Page 13 of Starved Until Sunset

“Yes, the civil case.” She dropped his hand, and her expression shifted to something angry and protective. When she spoke again, the word ‘bristled’ was front and center in Demetrius’s mind. “Crabapple trees, that family had no right to take it that far. I will be happy when they sell that house and leave town.”

“They’re moving?”

“Oh, yes. And from what I’ve heard, they’ll be far away from here.”

“Nice of them to make us close our business before they left town.” Demetrius drew in a breath and shook his head. “Oh, well. Can’t change the past, right?”

“If only.” Amelia scooped some leftovers into plastic storage containers. “You know, if I remember correctly, the ruling for that civil case stated you can’t do business as Critter Catchers for a year. Is that right?”

Demetrius furrowed his brow. “That’s right.”

She didn’t look at him, focusing on the leftover prep. “But the judge never said you couldn’t get involved in spooky situations.”

A sizzle went through Demetrius. It was like a wire had come loose inside him, flailing around, sparking every time it touched an organ or muscle or bone.

“You could start a paranormal investigations company. Call yourselves Spooky Sleuths or something like that.” Amelia smiled at him. “I’ve seen how you two boys work a spooky case. You’re better than anyone at realizing there’s something not quite right going on, and then figuring out what’s behind it.”

Demetrius mentally doused the sparks of excitement. When he spoke, he thought he’d done a good job of keeping any interest at all from his voice. “That’s a unique idea. But I don’t think we’d get a lot of business. Not enough to sustain a company at any rate.”

“You might be surprised.”

“Oh? Well, that scares me a bit, too,” Demetrius said. “Anyway, unless I want my husband to divorce me, I think we should stick with our jobs at the DPW, you know, where we can enjoy health benefits and steady paychecks.”

“Yes, I see your point. Why do something that lights you up like just happened when you can scrape up roadkill and fix water main breaks? What was I thinking?”

Demetrius gave her a stern look. “You’re a bad influence.”

“Am I? Must be that little bit of werewolf left inside me.” She smiled wickedly. “You understand what I mean. You’ve got some inside you, too.” She pulled him into a strong hug, which he gratefully returned. “I love you, Demetrius.”

“I love you, too.”

She stepped back, smiling and wiping away a tear. “I just want you to be happy.”

“I know. And I am. It’s just… different happy now.”

“I’m sure you know best. But it could just be a side business, for now.” She handed him the leftovers. “Anyway, there’s also chocolate cake. Make sure Cody lets you have a piece.”

Demetrius laughed. “I’ll try to keep him away from it.”

He called a goodbye to Otis, kissed Amelia on the cheek, and left. He stopped at the front of his truck parked at the curb, pausing to appreciate the front flowerbeds and all that he and Amelia had completed that day. It was late afternoon and shadows were long across the yards as he drove through the independent living section of Parson’s Pines. Since he was in the area, he thought he might stop in and check on Felicia, but wanted to touch base with Cody and see if anything specific needed to be done for her. He was sure she wouldn’t remember him, but he could just say he was visiting with seniors in the facility and stopped in to say hello. It might be good for Cody to get some insight from another set of eyes.

At the nursing home facility, he, like Cody, parked far from the door to allow other, older visitors the closer spaces. Once he’d pulled in, he placed the call.

“Hey.” Cody’s voice was a little scratchy and more than a lot sexy.

“You fell asleep on the couch.”

Cody cleared his throat. “You don’t know me.”

“Baby, if anyone knows you better, I’d like to meet them.”

“Good point.”

“You sound incredibly sexy right now,” Demetrius said.

“Yeah? You should see how I’m dressed. No shirt, gray sweat shorts, woke up hard.”

Demetrius thumped his forehead against the steering wheel. “You’re killing me.”