Page 73 of The Inn Dilemma

“No, just a majority of the Dragons, the old men, us, and our women,” Cauis piles on.

“Guys, that’s my sister,” Chris scolds.

I laugh at my friends. “I needed to do somethingextreme to get that other woman to back off.”

“That’s true. Before Clover, I couldn’t keep women like her away from me. Those types of women have a thing for strapping military men.”

“Aww, did you just call me strapping?” I ask.

“You may just be a SEAL, obviously not as awesome as us Marines, but I think strapping is a fitting term.”

“All right, guys, this is getting weird,” Chris says.

Thor and I laugh.

“It looks like we’re all backpack-less!” Chantelle’s chipper voice comes into the mix. “Well, except Holt and his sidekicks.”

As if he can hear her, Titan barks in approval, then comes Tootsie’s deep bark.

The whole group laughs, and we spend the next hour talking and ribbing each other while enjoying the bright fall day.

“Don’t be a stranger! Bring that pretty girl around more. I want to get to know her better and learn all about who you and Chris were as kids. It’s hard to imagine Chris as anything other than an ambitious businessman.” This from Chantelle.

“That’s pretty much who he was growing up too. Not a whole lot has changed,” I tell her honestly.

“I’m right here, guys,” Chris says.

“Am I wrong?” I tease.

Chris’s silence speaks volumes. The group laughs again.

I chuckle. “Will do. I can’t promise Nova will have anything more exciting to share though.”

“That’s fine. I’d still like to get to know her. Maybe she can make some covers for my future books.”

“Talk to her about it the next time you seeher. I’m sure she’d be open to it,” I say. A new hopefulness fills my chest. My friends like her, and they want her to be a part of their lives, like I want her to be a permanent part of mine.

As we approach Rocosa’s exit, Des and I bid the group goodbye and veer toward home. The ride has been a great distraction, but I wouldn’t mind keeping myself occupied for a little longer.

“Do you need a hand with anything at your house?” I ask Des.

He raises his eyebrows. “Uh yeah, I can think of a few things.”

His answer makes me think he’s telling me this for my sake and not necessarily his own. I feel bad that we haven’t hung out as much as we used to. But with Maya now in the picture, his free time is mostly dedicated to her. And with Nova back in town…there I go again, allowing my mind to drift to Nova. Now I’m thinking about that kiss. I take off down Main Street too fast. Tootsie barks and Titan follows suit, waking up from his nap. I slow down just in time to make the turn to Des’s tiny house.

I park my bike and remove my helmet before Des pulls in and parks. He helps Tootsie off the back of my bike while I let Titan down to stretch his legs. The pups are familiar with Des’s property and stay well within the bounds of his yard.

Des motions for me to follow him to his front deck. “There’s a squeaky plank.” He points to one of the boards.

I walk to it and shift my weight back and forth. Sure enough, it needs some TLC. “Can you get me your hammer and a few nails?”

Without a word, Des turns and heads inside. While Iwait, I look around his property and see a stump that needs to be removed. It looks like he’s taken the axe to it a few times, but with all the nervous energy filling my veins, that’s the exact project I need to get my frustrations out.

Des comes back out with a box of nails, a hammer, and a bottle of water. He hands them all over to me. I thank him before taking a swig of the water, setting the bottle off to the side, and finding the spots on the board that need to be secured.

While I do that, Des fills a couple of bowls with water and sets them on the ground for the pups. They both bark in appreciation before I hear them lapping up water.

With a few nails pounded in, I stand and step back on the board. It’s as silent as the rest. I set the tools off to the side and wipe my hands down my thighs. “Well, that’s that.”

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