Major shot me a panicked glance.
I knew very little about Leo’s history—but whatever it might involve, I didn’t put it past him to use it to win a point or make an inappropriate joke. “God, Major. He’s fucking with you.”
Leo’s muffled giggle confirmed my suspicions.
Major let out a patient breath. “That’s not funny, Leo.”
“It’s a little funny.”
“Okay, fine. But I can also be proud of you and Love for doing things on your own timelines.”
This time Leo’s grin was real. “I’m proud of me, too,” he said, letting himself out the door. “I’ll call you if I get stuck on anything.”
“Drive safely, you menace,” Major shouted, his hand cupped around his mouth.
Leo chuckled as he shut the door. At the same time, my phone played the opening chords to “Crawl Through Hell,” my notification for Hen. Shaking my head at our young friend, I fished my phone out of my jacket pocket.
What the?—
I held the screen up for Major to see, and he snorted into his fist. “Fucking Hendrix.”
“For sure, this is a sign of the apocalypse,” I moaned, staring at the picture in my hand. A goddamned selfie of Hen with my parents at the Seguin Bean.
Hen:Ray and Cordelia say hi
Hen:I was on my best behavior
Another text came in, this one from my mother. Major laughed even harder when I showed him that message.
Mom:Hendrix is a delight. A handful, and not fit for mixed company, but a delight nonetheless.
Mom:Boy, are you in trouble.
Fucking hell.
I returned my phone to my pocket and rubbed my face. “I should get going, too. I’m gonna go change into something more comfortable. See what that gets me.”
“Good luck,” Major said, pulling me in for a hug and a kiss on the temple.
I sighed. If I was going to be myself around Hen, I’d need all the luck I could get.
CHAPTER 9
hendrix
I finished my tea and said goodbye to Allie. As much as it sucked to be alone, I’d found that my social battery didn’t have a lot of juice these days. Deciding to stop in at the bar another day, I headed back toward my loaner truck.
Just as I put the key in the door, a familiar voice grated across my nerves.
“Hendrix, fancy seeing you here.”
I glanced to my side. Dick DeWitt, town asshole and father of Chase DeWitt, was standing far too close to me. He had the same shit-brown hair and pasty complexion he’d given his son. The only real difference between them was that, where Chase had dull eyes and the intellect of an overused pencil, Dick DeWitt had always been sharp enough to draw blood.
I clenched my jaw and bit back a curse. “Mr. DeWitt.”
“Shouldn’t you be back in Europe?” he asked, curling his lip. “It’s been over a month since your little incident in Mexico.”
I wondered if I could drive Ren’s truck far enough to get away from this man.
