“On sale?” Verna reared back. “We have another storm coming next week. I say we double the price. We’re supposed to make money, you know.”
Serenity winced. “Yeah, but with more bad weather on the way, I thought we could give people a break.”
Verna shook her head. “You’re never going to be a multimillionaire who expands this place into other cities if you give people breaks all the time.”
Serenity blinked. “I have no intention of expanding this place. I like it the way it is.”
Verna sighed. “There goes my chance to work in Hawaii.”
Serenity looked over her shoulder where Earl was, once again, rearranging the shovels. “They don’t need a lot of shovels in Hawaii.” The door slid open, and everything inside her went still.
Rory walked inside and stood near the long umbrellas, his stance set, shoulders back, blue eyes blazing.
“I don’t suppose he wants to buy a shovel,” Verna murmured.
Chapter 2
Among her friends, Serenity McDerny was known as someone who kept her head clear in a crisis. She was calm, collected, and a quick thinker. However, as she stood next to the sparkling Christmas tree, she could only stare.
Rory’s gaze swept the store until it landed on her. Even across the distance, a punch of power from those sapphire-blue eyes hit her hard. One of his dark eyebrows rose. His hair was jet-black, and he had the Albertini height at about six foot two with broad shoulders and muscled arms. He’d always seemed more sleek than bulky, but he could move fast if he wanted to, and at the moment…he did. Within seconds, he was standing in front of her.
She put her hands on her hips. “What do you want, Rory?”
An intense expression flashed across his face, but it was gone as quickly as it had arrived. Even so, her abdomen warmed. “We both know what I want,” he murmured, keeping his gaze locked squarely on hers. “Hi, Verna. How’s it going?” he asked without releasing Serenity’s gaze.
“Pretty good,” the woman said, a smile in her voice. “Now, if you don’t mind, I’m going to the back room. I’m sure we have nails that need to be sorted.” There was a swish of sound as she quickly hustled away.
Rory’s cheek creased. “The entire town’s on my side. Don’t you think it’s time you forgave me?”
“Sure,” Serenity answered easily. “You’re forgiven. Now, go away.”
His lids half-lowered. “Darlin’, that’s not forgiveness.”
“Sure, it is. You are forgiven. I’m no longer mad. Now, you need to leave.”
She couldn’t take him in a fight, or she’d consider just wrestling him to the floor and tapping his head against the faded tile. But even if she could do that, she probably wouldn’t resort to violence. Still, she took a moment to enjoy the mental image and the ensuing shock on his angular face—after she let him up off the floor, of course.
“Whatever you’re thinking, I don’t think I like it,” Rory murmured.
“No, you probably wouldn’t,” she agreed.
His shoulders went back just enough to show his dwindling patience. He cocked his head to the side. “What’s up with the blond streaks in your hair?”
She’d been heartbroken and had made a dumb decision. Not that she’d ever admit it. “I wanted something different. Now, leave.”
One of his dark eyebrows rose again. “How about you stop asking me to go away?”
“I wasn’t asking.”
His phone buzzed, and he lifted it to his ear, watching her with a look that made her abdomen clench. “Albertini.” He listened, his contemplation dropping to her mouth. “Hi, Sheriff. No, I didn’t put anything in Tessa’s boxes, nor did I deliver them. I think my brothers did.”
Serenity tilted her head. Tessa was one of Rory’s many cousins.
Rory sighed. “I hadn’t heard that, no. Thanks for telling me. If anybody asks, please tell them Serenity and I are out of touch right now. We need to handle a few things before dealing with my family.” His grin was quick. “You’re a good man. Bye.” He ended the call.
“What’s going on with Tessa?”
Rory lifted one shoulder. “She’s acting like Anna for some reason and ended up in some trouble. But the rest of the family is on it, and Basanelli is helping out, so I’m remaining focused on you for now.” Anna was Tessa’s younger sister, and as a lawyer in the city, she often ended up in unusual situations.
Serenity figured she’d call Tessa in a day or so once things calmed down. At the moment, she didn’t mind Rory letting folks know to leave them alone—not that the peace would last long in their small town. “You should go take care of your family.”
“You’re my family.” He sighed. “You mentioned something about phone calls last week when you burst by me in the diner.”
True. She had accused him of calling her. “Have you been calling me?”
He studied her for several long heartbeats. “No. I told you I’d give you until New Year’s to get over this mad, and I keep my word.”
She couldn’t help but roll her eyes. “You may keep your word, but half of them are lies.”
Finally, the amusement dancing in his eyes disappeared. “We both know that I couldn’t tell you about my job. I took an oath not to reveal the truth to anybody.”
“We were supposed to get married,” she spat. “I had a right to know you were in a dangerous job.”
“Maybe,” he allowed. “But I had to get an okay from a higher-up to tell you, and I hadn’t gotten that yet.”
So that’s what had taken so long. “That’s unfortunate,” she said. “As I see it, full disclosure was at hand when you asked me to marry you. I deserved to know everything before I said yes.”
“But you did say yes,” he reminded her.
“A temporary mistake, I assure you.” She missed small diamond more than she’d admit to anybody. The engagement ring had been simple and elegant, and the wedding band had been slightly larger. The two had curved together much like she and Rory had.
Of course, she’d thrown the ring at his face when they broke up. Good times. She glanced over to where Earl watched raptly from the far corner and gave him a look. He immediately turned to double-check the stacks of shower curtains on the shelves. “I don’t like your ultimatum of New Year’s,” she muttered.
“That’s unfortunate. You didn’t like my ultimatum of Christmas, either.” He cocked his head. “But I’ll make you a deal.”
She frowned. “What kind of deal?”
“Accompany me to the Elks Lodge New Year’s Eve dance, and I’ll give you until Valentine’s Day.”
Her chin lowered, and her ears heated. “You’re not calling the shots here. What do you mean, you’ll give me? There is no deadline. I broke up with you.”
“Which was a mistake.”
“The heck it was.” Her voice rose.
Earl looked over his shoulder and then quickly refocused on the shelves.
“We’re not getting back together, Rory. You need to get over it,” she said, her heart hurting.