Penned In - Lynn Cahoon Page 0,5
late just so more people come during the week. Or maybe it’s part of the show?”
“If that’s true, they’re really good actors.” Angie heard the low growl come from Dom. He felt the tension in the air just as much as she did. Or he sensed her unease. Either way, it was time to break up the conversation and continue with the tour. “Maybe if we stand up it will look like we’re ready to leave the area.”
“And maybe pigs will fly. Men only do what they want, when they want.” Hope said, then she slapped her hand over her mouth. “I shouldn’t have said that.”
“That’s fine. We all can say what we don’t mean at times.” Felicia met Angie’s gaze.
Angie thought she could read her friend’s thoughts. Hope never said anything mean or sarcastic. Maybe this prison visit hadn’t been the best idea for a team building event. She stood and Dom moved toward her. “Let’s see if we can get this tour going. Maybe if the guards are busy, they’ll stop sniping at each other.”
“One can only hope,” Nancy called out to the men. “Come on, we’re heading out.”
Matt ran back to Angie like a little puppy. “You can’t believe the displays they have. They must have every gun ever made and several that they used right here when the prison was open.”
“That’s awesome.” She watched as Matt ran to Felicia to report the same information. At least someone was having fun. By the time she got there, the men had moved away from each other and she ran into Officer Bridget. “Is everything okay?”
She sighed, running a hand over her hair. “I take it everyone heard the fight.”
“Not much, but yeah, we knew they weren’t happy. Is there a problem?” Angie took in the woman’s pale face. She looked stressed.
“They’ve been at each other all summer. I guess Marty is dating Pat’s ex-wife. I don’t know what the problem is; he divorced her to go chasing younger women. Now he’s all up in Marty’s face like they’re still married. Marty’s a nice guy. Rachel could do much worse.”
“Relationships are hard, even when they’ve been broken for a while.” Angie was relieved that it wasn’t anything about the tour. “Are we going to be here much longer? I could use a bathroom break.”
“Sure, that’s our next stop. We’ve got refreshments in the main area. We were going to assign you your cells first, but I think I’ll let these two calm down a bit. I’ll round up the troops.”
Angie went back to Felicia while Bridget got everyone’s attention. They were down to two guards, Bridget and the guy that didn’t seem to ever talk. Poor Bridget, it must be like working with caged tigers with the two fighting and the other one not speaking. “I’m so glad we work well together.”
“This group does seem a little dysfunctional.” Felicia nodded. “Did you hear what the fight was about? Rumor has it they are both in love with the same woman.”
“Basically true.” Angie glanced at her friend. “Do you think we need some kind of non-fraternization policy?”
“With me and Estebe? You want him to sign something saying we’ll be adults if we break up?” Felicia laughed. “I don’t think he’d ever talk to me again, so you wouldn’t have to worry about a fight.”
“Are you talking about us?” Estebe asked coming up from behind and putting a hand on her shoulder.
Felicia jumped and Angie laughed. “Kind of. I was telling her how much I appreciate our team. You guys are great together.”
Estebe’s gaze darted to the fake guards at the front of the room. “Not all teams work the same way. Sometimes, it’s just a job.”
“This is the coolest job in the world.” Matt jumped in on the discussion. “Thanks for doing these teambuilding events. I can’t wait for next quarter.”
“You may regret saying that.” Hope’s gaze narrowed onto Matt. “It’s my turn to schedule and you’re going to pay for this one. How do you feel about knitting?”
“You can’t make us knit,” Matt looked from Hope to Angie then to Estebe. “Seriously, you can’t be thinking that would be even an ounce of fun.”
“I like learning new crafts.” Angie said, then she pointed to the doorway. “Looks like we’re moving out. Hope, I look forward to seeing your ideas for the next event.”
Estebe slapped Matt on the back. “I think I see some payback in your future.”
“This is a great outing. I can’t believe she’s not having fun.”
Estebe narrowed