Page 10 of August Heat
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
Jalen and Lorri exchanged a look above Krys’s head. “You’ve been out of the game for a while, right?” Jalen prompted.
“Might be a bit rusty since you last laid it on a woman.”
The corners of Krys’s mouth twitched. “Laidit on a woman? You talking about my charms, or my body?”
“Either’s correct, now ain’t it?”
Oh, they were really enjoying this. To the point Krys regretted bringing it up. “You guys suck,” she said again.
But at least she had alleviated something that had weighed her down since she left Siobhan’s property a couple days ago.She really exists, huh?Although Krys had searched for Siobhan online, the best she came up with was a website that briefly explained her services. No bells. No frills. Definitely no whistles begging the local farmers and ranchers to call her. She probably worked word-of-mouth, and if she were one of the only house-call vets in the area, landowners had no choice, anyway. Siobhan lived off her business cards, not her website. How many farmers in the area had high-speed internet? Most were so technically illiterate that the fireman joked that at least they knew the fire didn’t start because of too many people using their computers at once.
Jalen may have been absolutely worthless for information, but Lorri had known something. She recognized the name, if not thefreckles.Maybe it was a sign. Krys needed to regroup and think about the best way to ask out the pretty vet.
And maybe ask around a little bit more. Surely, there was someone in Paradise Valley who regularly saw Siobhan when she came into town. Surely.Someone.
Anyone?
Chapter 6
SIOBHAN
“Don’t forget the dishwashing detergent,” Gabriella squawked as she followed her niece down the driveway. Keys jangled from Siobhan’s hand. The lights on the truck came on as she unlocked the doors with a push of the button. The door, however, was a bit stuck, because of course it was. Heaven forbid Siobhan make a clean getaway on a day she woke up on the wrong side of the bed.
She may be a bit tetchy because she had to put down someone’s beloved herding dog earlier that morning. The poor guy was old, frail, and no longer eating. He had herded his last sheep, and although the family knew it, even the hardest of farmers found it difficult to say goodbye to a beloved pet. Siobhan had the emotional distance to rationalize she was doing what was best for the dog, but when kids started crying and dad slammed his baseball cap on the ground… hard day.
“Yes! Detergent!” Siobhan closed the door behind her. “And the whole laundry list to go with the laundry.”
“Sundries, hon.” Gabriella said. “We call them sundries.”
“Yeah, yeah.” Before putting her keys in the ignition, Siobhan dug through a stack of CDs in the hopes of finding something decent to listen to on her drive into town. Kenny Chesney?That had to be Gabriella’s.Michael Jackson?Also Gabriella’s. Was there anything in this pile that belonged to…
Ah. Yes. Smashing Pumpkins. Excellent.
Siobhan popped open the case. TheMoulin Rouge!soundtrack disc fell out.
At least that was also Siobhan’s. From when she went through that embarrassing phase in her youth.Nicole Kidman was my personal goals. Too bad I really don’t look anything like her.Red hair only went so far in the similarities department.
“I’ll be back in a couple of hours.” Siobhan turned the keys. The truck roared to life. Gabriella took a step back, but did not hustle into the house like Siobhan hoped. “Don’t wait up for me.”
“You make it sound like you’re going on a date!” Gabriella called after her as the truck backed up. “I didn’t wake up and see snow, so it must not be a cold day in hell!”
“Bye!”
Turned out it wasn’t aMoulin Rouge!CD after all. That’s what it said on the front, but Siobhan didn’t realize until halfway down the driveway that it was a generic P!nk CD withMoulin Rouge!written on the front.Aunt Gabriella strikes again.This wasn’t Siobhan’s CD at all. The only time she willingly listened to P!nk was on theMoulin Rouge!soundtrack.
To the sounds of “Get the Party Started,” Siobhan lowered her sunglasses and bumped over the gravel road leading to the county asphalt. She rolled down her window and hung her elbow out like there was no danger involved.Like I live life on the edge or something.Siobhan’s idea of a thrill was flying over speed bumps. There was one on the backroad into town, but during that time of year, kids were likely to play in the road.Never mind.She had already made one kid cry that day. Like hell she was sending any to the hospital.
There were a myriad of things Siobhan could have done that day. She could have followed up on a few appointments. Done some paperwork. Hell, there was yardwork that needed to be done. Except when she stepped into the shed that day and realized they were out of some gardening materials, Gabriella started a list of everything else they needed from town. Normally, she was the one who ran the errands, but a migraine had knocked her on her ass until the exact moment Siobhan was ready to leave.That’s how it works around here.Siobhan stopped questioning it when she realized thatavoiding peoplewas a family trait.
Out on a date… hmph. Yeah, right.
The first stop on Siobhan’s tour of Paradise Valley was the biggest hardware store on Main Street. Real Value liked to think it was all that and a bag of nails, but Siobhan often balked at the prices. If gas also weren’t so high, she’d save money by driving to the nearest Wal-Mart and taking advantage of their prices. But Real Value was what she got in Paradise Valley, so that’s where she went.
“U + Ur Hand” faded into oblivion when Siobhan shut off the engine.I’ll be in and out in ten minutes.Assuming she found what she needed within ten minutes. Sometimes, the staff at Real Value didn’t do their best to stay on top of inventory. How many times had Siobhan suffered through the nuts and bolts, agonizing over sizes and materials?Only to have the woman who works there tell me she stopped carrying what I needed long ago.
Great. Siobhan was already worked up before she walked through the door.
