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Finally, we both drew back and wiped the tears fro not to notice that we’d been crying in the first place
"So," I said when I could finally speak again "What do you say we hop into Finn’s fancy convertible and drive back to Ashland?"
Bria so hoh hers and, hand in hand, we headed for the car
Chapter 29
Teeks later, it was business as usual at the Pork Pit
Sophia wearing her Goth gear and baking bread for the day’s sandwiches The sers andplates and handing out food as fast as Sophia and I could dish it up Finn, Bria, Owen, and allmy latest book behind the counter in between lulls in the action
Custo whether or not I’d kill theed s hadn’t changed at all People still flocked to the Pork Pit to get a gliht not be the Spider and who ht not have killed Mab Monroe Whispered rumors still followed me from one side of the restaurant to the other, and everyone froze every single time I picked up a knife of any sort to peel potatoes or slice toiven s, and now the obvious stares, rumors, and whispers didn’t bother me as much as they had before People would think what they wanted to about e their rampant speculations Eventually, some other scandal would pop up in Ashland, and everyone would turn their attention to it instead ofher would die down and slowly be forgotten, and I’d be relegated to an urban legend, a myth, if folks bothered to remember me at all But I was okay with that In fact, it couldn’t happen soon enough for me, and I looked forward to the day when I was back in the shadows once more In the meantime, I’d survive - just the way I always did
The folks in Ashland one, but I found that I had - at least a little bit I et the vampire’s vicious attack on s in my life, mainly my fears about Bria
She was my baby sister, and I’d saved her from Mab I’d kept that promise to her, and her life was her o I’d always love Bria whether she chose to stay in Ashland or decided to spread her wings and live somewhere else so anywhere anyti better than ever, now that everything was out in the open between us, and I thought that Finn and Bria were on the verge of sohts, the bell over the front door chimed, and my sister stepped into the restaurant It ar was finally in full force in Ashland, and Bria had left her long coat at ho with a crisp white button-down shirt and a pair of comfortable but stylish black boots As always, she was on the job, and her gun gleaold detective’s badge
It was late in the day, al time, and only a few folks sat at the blue and pink vinyl booths in front of the s, chowing down on their food Bria caister
"Hey there, baby sister," I said, using one of the day’s credit card receipts to mark my place in the copy of Watership Down by Richard Adaet you?"
"Just an iced sweet tea," she said "I’ary tea, then wrapped ic Elelass, i it, and I held my palm up and created a couple of Ice cubes and dropped theood measure It had taken several days for ic that Dekes had stolen froth now, and I couldn’t help but test my power every so often to make sure that it was still there Maybe it was paranoid, but I wasn’t going to take ranted - not anymore
I added a couple of slices of le it over to Bria She took a few long drinks before setting the glass aside, reaching into the back pocket of her jeans, and co up with a small square cream-colored envelope She put the envelope down on the counter and carefully slid it over toinvitation," Bria said in a quiet voice "I just got it today I thought youyou to coht about Callie a lot over the past teeks and even o through with the wedding, but given the invitation, it looked like he intended to after all I knew that in his oay, Donovan had e, and he wanted to keep it He wouldn’t want to e out now, no ht they’d be happy together Callie adored the detective, and she was just the kind of woman Donovan really wanted to be with, deep down Sreat cook They’d find a way to ht have for lad I’d turned him down in the Sea Breeze, because he’d have exactly the kind of life that he wanted - and so would I
"I don’t need to see the invitation," I said, pushing the envelope back across the counter to her "But you can tell Callie that I hope that she has a great life with Donovan I really mean that"
"I know you do"
Bria slipped the invitation back into her pocket She sat at the counter and sipped her tea, and the two of us talked back and forth while I wiped down the counter
"You want to head over to Northern Aggression and get a drink after I close up the restaurant for the night?" I asked "Just the two of us?"
She shook her head "Sorry, but I can’t I’m supposed to meet Finn for an early supper over at Underwood’s But how about a rain check? Maybe tole" style="display:block" data-ad-client="ca-pub-7451196230453695" data-ad-slot="9930101810" data-ad-format="auto" data-full-width-responsive="true"></ins>