Page 3 of Live Love Lasso

Ugh. I force a smile. “Seems like my reputation precedes me.”

She shakes her head. “Naw, honey, never heard of you, but a courier arrived this morning with a box.” She reaches down and grabs said box, pushing it through the window toward me. “Note said once a city girl arrived, I should give this to her.” She looks over her glasses at me. “You look like a city girl.”

Surprised, I take the box. A pale pink piece of paper is folded in half and taped to the top. When I open it, tears fill my eyes at seeing Shadow’s angular handwriting.

Lemon,

You can take a city girl outta the city and put her in the country, but I know you’ll shine just as brightly there as you do under New York’s lights. Don’t let anybody, and I mean anybody, dull your light, bestie.

P.S. This present will brighten any room you saunter into.

P.P.S. Amadala wrote up a Pine Gulch primer for you. It’s in the box. I promise this is all going to be fine!

Hearts,

Shadow

Sniffling, I open the box and gasp. Inside rests a pair of glitter-encrusted pink cowboy boots.

“They’re gorgeous,” I breathe, knowing only Shadow could find the most bodacious, sparkly shoes with less than twelve hours’ notice.

The minotaur attendant snorts. “Those must be the most outrageous boots I’ve ever seen. You’re not gonna wear ‘em, are you?”

I look at her in shock. “Of course I’m going to wear them! My best friend Shadow sent them to cheer me up. I can’t ignore a gift like that.”

The female leans into the window and grins. “Honey, you know this is ranch country, right? Downtown’s main street is dirt. You are gonna stick out like a sore thumb.” She eyes the boots again. “Lawd, I have never seen anything that shiny in my entire life.”

I shrug and tuck the gorgeous bejeweled boot carefully back into the box. “Well, you never know. Maybe I’ll just shake up this town a little bit and leave it a touch more cheerful than when I arrived.” By which I mean far more colorful.

She leans back. “If you say so, girl.” Jerking her head toward the door, she flashes me another half smile. “Trucks for rent are right outside the door. Or any of the monsters outside’ll get you to downtown for about ten bucks.”

I thank her and tuck the boot box under one arm, dragging my hot pink luggage with the other. I lift my chin on the way out, even though I’m certain the pair of minotaur males near the door watched that entire exchange and probably have strong opinions.

Not that I care at all.

I’m here to get out of Father’s fangs for a bit, maybe learn something from his contact at Glimmer, and get back to the city as fast as possible. I can find the silver lining in nearly any situation. I’ve got this.

Twenty minutes later, I’m feeling less enthusiastic as the minotaur truck driver, Reggie, rounds a giant boulder and a town comes into view ahead. The faint green magical ward protecting our hidden monster world from the human world soars up above us, visible as it rises up over a mountain range. At the very least, we don’t have to worry about unwanted humans stumbling into our world and uprooting things.

The windows in the truck don’t work, and they’re stuck down, according to Reggie, so my hair is flying all over the place. The sheer amount of sun in this haven is enough to give me a burn in the mere twenty minutes of our drive. Shadow’s boyfriend, Dain, said it has something to do with being at a higher altitude, but that made no sense to me.

There’s literally nothing to see but that same golden grass. More and more of it that sways right up until blue and brown mountains soar out of the landscape way off in the distance.

The sense of relief I feel when the town comes into view is enough to make me weep for joy. It might as well be an oasis at this point, the promised land of civilization amid a landscape of pure nothingness. Maybe it’s just the last twenty-four hours that have me feeling so out of sorts, but as we near the main drag, aptly named Main Street, I let out a literal sigh of relief.

“Aww, yeah,” the driver says in a voice that seems too quiet for his enormous frame. “Downtown PG’s mighty cute, and this ain’t all of her. Main Street has quite a few shops and restaurants, but the next section over is where you can find the pumpkin and gourd garden and some cute outdoor seating. Glimmer and the auction house are at the far end of downtown. Up at the front is the dance hall, which is a real good time if you like to dance. Back behind downtown is all residential.”

I nod as we make our way, rolling slowly down Main Street. I’m relieved as hells to see at least a few alright-looking restaurants and a coffee shop aptly named BrewHaHa Beans. A hardware store stands flanked by the Welcome Inn and Betty’s Saloon. Next to Betty’s is what looks to be a clothing store called the Buxom Bodice Outfitter. A cutesy deer with giant boobs winks from the sign. That must be the “shopping” Shadow mentioned.

No sparkly cowboy boots adorn the store’s giant window, but there are tons of cute dresses and leather footwear. Not a high heel to be seen, but I suppose that’s to be expected. Something to check out later, for sure. I did a little research before coming. On the other side of the haven, about forty minutes away, there’s a wraith property complete with high-end shopping. Worse comes to worst, I can make my way over there and possibly not feel out of sorts for at least a little while. Wraith properties are guaranteed to feel upscale to the max. The wraith own and operate nearly every hotel property in the haven system—it’s what they’re meant for…hospitality.

The main drag is busy, although most of the monsters seem to be longhorn and shorthorn minotaurs. The odd gargoyle or troll dots the landscape, but it’s a far cry from the eclectic streets of New York.

Still, it’s starkly beautiful, and everyone waves at one another, which warms my heart a bit. New York is colder, all metal and harsh angles. There’s something different and charming about the craggy trees that hang over several of the buildings on Pine Gulch’s Main Street. Even the architecture here is different—bare bones, simple, and all-natural colors. It lacks the wash of texture back home, but it’s nice, I suppose.

We round a bend in the road, and an enormous dark house soars up on the lefthand side. It’s gorgeous with chunky gothic columns and perfect Halloween vibes.

“Empty,” my driver says with a curious look. “Supposed to be the house for our Keeper, but we’ve never been able to keep one around for long. PG don’t take kindly to the folks Hearth monster Headquarters sends us. I suspect that house’ll be empty for…well, forever, I guess.”