Page 75 of The Lucky Heart (Jamison Valley 3)
Paxon didn’t give us the choice to go alone. I insisted on riding in the backseat, where I stayed silent during the trip into town. The two of them chatted about their former squad members while I stared out my window.
“How about I buy you a drink?” Paxon asked Silas as we rolled down Main Street. “I couldn’t live with myself if I didn’t hit the . . . Silver Dollar Saloon,” he read from the bar’s neon sign.
Silas chuckled. “Sounds good. Felicity?” His eyes tipped to the rearview mirror.
“No, thank you.” I faked another yawn. “Maybe some other time.”
When he pulled into my drive, I breathed a sigh of relief. Ironic, wasn’t it? An hour ago, I never would have asked to leave Silas’s side. Now I was more than ready to be home alone.
“Thanks for the pizza. Nice to meet you, Paxon,” I said, opening the door. My polite farewell earned me another rude grunt. “Or not.”
“I’ll call you later.” Silas reached a hand back to squeeze my knee before I waved and jumped out of the truck.
I didn’t waste any time getting ready for bed and crawling beneath my heavy comforter. Though it could have ended on a much better note, one good thing had come from the evening.
I still had Silas’s sweatshirt.
“So? How’d it go?” Silas asked when I answered his call.
I turned my car down Main Street, smiling. “Great. I aced it.”
“I knew you would.” I couldn’t see it, but I knew he was smiling too. “Pax and I are going to the café for dinner tonight. Meet us there? I’ll buy you a congratulatory bacon cheeseburger.”
My lip curled at the thought of seeing Paxon. Not only had he been an asshole to me but he’d also been occupying all of Silas’s time. I hadn’t seen Silas since the night Paxon had arrived, and though I missed Silas’s company, I had no desire to celebrate anything in Paxon’s presence.
“I’d be a horrible dinner guest. I’m exhausted from the trip so I think I’m going to swing into Maple’s for a hot chocolate and then go home to watch TV. I’ll probably fall asleep on the couch.”
It wasn’t entirely a lie. I was tired. I’d gotten up before dawn to drive the four hours to Missoula, where the realtor licensing exam had been administered. My early morning alarm paired with the stress of the actual test, plus the drive back, had drained all my energy reserves. I was looking forward to a relaxing evening in my sweatpants.
“How about tomorrow?” he asked.
“I can’t. Jess and Gigi invited me to tag along to their Friday-night dinner at the café. What are you doing this weekend?”
“I’ve got a list, like always.” Silas’s to-do list resembled an encyclopedia.
“Do you think you could get away? I was thinking about going to a movie.”
“Just text me when. I’ll make time.”
My smiled widened. “Okay. Bye.”
I parked in front of Maple’s and walked inside. My smile turned to a grimace when I saw a pair of black eyes watching me stroll through the door.
Shouldn’t he be at the ranch?
“Hello, Paxon. Here to taint another one of my favorite places?”
There went the snark. Silas was definitely going to hear about this one. Damn.
“Felicity. How are you?”
Like he really cared. “I’m fantastic. You?” Like I really cared.
“Awesome.” He leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his bulky chest. His legs were planted wide and he kicked out the chair across from him. “Join me.”
Was that an invitation or an order? I couldn’t tell.
“I’d love to. Really,” I said dryly, “but I’m just grabbing something to go before I head home. I need to wax my eyebrows and I think that would be less painful than sharing a coffee with you.”
