“Weeks? You’ve known for weeks and you haven’t said a word?”
“Most couples don’t share the news until after the first trimester.” Lacey’s voice dropped a notch. “In case things go wrong.”
Guilt rolled over me and I put a hand on Lacey’s shoulder. “I’m sorry. Let me give you a ride home.”
Lacey slid off the edge of the bed. “I’m not going home. I still have work to get done today. But I’ll tell you what you can do.”
“What’s that?” I asked, already dreading whatever plan Lacey might concoct. There was a ninety-nine percent chance it would involve me and Alex.
“Alex needs to take a look at the warehouse. Why don’t you let me take your truck, then he can drop you at the shelter, and you can show him the warehouse on the way?”
I wasn’t going to let myself be manipulated that easy. Not when Lacey’s plan had a whole lot more to do with matchmaking than it did with being efficient. “That seems unnecessary. Why doesn’t Alex drop you off back at your office and you can stop at the warehouse on the way?”
“Because I don’t have time to traipse around while there’s a Munyon wedding to plan. I’m already way behind.” Lacey held out her hand.
“Fine.” I huffed out a breath as I handed over my keys. “I don’t know why I let you boss me around like that.”
“Because you love me.” Lacey flung an arm around me as she stood. “Now the two of you get going. I’m going to get dressed and then I’ve got a wedding planner to call.”
I didn’t have the energy to argue. Giving in to Lacey was always the path of least resistance. Besides, I was still reeling with the news that my best friend had managed to keep a secret of epic proportions from me for weeks. I shot a glance toward Alex, who’d been a silent witness to our entire exchange.
“Come on, Sanders, let’s go.” So much for him not sticking around. I tamped down any lingering sparks of interest. Now that Lacey was pregnant, she’d probably double down on her efforts to get me matched up with one of the few single men in town.
I might let Lacey get her way when it came to insignificant struggles like where to order takeout and whose turn it was to drive. But if she tried messing around with my love life, she’d be in for a rude awakening. Whether Alex Sanders was lickable or not, I decided there was no way in hell I’d be another bell for him to ring.
CHAPTER 5
ALEX
A few minuteslater I held the door for Zina as she climbed into the front seat of my brother-in-law’s truck. Since Dave obviously wasn’t using it, Char told me I could borrow it while I was in town.
I gave the door a gentle push to close it as Zina got settled. She didn’t seem too thrilled at the idea of showing me around the warehouse, but if I wanted to get started on constructing a temporary habitat for those birds, I needed to get a move on. At least Lacey seemed to be on board. Hopefully the wedding wouldn’t get too out of hand. They’d started by requesting penguins. How much wilder could it get?
“Thanks for being willing to show me around.” I glanced to Zina, who stared straight ahead. “How long have you been living in Ido?”
“Too damn long.” She clipped her seat belt and gave me a smile. “Sorry if I came across as being a little difficult. Lacey has a way of taking over and expecting the rest of us to fall into line.”
I chuckled as I turned the key in the ignition. “My sister’s kind of like that.”
“Does she live around here?”
“Yeah, we grew up over in Swynton. Although, I spent plenty of time under the lights at the stadium here in Ido.”
Zina nodded. “And you’re back in town now to take care of some penguins?”
“Seems that way.” I couldn’t hold back my smile. I liked the curvy, dark-haired woman in the seat next to me. She had attitude. And based on the way she talked to Lacey, she didn’t take a bunch of shit from people. Reminded me of some of the badass women I’d met in Antarctica. “How did you get involved in the dog shelter?”
She gave a brief history of her experience in the military as a dog handler. “And then I came home and decided to take over For Pitties’ Sake. Now we seem to be a hot spot for people to dump their unwanted pit bulls.”
“My sister said something about a local dog-fighting ring?”
“Bodie thinks he’s closing in on them, but they keep moving their operation, and I get stuck with the leftovers. I don’t understand how people can be so cruel to an animal.” She shifted her gaze to straight ahead, but not before I caught a hint of hurt in her eyes.
“That sounds kind of dangerous. You ever think about a different line of work?”
“Running away only makes them think they’ve won.”
Spoken like a true warrior. My opinion of Zina rose by a few notches. “Sometimes the best bet is to retreat for a bit and come up with a game plan.”
