Page 155

Now I couldn't stop. I had a lot to look forward to.

Red finished off his beer and stood up. "Well this has been fun. I'll see you two in the morning to start handing things off."

I nodded because fucking hell, this was happeningright now."See ya."

He paused to give each of us a pat on the back and then left.

I stared at Travis. He stared at me. Scottie laughed at both of us. "It's gonna take both of you to replace Red. I get to make fun of you for that, right?"

Travis snapped out of the trance before I did. "You're such an asshole. Red's been building up this business his whole life. 'Course it takes both of us to keep it running."

The shot began working its way into my system. My head started to buzz and blur the shock away. "I don't think I can take any more surprises."

"How is Charley?" Scottie asked, the asshole. It was like he knew I wanted to chill and instead he piled on more drama.

Travis perked up. "She's here?"

"Huk dragged Marley out of book club when she got here." Scottie explained.

At least it was easier to discuss Charley than it was ODX. "She's...a lot. I knew she was, but when it was all on video, I could walk away. Marley could end the call. Now she's here and she's not going away." I liked her. I really did. We both loved Marley and she seemed like a good person underneath all her loudness.

But I didn't do loud. And Charley was loud. In colors, in volume, in life.

"It's a good thing Marley and Red locked you down when they did. You have those huge eyes you only get when you wish you were alone on a mountain," Travis snickered.

"I'm not running away from my wife's best friend. I just have to set some boundaries is all. She's staying in a camper in the meadow. There's literally distance between us."

"A camper?" Travis wrinkled his nose. "My claustrophobia is kicking in."

"It's some custom thing. It's kinda cute, actually." The orange monstrosity wouldn't go missing anytime soon.

"When do we get to meet her?" Travis had a weird glint in his eyes.

I didn't like that glint. "Why do you look like that?"

"Like what?"

Scottie snickered again and started walking around the bar. "Like you're up to something, Pretty Boy."

"Don't call me that!"

The door opened, sending a sliver of afternoon light through the room. Marley and Charley stepped in laughing about something and stopped while Charley took the place in. I felt Travis shift beside me. I had the strangest instinct to shove him down in his seat and tell him to behave.

"Well look at this place!" Charley whistled. "I love it!"

Marley introduced Charley to Scottie and when they turned our way Travis was up and out of his seat before I could trip him.

"Is this the best friend?" he asked.

Marley did a double take. "Uh..."

Charley gave him a look that probably made most intelligent men run. Travis didnotget the message. "The best friend has a name. I'm Charley."

"The Hammer."

Somehow, Charley made the look on her face scarier. She rolled her eyes, dismissing Travis like a piece of trash. "Great, you get all this anonymity in this tiny-assed town, butIhave fucking groupies here?"

His grin widened. "I don't know if I'd go so far as to call myself a groupie but I'm definitely a fan of the Hammer of the Tampa Bay Tangerines."