Page 39 of Lawton

"What?"'

"You be careful."

"What?" I almost laughed. "You see me getting caught?"

"No. But you're losing it."

Sure, I was. This, I had to hear. "What makes you say that?"

"Because," he said, "you're willing to dig through this chick's garbage just to find out what her dog eats."

Well, therewasthat.

"You want some advice?" he asked.

"Nope." I lifted the empty treat bag. "Shopping time."

His voice was deadpan. "Shopping time?"

"Yup." I turned and started walking.

He followed suit. "Just think about it," he said, turning toward the garage. "See you in a couple days." And then, he was gone – for real, this time.

As for me, I grabbed my car keys and hit the nearest grocery store, where I found Chucky's favorite brand in the pet aisle. I bought a dozen foil packets of deluxe doggie treats – savory steak, bacony bacon, and a couple other flavors, because even dogs like some variety, right?

Forget Bishop. I wasn't losing it. I was finding it. And the next time Chloe walked by, I'd be ready.

Chapter 19

The next day, I was dressed and ready at the crack of dawn. Sitting at the desk in my study, I had my eyes on the sidewalk and a packet of doggie treats in my pocket.

I wasn't taking any chances.

Technically, I was working from home. In reality, I was doing a piss-poor job of it. I'd cancelled half a dozen meetings to be here. I'd be paying for it later. But Ihadto see her.

I was watching two sets of windows – the ones overlooking the front yard and the ones that looked out the side. The side windows were my secret weapon. If I spotted her that way, I'd have time to catch her out front.

Or at least, that was the plan.

By noon, she still hadn't shown. When my cell phone rang, I pulled it out and took a look. It was Amber. We hadn't talked since the other night, after the fight in the parking lot.

I glanced out the front window, and then toward the side. Still no Chloe.

I hit the answer button. "Hey."

"Lawton?" She sounded surprised. "I thought I'd get your voicemail." She gave a nervous giggle. "Thisisyou, isn't it?"

"Last time I checked." I glanced toward the front window. "What's up?"

"About the other night," she said, "I wanted to tell you that, um, I'm really super sorry about that."

I paused. "Why areyousorry?"

"I know you don't like Brittney."

Why deny it? "Yeah. And maybe you shouldn't either."

Amber had a good heart. But her taste in friends had sucked for as long as I could remember. It was ironic, really.Iwas her friend. And I was a dick half the time – proof enough she had shitty taste.