Love to Hate You (Hope Valley #9) - Jessica Prince Page 0,49
driving a fuming Charlie back to her house to make sure it was clear.
I stood from the conference table and started toward the doors when Leo called my name. “Look, brother, I hate to pile more on your plate after the night we just had, but there’s something you gotta know.”
I watched the rest of the men clear out of the room before looking back to my partner. “What is it?”
“You know Dani knows what’s goin’ down to a certain extent.” I nodded. It was something he and I had talked about when we discovered we had at least one dirty cop in the department. We agreed he could talk to Danika about the case because she was his woman, and we both knew we could trust her. As far as I was aware, she hadn’t breathed a word of what she knew to anyone else. “Well, she was at Divine Flora earlier today, visiting Hayden, and Cormack came in.” My back went straight. Unfortunately, he wasn’t finished. “Your little showdown at The Tap Room last weekend didn’t do a damn thing to get him off her scent. He made his move right there in front of her aunt and her girl, as well as Sage and Dani.”
“He what?”
“Asked her out in front of an audience. He’s got her in his sights and he’s not shiftin’ target."
“God damnit,” I snapped. “I told her to stay away from that son of a bitch.”
“Well, the way Dani says she saw it, Hayden didn’t look too excited to have his attention. My woman did her best to warn her away from the prick without lettin’ anything slip, but Dani’s still worried. Hayden’s part of their crew now, and she wants to make sure her new friend’s got someone lookin’ out for her.”
“I’m on it,” I grunted, heading for the door. Greg Cormack wasn’t going to get within fifty feet of Hayden again. I’d make goddamn sure of it.
Chapter Sixteen
Hayden
I thought my aunt had been exaggerating when she said nearly the whole town was coming to the party she’d decided to throw on a whim. That just went to show what I knew, because it felt like every single resident in Hope Valley was currently standing in our backyard.
I’d woken up this morning frantic that nothing had been done in preparation. I’d hightailed it out to Sylvia’s to find out what I could do, only to be told “Everything will work itself out, my precious girl. Just relax.” I hadn’t bought it, but sure enough, she’d been right.
Everything was running like a well-oiled machine. Other than making a big helping of potato salad and two apple pies—my contribution to the potluck aspect of the whole thing—there’d been nothing else for me to do. There was no setting anything up ahead of time, no preparing for our “guests”.
People showed, some with folding tables, some with chairs, others with yard games, and they set stuff up wherever there was an empty space. Each person came with at least one dish, so the spread was more impressive than the catering at my wedding. There were a few kegs off to the side, and coolers full of drinks had appeared out of nowhere.
And people milling about everywhere. Micah had dragged a grill over earlier and spent the past hour standing around it with a bunch of other men, talking and drinking beers while grilling up hamburgers and hot dogs.
I didn’t recognize three quarters of the people, yet they all seemed to know exactly who I was, giving ‘hellos’ or waves, some even stopping to chat with me for a bit. There wasn’t a single stranger in sight. Everyone had made themselves right at home, kicking back and enjoying a beautiful fall day before the weather got too cold, hanging out with good friends, good food, and lots of laughs.
Eden sidled up to me, a clear plastic cup with what looked like lemonade clutched between her hands and propped on her baby bump. “Hey, babe. You having a good time?”
I let out a small laugh. “This is certainly not what I was expecting. The last time I hosted a barbecue, it had been planned weeks in advance, there were no kids allowed, and everyone came dressed in ‘garden party chic’.”
She turned her face to me, her brows raised in confusion. “I’m not even sure what that means.”
“Lightweight dresses and heels for the women. Sport coats and chinos for the men.”