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“Ted thinks he’s a ladies’ man. That’s all. He did call me, but your name wasn’t mentioned. If it had been in anything but the most respectful way, I’d kick his ass.”
“Well…” she said, and unable to squelch it, laughed out loud.
“What?”
“I got home from town and decided Brulee and I would have a boat ride. I went in the opposite direction.”
“Toward open water. You told me you were going to do that.”
“Right. I wanted to see those big mansions. Anyway, when I came back, Ted was standing on my dock. He didn’t see me, so I hid on the other side of the island for a few minutes, and when he didn’t go away, I went back to town and got Gus.”
“Smart move. You could have called me.”
“I thought of that, Justin, but I didn’t have phone service in the middle of the bay. Anyway, Gus came back with me and pretended to work on the well pump. I asked Ted to leave and not to come back again, and that was that.”
She happened to get a glimpse of Justin in the candlelight and hoped it wasn’t a mistake that she’d said anything to him about the visit. Fury shot from his eyes, his nose pinched, jaw set.
“Did you feel intimidated while he was here?”
Here was the dilemma. Should she smooth it over to calm him down? Or be honest? She didn’t think there was any other way.
“Absolutely. I didn’t care for the way he looked at me when I was at the clinic, but please don’t repeat that. I want Kelly’s help, and now I have to deal with her boyfriend being a nuisance.”
“He’s a jackass. I want to have a professional relationship with him, and he’s behaving like a stalker.”
“What’s with the people in this place? First Amber, now Ted.”
“I think you must be like a shiny new toy that they’re going to try to outdo each other to get your attention.”
“Well, so far, it’s flopped,” she said.
He rubbed his hands on his jeans, looking out to the water. Unsure if the night was salvageable, she’d try to serve the pie. Pie sometimes was the panacea to all ills.
“I have that pie,” she said, grinning.
“I don’t care for any,” he said.
“Is the evening ruined because I opened my mouth?”
“Can you give me a minute?” he asked. “I’m pissed! He’s the other vet in town. If he’s canoodling with Kelly, why does he need to bother my girlfriend? Unless he’s just trying to piss me off.”
“I never thought of that. Of course, by pissing you off, it will ruin our evening. What are you going to do?”
“I don’t know yet. Sit and stew. I can leave if you want. You made this nice meal for me, and now I’m in a state.”
“Justin, you know you’re free to go anytime. Or you can stay, and I’ll call Kelly with my one thousand and one questions. You can go online if you want to try to find me a used trailer to use as a rescue.”
Grinning at him, she knew how much Justin loved to search for things to buy online. It was almost an obsession.
“Honey, I’ll help you clean up, and then I think I’ll go. I need to go work out. Maybe if I lift a few thousand pounds, I won’t want to wring his neck as badly as I do right now.”
She reached over for his plate.
“You’re okay if I leave, aren’t you? I mean, you did suggest it.”
“I’m okay. I’m sorry we won’t be in bed together tonight, but I totally get it.”
“Oh crap, you had to mention the bed,” he said, snickering.
