She’d be lucky if Stone didn’t run for the hills now and sign off on the whole thing.
Arilyn reached into the refrigerator and uncorked a new bottle of wine.
She was going to need it.
THE DATE WAS NOT what he expected.
When she opened the door, his breath literally caught. She was gorgeous. Didn’t matter if she was in yoga pants, a short skirt, or nothing at all. The woman owned her body, and he loved how each motion held an undercurrent of deliberate grace. Like a dancer, she moved as if music were always playing.
He handed her the bottle of wine and the six-pack of beer, bent to kiss her, and stopped cold.
Seemed his date had become a threesome.
And not in a good way.
Mrs. Blackstone—was that her name?—stood a few feet behind Arilyn, glaring in her usual way. He’d met her only a handful of times, but she was a constant complainer and the cops usually ducked when she called. She’d been the one to catch the vandal in action over the summer, but she kind of scared him with her narrowed eyes peering behind thick frames and a harsh manner. What was she doing here?
Another older gentleman had his back to him. Probably her grandfather. Stone leaned over to whisper, “We have an audience?”
“I’m so sorry. My grandfather surprised me and invited the witch—er, Mrs. Blackfire to dinner. I couldn’t stop him.”
She looked worried, as if he’d be pissed. Actually, his sense of humor kicked in because it was kinda funny. Stone patted his pocket. “Guess I won’t be handing over these babies tonight.”
She flushed, but then a chuckle escaped her lips, and Stone couldn’t help it. He leaned down and kissed her again, right in front of her audience. He had a feeling Arilyn would always be picking up strays along the way and inviting them to dinner.
“Stone Petty?”
He jerked back at the familiar, booming voice. Lifted his head. “Patrick? What are you doing here?”
Patrick let out a laugh. “I’m Arilyn’s grandfather. You’re her date?”
Arilyn glanced back and forth. “You two know each other?”
Stone grinned and moved forward. “Are you kidding? We call him ‘the Hustler’ down at Ray’s Billiards. He’s always making our wallets lighter on the force. How the hell are you?”
“Good. Guess I’m bustin’ in on your date, huh? Hey, wait a minute.” His face scrunched up. “Are you the jerk cop in her class giving her trouble?”
Arilyn groaned. “Poppy! That was between us.”
Stone laughed. Her skin grew more flushed. He couldn’t wait to show her the many ways he intended to make her blush later. “Me? I’ve been a model student. Besides, aren’t you supposed to lead by example? Seems you have a bit of a temper yourself.” He tugged at her hair and she gave him the familiar glare he knew and was beginning to like.
“I refuse to allow you to bait me tonight. Stone, this is my neighbor Mrs. Blackfire.”
Stone straightened and entered the senior firing squad. He offered his hand. “A pleasure to meet you again, ma’am.”
She shook his hand with pure suspicion. “I know who you are. Why aren’t you in uniform?”
“I’m off duty now.”
“What if something happens and the town needs you? The board said you were short staffed. That’s how drug dealers invade small towns, you know. Lack of police supervision.”
“That’s true. A solid reminder not to bother the police unless it’s urgent.”
She sniffed. “Are you referring to me personally, Officer?”
Stone grinned. “Were you the one who called three times to make a citizen’s arrest on the poor kid who delivers newspapers?”
“I caught him spying through my window. He may have been trying to see me in a compromising position.”
A shudder shook him at that visual. Patrick looked amused, though, and seemed to be a bit sweet on her. Interesting. “The paper got caught in one of the bushes and Pete knows how you like it centered on the front porch. You almost got him fired.”
“If he can’t throw, he shouldn’t be hired for such a position.”
“He’s twelve.”
“Good, he’ll learn early.”
Oh, yeah. This was gonna be a fun night.
Patrick eyed the six-pack of IPA and lunged for it. “You brought beer! My kind of guy!”
He caught Arilyn’s eye roll and held back a laugh. “Just one, Poppy! I mean it.”
“Yeah, yeah, of course. And it’s IPA, my fave. Joan, wine?”
Mrs. Blackfire sniffed. “Half of a glass, please. I noticed that tree branch is still overgrown. It’s sticking out on my property. If you had let my tree guy cut it, we wouldn’t have this problem.”
Arilyn sighed. “You wanted to cut it down, not trim it!”
“A good thing they gave me back my money. I can’t afford to waste money with Social Security.”
Patrick interrupted, his tone firm. “Joan, I thought we discussed the tree. It’s not a danger, and Arilyn won’t cut it down. But if we’re going to have a nice dinner together, we no longer bring up the tree. Agreed?”
Silence descended. Stone held his breath, even though he had no idea what was going on. Somehow, he sensed a shift and didn’t know if it was going to be good or bad.
Mrs. Blackfire grunted. “Fine. Make it a full glass of wine, please.”
“You got it.”
Patrick smiled and winked.
Arilyn looked surprised. There was definite history between her and the neighbor. In Stone’s experience, neighbors made for the most dramatic fights in cop history. Stone walked into the small kitchen and began pouring the drinks. “Something smells good.”