like the idea that they were in town for this event. She’d first met his mom and Daya when they flew in after he was wounded and they’d ended up staying with Viv—she would have it no other way. About a month after the shooting, Daya called Dante to check on his recovery, which by then was nearly complete. He asked his sister what she thought of Tanyalee, and after a short pause, she gave him an answer that still made him crack up. She said, “Dante, that woman is perfect for you. You’ve always liked the wildest ride in the amusement park.”
And it had been a wild ride so far, one he’d enjoyed immensely. Tanyalee continued to amaze him. She was still working full-time at Candy Pants but had started her own volunteer agency. Immediately after the Bread of Kindness Center fired Maryvelle Spickler Wilcox, Tanyalee received a call from the new director. He asked her to help develop an outreach program for disadvantaged women with the county’s job services program. She jumped on it, convincing dozens of retail stores and salons to pitch in. The Second Chance Club now provided makeovers for women preparing for job interviews.
He loved that girl. Dante loved her more every day.
She’d moved out of the house on Willamette just three weeks ago. Viv was not happy, but Tanyalee sure was. She rented the loft space above the bakery and had turned it into something that could have belonged to a Brooklyn hipster instead of a Bigler belle. He’d enjoyed helping her find antiques and paint old junk so that it looked like it belonged in a decorating magazine. His housewarming present for her had been a king-sized bed with all the trimmings. She rolled her eyes at first, but she loved it now.
She really, really loved it.
Cheri had texted that they were leaving the restaurant, so Dante announced to the crowd that they were at twenty minutes to blastoff. The band Garland had hired was ready to go. The balloons were rigged to fall from the ceiling. His mom was conspiring with Viv about something and Wes was attempting to seduce Daya with one of his famous panty-destroying smiles. Dante figured he should go over there and stop it before somebody got hurt, then changed his mind—maybe it was time Wes got shot down, tied up, and taken prisoner. He’d ask Daya to go easy on him, since they still needed him at work.
The DEA, in its strange wisdom, had decided to deny Dante’s transfer a second time—which was fine by him—while keeping Wes on in Asheville as a permanent assignment. It was true that a lot of good things were happening in this part of the state these days, but there was still too much bad shit for the local authorities to handle on their own.
At least there was one less thing to worry about: Wainright Miller had been arrested, charged with a host of state and federal offenses, and was currently in the Randolph County lockup awaiting trial. Ramirez hadn’t yet gotten to Miller, but if the call came tomorrow, Dante wouldn’t be surprised—or even bothered. Miller deserved whatever he got.
Fern wandered toward Dante. The girl had wormed her way into his heart over the last few months, he had to admit. He’d been helping her with homework and she was rapidly getting up to grade level in all her subjects. Fern adored Tanyalee, of course, and it was mutual though you wouldn’t know it listening to them talk. Overhearing one of their conversations was like taking a master class in Females of the Southeastern United States.
“Yo,” Fern said. “You ready?”
“As ready as I’ll ever be,” he answered, which was the truth. He figured a man just had to trust his gut with some things, and this was definitely one of them.
Dante’s phone vibrated. They were five minutes away. “Everybody get ready,” he said.
They cut the lights. Cheri was going to use some excuse to bring her in the front of the building. Everyone was silent as the key turned in the lock.
“SURPRISE!” The lights flipped on and the balloons came down, four hundred pink balloons all over the place.
Tanyalee put a hand to her heart, a look of pure shock on her beautiful face—which was what Dante was going for.
“What? I can’t believe this!”
Cheri pressed her inside and closed the door behind them, then took Tanyalee’s coat. Honestly, Dante didn’t think he’d ever get used to just how gorgeous his