Page 34 of Return of the Bad Girl (Rock Canyon, Idaho 4)

“Yeah, I saw Ellie hanging around.”

“Yeah, well, she sort of bailed without telling me. Hot date.”

“If you want, you can join me and a few of my friends,” he said.

Caroline wasn’t in the mood to socialize with a bunch of strangers, no matter how nice Mike seemed.

“Thanks, but I think I’m going to just take off,” she said, holding out her business card to him. “But maybe another time? My cell is on there, if you want to get dinner some time.”

Mike took the card and slipped it into his wallet. “I’ll give you a call, then.”

“Oh, and thanks for helping me out with the Coulter brothers.”

“No problem. Any time.”

Caroline headed toward the exit and bumped into Ellie as she was coming back in. It didn’t take a genius to see Ellie had been crying.

“Hey, you okay?”

“I’m fine,” Ellie said, wiping at her cheeks. “I was just coming in to tell you I’m taking off.”

“Me, too,” Caroline said. “We can walk out together.”

Ellie didn’t argue, but she was quiet the whole way out to her car.

“Are you okay to drive?” Caroline asked.

“Sure. I only had one drink,” Ellie said, slipping her key into the door. “Plus, it’s not like I have to go far.”

Before she could think, Caroline said, “I just want to say that if this guy doesn’t treat you right, he doesn’t deserve you.”

“That’s sweet,” Ellie said, the darkness shrouding half her face. “Cliché but sweet.”

Caroline didn’t have a response to that as Ellie climbed into the car and started it up.

Caroline had begun weaving back through the cars to where she had parked when she heard a drunken giggle.

“Dance with me.”

Nearby, a very drunk Kirsten was dancing up against a guy. With sparse lighting in the lot, it was hard to make out the guy’s features.

“Give me your keys,” a deep voice said. A voice Caroline was very familiar with.

Gabe.

She heard a jingle. “You want them? You gotta find them.”

Rolling her eyes, she passed them and continued on to where she’d parked. At least Kirsten wouldn’t be driving.

Then, in the dim light, Caroline noticed something on her window. Pulling out her phone, she flipped on the flashlight app and saw that someone had written all over her car with what looked like shaving cream.

Bitch. Whore. Leave.

“Charming,” she muttered, wondering if she should call the Rock Canyon Police Department to report vandalism. Unlocking her car, she grabbed some napkins from the glove department and started wiping at her window.

Caroline heard footsteps behind her but didn’t look.

“Hey, isn’t that her?’

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