AllFreeNovel
Share Us
My brothers and I converge on the duo, not a single word exchanged. Jerome follows our lead.
Camo Pants doesn’t seem familiar, but Baseball Cap certainly does. He’s one of the men I spoke to when I went to the Kincaid Timber sawmill last month. The man with the thin, two-inch scar that cuts diagonally down one cheek. The man who spat on the ground near my feet.
Which means he’s damn well difficult to forget.
“Great day for a celebration, isn’t it?” My voice is the low rumble of an approaching storm.
Recognition flickers on Baseball Cap’s face. It’s replaced with an expression that’s as readable as a blank piece of paper. “Little hot for my taste. But, yeah, sure…”
He gives the other man a look I can’t decipher.
“You work for Kincaid Timber, don’t you?” I ask, to see if he remembers me, though I doubt he has forgotten my visit.
“And what if I do?” His friendly, get-out-of-my-face attitude hasn’t changed since last month.
“No reason in particular. Just curious why you’d be at this event. It isn’t exactly in your neighborhood.”
“Not for now, anyway. What can I say? Me and the wife found a nice house we might like to buy.”
“You can’t go wrong living here,” I tell him. “It’s a nice community. Great schools.”
“So I’ve heard.”
Camo Pants shifts on his feet as if he’s holding a grenade that’s about to explode, and he doesn’t want to be the one left with it. Garrett and Troy casually break position, cornering him. Camo Pants’s expression still doesn’t give anything away.
I tilt my head, trying to get a better read on him. “If you’re already house hunting, guess you’re hoping Kincaid Timber will open up shop here.”
The closest of their holdings isn’t anywhere near Maple Ridge, so it’s a little premature to be looking for homes here. Unless he likes super long commutes.
“Wouldn’t complain. There’re definitely pros and cons to this town.”
I turn to Camo Pants. “So, you wanna explain why you were glaring at my wife and me earlier?”
“No idea what you’re talking about.” He crosses his arms as if trying to intimidate, but it’s not working. His stance, legs apart, suggests a military background. Or maybe he’s watched too many movies.
I believe him as much as I believe Jesus is my cousin once removed. But I can’t exactly beat the man up for making Simone nervous. As tempting as it might be.
Troy steps closer to Baseball Cap like a cougar targeting its prey. “So what’s up with the exchange of money we just witnessed? Is it something Maple Ridge’s finest would be interested in?” The muscle in his jaw twitches at “finest,” an imperceptible tell to those who know him.
“It’s nothing you need to be concerned about. But if you really want to know what the money was about—” Baseball Cap nods at Camo Pants, who picks up the black case next to his feet.
Smirking, Camo Pants clicks the case open and shows us the contents. A clarinet?
A massive grin spreads on Baseball Cap’s face, and he chuckles. “Not quite what you were expecting, huh? My daughter plays the clarinet. My wife and I decided to get her one for her birthday. But they’re super expensive new.” He nods at Camo Pants. “He knows someone who was looking at selling theirs because they bought a professional-level instrument.”
Yeah, didn’t see that coming. “I guess that’s what you meant by pros and cons about living here. Maple Ridge isn’t known for having an abundance of music teachers.”
“Yup, that’s one of the cons. But we’ll make it work. Do you have kids?” Baseball Cap’s gaze travels over my brothers, Jerome, and me.
“Not yet,” I say, answering for all of us. He doesn’t need to know about Jerome’s fatherhood status.
“Well, once you do, you’ll know what I mean. You’ll do anything for them.”
Troy, Garrett, Kellan, Jerome, and I return to the women, feeling a little stupid for thinking the two men were up to no good. But at the same time relieved we don’t have to worry about the man who was glaring at Simone.
“What was that all about?” Emily asks.
“The guy was buying a clarinet for his daughter. No idea why the other man was glaring at Simone and me. He claims he wasn’t.” I can only shrug because I have no idea what to think. I believe Simone when she says she saw him glaring at the two of us. But maybe he was glaring at something else and it just seemed like his anger was directed at us. “I don’t know about you, but I’m getting hungry. Let’s check out the barbecue.”
