Page 27 of Sofa King Wanted

Once she’s finished her donut, I pull her in my lap, and she cuddles against my chest. “But what do we do about this guy here in town now?”

“We’ve got a few options, but I think it’s best we take him head-on.”

Georgia pulls back and looks at me before nodding thoughtfully. “We kill him before he kills us. Good plan.”

“No!” I shake my head, and she sags like she’s disappointed. “No, I think we should go talk to him. But we need to give him something he can take back to Simon’s dad. Robert Gregory needs closure on this that points away from his son. Even though Simon was clearly a piece of shit, we have to shift blame from Rhodes.”

“Agreed.” Georgia nods thoughtfully.

“The problem is, we’re going to need a big dramatic story that’s almost too ridiculous to believe. Know anybody that can come up with something like that?” I raise an eyebrow at her, and she gives me a smug smile.

“You’re talking to the reigning champ of ridiculous, and I think I’ve got just the story for him.”

“Oh really?” I run my hands down her back, and I can see her gears are already spinning. “Yeah, I just need to gather the Stitches.”

“Wait, what?” I hesitate, but she hops out of my lap and waves me off.

“Let me do my thing.” She grabs her phone and dials a number. “Mrs. Betty, activate the phone tree. Operation Swamp Monster is a go.”

“Georgia, what are you doing?” I ask.

“What does it look like?” She turns to me and winks. “I’m saving the day.”

Several hours later, I’m pulling up to a run-down park on the edge of town, trying not to second-guess everything.

“Are you sure about this?” I ask Georgia one more time, just to be sure.

“Relax, big guy. I got this.” She holds up her bubble gun and pulls the trigger. The effect of bubbles blowing out of the end does nothing to soothe my anxiety. Although it does make her look adorable. “Follow my lead.”

“You’re the boss.” I cup her cheek before pulling her in for a quick kiss, and she surprises me by trying to climb onto my lap. “Don’t start something you can’t finish.”

“Dang it.” She pulls back like she forgot where we are. “Stop seducing me. I’m trying to run a sting operation.”

“That’s not what this is,” I say, but she waves me off.

“Potato, tomato.”

“That’s not exactly how the saying goes.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Just look pretty and let me do my thing.” She hops out of the car before I can say anything else, and although I wish this wasn’t the plan, I don’t have a better one.

The park was probably nice back in the day, but now all the playground equipment is rusted out and the weeds are overgrown. There’s a retention pond behind it that looks like a breeding ground for mosquitoes and algae and nothing more. The scattered beer cans and condom wrappers aren’t making it any more inviting.

“Thanks for meeting us out here,” Georgia says to Mrs. Betty and the other older ladies with her.

“We’re happy to do anything to assist, Sheriff Georgia.” She eyes me up and down and then grins at Georgia. “And this new hunk you’ve got with you.”

“Hands to yourself, Mrs. Betty. I’ve already claimed him.”

“All the good ones are taken,” Mrs. Betty sighs.

“Okay, you know what to do, so get into position.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Mrs. Betty does a little salute, and they all start moving.

A few moments later, a dark sedan pulls up next to the cruiser, and I take a step toward him. The guy that gets out is short and stocky with a shaved head, and he’s wearing a suit. When I approach him, he holds out his hand, and we shake.

“I’m Agent Neil Anders, this is Sheriff Georgia Dawson. Thanks for meeting us out here.”

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