Page 42 of Pick Yourself Up
When they waved everyone off, the light was dim, and the air was crisp. It had been a good day.
He tugged Amber’s hand, and they walked into the orchard. She was probably full of people, but he couldn’t let her go just yet.
Or ever.
Amber squeezed his hand. “Your friends are nice.”
He grinned. “Pretty sure they’re your friends now, too.”
Her eyebrows shot up as she looked at him. “Maybe. That would be nice. They’re good people.”
He wondered how difficult it had been for her to find friends while working at the hotels. She probably wasn’t the type who frequented bars or talked to random people in coffee shops. From the way she’d spoken about her staff, she got on well with them and she continued to text with a few of them, so she hadn’t been alone.
But outside of work and her family, had she found solid friendships? He hoped she’d have that here. “We should go to the Saloon one night.”
She grinned. “We don’t have to do that.”
“We do. I haven’t taken you on a date yet. It’ll be our first official date, one day when we’ve got some time.”
Her smile widened. “With our never-ending lists of things to be done, we don’t have a lot of that.”
“True, but we’re our own bosses. And a date with you sounds even more fun than pulling weeds.”
As he’d hoped, she laughed. “You’re right. A date night sounds perfect.”
And he’d make sure it was.
Chapter 11
Up To Date
Gray parked in the lot alongside Phail Way Park. It was one thing to hear about the town and its quirky names. Seeing it in person was even better.
He turned to find Amber smiling, too. He leaned over to kiss her. “Wait there.”
She started to protest, but he hopped out and rounded his truck to open her door. He held out his hand for her and she laughed as she took it. “Thank you, kind sir.”
He leaned in and kissed her again. “You’re welcome, fair lady.”
Then he opened the truck’s rear door so Boomer could join them. The dog’s head swiveled to take in the new sites and scents. Amber gave the Explore command, letting him know he could check things out because they didn’t expect threats. Gray knew the dog would remain alert and nearby.
As they surveyed the part of town they could see, he had to laugh. “Epic knows how to run with a theme. Phail General, Phail Central, Phail Phoods, and the No Fail Diner.”
Amber leaned into his shoulder. “I love it all. Can we walk through the park first, see the other side of the street?”
“It’s our first date. Your wish is my command.” Instead of a simple date night, they’d decided to come early and explore the town for the day.
Holding her hand in his, they strolled along the tree-lined path, spotting a climbing wall and a kids’ playground. Benches sat beside both, and more were scattered throughout the park, often in the shade of gorgeous maple trees. Another street lined the other side of the park. Doc’s, The Saloon, Yoganna Love It, and Phail Jail had them laughing again.
When they neared the end of the block, a man exited Phail Jail with a huge Great Dane at his side. Boomer’s tail wagged. The man waved and Gray realized it was Marcus, another army buddy and member of Epic’s special forces team.
Marcus crossed to where they stood. “I got word that two suspicious strangers were sizing up our town.”
Amber’s eyes widened at that, but Gray squeezed her hand. “Amber, I’d like you to meet another friend. This is Marcus Ramirez. He led Troy’s team overseas. Now, he’s the police chief here in Phail.”
Marcus held out his hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Amber. I know your brothers from our work in the army, and I’ve met your sister. You’ve got a terrific family, and I know Knox and Jolie are thrilled you’ve joined them here.”
The Great Dane pushed his head forward to sniff at Boomer, who stood ready at Amber’s side.
