Page 295 of Love Bites

“No, thanks. I know exactly what I’m looking for.”

I pushed open the door and found Doc sitting in his usual place, surrounded by his usual stack of books—death registry, cemetery listings, etc. It all made sense now. I closed the door behind me, dropped into the chair opposite him, and leaned my elbows on the table.

“Hello, Violet.” His grin was absent today, a frown acting as its understudy.

“We need to talk.”

“How was your date last night?”

Mind-blowing. “The wine was good.”

“How about the company?”

While it turned out Ray’s nephew and I had several things in common besides the desire for my job, and he seemed as harmless as a gnat, I couldn’t get past him sending me those creepy poems and following me. No matter how much wine I poured down my throat.

“You weren’t there.”

“Was I missed?” He looked tired, emphasized by the shadows under his eyes.

I didn’t want to admit to anything. Besides, this meeting wasn’t supposed to be about me. “Mona wants to know if you’re interested in the property.”

He raised his brows. “Only Mona?”

“Are you?”

“Maybe.”

“As in maybe we’re going to make an offer?”

Scratching his chin, he shrugged. “It’s a lot of money.”

“It’s a one-of-a-kind house. You won’t find anything comparable to it in Deadwood. At least not anything available.”

Doc leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest. “Where are you going for dinner tonight?”

I blinked at his curveball. “Wolfgang hasn’t specified.”

“What are you wearing?”

“He requested my red dress. What about you?”

“I would have requested something green.”

So he’d mentioned before—and I hadn’t forgotten. “I meant, where are you taking Natalie?”

“She told you we’re having dinner?”

My ears still rang from her shouts of joy. “She mentioned it in passing.”

“I’m not taking her anywhere. She offered to cook for me. What kind of wine does she prefer?”

“Any with alcohol in it.”

“So she’s easy to please?”

“You could say that.” That was a polite way of putting it. I didn’t want to ask, but couldn’t stop myself, “Are you going to kiss her goodnight?”

His grin finally made an appearance. “Who wants to know?”

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