“I’m going to check on Bruce Wayne and the office before I pick up Ashley to help your mom. I suppose I should call Joe about the papers.” And meet with your current archnemesis.

“Well, I emailed the papers to him this morning from home, so he’ll have them. Hopefully, you’ll just have to show up and sign them.”

We both knew that was unlikely.

He gave me another kiss, then grabbed the side of the truck door. “Despite your vision, be careful, and if you feel unsafe for any reason, call me or the sheriff. Okay?”

“Mason, I’ll be fine.”

“Skeeter Malcolm is not a man to mess around with, Rose. He specifically mentioned you. That wasn’t for nothing.”

“Okay, and do I have a curfew too?” Mason’s forehead furrowed, and I laughed. “I’m teasing.”

“Well, I’m not. Be careful.”

“I’ll be as careful as I can be.”

“Try to be with someone all day if you can.”

I gave him a slight push. “Mason, go already. I’ll be safe. I promise.”

He grinned. “Why are you trying to get rid of me?”

“So you can get to work and come home to me sooner. Go.”

He gave me another kiss and shut my door. I watched him get into his car as I pulled out my phone. Cringing, I glanced at the screen.

You’re off the hook. For now.

I looked back at the restaurant. The text had been sent while I was sitting in the Big Biscuit with Skeeter watching my back. Had he changed his mind after seeing me with Mason? Maybe he was worried I’d tell his secrets to Mason. In any case, I’d earned a reprieve. With any luck at all, there wouldn’t be a next time.

And if I believed that, then Santa was going to bring me a pony.

Buying a saddle wasn’t a safe bet.

Chapter Five

I decided to suck it up and call Joe on the way to the landscaping office.

“Hey, beautiful,” he answered.

“Joe, you can’t call me that anymore.”

“Why not? It’s true.”

I groaned. “Mason said he sent you the papers for the nursery, but you want me there when you sign them.”

“I thought it would be good to go over all of it together.”

“Well, we still need to discuss some things about the business, so I guess that works. Do you want me to come by the sheriff’s office?”

“How about we meet at the nursery? I want to tell you a few ideas I have while we’re there in the space.”

“Is Violet gonna be there so you can both ambush me again?” I asked dryly.

“Rose, look.” He released a heavy sigh. “I admit that we handled that badly.”

“Oh, really? You think so?”

“I wish I had handled it differently.” He paused. “I wish I’d handled a lot of things differently.”

I wasn’t going down that road again. “If you feel so badly, then let me buy you out.”

He chuckled. “I don’t feel that badly.”

I bit my tongue to keep from cursing. “Then when do you want to meet?”

“How about mid-afternoon? I’m working on something, but I can be free by then.”

“Fine,” I grumbled. “Two o’clock?”

“That works for me.” He hesitated. “And Rose, if you don’t mind, I’d rather Violet not be there.”

I couldn’t help wondering what he had up his sleeve, but I had to admit that I didn’t want the two of them together. The last time they’d met me at the nursery had turned into a disaster. “Okay. I won’t tell her we’re meeting.”

“See you this afternoon.”

Bruce Wayne was already at the office, sitting in his chair, when I arrived. The look on his face told me he was frustrated. He looked behind me, surprised. “Where’s Muffy?”

“I had too many errands to run to bring her,” I said, unbuttoning my coat. “Did the electrician not show?”

“Oh, he showed. It’s what he didn’t do that has me perturbed. Or rather what he wanted.”

I shook my head. “What are you talking about?”

“He said it was going to cost eight-hundred dollars to fix the mess, and I had to pay up front.”

“What? But Mr. Darby is supposed to pay for that.”

“I know, and I told him that, but he said Darby ain’t forking over a dime.”

I put my hand on my hip and let out a loud huff. “Now what are we gonna do?”

“Oh, I already done something.” He got up out of his chair. “I called Mason and told him. He’s gonna make an official call to our landlord.”

I groaned.

“You got the Assistant DA in your back pocket, Rose. Why ain’t you usin’ ’im?”

“You know very well why I’m not using him!”

“Rose.” He took a wary step toward me. “That man would pull the stars from the sky and put ’em on a chain around your neck if you wanted ’em. Why won’t you let him help you with this?”

“Because I spent twenty-four years lettin’ other people make every single decision for me, telling me what I could and couldn’t do. I was incapable of relying on myself, Bruce Wayne. I’m tired of being weak. I never want to be that girl again. I thought you of all people would understand.”

“There’s a difference between being weak and lettin’ people who love and care for you help you from time to time, Rose. You made me partial owner of this business when I didn’t put up a dime. Hell’s bells, you gave me a job when no one else would. You saw I was down on my luck and gave me a hand. Was I weak to accept that?”