Gin Fling (Bootleg Springs, #5)(91)

I laughed as my parents went back to looking dazed. “He’s in his brother’s wedding today, but he surprised me here,” I explained.

Mom’s eyes went misty.

“What time is it?” I demanded.

Dad read off the time from his watch.

“We need to get you to a wedding,” I exclaimed.

“What about your bike? The rest of your stuff?” Jonah asked.

“You go,” I insisted. “I’ve got plenty of help. Go.”

Still he paused. He had things to say. But I had time to hear them.

I rose on tiptoe and pressed a kiss to his clean-shaven cheek. “We’ll talk later. I’m good. I’ll see you at the wedding.”

He stared down at me, a slow grin spreading across his face. “I’ll see you there.” He kissed me on the mouth for a few NC-17 seconds before pulling back.

“See you all later,” he said. Jonah blew me a kiss as he backed away.

“That boy is head over heels for you,” Granny Louisa sighed.

“That would be awfully convenient,” I said, watching the suited shoulders of Jonah Bodine disappear into the crowd.

“So, honey, um, back to this ankle-losing thing?” Mom said, trying to draw my attention back.





*



While the Breakfast Club hauled my gear back to Bootleg Springs, I sprawled out in the back seat of my mom’s sedan and answered all their questions about my diagnosis. Mom did an internet search on her phone while Dad drove, and I spent the last fifteen minutes of the drive talking her down.

“Never do an internet search on a diagnosis, Mom! You know these things.”

She was staring in horror at a worst-case scenario image search. Dad swerved trying to peer at the phone screen.

“You guys! This isn’t terminal, but smashing through a guardrail might be. Can we please focus on the fact that I have this under control, and I’ll let you know if there’s a reason to worry?”

“I can’t tell if you’re Pollyanna-ing us again,” Dad griped.

“Pollyanna-ing you?” I asked.

“Oh, I’m fine guys! Just a little mishap at work with a very small knife. It’s hardly a scratch,” Dad said in a falsetto.

“Come on! I didn’t want you to—”

“Worry,” my parents said together, rolling their eyes at each other.

“What? Is that so wrong?” I demanded. “Isn’t part of being a family trying to protect each other?”

“Part of being a family is trusting each other to handle the tough stuff,” Mom said, clearly not happy with me.

“So I’ve heard,” I said dryly. I pulled my shoes off and blanched at the smell. I was going to need six showers before showing up at the wedding.

“And if you want to have a real relationship with that handsome Jonah Bodine, you’re going to have to figure that out. Isn’t that right, James?”

“Do you think Scarlett would have a lead on any fixer-uppers in Bootleg?” Dad mused, having tuned out the meat of the conversation.

“What? Why?” Mom asked.

“If both our kids end up here, we should probably have a home base. We already have a pig and a puppy for grandchildren.”

“It is a nice town,” Mom agreed.

And just like that, Bootleg Springs reeled in a fresh catch.





*



We arrived back in Bootleg a scant hour before the wedding. I needed to fly through a shower and makeup and hair if I was going to make it before Cassidy walked down the aisle.

Dad pulled up in front of the Little Yellow House and turned off the car.

“Are you guys coming in?” I asked, already peeling my skin off the car seat and heading for the front porch.

“Bowie and Cassidy invited us to the wedding. We’re your ride,” Dad called. I was reaching for the screen door to yank it open when I noticed the roll of paper between the doors.

“What’s that? A love note from Jonah?” Mom asked. “He’s a keeper, Shelby.”

My parents walked past me into the house and immediately went into grandparent mode, releasing Billy Ray from his crate and showering him with treats and kisses.

It was such a domestic scene. My parents making themselves at home in my house, playing with my dog.

But none of that registered.

Slowly, I unrolled the paper already knowing what I’d find. It was a crude charcoal sketch of a woman with thick bangs and wide eyes. She had an upturned nose and a scar on her chest. She was naked.

“How did you find me?” I whispered.

Billy Ray jumped on me in sweet, puppy delight, and I scooped him up.

I looked over my shoulder and took my time studying every inch of the woods and yard.

Was he out there now?

Did he expect me to be as helpless as I’d been the last time?

He was going to be disappointed.

“Shelby,” Mom called. “If you don’t get in the shower now, we’re going to be late!”





51





Jonah





If Bowie’s smile got any bigger, his face was going to split open. I’d never seen a man happier or more ready to march down the aisle.