Page 76 of Dash of Bryce
By now, all of the structures were in place. I would've liked an extra week to get everything fully functional on the insides, too, but this – like a few other things – would have to wait until after tonight's reception and tours.
Over the sounds of power tools, Harper announced with no trace of a smile, "You've got a visitor."
I looked around. "Here?"
Her mouth tightened. "No, nothere. At the house."
I frowned. Whoever the visitor was, they'd obviously ticked her off. As I tried to gauge what was wrong, it suddenly struck me that she wore no coat. But shewaswearing an apron – a frilly red one streaked with flour.
She looked so cute that I might've smiled if only she didn't look ready to beat someone with a rolling pin. With growing concern, I asked, "Who is it?"
Harper made a noise that might've been a laugh. "Funny, I was wondering the same thing."
I felt my eyebrows draw together. I turned back to the electrician and said, "Let's just run it the way we talked, okay?" When he nodded and turned away, I turned back to Harper and asked, "What aren't you telling me?"
She snorted. "Now that's a funny question."
Funny, huh?She'd said the word twice in the span of ten seconds. Neither time had she looked amused. I studied her face. "It can't be too funny because you look ready to kill someone."
"Hey,yousaid it, not me." And with that, she turned and began stalking toward the back fence. She got maybe three or four paces before turning back to call out over the noise, "Well? Are you coming or not?"
With tonight's event, I didn't have the time to spare. But I couldn’t afford to let this go either, so I strode after her and walked through the gap in the fence just a moment after she did.
With my longer stride, I caught up to her in no time flat. But she said nothing more as she marched steadily toward the back door. When she reached it, she grabbed the handle and gave it a hard yank as if trying to pull it off its hinges.
What the hell was going on?
When she entered the house, I walked in after her and shut the door behind us. The house smelled like Christmas cookies, and I might've savored the sweet aroma if only Harper's expression wasn't so sour.
When I gave her a questioning look, she said in a low, clipped voice, "She's on the front porch."
"Who?"
"Oh, nobody important." Her tone grew sarcastic. "Just Natalia. You know, yourfiancée."
Chapter 37
Harper
In the house, Bryce's face went utterly blank. "What did you say?"
I made a sound of derision. "Oh, do you mean the F-word?"
He shook his head. "F-word?"
"Yes," I gritted out. "Fiancée."I gave him a tight smile. "Nice ring, by the way."
The words had barely left my lips when the doorbell rang not just once, but twice in quick succession. I looked toward the sound and tried not to growl. For allIknew she had been ringing it for the past five minutes.
I mean, it's not like I'd been around to hear.
I looked back to Bryce. "And just so you know, that's not the type of ring I meant."
He gave another shake of his head. "What?"
When the doorbell rang yet again, I said in my sweetest voice, "Honey, it's for you."
And now, I hardly knew what to do. I recalled all too well what Bryce had told me about his ex. He'd implied that she was a liar and a sneak – somebody who played the kinds of games thatIwas terrible at.
