when Boaz wrapped an arm around my shoulders, but I appreciated him guiding me away. I might not have left otherwise, and that was wrong. Cass deserved a moment alone to say her goodbye.
We returned to Willie, who was right where he’d left her, but the view of the charred remains of Cass’s home left a cold weight in my stomach that only grew colder when a blue pickup turned into the drive.
The window slid down to reveal Patel, who took in the destruction and then us.
“You cost me money.” He spat on the dirt. “I came all the way down here to collect on this killer that had all the clan masters clutching their pearls, and you beat me to them.”
“Sorry, man.” Boaz shrugged. “Them’s the breaks.”
“Yeah.” He grunted. “Guess so.” A feral smile tipped up his lips. “I still say you owe me a drink for my troubles.”
“Sure.” Boaz grinned. “Name the time and place, and your first glass of water is on me.”
The joke, that water was free, took a second to penetrate Patel, but then he roared with laughter.
“Always did like you.” He slapped his hand on the side of his truck. “You’re an asshole, just like me.”
From what I had seen of them, Boaz was nothing like Patel, but I wanted Patel gone more than I wanted to defend Boaz. Cass and I were big fish in a small pond here, and we liked it that way. We had no room for a shark in our waters.
“See you around, Patel.” Boaz offered him a curt wave. “Happy hunting.”
“I expect an invitation to the wedding.” Patel put the window halfway up then laughed. “I’ve never seen a man get his balls chopped off. Ought to be interesting.”
With that, Patel spun dirt that ruined Willie’s mirror shine and hit the road.
“I really hate that guy,” Boaz muttered. “I hope I go another five years without seeing him again.”
“Me too.” I wiped the grit from my eyes. “I promise there will be no ball-chopping at the wedding.”
Whipping his head toward me, Boaz broke into a wide smile that turned into a laugh. “Good to know.”
“I’m ready to go.” I patted his arm. “I want to wash off the smoke and dirt and then sleep ten years.”
“Hop on.” He patted the seat on his bike. “We can go the speed limit and everything.”
A laugh wedged itself in my throat, and I was tempted, so tempted to take him up on his offer.
“I think I’ll walk back,” I murmured. “I’m ready to go home, but I’m not ready to be home, if that makes sense.” I raked my hair back into a ponytail. “See you there?”
“I’m not letting you go alone.” He shot me an incredulous look. “I told you I would walk the bike if I had to, and I meant it.”
About to tell him I had changed my mind, that I was being silly, he didn’t give me the chance. He nudged the kickstand and started rolling Willie down the drive. I fell in beside him and breathed easier for it.
For the first two miles.
Then I caved and begged him to drive me the last four home.
We put the hot water heater through its paces by showering together. Well, not together. But at the same time. Then I raided the freezer for TV dinners. We ate pizza bagels and chips on the couch while watching Dracula in Cass’s honor. I fell asleep with marinara on my shirt and my head on Boaz’s shoulder.
Our story might not be the start of a sweeping romance, but it felt like one day it might become more.
That was all the happily ever after I could ask for. I could do far worse than marrying…a friend.
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Chapter One
Regret tasted like a discount food truck taco. Frak. Sal swore on his mother’s grave he had used real chicken this time, and I bought it. Literally. Goddess only knows what he had fed his regular customers until the health department caught up with him. Hence tonight’s discount. He was trying to lure in a new crop of suckers, and my forehead must have looked freshly stamped.
Rinsing my mouth out with a gulp of flat soda