Her Forever Hero (Unexpected Heroes #3)(42)

“It’s not the dog who has a problem; it’s you!” Linda shouted. “Ever since my rose beat your rose ten years ago in the county fair, you’ve had it in for me.”

“Ladies, this is getting us nowhere. Do you realize the cost to go to litigation over this matter?” Cam said as calmly as he could manage.

There were times he loved living in Sterling, because it was a small town where crime was virtually unheard-of. But at times like this, he didn’t exactly enjoy his job.

“I heard there’s a place that can swab the dog’s mouth and then test the poop and prove beyond a doubt who the culprit is,” Linda said with triumph.

Cam had to really fight a smile. “Yes, Ms. Reedy, there are labs that will do this, but it’s very expensive. It would be much better for both of you if we could simply solve this matter right here, right now,” Cam told them, looking each of the women in the eye.

“If I don’t take a stand now, she won’t stop terrorizing me,” Linda insisted.

“What if we can agree right now that Ms. Stuller won’t let Toby come into your yard and that she’ll make sure to have the dog walker pick up all feces from here on out?” Cam asked, praying this would end.

“I want an apology, as well,” Linda insisted.

“I’m not apologizing to that old bat! I did nothing wrong,” Darcie snapped.

“Listen!” Cam interrupted before this got heated again. “You two were best friends for most of your lives. Now you’re letting minor disputes harm that friendship. I know that you both love each other, though it’s buried very deep down right now, so if you don’t do something to fix this before it’s too late, you’re going to have severe regrets. Neither of you is getting any younger.”

“Did you just call us old?” Darcie gasped, her wrinkled cheeks flushing.

“Don’t you speak to us that way, young man. You’re never too old to get your ears boxed, you know,” Linda added.

“Let’s get out of here, Linda. I don’t want to listen to this nonsense anymore. Young men thinking they’re so smart just because they hang a piece of paper on the wall.” Darcie got slowly to her feet.

“I agree, Darcie. I’m sorry. It was probably that snotty little kid’s dog from down the block. We’ll sit out there all day if we need to, so we can catch him and call the sheriff,” Linda said.

Cam sat there motionless as the two women left his conference room. When he was sure they were gone, he tossed down his pen, and finally let out the laughter that had been bubbling up for the past hour as he listened to the women bicker.

Had he known all it would take was to allude to their age, he would have done it ten minutes in. At least he wasn’t going to have to stand before the judge explaining DNA evidence of dog poop anytime soon. There were some things to be grateful for.

Finally, he stood and moved to his office, where he looked out the window with a frown. When had it begun snowing? He should have been paying better attention to the news. At least he didn’t have to worry about Grace out there driving in it, not after her strange call a couple of hours ago about her car not working.

“Cam, you have a call on line one.” His assistant popped in and back out again.

Maybe he should just head home for the day. His mind certainly wasn’t on work. No, it was on a certain brunette who had his heart racing and his blood boiling. Her staying in his house might not have been the smartest decision he’d made in a while. If he didn’t make love to her soon, he was afraid certain parts of his body might well fall off.

“Camden Whitman here. How can I help you?”

“Cam, I’m sorry to bug you at work, but little Gracie took off over an hour ago on foot, and then the snow started. It’s really coming down now and I’m worried about her. I sent some men out, but I thought you’d want to know.” When Shawn, his foreman, stopped speaking, Cam felt his heart stop altogether.

“Damn stubborn woman!” Cam shouted. “I’m on my way now. Get my horse ready.”

Cam hung up, then walked from his office, told his assistant to cancel the rest of his appointments, and rushed to his vehicle.

Since Grace’s return, his neighbors, father, brothers, and just about everyone else in the entire town of Sterling had been poking and prodding into his business, asking if he and Grace were going to renew their epic romance, if he was going to finally make an honest woman out of her and settle down, have a few kids . . . The questions went on and on.

At first, Cam hadn’t known what to think. Grace was the one to get away. But they were young and dumb, teenagers who thought they held the world in the palm of their hands. When the real world kicked in, they weren’t able to hold on to each other. They went eight years without speaking, and they didn’t do a hell of a lot of talking in the last two years—it was mainly just fighting, actually.

Cam had told himself many times that he was over Grace Sinclair, that their time together hadn’t been anything like “epic.” The problem with that, though, was that every time he was with her, he couldn’t seem to keep his hands or his mouth to himself.

As he drove home much faster than he should with the roads covered in a layer of fresh snow, Cam knew their story wasn’t finished. But he just didn’t know how to begin anymore. So much had happened.