He opened Gen’s door, and when Jiminy got out, Dozer told him, “Duke’s on his way and will be joining you, but asked me to get ya’ll seated and make sure there aren’t problems. Welcome, and lunch is on the house. I’ll stay out of your way but will be close.”
Duke arrived shortly after the three had placed their orders, but he’d called his in ahead of time so it would be made with theirs. The four sat and talked comfortably, and Gen discreetly checked her phone when it vibrated, and then answered it as she explained, “It’s the other Realtor, hopefully he has good news for us.”
Gen smiled as she heard the counter offer, told her Realtor to give her a moment, and muted the call to tell Jiminy and Pebbles, “Their counter offer’s exactly what I said it’d be. I recommend you accept. He says he can have it in writing in the next thirty minutes, and I know his office isn’t far from here. Want me to see if I can get him to run by here with the paperwork for ya’ll to sign once he has it?”
Duke arranged for a bottle of champagne to be brought out when the other Realtor arrived forty-five minutes later, and the group toasted Jiminy and Pebbles’ new house.
Gen had ridden to the bar with Jiminy and Pebbles, because Jiminy had insisted on driving. Duke told them he’d get her back to her car later, and she hugged Pebbles goodbye. Gen was a little awkward at first with Jiminy, but hugged him back when he wrapped his arms around her.
“You and Pebbles are good for one another,” Jiminy told her, “and I hope the two of you can be good friends. You’ll be welcome at our home anytime, Gen. Thanks for finding it for us.”
“I’ll have to invite the two of you over for dinner and drinks to celebrate, when we close.” She looked at Pebbles with a smile. “Keep in touch, and I’ll see you soon.”
As they pulled away, Duke asked, “Do you really feel so close to her so soon, or was that business?”
Gen shrugged. “A little of both? We got along great before we were kidnapped, but the experience drew us closer, and I’d like to be friends with her. If you aren’t comfortable with it, or think it will be dangerous, I can back off, though.”
He shook his head. “No, Beautiful. Jiminy and I’ll work it out, and your friendship with Pebbles may end up creating some peace we may not have otherwise had. My men aren’t sure what to make of it, but we’re gonna have church this afternoon so I can address their concerns. Glad you texted me with a heads-up, though.”
As Gen walked into the bar area of the restaurant on the way to Duke’s office, she heard a commotion and turned to see a man slap a woman across the face as he rasped, “Fucking cunt, got that and more coming at you for running your stupid, cock-sucking mouth.” Duke took a step towards them, but stopped when he saw Dozer closer to them and already on the way.
Dozer’s fist flew at the man’s face, and Gen watched as the man’s eyes went soft, his body spun in a half circle, and he hit the ground. Out cold.
“Get him in the back and lock him down,” Dozer growled at a prospect as he took a step to the woman, his voice going gentle as he asked, “Ma’am, can I escort you to the back and get some ice on that, please?”
She looked up, nervous, and Gen stepped forward to say, “It’s okay. I can come back there, too. Come on, let us take care of you.” She put her arm around the woman and walked her back, lowering her voice to say, “If you want to call the police and press charges, you should do that now. Once the RTMC gets through with him, you won’t be able to.”
The woman shook her head. “No police. It just pisses him off and then it’ll be worse.”
She heard Dozer growl behind her, and instinctively knew it came from the wolf as much as the man.
Duke handed a bag of ice to Gen, who lifted it to the woman’s face and gently put it on the red around her cheek, nudging it up towards what Gen could now see were the remains of a fading back eye, mostly covered by make-up.
“I’m Gen, my boyfriend Duke came in with the ice, and the big fellow who floored the asshole who hit you is Dozer. What’s your name, sweetheart?”
“I’m Sunny. Thanks for the ice, but I’m okay. Where did they take Terry? I should check on him.”
Dozer stepped forward, replaced his hand where Gen’s was, and gently nudged her out of the way. “Terry’s gonna stay put for a bit, and then I’m gonna have a talk with him. He responsible for the black eye, too?”
Sunny looked up, and up, and up, until she met Dozer’s gaze, and nodded, looking like a wild animal about to run.