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“You’re not taking into account I’m hooked in with the men at Onyx Security, which means I’m tight with Trenda, therefore I have an in with all of the Avery sisters. That trumps all of your sources.”

I turned around and started down the hall.

“Wait just a minute, where do you think you’re going?” Roxie called out to me. “I want to hear all about your lunches with the luscious Graham Wallace.”

“She’s having lunch with Graham Wallace?” Ava cried. “That is juicy gossip.” She turned to me. “Yeah, get your tushie back here and spill, girlfriend.”

I walked reluctantly back to the reception area. “It’s nothing. He just comes over to visit Miss Laverne, and I happen to be over there, that’s all.”

“How often has he dropped by since he learned that you lived there?” Roxie asked.

“Seven times.” I didn’t have to think about it. All seven times were burned into my memory. It was the beard. No, it was probably the tattoos. No, it was his hazel eyes.

“Look at her. She immediately went into a daze. Did you see that, Roxie?”

“I did.”

“I did not,” I protested. “I was just trying to remember how many times I’ve seen him. He seems like a sweet guy. He brings over groceries for Miss Laverne. The least I can do is bake him cookies and brownies and things.”

“Oh my God,” Ava whispered. “Brent’s been raving about chocolate caramel brownies that Graham has brought into Thatcher’s. He loves the days that Graham comes over to work on his Harley at the shop, ’cause he brings in treats. That’s you, right?”

“I guess so, if Graham’s sharing them,” I shrugged.

“Brent told me that Graham is all into this woman who bakes for him. That’d be you all right.” She turned and stuck out her tongue at Roxie. “See, I know things. I just didn’t know I knew things.”

“He’s into me? Are you sure? I mean, he’s asked me out three times. But he’s only done that to be nice.”

Roxie let out a dramatic sigh. “Oh, honey, men like Graham don’t just do things ‘to be nice.’” She used her fingers to make air quotes. “And… he also asked Hart to pump me for information since we work together.” She turned to Ava. “See, I know things, too. But I’m a grown woman, and I’m not going to stick out my tongue.” She gave Ava the side eye.

“What do you mean he wants to know things about me?” That didn’t sound good at all. Why would someone want to find out things about me? That sounded creepy.

Roxie must have picked up on the fact that I was freaking out.

“Hey, wait a minute, Joy. Graham didn’t mean it in a bad way. It was just the normal way when someone is falling hard for someone.”

Ava snickered. “Falling hard. I like that. Kind of like how Ford fell at Ruby’s feet over at the coffee shop?”

I frowned. “What are you talking about?” I asked sharply. I was still freaked out about a man wanting to spy on me.

“Seriously, chill, honey,” Ava said soothingly. “It’s nothing to get upset about. It’s a good thing. Neither Roxie nor I grew up here, so we didn’t have some romantic love story à la Jasper Creek style, but plenty of others did. The latest was Ford Larson and Ruby Miller. Ford literally fell at Ruby’s feet, just like his sister predicted he would when he found the right woman.”

I started to smile. “You’re kidding me, right?”

“Nope. Then there was all the drama that happened. Ruby’s former fiancé got murdered. It was a whole shit show,” Ava grinned. “But there was a happily ever after.”

I took two involuntary steps backward. “A murder? Here in Jasper Creek?”

Roxie put her hand on my arm. She must have caught on that I was trembling. “Joy, hold on for a second. It’s all right. Ford and some of the guys from Onyx Security took care of it.”

“I don’t want to get involved in something that high profile… or dangerous. I just want to live my little life. Nothing more, nothing less.”

“That’s not what you told me when you first started. You said you’d talked to your great-great-grandmother and you wanted to come back here and spread your wings.”

Ava looked at me intently. “Are you saying you don’t like Graham?”

I looked up at her. “No, I’m not saying that.”

“So, you do like him. I knew it!” Ava crowed.