| |
Jaxson
“People take this pretty seriously, huh?” Jaxson asked, looking around at the community park.
It looked completely different than it had the night he and Penny had had the same idea and wandered in, seeking the solace it offered.
“That’s an understatement,” Cage said.
Jaxson had caught a ride with him and his wife, Bree, along with Smoke and Sam. The others—Heff and Sandy, Mad Dog and Kate, and Doc and Tina—had come earlier and would meet up with them later.
Food stands lined both sides of the main entry/exit path. Twinkle lights had been strung between the old-fashioned black lampposts. Each post had hanging baskets with cascades of flowers—Penny’s handiwork, no doubt.
The lamps weren’t the only things that bore her signature. Massive pots and displays were everywhere. Along the walkways. At each stand. Adorning the picnic tables, stage, and bingo tent. Every volunteer had a colorful red, white, or blue flower pinned to their clothing. Penny had been working her ass off all week, and it showed.
Jaxson scanned the crowd, hoping to spot her but found someone else instead. He stiffened at the sight of Lenny the Badge standing with two other guys where the path split.
Lenny wasn’t in uniform, but his shield was displayed prominently on his belt. The three men were glaring their way.
“I know the guy in the middle,” Jaxson said quietly, “but who are the other two?”
“Joe Eisenheiser and Pete Krueger,” Sam said.
The guys who had jumped him. One of them was a cop, but unlike Lenny, he didn’t feel compelled to remind everyone of that by keeping his badge on display.
“Which one’s the cop?”
“Joe. He’s on the left.”
Jaxson nodded. “You guys go ahead.”
“What are you going to do?” Sam asked with a frown.
“Take a walk,” he said easily.
“Want company?” Smoke asked.
Jaxson felt a wave of gratitude for the guy. “Nah, I’m good.”
“You know they’re going to follow you, right?”
“Yep.” Jaxson was counting on it in fact.
If he was going to be sticking around, he needed to make some things perfectly clear. And he was going to be sticking around because this was where Penny was, and anywhere Penny was, was where he wanted to be. He hadn’t told her that yet. He’d wanted to have everything lined up first.
“You sure?” asked Cage. “Three of them, three of us.”
“I’m sure,” Jaxson said confidently. He might have a bum leg, but he had no doubt he could best any of them in a fair fight. “If you run into Penny before I get back, keep her occupied for a few minutes, yeah? This won’t take long.”
Jaxson ignored Sam’s protest and set off along the leftmost path toward the woods. Lenny said something to Joe and Pete and then headed off to the right, where carnival rides had been set up along the outer perimeter. Joe went down the center path, a makeshift midway with game and food booths. Pete turned and trailed behind Jaxson.
“They’re going for an end around?” Cage commented in disbelief. “Seriously?”
Smoke snorted. “We already know they’re not the brightest bulbs in the box.”
“You’re not going to let Jaxson fight them on his own, are you?” Bree demanded.
“Of course not,” Cage assured her. He leaned down to kiss her. “Be right back.”
* * *
Penny
Penny entered the park, anticipation riding her hard with the knowledge that she’d be seeing Jaxson soon. As happy as that made her, she was apprehensive, too, because she feared it would also be the night where Jaxson planned to tell her he’d be heading back to Campbell’s Junction. Though she’d already made up her mind and decided that Jaxson was her future, she was still taking a risk. What if he didn’t agree? What if he didn’t want her to go with him?
Cross that bridge if and when you come to it.
Her stomach rumbled when the delicious scent of funnel cake wafted across her path. She was definitely going to get some of that. Waffles and ice cream, too. But her first priority was finding Jaxson. It had been nearly twenty-four hours and she was looking forward to spending the rest of the night with him.
She spotted him heading off into the woods with Steve and Cage following behind while Sam and Bree hung back and watched.
“What’s going on?” Penny asked Sam.
“Jaxson’s leading Joe and Pete into the woods to take care of some unfinished business,” Sam said matter-of-factly. “Steve and Cage are going to make sure they’re not interrupted.”
“We should go, too,” Penny said, stepping forward.
Sam looped her arm through Penny’s on one side; Bree did the same on the other.
“That’s exactly what we shouldn’t do,” Sam told her. “Let them handle this.”
“We can’t do nothing,” Penny protested.
Bree shrugged, seemingly unconcerned. “I suppose we could get some funnel cake.”
Penny’s eyes went back to Jaxson disappearing into the line of trees. Her gaze was drawn to the pig race arena, where a guy was cleaning up in between events. It gave her an idea. Joe had been a jerk to more than just Jaxson, and as far as she knew, he had yet to be held accountable. Perhaps they could help with that.
“What do you suppose they do with all the pig poop?” she asked suddenly.
Sam and Bree followed her gaze.
“I don’t know. Why?” asked Sam.
A slow smile curled Penny’s lips upward. “Because I know where Joe’s truck is parked. It’s in a private lot at the back, reserved for vendors. I passed it on the way in.”
“Penny Hoffmeier, I had no idea you were so devious,” Sam murmured and then laughed. “My kind of woman. Let’s go.”
They walked together toward the pig race arena. The guy cleaning up turned out to be a teenager.
“Hey,” Sam called out when they neared the dividers that separated the public viewing area from the stalls and runs where the pigs were kept.
“Next show’s at eight,” the kid said without looking up.
“We know,” Sam said. “Want to make a quick twenty bucks?”
He looked up, his eyes narrowing. “I can’t let you in to pet the pigs. Insurance reasons.”
“We don’t want to pet the pigs. Well, we do, but we understand why we can’t,” Penny said. “We want the poop.”
The kid paused and straightened. “Come again?”
“Not all of it. Just a shovel or two,” Bree clarified.
“He’s got a king cab,” Penny pointed out.
“Right. Better make it three.”
“Somebody piss you off or something?” the kid asked, grinning.
Penny nodded.
“And he’s a real shit,” Sam added, “so it’s like Karma.”
Bree laughed. “I’ll chip in another twenty if you lend us your wheelbarrow.”
The kid’s grin widened. “Deal.”