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“We’ll go talk to Sara Beth about her boys,” I assured Pratt.
Sara Beth and Jimmy Miller had six children. One of which was Holly, who was having the birthday sleepover on Friday that Harper was so excited about. Their two eldest were thirteen-year-old twins, Cody and Caden. They were good kids, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they had used the field as a cut-through. I doubted that they damaged the fence, though. I had a feeling the boards had fallen after the summer storm that had blown through the night before. The winds had gotten up to over fifty miles per hour.
“I’ll be back tomorrow mornin’ to repair the fence. You think Bessie and Tux will be okay till then?” It would take me about an hour, and I could stop by before my shift.
Was fixing fences technically in my job description? No. But in a community like Wishing Well, it definitely fell under protect and serve.
Pratt waved his hand dismissively, mumbling something unintelligible under his breath, and shuffled back to his farmhouse.
“Another satisfied customer,” Sam declared as we climbed back in the SUV.
As we drove, I could feel Sam staring at me. “You look like shit.”
“Thanks.”
“No, I mean, you look tired. You been sleepin’?”
No. I hadn’t been. Not since Ruby Rhodes showed up in town three nights ago. I couldn’t stop thinking about her. Every time I laid down and closed my eyes, she was there. I saw her big blue eyes staring up at me. Her perfect lips curled up in a smile. I heard the sweet sound of her voice. I hadn’t seen her since I ran into her at Sunset Acres, and it was driving me fucking crazy.
When I didn’t respond to Sam, he continued, “And when’s the last time you shaved?”
Usually, I kept my face clean-shaven, but the past few days, I’d overslept because I’d spent the entire night tossing and turning. What started out as a five-o’clock shadow was now the beginning of a beard.
“Why don’t you just worry about your own facial hair? You got more patches than an Eagle Scout.”
Sam smiled, taking my ribbing in stride. He rubbed his chin as he declared, “This stubble is the cherry on top of my sexy sundae. Just this mornin’ Betty commented on how ruggedly handsome I was.”
Betty Parker worked the front desk at the station. She was in her seventies and had a soft spot for Sam, just like most of the female population of Clover County. Even though I gave him shit, I did see the appeal. He was funny, charming, and objectively good-looking. He got told he looked like Zac Efron on a regular basis, which he liked to bring up any chance he got.
“Sometimes I feel like the third wheel to you and your ego,” I commented as I pulled up in front of the Miller’s house.
Sam chuckled as we walked up to the porch and knocked. Sara Beth answered, and we let her know about the complaint. She promised to let the twins know Old Man Pratt’s was off-limits, but I could see that she was about as convinced as I was that her boys would steer clear of the field.
We were halfway down her porch steps to leave when she stopped us. “Kane, I heard Ruby Rhodes is back in town.”
As I turned back around to her, I noted the shit-eating grin on Sam’s ‘ruggedly handsome’ face.
“That’s right.” I nodded.
Sara Beth grinned. “And I heard you came to her rescue over at the Pit Stop.”
“Did ya now?”
Sara Beth nodded as she adjusted her youngest, who was nine months old, on her hip. “Velma told Edith Scoggs at bingo, who mentioned it to Tammy Lynn when I was pickin’ up a cherry pie from the Spoon earlier,” she explained as the baby started crying.
Bingo. That explained how Kenna had found out. Every Monday night, the bingo crowd ended up at the Tipsy Cow after the community center closed.
“How’s she doin’?” Sara Beth asked.
“Good,” I responded, even though I had no idea if she was okay.
“Well, if you see her, you tell her she’s in my prayers. Bless her heart.”
“Will do,” I lied as she closed the door. There was no way I would pass on the message. Anyone from around here would know that those were both backhanded sentiments.
When we reached the SUV, Sam continued down the sidewalk.
“Where you goin’?”
