Chapter 3 #2
“Uh oh. If the pups don’t get along—”
“Oh, no,” Laurel said, cutting Sadie off. “It was the opposite. Those two wanted to play, and if we’d let them, they would have knocked half the merchandise off the shelves.”
Haylee perked, though she tried to hide it.
The pups got along? That small detail shouldn’t matter, considering Allie loved most other dogs.
Her siblings all had dogs, and Allie often wore herself out playing with them.
But when she heard the barking erupt inside the store earlier, she worried the two weren’t fans of one another.
Not that it should matter.
So, why did it matter?
“Do we know what this mystery man does?” Sadie asked.
“He gave off a blue-collar vibe,” Laurel answered. “Like a mechanic, welder, or maybe a crane operator.”
“There’re no cranes operating this time of year,” Jamie pointed out.
“But if he’s just passing through . . .” Sadie said.
“Oh, good point,” Jamie agreed.
“He had one of those haircuts, though,” Laurel said. “A high and tight, I think they call it? And he was clean shaven. Does that mean he’s military?”
Haylee choked on a nacho and reached for her Sprite. Any other day, she’d admire that the women in her life were more perceptive than a mismatched group of amateur detectives. Tonight, however, it was downright terrifying. How had they made that leap over a simple haircut?
“So, he’s a military guy,” Sadie declared, stealing a nacho from Haylee’s plate. “That explains the passing through part. But what branch?”
“Does it matter?” Jamie cooed. “There’s just something about a military man.”
“Your husband’s an accountant,” Laurel reminded her.
“Doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate a good military book boyfriend when I see one.”
“You said he had a German Shepherd,” Sadie said to Laurel. “Do you think it’s a military K9?”
Haylee wasn’t sure whether it was the early effects of the margarita or simple overwhelm, but her head spun as the edges of a panic attack clawed its way in. She pushed away her half-empty drink and reached for another nacho, cautiously taking a bite.
“The pup wasn’t wearing a vest,” Laurel said.
“So, probably not,” Sadie agreed.
“And there was all that barking,” Laurel added.
It was harder to breathe, and suddenly a thousand degrees inside Warren’s Sea Shack. For the second time today, she considered running toward the nearest exit without her coat.
“Maybe he’s a K9 dropout. Wouldn’t that be the sweetest thing ever?
” Jamie said, an air of dreaminess to her tone.
“This handsome, leather-jacket-wearing military hero adopted a dog who failed training? He doesn’t just sound like a good book boyfriend, he sounds like the book boyfriend gold standard.
Haylee, we’re going to need you to marry this Logan, mkay? ”
“I’ll plan the wedding,” Sadie volunteered.
“You’ll be too busy preparing for that baby,” Laurel insisted. “I’ll plan the wedding.”
“We can make it a joint effort,” Jamie proposed.
“The letter’s from Melly’s father,” Haylee blurted.
The table went silent for several long seconds.
“Logan is Melly’s father?” Laurel asked, her tone less lighthearted and more protective mama bear on the verge of an attack. Good thing Logan wasn’t in Warren’s Sea Shack tonight, or things would escalate before Haylee could explain.
“No,” Haylee said quickly, digging the letter out of the depths of her purse once more. “Logan is just the messenger.”
“What is that?” Sadie asked, swiping for the envelope.
Haylee was faster. She clutched the letter against her rapidly beating heart, dread filling every pore of her body as she sucked in a sharp inhale. But there weren’t enough deep breaths in the world to calm her nervous system now. It was officially on overload for the foreseeable future.
“Is that like a paternity test or something?” Jamie asked of the envelope.
“It’s a letter from Melly’s late father.”
Haylee let out a sigh, the corners of her eyes pricking with unshed tears.
She fought to keep them from falling. The last thing she wanted was to cause a scene in a very public restaurant.
The news would reach her entire family by dawn if she did, and she wasn’t ready to tell everyone. Not yet. She needed more time to think.
“Late father?” Laurel asked gently, reaching her hand across the table and placing it on top of Haylee’s.
“From what I understand, he was killed in action about a year ago.”
That was all Logan told her that day outside her apartment. All she allowed him to tell her before she ran back inside and hid like the coward she was.
“He was military, too?” Jamie asked.
“It’s a long story,” Haylee said. “I promise I’ll tell you all everything. But not right now. I—I need time to figure things out. And time to read this letter.”
“You haven’t read it yet?” Sadie asked, her bright eyes widening.
Haylee flipped the envelope over to show them it was sealed.
“I’m not ready to read it,” she admitted. “That’s why Logan’s still here. He can’t leave until I do. Dylan put some secret code word in the stupid thing, and until I figure out what it is, he can’t leave town.”
“Dylan?” Sadie repeated, eyebrows draw in concentration.
“You never met him,” Haylee quickly explained. “None of you did.”
“Do you want one of us to read it?” Laurel offered.
“No,” Haylee said, squeezing her sister’s hand in gratitude for the offer. “I need to do this.”
“So, lunch tomorrow with our gold-standard book boyfriend is not a date?” Jamie asked, her tone purposely over-the-top disappointed.
“It’s not a date,” Haylee admitted, almost wishing it was. But even if Logan were Sunset Ridge’s newest eligible bachelor, they could never actually date. Logan would probably hate her for keeping Melly a secret from Dylan, despite her reasons.
She stared at the letter once more, vowing to read it after she took Allie to the park.
“Maybe this is fate—”
“Don’t go there,” Haylee cut Sadie off before she could finish her sentence. “And you are all sworn to secrecy until I figure all this out. Not a word, understood?”