Page 79 of Five Alarm Love
“For babysitting.”
Hunter stepped partially in front of the man.“Dude, shut up.You don’t know what you’re talking about.”For all this bravado, he hadn’t done much else to help.“Let me check him out.”
“Seriously, who the heck are you?”Lou asked the brown-haired guy.No one answered, and she looked at Hunter.“Well?”
“Um, this is Zach.He’s a friend from Seattle.”He punched his friend in the arm.“Zach, this is Louise, my cousin I thought you should meet.”
“Meet?”she said.
Hunter ducked his head.“You know, go out.I told your dad I had some friends who would be great for you.”
She glared at Hunter, then Zach, then the other guy.Everyone took a step back.“You’re serious.”
“Well, I was, until”—he lifted his chin toward Gordy—“this accident.Zach’s a good guy.The beer just made him mouthy.”
Even more reason not to go out with him.If alcohol took away his mask and this was who he truly was?No thanks.
“Nice to meet you, Louise,” Zach said, hand outstretched.
She didn’t return the gesture.“Why don’t you all head on?I’m going to get Gordy sorted out.”
“Sure you want to touch him?”Zach snorted.At the nasty expressions from everyone else standing there, he added, “What?Because he’s bleeding, that’s all.I’m sure he’s a nice fellow.”
The drone of imaginary hornets quickly turned into a high-pitched teakettle scream in her head.Lou cocked a fist, shocking herself with the willingness to take this action.That was it.“He’s not contagious,” Lou said, voice coming out high and quivering.
“Yeah, but that bad attitude is contagious,” came another voice from behind her.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Tuli was postingdeli prices in the front window of Three Bears when he saw the guy barrel into Gordy but was too far away to do anything but lift an arm in helpless warning.He dropped the Windex and dashed down the street, grunting against the awkward gait and weird pinprick sensations shooting down his leg.Thankfully, everything held together until he reached the accident.
Tuli did a five-second assessment.
Gordy sat on the crumbled sidewalk, wincing—but he still gave Tuli a watery smile.
Lou stood in front of her brother, an icy death stare aimed at the man who had knocked Gordy down.By the looks of it, she was about five seconds away from removing the guy’s spleen.Well deserved, in Tuli’s opinion.
Hunter stood between Lou and the other two men.To Hunter’s minimal credit, he appeared concerned.
And bruised on his jaw.
Tuli mentally patted himself on the back.
The dude who had run into Gordy looked to be older than Hunter by several years.In addition to a blue flannel shirt, he wore stiff, new-looking, leather lug-sole boots that somehow appeared out of place, like he was trying too hard to blend in.
Another shorter, stockier guy around fifty stood off to the side, hands in the pockets of his puffy jacket.Temps were in the fifties today.Too early for puffy jacket season, at least for hardy Alaskans.
Tuli suppressed the urge to rip someone’s head off and instead focused on how he could help.“Hiya, Gordy.You tackling people again?”He didn’t understand all of what Gordy had going on medically, but getting dumped on his butt sure wouldn’t help.Tuli sure as hell wasn’t going to stand by why this tool picked on Lou’s brother.“What did I tell you?You’re supposed to greet visitors, not attack them.”He paused and stared at Hunter’s companion, then back down.“Gordy, you gotta quit making dumb people look stupid.”
Gordy tapped the cracked screen of his device, but nothing happened.His expression crumbled.
Lou made a gasping sound.
Tuli’s heart twisted.Then he squared up to flannel and fancy boot boy.
“Wait a minute.It was an accident,” the guy spluttered.
Lou made to step forward, but Tuli held out a hand to hold her back.Gordy looked stable, so Tuli figured he could focus on the men standing there, catching air with their gaping mouths.At least Tuli kept his shit together.Barely.
