Page 71 of Wild Card
“Tell me,” Zach begged. “I don’t want to be the only idiot.”
Eric tugged down my hand. “She waited for him to get up on that ladder and then copped a feel of his?—”
“Bzzt!” I made a loud buzzer noise. “That’s all the time I have for today.” I scooted back my chair and stood. “Tell that story upon pain of death.”
“A sheriff’s deputy making death threats?” Ava tsked. “How far you’ve fallen, Dalton.”
Zach chuckled. “I think I get the picture, anyway.”
“Just remember, she only fooled me once.”
Ava and Eric laughed as Zach ducked his head. The silly fool had let Celia trick him into a false report at least three times.
We made our way to the register, where folks settled their tabs, but Brenda just waved us away. “You know your money is no good here.”
“Brenda, darlin’, it’s just such a shame you’re already taken,” Zach said, cranking up the charm. “If it weren’t for Ernie, you’d own my heart.”
She giggled and patted her hair. “Oh, you charmer! Get out of here.”
He laughed and went out the door, Eric trailing behind him.
Ava clucked. “Honey, you can’t keep giving them a free lunch. These lugs will eat you out of house and home.”
Brenda shrugged. “I want to thank them for their service. Seems like the least I can do.”
“Well, allow me to leave a tip, at least,” I said, tucking a twenty-dollar bill into the tip jar.
“Oh, that’s cheating now, Deputy Harvey.”
I spread my hands. “Guess you caught me.”
Ava pulled out a ten and followed my move. “Take care, hon. Don’t work too hard.”
“I always do!” Brenda called.
Ava gave a raspy laugh. “I know!”
We stepped out onto the sidewalk. Ava nudged me. “Don’t look now, but the mayor is headed this way.”
I swore under my breath. “Hurry, pretend you’ve sprained your ankle. I’ll rush you to the ER.”
“As much as I’d enjoy letting you scoop me off my feet like some action hero, I’ve got work to do.” She patted my arm. “Maybe you should listen to the man this time, hm?”
She turned away and called out, “Eric! Can I get a ride with you?”
Eric paused by his car, giving her time to make it across the lot. By the time she did, Mayor Prince was only a few feet away.
“Hey, Deputy, I’m glad I caught you.”
I turned with a polite smile. “What can I do for you, Mayor? I really should get back on the road. I’m headed out to Granville.”
“Let me walk you to your car,” he said. “I’ll make it quick and painless.”
The mayor wasn’t actually the concise type, so I doubted that. Still, I nodded agreement because what else could I do?
He smiled wryly. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were avoiding me, Deputy Harvey.”
“Why would I do that?”
