Reaper's Wrath (Road to Salvation A Last Rider's Trilogy 2)

Gavin laughed. “That’s the first time I’ve heard you say that word.”

“Believe it or not, I can let loose with that word frequently when I’m mad—” She stopped midsentence when she realized he was no longer listening to her. “What are you doing?”

Gavin was striding across the parking lot and looking down at the ground, as if he were searching for something.

“Trying to find my earring. It must have come unlatched when I pulled my hair back.”

Giving the ground a cursory glance, Ginny changed directions and went to Silas’ car.

“You coming?”

“You’re not going to help me look?”

“It’s pitch dark out here, and the lighting is even worse inside; it would be like looking for a needle in a haystack. You can call Mick and ask him to keep out an eye for it. Personally I think silver suits you much better.”

“The earring was solid gold….”

Ginny gave him an unladylike snort. “Then you got taken. It was ten karat, and that’s if you were lucky.”

Impatiently she tapped the roof of the car. “You mind opening the car?”

Tossing her the keys, he asked, “Will you wait here while I go inside and look around?”

“Knock yourself out.” Ginny got inside the car and turning the ignition on. The music was blasting away when Gavin returned ten minutes later.

“No luck?” she asked turning the radio down.

“No. Mick will call if he finds it.”

“Don’t look so discouraged, something will turn up.” Raising the volume, Ginny lowered the car window, enjoying the wind coming into the car.

Gavin gave her a harassed look, then turned the volume back down.

“You never did tell me why you went to the bar.”

Ginny gave him a pained glance. “I have a confession to make.”

“What?” he asked taking his eyes of the road.

“I was meeting someone.”

“Who?”

She turned to stare out the window at the jealous tinge in his voice.

“Just remember before you go off the rails, that you were mean to me when we were dancing. By the way, isn’t it customary for a gentleman to thank a woman for dancing with her?”

“I haven’t been called a gentleman in more years than I can count.” Gavin put on the blinker to turn into her driveway.

After parking the car, he shut the car off and turned to face her. “Thank you. I enjoyed dancing with you, right up until the part I made an ass of myself.”

She removed her hand from the door handle.

“You’re really sweet when you want to be. Can you hold onto that sweetness for a couple of seconds? Do me a favor and close your eyes.”

“Why?”

“Just do it.”

Gavin closed his eyes. Ginny pressed a fleeting kiss on his lips.

“You’re welcome.” Pulling back she got out of the car while he was still trying to regroup. Leaning in the window she broke the news to him with the safety of the car door between them.

“By the way, I was meeting Marty at the bar. He bought the diner, and he wanted to have a taste for who made the best burger in town and who would be his biggest competition.”

“Marty bought the diner?” he growled.

“Look on the bright side, how often do you eat at the diner?” Ginny took off with a squeal of fright when Gavin jerked himself out of the car. Laughter trailing behind her as she headed for the porch.

Running full tilt to reach the front door first, Ginny pulled on the door knob only to find it locked. Warily she looked over her shoulder to see a satisfied Gavin standing on the bottom of the steps jiggling the house keys in his hand.

“Wow, how the tables have turned.”

Saucily strolling toward the end of the porch, she gave him a plaintive pout.

“How was I supposed to talk him out of buying the diner? He said I was like the daughter he never had, and he missed me.”

“What happened to his business in Nashville?”

“The tornado wiped it out, and the only thing he was able to salvage was his grill. Marty said he wouldn’t have managed to save that except a little birdy warned him to sell before the epidemic hit, and he put the grill in his house and bought a new one for the restaurant. Crazy how it worked out, wouldn’t you say?” Holding back her laughter, she knew Gavin had been the one who warned Marty to get out of restaurant business with the outbreak beginning to spread.

“The only thing I can say,” he said wincing as he handed the house key over to her, “is no good deed goes unpunished.”

Chapter Fifty-Five

Ginny was carrying her laundry basket out the front door when a motorcycle pulled up the driveway. Staying on the porch to keep her distance, she waited for Viper to get off his bike and remove his helmet.

“Is Reaper around?”

Ginny pointed toward to the outbuilding nearby. “He’s at Matthew and Isaac’s forge.”