Beauty and the Beastmaster - Linda Winstead Jones Page 0,14
remembered where it had gotten her last time and all thoughts of having any of that in her life again quickly vanished.
She didn’t need or want a man, and all that came with one.
Maybe that was the reason her one date had been so awkward, maybe that’s why everything had gone wrong.
As she watched Silas Hollister walk to the curb and the pickup truck he’d parked there, she couldn’t push back the thought…
She hadn’t wanted or needed a dog, either.
Silas stopped at the café for dinner. Eve waited on him, chatted a bit, but seemed to sense that he wasn’t looking for company and soon moved on. Travis Benedict sat at the counter, where he could talk to Eve as often as possible. Eve tried to ignore the police chief but did a poor job of it. As if there was anyone left in town who didn’t know they were sleeping together and had been for months.
Silas had almost finished his catfish and coleslaw when Tyler Milhouse slid onto the bench seat on the other side of the booth. None of the Milhouses were known for their manners. Maybe it was a werewolf thing. Then again…
“How’s it going with Gabi?” Tyler asked. He narrowed one eye as he asked.
So much for his appetite. “Did Donnie send you?”
“Jenna. She says you’ll get it done, but she’s nervous about your part in this.”
“No need to be. I’ve been in favor of separation for years.”
“She knows that. She also knows your bad experience with a Non-Springer makes you perfect for this job. Her worry is that you’re moving awfully slow.”
There were times Silas thought Harry’s middle son was awfully slow himself.
“She cut my hair and I gave her a dog. It’s a start.”
“A slow start.”
“What do you want me to do, hit her over the head and drag her out of town? It’s just been a week since Jenna mentioned her plan to me.” He was beginning to have doubts about his part in it, but it wouldn’t be smart to say so out loud, especially not to a man who would go straight to Jenna with the news.
“You’ve been dragging your feet,” Tyler said in a lowered voice. “It’s time to get busy. Tag got rid of the activities director at The Egg in just a couple of days, and Lilian has just about run off those old folks who bought the house next door to hers. The guy at the grocery store won’t be a problem. He’s already decided he doesn’t like it here. That leaves Gabi Lawson. If you can’t do the job, I will.”
A brief but strong sensation of what could only be called protectiveness swept through Silas. Not that he let that unexpected response show. “I can handle her,” he said casually. “It won’t take more than a couple of weeks.”
“You have two and a half, but that doesn’t mean you have to take all that time. That’s the deadline, but we’ll all feel better when the job is taken care of. No need to cut it close.”
The too-short hairs on the back of Silas’s neck stood up. He’d not only initially agreed to the plan, he’d been excited by it, for a while. It was true that he had no love of Non-Springers, and the idea of closing off the town once and for all held a lot of appeal. So why was he suffering so many doubts?
Judge’s new habit of stopping at Gabi’s place of business as they ran through town suddenly made sense. There was danger in the air, a danger to Gabi. And to Mia. The dog had a connection with the kid, perhaps as strong as the one Silas had with his favorite bloodhound.
Was it a coincidence that Judge had shown up about the same time Gabi and Mia had arrived in town last year? What if the bloodhound hadn’t been drawn to the springs, but had instead been drawn to the kid? He didn’t believe in coincidence, but he had no logical explanation, either. Maybe the timing was just a fluke.
Whatever the reason, the dog was protecting Mia and Gabi. From him? Or from whoever Jenna would give the job to if he failed?
“There’s a complication,” Silas said.
“What kind of complication?”
He started to speak, but an instinct stopped him. Until he knew more, until he was sure, Tyler Milhouse didn’t need to know anything. Neither did Jenna, or Donnie, or anyone else. And they all needed to stay away from Gabi.