without popcorn? I have two bags of the white cheddar popcorn you like, along with our own individual bags of the caramel corn too. I bought these a while back just in case the diner was out when we needed it,” he said with the grin that made him look younger.

“Oh, you’re my hero. I’ve been wanting that cheddar popcorn, and the diner is low because of the holiday,” Beth said, grabbing a bag. “Drinks are in the fridge, and I was able to sneak some of the chocolate-covered caramels before they were all gone,” she said, rubbing her knuckles against her shoulder.

“Well, with the salty and the sweet snacks we have going on, I’m going to say water or iced tea,” Flick said, rooting through her refrigerator for her container of iced tea.

She opened the cabinet and pulled out their movie night trays. She’d found them at a garage sale and immediately snatched them up. They were about twelve inches round with a half-inch lip all the way around. It also had a four-inch tall cylinder to hold their drinks and keep them from spilling. When she’d shown them to Flick the first time, he’d high-fived her because movie night was serious between them. A beverage, the perfect show, and the perfect snacks.

Although they both ate healthy the majority of the time, movie night was a night that had no rules regarding food and drink. They carried their food in. Flick took the right side of her sectional, which had a chaise, and she took the identical one on the left. As soon as they were situated, Flick stared at the three dogs sitting, waiting patiently to be called up on the furniture.

“Okay, c’mon girls,” Flick said.

Dolly jumped up by Flick, and Lilly jumped up by Beth’s lap and leaned her head on Beth’s legs. Moss stared at both humans, then hopped in the middle of the couch, rolling onto his back and sprawling.

Beth giggled, and Flick chuckled along with her.

“That dog is aptly named. I swear he acts more and more like Cannon every day. That is exactly how Cannon sprawls on their couch. The only difference is Cannon has a couple kids usually cuddling with him,” Flick mused.

“I have to agree with their personalities matching, but Moss is fantastic on a stakeout. He’ll sprawl out like that, but if anyone comes near or he senses danger, he springs awake, ready to work. Die Hard first?” she asked.

“Yep, shoot ‘em up before I cry. It doesn’t matter how many times I see the show. When they’re all back together at the end and everyone comes together, I cry,” Flick said.

“Me too,” Beth said and flipped the show on.

Beth and Flick had commented all the way through the movie, just like they normally did. It was coming up to one of their favorite parts.

“Yippee-Ki-Yay, Motherfucker,” she and Flick said simultaneously with the show.

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