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“I’m counting on it.”
Dick chuckled under his breath.
“Well I’ll be a sonofabitch.” Dude’s eyes were trained over Delaney’s shoulder.
She followed his gaze and saw Sinbad, circling the buffet table. He’d obviously finished his meatballs and was sniffing for more.
“Sinbad!” Dude squatted down and opened his big arms, like he was welcoming an old friend.
The dog didn’t budge. He looked over at the brothers but there wasn’t a hint of affection or even recognition. The pit bull’s attachment to this shop was just that—to the shop. To the building, the dog bed, to any sustenance that might be available, whether from the buffet table or from breakfast that Delaney cooked up.
But not to those men.
She thought of Dad. How he’d never wanted to leave Omaha, no matter where Delaney was stationed. She’d practically had to drag him to Hawai‘i when she was stationed at K-Bay. “Who does that, Dad?” she’d demanded. “Who refuses to visit his daughter in Hawai‘i? Especially when he lives in friggin’ Omaha?”
“If I could ride my bike, I’d be there in a heartbeat. You know that, Lanie. But getting on a plane and all that. I just...” Then he’d trail off, recognizing his own lameness.
“There’s pork lumpia,” she’d teased. “And poke. And malasadas. And sticky rice. Sticky rice for days, Dad. You can even get a Spam burger at McDonald’s. I shit you not.”
It was the food that finally got him. With a paid, round-trip ticket, Dad had run out of excuses and just couldn’t resist the lure of the cuisine. He’d left behind the bike shop where he spent his days and the sunken sofa where he spent his nights and came out to Hawai‘i for two weeks of lying on the beach and eating everything in sight, and for once in her life Delaney had seen her father settle down and relax, even if it was just for a little while.
“Why do you have our dog?” Dude said as he rose to his feet. “We gave him back to the rescue.” His big cheeks were flushed pink.
“He keeps coming back here.” Delaney’s voice was tight. “He comes and goes between this place and Sunny’s.”
Dude’s beady eyes flitted between the dog, his brother and Delaney. “I told you we shouldn’t leave him. We should take him home,” he said. “Give it another try.”
“He wasn’t the right fit,” Dick said. “He couldn’t guard crap. All he wanted to do was play with people. We agreed it was best he go back to the rescue. We’ll get a better dog once we open up the new shop.”
“I don’t want a better dog. We already paid for Sinbad. We can train him to guard stuff, Dick.”
They went on like that for half a minute, like they were a couple instead of brothers, back and forth about the dog, their excuses sounding lame, their argument petty. Delaney didn’t wonder in the slightest why their business had failed, focused as these two grown men were on themselves and whatever other drama they were involved in.
“Hey, I’m going to save you two some time.” It was getting late, people were heading out and Delaney was getting tired. She stepped over to Sinbad and stroked his head with just the tips of her fingers. He didn’t flinch this time, his attention rapt on the remaining meatballs. His nostrils flared as he tilted his head back, catching the scent of the food. “You’re not taking him anywhere.”
Dude narrowed his eyes. He stood to his full height and crossed his arms over his chest. He went to speak, but nothing came out. Delaney suspected he wasn’t used to being challenged by anyone, let alone a woman.
“Well it ain’t up to you,” Dick said. He slid his hands into the front pockets of his jeans. Though Dick was much smaller, Delaney knew that he was the meaner of the two.
“Well, I say it is up to me,” Delaney countered. She stepped close enough to Sinbad that her knee brushed his shoulder. Again, the pittie didn’t flinch. “He’s in my shop. Around here, my word is law. You gave him up and I’ve already texted Sunny.”
“We just needed some time.” Dude’s bald head beaded with sweat. “We’ll be in a new place soon. More room for him.” He reached for Sinbad, but the pit bull leaned back, resting some of his weight on Delaney’s legs.
Delaney didn’t raise her voice when she looked Dude dead in the eye. “I said no. You can’t have him.”
Silence fell over their small group. Walt, who had been most certainly listening in, chuckled under his breath. The brothers exchanged glances. Delaney could tell that Dude was waiting for Dick to tell him what to do.
Dick leaned in closer, and when he spoke his breath came in beer-scented puffs. “What you gonna do if I just grab him? Huh? You think you can stop me?”
Delaney’s adrenaline fizzed up as her body tensed. But she’d been trained to stay calm. She knew how to breathe through it, to keep a clear head. “I think maybe I can,” she said, her voice level. “With what I have behind that counter.” She tilted her head at the register, a few feet away. Her Glock wasn’t back there. It was upstairs, locked away. But Dick didn’t know that.
He slowly pulled back and offered a thin smile. His gaze flitted to Sinbad, but held no affection. “You best watch your step, little lady. You might be feeling pretty big about yourself right now with your brand-new shop, your fancy bike and all these people here.” He gestured to the crowd. “But we have what you would call a bit of—” Dick leaned closer and lowered his voice “—influencein the bike business around here. You might want to rethink making me your enemy.”
Delaney silently studied Dick’s eyes. She slipped her first two fingers beneath Sinbad’s collar and gently held him still. In that moment, she felt the slight tremble of his body against her legs. The shiver would rumble, then die off, then rumble, and die off, like the pittie was allowing Delaney to absorb some of his anxiety.
“I think you and your brother were just leaving,” she finally said. “Isn’t that right?”
Dick straightened up and tilted his head at his brother, in the direction of the exit. “This isn’t over,” he said. “See you around, Delaney.” He dragged over her name. The brothers left without another word, but both looked back over their shoulders as they departed out the bay door, the sun setting in a red line at their backs. Dick’s mean eyes narrowed, his gaze lingering until Dude snapped his fingers in front of his brother’s face and they both disappeared.
