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Sylvie laughed. “Damn, girl, you didn’t even come close.”
“Whatever,” she rolled on her side and gave Phae a needy look. “Try again? Only this time, roll it?”
Phae delivered the next bottle by hand and Neesa opened it and swigged it down greedily.
“I can’t believe you were playing football,” Phae said to Neesa.
“Ahh!” She recapped her bottle. “Yeah, I know, I probably made an ass out of myself, but it’s family, right? Besides, Tonio, Neptune and Jackson begged me to play.”
“Yeah,” Sylvie muttered, “but not on their team, right?”
“Right. So?”
“They wanted to win.”
Phae laughed. “Harsh.”
“I don’t care,” Neesa said. “They were so cute when they were all like, ‘Please, Cousin Neesy, please play with us.’ What was I supposed to say?”
“You were supposed to tell those cons that you’re not falling for their sweet talk, that’s what,” Sylvie said, handing Neesa a muffin.
“Aw, they’re just kids.”
Phae was inclined to agree with Sylvie, that those particular three boys were a trio of sharks in the making. But she knew Neesa’s soft spot for children, so said nothing. It wouldn’t have done any good, anyway.
Sylvie looked around the park. “What we need to do is find you a man, Neesa. Then you can have your own babies and get taken advantage of properly.”
Neesa blew out a loud breath. “Not gonna find me a man here. Every man worth having in Zeke’s Bend is already taken.”
“I guess you’re probably right,” Sylvie said. “I was lucky to snatch up Alan when I did.”
Phae and Neesa shared a quick look. They could do without men like Alan, and wished like hell that Sylvie would clue in and ditch him.
“So where is Dr. Alan today?” Neesa asked.
“Oh, he’ll probably be around later. He had some business to take care of first,” Sylvie answered, picking at a pile of seven-layer salad.
Phae and Neesa shared another look. Business. Yeah, right. Shady business with a bimbo at a sleazy motel in Rollinsburg. They said nothing, though.
“Hey!” Sylvie grinned at Phae. “Where’s that hot piece of billionaire you were smart enough to snatch up right away?”
Phae tried not to flinch but was unsuccessful. She didn’t want to answer the question, so she side-stepped it. “He’s not a billionaire.”
“Miss Eugenia says he is,” Neesa teased, “so it must be true.”
Phae snorted. “Right.”
“Well, even if he’s not a billionaire,” Sylvie said, “he’s probably a millionaire. I sure wouldn’t kick a millionaire out of my bed just because he wasn’t a billionaire.”
“That’s right!” Neesa agreed.
Neesa and Sylvie laughed while Phae rolled her eyes.
“That’s about the dumbest logic I’ve ever heard,” Phae said. “Not being a billionaire doesn’t automatically make you a millionaire. If it did, we’d all be rolling in cash.”
“That’s not how I meant it,” Sylvie said. “You’re not following how it is. Miss Eugenia brags about how much money Kent has, and of course, she exaggerates, because that’s what aunts and mommas do, they exaggerate. So, it makes sense that Kent’s not a billionaire, but he’s most definitely a millionaire because … because that’s how it works. It’s the next step down from billionaire.”
Phae had to admit it made a crazy sort of Sylvie-sense. But she wasn’t going to say it. “This is a pointless conversation.”
“I disagree,” Neesa said, eyes twinkling. “If my cousin’s going to hook up with a millionaire, then I think there’s lots of point in discussing it. By the way, I may need a loan for my farm, you don’t suppose you could, you know, drop a bug in someone’s ear about that …” she winked at Phae.
Sylvie laughed. “Good one. How about us, Phae? We could use some new equipment in the shop. Some fancy inset lighting would be good to spruce up the place. What do you think?”
“I think you’re both losing it today,” Phae answered. “Anyway, Kent Holmes wouldn’t loan me an ice cube on a hot day, and that’s the truth.”
Sylvie and Neesa’s faces fell.
“What do you mean?” Sylvie asked.
“Did something go wrong?” Neesa asked at the same time.
It was time to fess up. She couldn’t keep her breakup a secret forever. “It’s over. Kent went back to Phoenix.”
“What happened?” Neesa asked, sitting upright, leaning forward in concern.
Sylvie set aside her plate and scooted over to Phae, patting her leg. “He’s an ass. You’re better off without him.”
“She hasn’t even told us what happened yet,” Neesa said. “Maybe he’s not an ass. Not yet, anyway.”
“Oh,” Phae said, “he’s an ass. A total ass.”
“I knew it. But if you want,” Sylvie said, “I’ll tell James to call Kent and tell him to get back here and apologize. What are cousins good for, anyway? I’m sure the fight was all Kent’s fault. James will—”
“Don’t tell James or anyone else anything, please. It’s best left alone,” Phae said.
“What happened?” Neesa asked. “Tell us everything.”
Sylvie nodded. “Everything.” She looked around the park. “You don’t see Miss Eugenia, do you? We don’t want her to overhear us running down her beloved nephew.”
“We’re not going to run him down,” Phae said. “And I don’t want to talk about what happened. It didn’t work out. We’re too different.”
“Hmm,” Neesa murmured, her expression concerned.
Sylvie sighed. “It’s not a very satisfying breakup if you don’t get to rake your ex over the coals. Come on, Phae. What did he do?”
“It doesn’t matter. It’s over.”
“Damn,” Neesa said.
Sylvie nodded.
The three sat in silent contemplation for several minutes until they noticed James stepping out of the throng of people still playing football. He was headed their way.
“I think the game’s breaking up,” Sylvie said. “Here comes James.” She waved gaily at their over-sized cousin. “Right here, James!”
“Don’t tell him about Kent,” Phae hissed quickly. “Don’t tell anyone, please, either of you.”
Sylvie and Neesa solemnly nodded in agreement.
James sauntered up to the edge of the blanket and glowered down at Neesa. “I thought you said you were going to get me a drink. Instead, I find you over here stuffing your face while I’m nearly dehydrated. So where’s my drink?”
Neesa took a big bite of muffin and chewed thoroughly before answering. “Oh, you wanted something to drink? You should have asked.”
“I did ask! And you said you’d bring me one. God, women.” He stalked over to the cooler beside Phae and pulled out a frosty soft drink.
They watched him down the drink in one go.
“That’s disgusting,” Sylvie said, her upper lip curling. “You need to learn some manners, Sheriff. You’re a public servant and you should think about appearances if you want to get re-elected.”
James finished off the can then wiped off his mouth with the back of his hand, earning another reproving frown from Sylvie. “Voters don’t care if their sheriff has manners. They only care that he gets the job done. And I get the job done.”
The three women rolled their eyes at his macho act, each of them knowing how much he liked to play the tough guy but that he was a softy underneath.
Neesa grinned. “I think the football game has gotten his inner caveman all worked up. Maybe he needs refresher schooling from us, Phae, to put him back in his place.”
“Don’t start on that again,” James said. “If I have to hear one more time about that stupid contest, I’m going to lose it. I’m taking more heat than Kent did for running into Miss Eugenia’s laundry pole. Hey, where is Kent, anyway? Haven’t seen him in a while. I thought he’d be here with you, Phae.”
Before Phae could answer, Neesa leapt up off the blanket and grabbed James’ arm. “You know, I do remember promising you a drink now. There’s some extra special good stuff over there. Let’s go check it out. I’ll find something extra refreshing.”
