Chapter 60
60
FIONA
“You won’t believe the amount of money I made in the few days Dax ran the store,” Hannah said, scooping up some rice–Dottie’s cheesy version–and taking a bite.
We were at Jack and Hannah’s house for a potluck dinner.
All of us. My newfound family. Crazy, huh?
“The storytime with you was such a hit, I’m–”
“I’m not going back,” Dax warned, holding up both hands in front of him.
Hannah laughed. “Oh, I know big guy. I’m going to do a dating thing. Single guys interested in meeting lots of women will lead it.”
“That’s a really good idea,” I said. I could only imagine the number of women who would show up .
“I made an offer to the owners of the vacation rental to buy it,” I said, sharing my own news.
Hannah, Jack, Brittany, and Nitro stopped eating and looked my way, eyes wide.
Dottie and Dax didn’t look fazed since they already knew. Mr. Dotson did, too, but we’d yet to meet him. He was as elusive as Pancake.
“You want to live in Coal Springs?” Hannah asked, then started to cry.
Oh shit. My gaze whipped to Dax’s and I panicked.
Hannah held up her hand. “I’m fine. I cried when the trash truck came and emptied my recycling can this morning. I’m a hormonal mess. I’m so excited.”
I smiled, but was afraid to open my mouth and say anything else that might make her cry more.
“Best house in town. Except for the locks. Those are being replaced,” Dax said, glancing at each person one by one and settled on Dottie.
We hadn’t figured much out, but we both knew we wanted to stay in Coal Springs. The only house we could imagine living in was the rental. It was one step in settling into our new lives.
“I never broke into your place,” Brittany reminded me, then winked. I was loving having not one new girlfriend, but two. Since she knew all about Hannah’s strength and teleporting abilities, she didn’t even blink when I told her I had bionic hearing.
“If you’re all moving here, I am, too,” Nitro announced, then eyed Brittany carefully .
The careful part wasn’t necessary because she pushed her chair back, yanked the big guy from his chair and kissed him. No middle school playground peck for them.
“Hey, there’s an impressionable cat here,” Jack grumbled, although he didn’t look all that put out.
Pancake was sleeping on his mega-sized cat tree in the other room. I had no doubt he wouldn’t be bothered by Brittany and Nitro making out any more than all the times he’d probably seen Hannah and Jack breaking various decency laws.
“What about working in Denver?” Jack asked.
“I quit.”
Yup, I did it. There had been no decision making. I knew, deep down, it was the right thing to do. Did I want to see Neidermeyer and Trotter go down? Sure, but I wasn’t wasting my life on it. They were someone else’s problem. I’d called HR and quit over the phone, no need to even go into the office. It took years and years to get into the FBI and a five-minute phone call to get out.
“She’s going to be a Coal Springs police officer!” Dottie exclaimed.
Everyone talked at once. I held up my hand.
“I haven’t decided yet. One thing at a time.”
Like finding Dax. Then finding Coal Springs. Then finding Dottie and Hannah and Jack and Brittany and Nitro. And finding me.
I’d know what I wanted to do soon enough. For now, I was going to take a break.
If that was even possible in this town .
My cell rang as Nitro tugged Brittany out of the room. Thank goodness because they weren’t letting up on the smooches.
“Not on my couch!” Jack called.
I looked at the screen and my heart skipped a beat. The look on my face made Dax take my hand. “Who is it?”
I didn’t answer, only answered the call. “Hello?”
“Fiona Whitaker?”
“Yes.”
“This is the warden at–”
For someone who could hear so well, I only processed half of what the man said.
“He’s dead?” I asked, when he was finally done.
“Yes. He was caught in the middle of a fight between two rival gangs. Stabbed.”
“Thank you,” I replied, then disconnected.
Everyone was staring at me.
“My father’s dead,” I announced.
No one said anything. I sat numb, staring at my plate of grilled salmon and rice.
Then my brain kicked back in, and I looked to Dax.
He was studying me carefully. My hand was still in his.
I arched a brow.
“I take care of what’s mine.”