by Regina Duke
“Me, too. You girls want to ride with us? Or take your limo?”
Minion bubbled over with giggles. “It’s Karla’s. I don’t have a limo.” Her giggles died as she remembered she was supposed to be on the verge of murderous rage.
Karla decided quickly. “We’ll go back with you. Let me get our paints. I’ll tell our driver to pick us up at your office later.”
Minion waited with Ashley and chewed on her fingernails as Thor fetched take-out containers for the rest of their meal.
Ashley said gently, “That’s a difficult habit to stop, isn’t it? I used to bite mine, too.”
Minion’s eyes bulged. “But your nails are perfect. What did you do? Because Karla keeps telling me my hands look too human and insecure and she wants to get me fake nails, but my mom won’t let me unless I pay for it myself and my allowance will never cover that.”
Ashley blinked as she tried to keep up with Minion’s rapid-fire conversation. There was a question in there somewhere, she was sure of it. “Oh. Yes. I dipped my fingers in Tabasco sauce every morning, then wiped it off my finger tips but left it on my nails. It didn’t take long to lose that habit.”
Minion brightened. “I’ll try that. Oh. Wait. Would a vampire do that? I have to ask Karla.”
Ashley tilted her head. “What’s this vampire thing all about?”
Minion glanced out the window. Karla was waving goodbye to the limo driver. Minion talked even faster than before.
“When me and Karla met in school, I was all shy and afraid, you know? And some of the kids laughed at me because of my clothes and because it’s really hard for me to sit still. And Karla stood up for me and told them to back off or she’d let her inner vampire out and they would all be sorry? And she showed me how to dress all in black and she’s helping me learn to be calm and in control and stuff? She’s really cool.”
Ashley smiled. “She’s your BFF.”
“Totally, forever,” gushed Minion.
Thor was ready to go. The four of them piled into the SUV.
Karla and Minion sat in back, whispering to each other. Rocky was busy sniffing at them. The girls were petting him, completely unfazed by his breed and demeanor.
Thor glanced in the rearview mirror. “Everything okay back there?”
Karla put a finger to her lips. “Yes. Just planning our day at school tomorrow.”
It didn’t take long to reach the office. Thor pulled up in front.
“There,” said Karla darkly. “See what they did?”
The girls had transformed the windows into a Halloween graveyard scene. A sinister moon hung in a deep navy sky. A tall figure dressed in black peered over his own raised arm. His green eyes and vampire fangs jumped out. Next to him was a noble female vampire dressed in black with blood red details. Moonlight shimmered on their shoulders. They were menacing and angry, drawing back from a small cottage draped in garlic. Next to the cottage was a sign, “Protected by Thor Security.”
In the space between the cottage and the vampires, the girls had painted a series of staggered tombstones, making them look like three-dimensional granite. Now, two of them were defaced by red paint spelling out the names “Ashley” and “Thor.”
Ashley drew back. “That’s creepy.”
“And crappy,” complained Karla. “We have to wash all that off and redo those tombstones. It’s a lot of work to make them look like real stone. I hope we can finish before it’s too dark to photograph properly.”
Thor’s brow darkened. “I’ll write you a note. You girls get to work. Start by taking pictures of the damage. You might as well chronicle that in your report. If you have to, just touch up around the red paint and don’t start over with the tombstones. It’s still a hundred times better than the other windows I’ve seen around town. Just leave our names where they are.”
Karla’s brows shot up. “You wouldn’t mind? It’s kind of ominous looking.”
Ashley tossed her dark hair over one shoulder. “Can you make the male vampire blond? Then it would look like Thor, and we could pretend we just crawled out of those defaced graves.”
“That’s a great idea. Come on, Mindy. Let’s get to work.”
The girls scrambled out of the car.
Thor nodded in approval. “Nice save.” He gestured toward the window. “They’ve done a terrific job.”
“They’re very talented. And Karla is quite the social worker.” She relayed to him what Minion had told her.
Thor listened and smiled. “I’ll bet it didn’t take Mindy that long to tell it.”
They were still smiling as they carried what was left of their lunch into the office. Rocky followed close behind.
Britney Beth was on the office phone. She whirled around when they entered, waving her free hand frantically in the air.
“Thor! Your daddy’s having a heart attack!”
CHAPTER THIRTY
Thor took the phone from Britney Beth. “Dad? What’s going on?”
The sound of Rudy Garrison’s voice filled Thor with relief.
“Tell that girl to stop making mountains out of molehills,” he grumbled. “I’m not having a heart attack. I just pushed too hard this week. Not enough sleep. Forgot to eat. I have that trip to Kuwait coming up and I have a thousand things to do before I go.”
Thor dropped onto the sofa against the wall. “Where are you now, daddy? Why didn’t you call me on my cell?”
“I’m in the danged ER. Your brother made me come. I called your number. You only show up on the danged thing three different times. I used the first one.”
Thor nodded. “That’s my office number, daddy.”
“And you weren’t there, were you? No, I had to talk to that scatterbrained girl.” He took a breath. “Don’t worry. They’re letting me go.”
Thor could hear Uly’s voice in the background, but Rudy had covered the phone before he could make out what he was saying.
At last, Rudy was back. “Uly tells me you’re getting married. I’m so happy for you. Er, you’re not marrying Britney Beth, are you?”
Thor’s gaze shot to Britney Beth, who was having a little anxiety dance by the coffee pot. “No, dad, I’m not.”
“Well, who’s the lucky girl, then?”
Thor took a deep breath and said, “Ashley. Her name is Ashley Clair. She’s very special.”
Color rose in Ashley’s cheeks.
Britney Beth stopped shifting from foot to foot and glared at Thor.
Thor saw her discomfort and poured it on. “We’ve already set the date.”
“That’s what Uly told me. Oh, for the love of Pete. Sorry, son. I have to go. They want to hook me up to another danged machine. Don’t you worry about me. It takes more than overwork to kill old Rooster Garrison. I’ll be seeing you soon. Can’t wait to meet Ashley. Oh, one more thing. Your mother will be landing in Pueblo in about an hour. She expects you to pick her up at the airport. Gotta go.” He hung up.
Thor stared at the phone for several seconds.
Ashley moved cautiously to his side. “Everything okay?”
Thor gave an exasperated sigh. “I have to drive to Pueblo and I have to leave now. My mother’s flying in and wants me to pick her up. You want to come?”
Ashley held up both palms. “No, thanks. I need to read the rest of dad’s letters. I’ll stay here.”
Britney Beth muttered, “Oh joy. More girl time.”
Ashley ignored her.
“Okay,” said Thor. “But I hate the idea of leaving you without protection.”
Ashley shrugged. ”It occurs to me that a serious attacker would drive by and spray the office with machine-gun fire.”
Thor’s was horrified. “What on Earth made you think of such a thing?”
“Sorry, but think about it. Whoever is following me doesn’t want me dead. I can’t figure out exactly what they do want, but my life is not it.”
Thor grimaced. “I still dislike leaving you alone. After all, if Agnew Spinoza’s enemies are
after something, once they get it, they won’t care about your life. Those people are dangerous.”
Britney Beth stepped up and poured on the treacle. “But she’s not alone, sugar bear. She’s here with me. If anything bad happens, I can call 911.”
Thor studied his shoes.
“Go,” said Ashley. “It’s okay.”
Thor nodded. “All right. I’ll leave Rocky with you, too.”
“He’ll keep me safe,” said Ashley.
Thor caught sight of Britney Beth’s glare out of the corner of his eye. He couldn’t resist. He leaned in and kissed Ashley softly on the lips.
Britney Beth shrieked in protest.
Thor felt a tingle shoot straight to his toes. He pulled away. His puzzlement was echoed on Ashley’s features. She raised a hand to her lips as he smiled and backed toward the door.
Unable to form a coherent sentence, he mumbled, “Bye,” and left.
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
Ashley was stunned by the power of the kiss, but she couldn’t sit around mooning all day over Thor, so she set her feelings aside and got down to business, reading her father’s letters to her mother.
She stopped to stretch at three, and realized she had about twenty letters left to read, and she still hadn’t opened the second box.
Rocky was feeling better, and he bounced around the room, sniffing his bed, rolling on the rug in the middle of the room, and trying to make a spot for himself on the leather sofa. Ashley clipped his leash on and took him outside for a short walk. She wasn’t worried about her safety with Rocky by her side. Ten minutes later, they returned.
Britney Beth was stretched out on the sofa with a laptop open on her tummy. She swung her legs off and sat up as soon as she saw Ashley. With one hand, she patted Rocky’s side.
“You’re back.” It was only a statement, but it sounded like a condemnation to Ashley.
“Yes,” she said wearily. “No Thor yet?”
Britney Beth tapped a few keys on the laptop and closed the lid. “Oh, you never know with Thor. Maybe his mother’s plane was late. Or maybe he started talking to a potential client at the airport. He runs on his own schedule. He’s just like his daddy that way. Old Rooster’s always leaving Polly behind for weeks at a time while he gallivants all over the world doing oil business. Of course, it works out for me, because it gives me lots of time to get to know Polly. Too bad you’re a stranger to her.”
Ashley shrugged. “I guess once she’s my mother-in-law, we’ll be forced to get know each other.” She frowned at the laptop. “Isn’t that Thor’s computer?”
“Of course,” said Britney Beth as if it would be silly for her to use any other computer. “Every time I visit, I use it to watch my programs.”
“I see.” Ashley didn’t, but at the moment she didn’t much care. She doubted Britney Beth had much time for television. She struck Ashley as the kind of woman who made her own excitement. “Any coffee left?”
“No, but there’s some Coca-Cola in the fridge in back. Let me get you one.”
Ashley’s brows knit together. “Okay,” she said cautiously. “You’re not going to spike it with rat poison, are you?”
Britney Beth threw her head back and laughed. It almost sounded genuine. “Oh, Ashley, you’re really funny. No, I’m not going to spike your Coke.” She disappeared and came back quickly with an unopened can. “I’m much more of a smother’em-while-they-sleep kind of gal.”
That pronouncement did nothing to reassure Ashley, but she could appreciate the fact that Britney Beth seemed to be offering some kind of olive branch, in her own twisted way.
“Thanks,” said Ashley. She opened the can and drank deeply. “Oh, that’s good. I needed some sugar.”
“High fructose corn syrup,” said Britney Beth. “But it serves the same purpose. How do you like your new car?”
Ashley set her purse on the floor and drooped into the chair by the desk. “It drives like a dream. I had no idea a new car could come with so many bells and whistles. I’m going to have to study the manual in order to work the A/C and the heater. As for all the other stuff, good grief. There’s a GPS mapping system, a computer screen in the dash, back up cameras and sensors, and goodness knows what else. The seats even fold down at the push of a button.”
“Yes, I know. I mean, I’ve looked at that model myself. But I guess I’ll just have to settle for my old Mercedes. Daddy bought it for me way back in May.”
Ashley made a face. “I didn’t know six months qualified as old.”
Britney Beth didn’t miss a beat. “Oh, yes, in the world of cars, it might as well be last year’s model.”
The Coke was perking Ashley up, and she almost laughed at Britney Beth’s summation of the automotive industry. She removed Rocky’s leash and he settled on his bed.
“Oh, by the way,” said Britney Beth with a sweetness that put Ashley on immediate alert. “While you were out, someone slipped this through the mail slot. It’s addressed to you. Can’t imagine what it is.” She reached across Thor’s desk and retrieved a pastel envelope. “Is it your birthday or something?”
Ashley frowned. “No.” She took the envelope and her breath caught. Her name was there, clearly written in her mother’s hand. “Oh, my gosh!” She tore open the flap and pulled out a folded sheet of expensive bond. “I can’t believe it!” She snatched up her bag and ran for the door, the paper falling to the floor in her wake.
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
Thor listened to his mother chatter all the way back from the airport. He tried to pay attention, but she jumped all over the place, and sometimes he wasn’t quite sure whether he was missing important information because he blocked out her voice, or if she just wasn’t supplying it.
“And with your father headed for Kuwait again, I just think it’s terrific that you agreed to have the wedding before he goes.”
“Huh? What?”
“I miss him so much when he’s out of the country. Only down side to the oil biz if you ask me, Thor Baby. I know Ulysses is loving every minute of it, but I have to think that his marriage was doomed because his wife couldn’t deal with the travel and the danger. Course, she missed out in the long run, didn’t she? I wouldn’t be enjoying the life I have now if your daddy was a pencil pusher, would I? No, sirree. I am loving my luxuries, sugar, and you know that’s true.” She unwrapped a candy bar and took a bite.
“Not that, mama. I mean, what did you say I agreed to?”
“Why, getting married before your daddy goes overseas again. And your brother Uly is postponing his business trip as well. They’ll both be here in time for the ceremony. They promised me they would.”
Thor counted slowly to ten inside his head. Britney Beth had set it all up, so now she’d have to watch him say vows with the most beautiful woman on the planet. Served her right.
“Of course, hiding Ashley from me in the first place wasn’t like you, pumpkin.” She pronounced it punkin. “But your brother said maybe you were just trying to develop your relationship without a bunch of people butting in.” Her tone revealed how hurt she was by that comment.
“Oh, mama, you know I don’t feel that way about you. The hardest part about leaving Texas was leaving you behind. You know that.”
Mollified, Polly closed the wrapper, tucked the candy bar in a plastic baggy, and put it in her purse. “Thank you, darlin’. That means a lot to me.”
“And Uly’s marriage would have failed, with or without your input. Sheila was all wrong for him. Rule number one, never marry a girl you meet in a bar on spring break.”
Polly’s expression brightened. “That means you did not meet your Ashley in a bar? Wonderful.”
Thor started to roll his eyes, but stopped himself. “Of course not, mom.”
Polly smiled encouragingly.
Thor decided the truth — highly edited — was the way to go.
“I met Ashley when she walked into my office in search of security.”
There. That wasn’t too
bad.
Polly looked concerned. “Oh, really? Tell me all about it.”
Thor swore silently to himself. “Mom, I think it’s better if you meet Ashley face to face, okay? Before we talk about her behind her back.”
“I suppose you’re right, dear. We shouldn’t discuss Ashley before I meet her. You don’t want to sway my opinion too much, do you? But if Rocky likes her, I’m sure I will, too.”
“Britney Beth thinks you’re going to be furious with me for having him neutered,” said Thor, unable to pull his thoughts away from the instigator of his personal chaos.
“Oh, don’t be silly, Thor Baby. I gave Rocky to you to keep you safe. I know you had good reasons for having him fixed. And I also know that you would never deprive me of his blood line.”
Thor smiled. “You guessed already, didn’t you?”
Polly grinned. “You’ve seen me use sperm banks before. I figured you took care of that before his surgery.”
“I did. You can have Rocky puppies whenever you want. But you never breed unless a dog is a champion, so I’m surprised. Why Rocky?”
“Because he’s such a fine working dog. You’ve done amazing things with him. And there are a couple of organizations back home looking for sturdy working stock.” She reached out and patted Thor’s leg. “I’m hoping I’ll have Thor puppies before long.”
Thor’s eyes widened, but he bit his tongue and kept driving. He tossed out a question guaranteed to keep his mother’s mind occupied for the rest of the trip. “And how are the dogs?”
Polly did not disappoint. She chatted amiably for the next twenty minutes, filling Thor in on dog shows and points and majors and obedience classes and a hundred other details about her kennels.
Thor thought at one point that he spotted Ashley in her new SUV driving way too fast in the opposite direction. He shook it off. He’d only caught a glimpse of the woman behind the wheel and she looked far too pale to be Ashley.
Thor parked in front of his office and came around to open the door for his mother.
Karla and Minion were busy with the last details on the window. They paused as Thor helped his mother from the car. Rocky trotted over to Karla for an ear rub and a cookie.
