Page 15 of Faking I Do
Dad put his hand on top of Pops’s. Both men looked to me. Hell, why not? I put my hand on top of theirs, then the three of us lowered and raised our hands.
I shook my head as I stepped back from the desk. “Do you promise not to do anything until I have a chance to think this through?”
Dad bent over to pick up his cigar. “You have our word.”
Even though I knew their word wasn’t worth any more than the smoke-choked air I breathed in, I nodded. “I’ll be in touch.”
“See you, son.” Dad plugged his mouth with the cigar while Pops lifted a hand in a wave.
I retraced my steps to the door of the office, the pit in the bottom of my stomach growing. Something else was going on besides just needing their stuff out of the warehouse. Why hadn’t I heard about them not owning the land before?
I’d always known the Victorian house my ancestors lived in had been donated to the town years before I’d ever been born. The town officials decorated it for the holidays and used it as a meeting place every once in a while. But this was the first I’d heard that my family no longer owned the land the warehouse sat on. When had they given that up?
My dad and pops might be a stone-cold wall of silence on the subject, but I had other ways of finding out. Ways that unfortunately involved crossing paths with Lacey again. And it would have to be sooner rather than later. I didn’t have much time.
As I climbed into my truck, the sound of my phone demanded my attention. I jerked it to my ear without checking the number. “Phillips here.”
“Bodie, hey, it’s Zina over at For Pitties’ Sake.”
“Oh, hey. How’s Shotgun doing?” Something about that poor dog got to me yesterday. I couldn’t stand to see an animal in pain, especially when it was intentionally caused by some asswipe of a human.
“That’s why I’m calling. She checked out just fine. She’s underweight and will need someone to work with her to reestablish trust.”
Relief coursed through me. “That’s great. Thanks for letting me know.”
“You’re welcome. I have a favor to ask though.”
“What’s that?”
Zina cleared her throat. “We’re full here at the shelter. The two of you seemed to bond, and I was wondering if you could take her for a couple of days.”
“My place is pretty tight.” No. I couldn’t take on the care of a dog, not with everything going down with the business and Lacey.
“I wouldn’t ask if I didn’t need the help. I really think she’d do much better in a home than at the shelter right now. She’s in a vulnerable place.”
Vulnerable. Why’d she have to use that word? An image of Lacey smiling as she held Shotgun on her lap floated through my head. “Just a couple of days?”
“A week at most,” Zina said. “She’s had a bath, and I can send her home with supplies so you don’t have to buy anything.”
I rubbed a hand along the back of my neck. “Fine. When do you need me to come get her?”
“Now? Think you could swing by in the next hour or so? I’ve got to head out for a bit, and I want to be here when you get here so I can go over how to tend to the sores on her muzzle.”
“Yeah, sure. I’ll head over in a few.”
“You’re a good guy, Bodie.”
“Thanks.” Now, if she could just convince Lacey of that, I’d be in good shape.
CHAPTER 8
LACEY
I clearedmy throat before stepping in front of the podium. I’d promised to have a statement to the press about the closing of the Phillips business by the end of the week. At four thirty on Friday afternoon I was cutting it pretty close. The crowd had multiplied since my initial press conference on Monday. The citizens of Idont were concerned. Chelsea and I had been fielding their calls, emails, texts, and unannounced visits all week. I’d even been accosted at the Burger Bonanza while I tried to finish up the lunch shift yesterday. Everyone wanted to know . . . What was I going to do about it?
Thankfully, I had a plan. Despite Bodie’s doubts, the more I researched the idea of positioning Idont as Ido, the perfect wedding destination, the more excited I got. Now I just needed to convince everyone else.
“Thank you for your patience while we sorted through the announcement that the Phillips family decided to shut their doors.” I glanced down at my notes, worried I’d forget a main point or two. “After consulting with the city management we’ve decided to repurpose the Phillips House into an event center.”
