Page 37 of No Headlines Please

"Um…soon?"

With a snort, he glanced down at the paperwork. "You do realize, the eviction is a month old, right?"

"Yeah, but the receipt for the payment is a lot newer." I pointed at the second page – the one he was now studying. "That one's dated just a few days ago."

"I know. And that's the one you shouldn't have." And then, to my astonishment, he yanked the second page loose from the staple, crumpled it with one hand, and tossed it into the nearby trash can, where it disappeared through the swinging flap.

My jaw dropped. "What'd you do that for?"

"Because you weren't supposed to have it."

"Oh, yeah? Well, my sister was supposed to have it."

"Nope. That's confidential."

This made no sense. "You mean…proof it got paid? You can't be serious."

He straightened. "The heck I can't. I'm not getting canned a month before retirement."

I gave him a desperate look. "Can you at least tell me this? That Ryder Vaughn person…was he her boyfriend or something?"

"How would I know? You're the sister…even if you don't look alike."

As if I needed the reminder. "Great. Now you sound like our mother."

His brow furrowed. "What do you mean?"

As if he didn't know. "Well…obviously, Tessa's the pretty one."

He frowned. "And what are you? The family ogre?"

I was, actually. And Tessa was the golden girl. Or at least, that's what Mom always called her when reminding me of all the ways I fell short. "Gee, thanks."

He was still frowning. "Don't thank me. I think you're nuts."

I blinked. "Excuse me?"

"You're just as pretty…only in a different way, that's all."

It was sweet of him to say, but I knew better. "Honestly, you don't have to spare my feelings."

"Who said anything about feelings? I've got eyes, don't I? Maybe you should look in a mirror sometime."

Now, I had no idea what to say.

And Walt wasn't even done. "Hey, you know what?"

Bracing myself, I asked, "What?"

"I've got a grandson about your age. You want his number? He lives in Toledo."

"I, um…" Well, this was unexpected. "You mean…in Ohio?"

"What, you know another Toledo?" His voice picked up steam. "And just so you know, he don't mind driving."

When I only stared, he added, "His car gets great mileage. It's one of those doojobbies you plug in."

Against all odds, my lips twitched into a smile. "Thanks for the offer. Seriously. But I'm not sure how long I'll be sticking around."