Page 62 of Summer Tease
I put the feeder in the grass as the sun kisses the horizon behind me. I feel like Kevin inHome Alone, setting elaborate traps, only my trap isn’t very elaborate, and my target definitely isn’t bumbling and inept like Harry and Marv. My target is Beau Palmer, most charming cop on the planet.
Well, this cop is about to get a taste of his own medicine.
Once the birdfeeder is in place, I hurry inside, change into dark shorts and a tank top, and rummage through Grams’s drawers until I find a flashlight and some rubber bands. They’re not ideal for the purpose, but they’re just a backup option if Beau doesn’t cooperate.
It’s dark outside by the time I’m fully prepared and lying in wait next to a tall potted plant on the deck with a perfect view of the feeder. I don’t know exactly when Beau will get home, but I know he was going to watch a game with Phoenix around seven, so I’m thinking nine thirty is a safe bet.
My stomach rumbles at ten o’clock. Where is he?
After a quick debate, I head inside to grab a snack. If Beau pulls in right now, I’ll still be able to see his headlights from the kitchen window. I, on the other hand, made sure to turn on the TV in my bedroom so that it looks like I’m up there watching something. Basically a criminal mastermind.
I grab a plain piece of bread and sneak back outside, taking my place. A few minutes later, the distinct sound of an engine approaching has me going still. I cock my ear to listen. It’s definitely him because I hear the jingling of Xena’s collar. My heart starts thumping against my chest in anticipation. What if he’s tired and goes straight to bed? What if he realizes how ugly that birdfeeder is and decides to let me win?
“Come on, Z!” he calls.
“Xena starts with anX,” I whisper to myself.
His front door opens, then shuts shortly after. I assume he’ll get Xena food and water and maybe change out of his uniform. Sure enough, the upstairs light goes on a couple minutes later. It’s got a sheer curtain, and when I steal a glance, I get a half view of Beau unbuttoning and pulling off his uniform shirt.
I hurry to look away, but even that quick view has my heart thumping.
“Focus, Gemma,” I say. “Eye on the prize.”
Beau is not the prize, I remind my brain.
It’s another fifteen minutes before I hear the soft click of the door closing—like someone’s trying to be sneaky about it.
“Game time,” I whisper with a huge smile.
I’ve never stayed as still in my life as I do now. Not even when Mia tried to extract an eyelash from my eye with a pair of tweezers when we were kids.
The latch of the side gate creaks slightly as it opens, and my body zings like a live wire in anticipation. My eyes are already adjusted to the dark, but even if they weren’t, I could easily see Beau. He’s wearing a bright yellow shirt. Has he no respect for the methods criminals have spent millennia developing? It’s like hewantsto be caught.
His eyes squint as he searches the yard. He smiles at the sight of the feeder, then heads toward it.
Not until this moment have I realized how loud my breathing is. My lungs sound like two air compressors, working to the background of my heartbeat, which is like the drum section of a marching band.
Beau’s hands wrap around the metal of the birdfeeder pole and start to tug.
I jump out of the bushes, shining my flashlight on him. “Freeze! Put your hands in the air!”
He shields his eyes with a hand.
“Bothhands where I can see them,” I yell. “And stop smiling like that. This is a citizen’s arrest.”
He puts his hands up, but I can see the makings of a Beau Palmer smile from a mile away. It’s never far off. Even when he’s being arrested.
“Now what?” he asks.
It’s a valid question, and to be honest, I hadn’t really thought through things much farther than the next step. I was so focused on catching him in the act that I didn’t consider all theother steps. I probably should’ve googled the citizen’s arrest process.
“Now I handcuff you,” I say.
His brow cocks. “This is heading an unexpected direction. Is this because I said I like your hair kinky?”
“Stop talking,” I say, going behind him. “You’re under arrest for trespassing and…armed robbery. Gimme your hands.”
“Armedrobbery?” he asks.
