Hope now saw Archie squaring his shoulders, standing taller, and he pulled her by the arm toward him. As though he was the one protecting her from a stranger on the street.
The reality of the situation snapped Hope into action. She had become unhinged on the sidewalk of downtown Irish Hills.
She probably did look insane, like Archie had said. Still, she would not put it past Archie to take a swing at Greg. And she knew Greg could disconnect Archie’s jaw. This wasn’t good.
“Okay, no, no, no. This is my friend, my neighbor,” Hope explained. She had a hand on Archie’s chest.
“Detective Greg McQueen, to you.”
That correction had the effect of taking Archie’s bravado down one notch. He was a jerk sometimes, but he wasn’t in the habit of getting arrested.
“Tell your detective friend to butt out of our conversation about our business,” he growled. “It is none of his.”
“Archie, give me a minute. Is that your rental car over there? Go over there and give me a minute.” She was firm but had brought her voice down to a more reasonable volume.
Archie exhaled, let her arm go, and fixed Greg with a nasty stare.
Oh brother. Men.
He did, however, back up and walk back to his rental car but glared in Greg’s direction as he retreated.
Hope turned her attention to Greg.
“Are you in danger?” he asked urgently. “Can you speak freely?”
“I understand what you’re doing, and it’s very nice, but I’m not in danger. If anyone was in danger, it was Archie. I was losing it.”
“It’s not nice. It’s serious. I have been in situations where women are afraid to ask for my help while still in sight of their abusers.”
Hope realized how much Greg must have seen in his career, how many times he’d been there in people’s worst moments. She felt bad that he had to see one of her own worst moments.
“Archie has never once laid a hand on me in anger. He is not violent, and neither am I. We are, however, at some sort of crossroads. I ran from the mess he made—maybewemade—
anyway, now I need to face what’s left.”
“What would you like me to do?”
“Try not to think poorly of me, now that you saw me this way, with that guy.”
“I think you’re spectacular, in all ways.”
At that moment, Hope wanted to hug Greg. But she had Archie to deal with. She didn’t want to escalate the already charged dynamic. Hope reached out her hand, took Greg’s in hers, and gave it a squeeze. She hoped it reassured him that she was okay, and that she was grateful for his concern.
“I’m fine. Thank you. Truly.”
She left Greg, who did not appear to want to let her go, but he did. Greg slowly headed back to his own vehicle but didn’t get in it. If death stares were a thing, Greg and Archie were crossing streams in the middle of Irish Hills.
This was partly her fault. She’d skipped a step.
She had thought she was taking a break, then she’d convinced herself that she was moving on, but seeing Archie here now, she realized that coming to Irish Hills had been a kind of running away.
She needed to hash it out with Archie if she was going to create the restaurant, the life that she envisioned in Irish Hills.
She called into the restaurant.
“Camila, I’m going to have to leave for the afternoon. I’ve got a mess to clean up.”
“I heard. You good?”
